Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill is explained in the Notes provided by the Joint Legislative Council in
the bill.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
Prefatory note: This bill was prepared for the joint legislative council's special
committee on developmental disabilities. The bill contains the following provisions:
1. Legislative Members: Council on Developmental Disabilities
Under current law, as modified by 2001 Act 59, the council on developmental
disabilities must consist of state residents appointed for staggered 4 year terms who
represent all geographic areas of the state and who reflect the state's racial and ethnic
diversity.
State residents appointed to the council must represent the following: (1) the
department of workforce development, the department of health and family services, and
the department of public instruction; (2) individuals with developmental disabilities who
are any of the following: individuals with developmental disabilities, parents or
guardians of children with developmental disabilities, or immediate relatives or
guardians of adults with mentally impairing developmental disabilities; (3) the entity
designated by the federal department of health and human services as a university center
for excellence in developmental disabilities education, research and services; (4) the state
protection and advocacy system; and (5) each of the local governmental agencies,
non-governmental agencies and private non profit groups concerned with services for
individuals with developmental disabilities.
In addition, current law requires at least 60% of the council's membership to be any
of the following: (1) individuals with developmental disabilities, (2) parents or guardians
of children with developmental disabilities, or (3) immediate relatives or guardians of
adults with mentally impairing developmental disabilities. Of these individuals, at least
one third must be individuals with developmental disabilities, one third must be parents
or guardians of children with developmental disabilities or immediate relatives or
guardians of adults with mentally impairing developmental disabilities, and one third
must be individuals with developmental disabilities, parents or guardians of children
with developmental disabilities, or immediate relatives or guardians of adults with
mentally impairing developmental disabilities. At least one of these members must
reside in or have previously resided in an institution, including a state center for the
developmentally disabled, or be the immediate relative or guardian of such an individual.
This bill amends current law regarding the membership of the council on
developmental disabilities as follows:
a. Requires the governor to appoint 4 legislative members to the council on
developmental disabilities, as designated by the speaker of the assembly, the assembly
minority leader, the senate majority leader and the senate minority leader.
b. Requires the council to evaluate the waiting lists for developmental disabilities
services compiled by DHFS and to submit an annual report regarding the status of the
waiting lists to the legislature in the end of each calendar year.
2. Children's Long-Term Support Redesign
DHFS appointed a children's committee on long-term care as part of the effort to
redesign the state system on long-term care. The children's long-term support redesign
committee developed a model to redesign the current system of care for children and their
families, to be implemented as a pilot program and funded by federal medicaid waiver
funding. The children's home and community-based waiver would define children with
physical, sensory, developmental and significant health care needs as eligible. The

waiver would permit the blending of the family support program, the community options
program (COP), and MA waiver funding into a single funding stream. The intended
effects are to streamline services and secure additional federal matching funds. DHFS
would offer the waiver to children and families currently receiving services through
family support, COP, MA home and community-based waivers and MA fee-for-service.
Under the waiver, the funds for these programs would be managed within individual
budgets based upon the child's functional needs. DHFS would pilot this waiver on a
statewide, voluntary basis. The current family care pilot counties would have the option
of piloting the children's waiver and coordinating it with the family care program.
Families already receiving long-term support services would be offered the opportunity
to enroll in the children's waiver on a voluntary basis.
The biennial budget act requires DHFS to seek waivers of federal MA statutes and
regulations that are necessary to implement the program in pilot sites. If the waivers are
approved, the biennial budget act requires DHFS to seek statutory language to
implement the children's long-term support redesign on a piloted basis.
The bill restores language governing the children's long-term support redesign
pilot program that was vetoed by the Governor in the biennial budget act. The restored
language does the following:
a. Requires DHFS to seek the necessary federal waivers and enactment of
necessary statutory language and funding as soon as possible before July 1, 2004.
b. Provides for the expansion of eligibility under certain long-term care programs
currently serving children to include children with severe disabilities and long-term care
needs and children eligible for medical assistance with high medical costs, and the
expansion of medical assistance to include services focused on the needs of children with
developmental disabilities and their families.
c. Requires DHFS to provide transitional services to families whose children with
physical or developmental disabilities are preparing to enter the adult service system.
3. Administration and Funding of Developmental Disabilities Services
This bill requires DHFS to develop a plan to administer and fund services for
persons with developmental disabilities, and to submit that plan to the department of
administration as part of DHFS's budget request for the 2005-07 biennium. The plan
that is submitted shall include any recommended statutory language changes that are
needed to implement the plan. The plan must require all institutional and
community-based services for persons with developmental disabilities to be
administered within one administrative subunit of DHFS. The subunit designated to do
this must be the subunit that is administering community-based services for persons
with developmental disabilities as of the effective date of this act.
Further, the plan must provide that funding under the medical assistance program
for institutional services and home and community-based waiver services for persons
with developmental disabilities shall be combined into one appropriation to the extent
permissible under federal law. DHFS must apply for any necessary waivers of federal MA
statutes and regulations from the federal department of health and human services.
SB74, s. 1 1Section 1. 15.197 (11n) (am) 4. of the statutes is created to read:
SB74,3,42 15.197 (11n) (am) 4. Four members of the legislature, of which one each is
3designated by the speaker of the assembly, the senate majority leader, and the
4minority leader in each house of the legislature and appointed by the governor.
SB74, s. 2 5Section 2. 15.197 (11n) (d) of the statutes is created to read:
SB74,4,4
115.197 (11n) (d) By January 31 annually, the council shall prepare a report for
2the preceding calendar year and shall submit the report to the legislature under s.
313.172 (2). The report shall evaluate the waiting lists compiled by the department
4of health and family services for services for persons with developmental disabilities.
SB74, s. 3 5Section 3. 2001 Wisconsin Act 16, section 9123 (16rs) (b) (intro.) is amended
6to read:
SB74,4,127[2001 Wisconsin Act 16] Section 9123 (16rs) (b) (intro.) The department of
8health and family services shall, as soon as possible before July 1, 2004, seek waivers
9of federal medical assistance statutes and regulations from the federal department
10of health and human services that are necessary to implement, in pilot sites, the
11program. If the waivers are granted, the program shall have all of the following
12characteristics:
SB74, s. 4 13Section 4. 2001 Wisconsin Act 16, section 9123 (16rs) (b) 1. is created to read:
SB74,4,1914[2001 Wisconsin Act 16] Section 9123 (16rs) (b) 1. Eligibility under sections
1546.27 (11), 46.275, 46.277, 46.278, 46.985, and 51.44 of the statutes shall be expanded
16to include children with severe disabilities and long-term care needs and children
17eligible for Medical Assistance with high medical costs, and Medical Assistance
18coverage of services shall be expanded to include services focused on the needs of
19children with developmental disabilities and their families.
SB74, s. 5 20Section 5. 2001 Wisconsin Act 16, section 9123 (16rs) (b) 14. is created to read:
SB74,4,2421[2001 Wisconsin Act 16] Section 9123 (16rs) (b) 14. The department of health
22and family services shall provide transitional services to families whose children
23with physical or developmental disabilities are preparing to enter the adult service
24system.
SB74, s. 6 25Section 6. 2001 Wisconsin Act 16, section 9123 (16rs) (c) is amended to read:
SB74,5,9
1[2001 Wisconsin Act 16] Section 9123 (16rs) (c) If the federal waivers specified
2under paragraph (b) are approved, the department of health and family services
3shall, as soon as possible before July 1, 2004, seek enactment of statutory language,
4including appropriation of necessary funding, to implement the model described
5under paragraph (b), as approved under the federal waivers. Any new resources for
6supports and services for long-term care for children with disabilities and their
7families shall be managed under the program after approval of the federal waivers
8specified in paragraph (b) and enactment of necessary statutory language to
9implement the model under paragraph (b).
SB74, s. 7 10Section 7. Nonstatutory provisions; health and family services.
SB74,5,1711 (1) Plan for services for persons with developmental disabilities. The
12department of health and family services shall develop a plan to administer and fund
13services for persons with developmental disabilities. The plan, which shall include
14any recommended statutory language changes that are needed to implement the
15plan, shall be included in that department's budget request that is submitted to the
16department of administration for the 2005-07 biennium. The plan shall include the
17following components:
SB74,5,2318 (a) Institutional and community-based services for persons with
19developmental disabilities shall be administered within one administrative subunit
20of the department of health and family services. The subunit that is designated to
21administer these services shall be the subunit that is administering
22community-based services for persons with developmental disabilities on the
23effective date of this paragraph.
SB74,6,424 (b) Funding under the Medical Assistance Program for institutional services
25and home and community-based waiver services for persons with developmental

1disabilities shall be combined into one appropriation, to the extent permissible under
2federal law. The funding in this appropriation may not be tied to any specific
3program or service setting, but shall be individually tailored to enable the person to
4live in the least restrictive setting appropriate to his or her needs and preferences.
SB74,6,125 (2) Medical Assistance waivers for developmental disabilities services. The
6department of health and family services shall determine whether any new waivers
7under the Medical Assistance Program are necessary to administer funding for
8Medical Assistance services as described in subsection (1) (b ). That department shall
9apply for any waivers of federal Medical Assistance statutes and regulations from
10the federal department of health and human services that the department of health
11and family services determines are necessary to administer funding for Medical
12Assistance services as described in subsection (1 ) (b).
SB74,6,1313 (End)
Loading...
Loading...