II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2401 

To reauthorize the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 20, 2021 

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Ms. HASSAN, and Mr. CRAMER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Assistive Technology Act of 1998, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘21st Century Assistive 

5 Technology Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION. 

7 The Assistive Technology Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

8 3001 et seq.) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘Assistive Technology Act of 1998’. 

4 ‘‘(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents 

5 of this Act is as follows: 

‘‘Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

‘‘Sec. 2. Findings and purposes. 

‘‘Sec. 3. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 4. Grants for State assistive technology programs. 

‘‘Sec. 5. State grants for protection and advocacy services related to assistive 

technology. 

‘‘Sec. 6. Technical assistance and data collection support. 

‘‘Sec. 7. Projects of national significance. 

‘‘Sec. 8. Administrative provisions. 

‘‘Sec. 9. Authorization of appropriations; reservations and distribution of funds. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

7 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

8 ‘‘(1) Over 54,000,000 individuals in the United 

9 States have disabilities, with almost half experi10 encing severe disabilities that affect their ability to 

11 see, hear, communicate, reason, walk, or perform 

12 other basic life functions. 

13 ‘‘(2) Disability is a natural part of the human 

14 experience and in no way diminishes the right of in15 dividuals to— 

16 ‘‘(A) live independently; 

17 ‘‘(B) enjoy self-determination and make 

18 choices; 

19 ‘‘(C) benefit from an education; 

20 ‘‘(D) pursue competitive, integrated em21 ployment; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) enjoy full inclusion and integration in 

2 the economic, political, social, cultural, and edu3 cational mainstream of society in the United 

4 States. 

5 ‘‘(3) Technology is one of the primary engines 

6 for economic activity, education, and innovation in 

7 the Nation, and throughout the world. The commit8 ment of the United States to the development and 

9 utilization of technology is one of the main factors 

10 underlying the strength and vibrancy of the economy 

11 of the United States. 

12 ‘‘(4) As technology has come to play an increas13 ingly important role in the lives of all persons in the 

14 United States, in the conduct of business, in the 

15 functioning of government, in the fostering of com16 munication, in the conduct of commerce, and in the 

17 provision of education, its impact upon the lives of 

18 individuals with disabilities in the United States has 

19 been comparable to its impact upon the remainder 

20 of the citizens of the United States. Any develop21 ment in mainstream technology will have profound 

22 implications for individuals with disabilities in the 

23 United States. 

24 ‘‘(5) Substantial progress has been made in the 

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1 ing adaptations to existing devices that facilitate ac2 tivities of daily living that significantly benefit indi3 viduals with disabilities of all ages. These devices, 

4 including adaptations, increase involvement in, and 

5 reduce expenditures associated with, programs and 

6 activities that facilitate communication, ensure inde7 pendent functioning, enable early childhood develop8 ment, support educational achievement, provide and 

9 enhance employment options, and enable full partici10 pation in community living for individuals with dis11 abilities. Access to such devices can also reduce ex12 penditures associated with early childhood interven13 tion, education, rehabilitation and training, health 

14 care, employment, residential living, independent liv15 ing, recreation opportunities, and other aspects of 

16 daily living. 

17 ‘‘(6) Over the last 15 years, the Federal Gov18 ernment has invested in the development of com19 prehensive statewide programs of technology-related 

20 assistance, which have proven effective in assisting 

21 individuals with disabilities in accessing assistive 

22 technology devices and assistive technology services. 

23 This partnership between the Federal Government 

24 and the States provided an important service to indi25 viduals with disabilities by strengthening the capacVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 ity of each State to assist individuals with disabil2 ities of all ages meet their assistive technology 

3 needs. 

4 ‘‘(7) Despite the success of the Federal-State 

5 partnership in providing access to assistive tech6 nology devices and assistive technology services, 

7 there is a continued need to provide information and 

8 legally based advocacy about the availability of as9 sistive technology, advances in improving accessi10 bility and functionality of assistive technology, and 

11 appropriate methods to secure and utilize assistive 

12 technology in order to maximize the independence 

13 and participation of individuals with disabilities in 

14 society. 

15 ‘‘(8) The combination of significant recent 

16 changes in Federal policy (including changes to sec17 tion 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

18 U.S.C. 794d)), accessibility provisions of the Help 

19 America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15301 et 

20 seq.), and the amendments made to the Elementary 

21 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

22 6301 et seq.) by the No Child Left Behind Act of 

23 2001 (Public Law 107–110; 115 Stat. 1425) and 

24 the rapid and unending evolution of technology re25 quire a Federal-State investment in State assistive 


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1 technology programs, as well as an investment in 

2 protection and advocacy systems, to continue to en3 sure that individuals with disabilities reap the bene4 fits of the technological revolution and participate 

5 fully in life in their communities. 

6 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 

7 ‘‘(1) to support State efforts to improve the 

8 provision of assistive technology to individuals with 

9 disabilities through a comprehensive statewide con10 tinuum of integrated activities, for individuals with 

11 disabilities of all ages, that are designed to— 

12 ‘‘(A) increase the availability of, funding 

13 for, access to, provision of, and training about 

14 assistive technology devices and assistive tech15 nology services; 

16 ‘‘(B) increase the ability of individuals 

17 with disabilities of all ages to secure and main18 tain possession of assistive technology devices 

19 as such individuals make the transition between 

20 services offered by educational or human service 

21 agencies or between settings of daily living (for 

22 example, between home and work); 

23 ‘‘(C) increase the capacity of public agen24 cies and private entities to provide and pay for 

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1 nology services on a statewide basis for individ2 uals with disabilities of all ages; 

3 ‘‘(D) increase the involvement of individ4 uals with disabilities and, if appropriate, their 

5 family members, guardians, advocates, and au6 thorized representatives, in decisions related to 

7 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

8 assistive technology services; 

9 ‘‘(E) increase and promote coordination 

10 among State agencies, between State and local 

11 agencies, among local agencies, and between 

12 State and local agencies and private entities 

13 (such as managed care providers), that are in14 volved or are eligible to be involved in carrying 

15 out activities under this Act; 

16 ‘‘(F) increase the awareness and facilitate 

17 the change of laws, regulations, policies, prac18 tices, procedures, and organizational structures, 

19 that facilitate the availability or provision of as20 sistive technology devices and assistive tech21 nology services; and 

22 ‘‘(G) increase awareness and knowledge of 

23 the benefits of assistive technology devices and 

24 assistive technology services among individuals 

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1 viduals and their families, and the general pop2 ulation; and 

3 ‘‘(2) to provide States and protection and advo4 cacy systems with financial assistance that supports 

5 programs designed to maximize the ability of indi6 viduals with disabilities and their family members, 

7 guardians, advocates, and authorized representatives 

8 to obtain assistive technology devices and assistive 

9 technology services. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

11 ‘‘In this Act: 

12 ‘‘(1) ADULT SERVICE PROGRAM.—The term 

13 ‘adult service program’ means a program that pro14 vides services to, or is otherwise substantially in15 volved with the major life functions of, individuals 

16 with disabilities. Such term includes— 

17 ‘‘(A) a program providing residential, sup18 portive, or employment services, or employment19 related services, to individuals with disabilities; 

20 ‘‘(B) a program carried out by a center for 

21 independent living, such as a center described 

22 in part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation Act 

23 of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et seq.); 

24 ‘‘(C) a program carried out by an employ25 ment support agency connected to adult vocaVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 tional rehabilitation, such as a one-stop partner, 

2 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Inno3 vation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102); 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(D) a program carried out by another or6 ganization or vender licensed or registered by 

7 the designated State agency, as defined in sec8 tion 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

9 U.S.C. 705). 

10 ‘‘(2) AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.—The 

11 term ‘American Indian consortium’ means an entity 

12 that is an American Indian Consortium (as defined 

13 in section 102 of the Developmental Disabilities As14 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

15 15002)), and that is established to provide protec16 tion and advocacy services for purposes of receiving 

17 funding under subtitle C of title I of such Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 15041 et seq.). 

19 ‘‘(3) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘as20 sistive technology’ means technology designed to be 

21 utilized in an assistive technology device or assistive 

22 technology service. 

23 ‘‘(4) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICE.—The 

24 term ‘assistive technology device’ means any item, 

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1 quired commercially, modified, or customized, that is 

2 used to increase, maintain, or improve functional ca3 pabilities of individuals with disabilities. 

4 ‘‘(5) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SERVICE.—The 

5 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service 

6 that directly assists an individual with a disability in 

7 the selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive tech8 nology device. Such term includes— 

9 ‘‘(A) the evaluation of the assistive tech10 nology needs of an individual with a disability, 

11 including a functional evaluation of the impact 

12 of the provision of appropriate assistive tech13 nology and appropriate services to the indi14 vidual in the customary environment of the in15 dividual; 

16 ‘‘(B) a service consisting of purchasing, 

17 leasing, or otherwise providing for the acquisi18 tion of assistive technology devices by individ19 uals with disabilities; 

20 ‘‘(C) a service consisting of selecting, de21 signing, fitting, customizing, adapting, apply22 ing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, or donat23 ing assistive technology devices; 

24 ‘‘(D) coordination and use of necessary 

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1 ive technology devices, such as therapies, inter2 ventions, or services associated with education 

3 and rehabilitation plans and programs; 

4 ‘‘(E) training or technical assistance for an 

5 individual with a disability or, where appro6 priate, the family members, guardians, advo7 cates, or authorized representatives of such an 

8 individual; 

9 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for 

10 professionals (including individuals providing 

11 education and rehabilitation services and enti12 ties that manufacture or sell assistive tech13 nology devices), employers, providers of employ14 ment and training services, or other individuals 

15 who provide services to, employ, or are other16 wise substantially involved in the major life 

17 functions of individuals with disabilities; and 

18 ‘‘(G) a service consisting of expanding the 

19 availability of access to technology, including 

20 electronic and information technology, to indi21 viduals with disabilities. 

22 ‘‘(6) CAPACITY BUILDING AND ADVOCACY AC23 TIVITIES.—The term ‘capacity building and advo24 cacy activities’ means efforts that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) result in laws, regulations, policies, 

2 practices, procedures, or organizational struc3 tures that promote consumer-responsive pro4 grams or entities; and 

5 ‘‘(B) facilitate and increase access to, pro6 vision of, and funding for, assistive technology 

7 devices and assistive technology services, in 

8 order to empower individuals with disabilities to 

9 achieve greater independence, productivity, and 

10 integration and inclusion within the community 

11 and the workforce. 

12 ‘‘(7) COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE PROGRAM OF

13 TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ASSISTANCE.—The term 

14 ‘comprehensive statewide program of technology-re15 lated assistance’ means a consumer-responsive pro16 gram of technology-related assistance for individuals 

17 with disabilities— 

18 ‘‘(A) implemented by a State; 

19 ‘‘(B) equally available to all individuals 

20 with disabilities residing in the State, regardless 

21 of their type of disability, age, income level, or 

22 location of residence in the State, or the type 

23 of assistive technology device or assistive tech24 nology service required; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) that incorporates all of the activities 

2 described in section 4(e) (unless excluded pur3 suant to section 4(e)(6)). 

4 ‘‘(8) CONSUMER-RESPONSIVE.—The term ‘con5 sumer-responsive’— 

6 ‘‘(A) with regard to policies, means that 

7 the policies are consistent with the principles 

8 of— 

9 ‘‘(i) respect for individual dignity, per10 sonal responsibility, self-determination, and 

11 pursuit of meaningful careers, based on in12 formed choice, of individuals with disabil13 ities; 

14 ‘‘(ii) respect for the privacy, rights, 

15 and equal access (including the use of ac16 cessible formats) of such individuals; 

17 ‘‘(iii) inclusion, integration, and full 

18 participation of such individuals in society; 

19 ‘‘(iv) support for the involvement in 

20 decisions of a family member, a guardian, 

21 an advocate, or an authorized representa22 tive, if an individual with a disability re23 quests, desires, or needs such involvement; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(v) support for individual and sys2 tems advocacy and community involve3 ment; and 

4 ‘‘(B) with respect to an entity, program, or 

5 activity, means that the entity, program, or ac6 tivity— 

7 ‘‘(i) is easily accessible to, and usable 

8 by, individuals with disabilities and, when 

9 appropriate, their family members, guard10 ians, advocates, or authorized representa11 tives; 

12 ‘‘(ii) responds to the needs of individ13 uals with disabilities in a timely and appro14 priate manner; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) facilitates the full and meaning16 ful participation of individuals with disabil17 ities (including individuals from underrep18 resented populations and rural popu19 lations) and their family members, guard20 ians, advocates, and authorized representa21 tives, in— 

22 ‘‘(I) decisions relating to the pro23 vision of assistive technology devices 

24 and assistive technology services to 

25 such individuals; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) decisions related to the 

2 maintenance, improvement, and eval3 uation of the comprehensive statewide 

4 program of technology-related assist5 ance, including decisions that affect 

6 capacity building and advocacy activi7 ties. 

8 ‘‘(9) DISABILITY.—The term ‘disability’ has the 

9 meaning given the term under section 3 of the 

10 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

11 12102). 

12 ‘‘(10) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY; INDI13 VIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.— 

15 The term ‘individual with a disability’ means 

16 any individual of any age, race, or ethnicity— 

17 ‘‘(i) who has a disability; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) who is or would be enabled by an 

19 assistive technology device or an assistive 

20 technology service to minimize deteriora21 tion in functioning, to maintain a level of 

22 functioning, or to achieve a greater level of 

23 functioning in any major life activity. 


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1 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.— 

2 The term ‘individuals with disabilities’ means 

3 more than 1 individual with a disability. 

4 ‘‘(11) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

5 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

6 meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the 

7 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)), 

8 and includes a community college receiving funding 

9 under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Univer10 sities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et 

11 seq.). 

12 ‘‘(12) PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SERV13 ICES.—The term ‘protection and advocacy services’ 

14 means services that— 

15 ‘‘(A) are described in subtitle C of title I 

16 of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 

17 and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

18 15041 et seq.), the Protection and Advocacy for 

19 Individuals with Mental Illness Act (42 U.S.C. 

20 10801 et seq.), or section 509 of the Rehabilita21 tion Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794e); and 

22 ‘‘(B) assist individuals with disabilities 

23 with respect to assistive technology devices and 

24 assistive technology services. 


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1 ‘‘(13) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 

2 means the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 

3 acting through the Administrator for Community 

4 Living. 

5 ‘‘(14) STATE.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

7 subparagraph (B), the term ‘State’ means each 

8 of the 50 States of the United States, the Dis9 trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 

10 Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

11 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of 

12 the Northern Mariana Islands. 

13 ‘‘(B) OUTLYING AREAS.—In section 4(b): 

14 ‘‘(i) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘out15 lying area’ means the United States Virgin 

16 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

17 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

18 Islands. 

19 ‘‘(ii) STATE.—The term ‘State’ does 

20 not include the United States Virgin Is21 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

22 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

23 Islands. 


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1 ‘‘(15) STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO2 GRAM.—The term ‘State assistive technology pro3 gram’ means a program authorized under section 4. 

4 ‘‘(16) TARGETED INDIVIDUALS AND ENTI5 TIES.—The term ‘targeted individuals and entities’ 

6 means— 

7 ‘‘(A) individuals with disabilities of all ages 

8 and their family members, guardians, advo9 cates, and authorized representatives; 

10 ‘‘(B) underrepresented populations, includ11 ing the aging workforce; 

12 ‘‘(C) individuals who work for public or 

13 private entities (including centers for inde14 pendent living described in part C of title VII 

15 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 

16 796f et seq.), insurers, or managed care pro17 viders) that have contact, or provide services to, 

18 with individuals with disabilities; 

19 ‘‘(D) educators at all levels (including pro20 viders of early intervention services, elementary 

21 schools, secondary schools, community colleges, 

22 and vocational and other institutions of higher 

23 education) and related services personnel; 

24 ‘‘(E) technology experts (including web de25 signers and procurement officials); 


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1 ‘‘(F) health, allied health, and rehabilita2 tion professionals and hospital employees (in3 cluding discharge planners); 

4 ‘‘(G) employers, especially small business 

5 employers, and providers of employment and 

6 training services; 

7 ‘‘(H) entities that manufacture or sell as8 sistive technology devices; 

9 ‘‘(I) entities that carry out community pro10 grams designed to develop essential community 

11 services in rural and urban areas; and 

12 ‘‘(J) other appropriate individuals and en13 tities, as determined for a State by the State. 

14 ‘‘(17) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION.— 

15 The term ‘underrepresented population’ means a 

16 population that is typically underrepresented in serv17 ice provision, and includes populations such as indi18 viduals who have low-incidence disabilities, individ19 uals who are minorities, individuals with a total fam20 ily income that is below the poverty line (as defined 

21 in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor22 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)), individuals with lim23 ited English proficiency, older individuals, or individ24 uals from rural areas. 


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1 ‘‘(18) UNIVERSAL DESIGN.—The term ‘uni2 versal design’ means a concept or philosophy for de3 signing and delivering products and services that are 

4 usable by people with the widest possible range of 

5 functional capabilities, which include products and 

6 services that are directly accessible (without requir7 ing assistive technologies) and products and services 

8 that are interoperable with assistive technologies. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO10 GRAMS. 

11 ‘‘(a) GRANTS TO STATES.—The Secretary shall 

12 award grants under subsection (b) to States to maintain 

13 a comprehensive statewide continuum of integrated assist14 ive technology activities described in subsection (e) 

15 through State assistive technology programs that are de16 signed to— 

17 ‘‘(1) maximize the ability of individuals with 

18 disabilities across the human lifespan and across the 

19 wide array of disabilities, and their family members, 

20 guardians, advocates, and authorized representa21 tives, to obtain assistive technology; and 

22 ‘‘(2) to increase access to assistive technology. 

23 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From funds made available 

25 to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award 


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1 a grant to each eligible State and eligible outlying 

2 area from an allotment determined in accordance 

3 with paragraph (2). 

4 ‘‘(2) CALCULATION OF STATE GRANTS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) BASE YEAR.—Except as provided in 

6 subparagraphs (B) and (C), the Secretary shall 

7 allot to each State and outlying area for a fiscal 

8 year an amount that is not less than the 

9 amount the State or outlying area received 

10 under the grants provided under section 4 of 

11 this Act (as in effect on the day before the ef12 fective date of the 21st Century Assistive Tech13 nology Act) for fiscal year 2021. 

14 ‘‘(B) RATABLE REDUCTION.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If funds made 

16 available to carry out this section for any 

17 fiscal year are insufficient to make the al18 lotments required for each State and out19 lying area under subparagraph (A) for 

20 such fiscal year, the Secretary shall ratably 

21 reduce the allotments for such fiscal year. 

22 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—If, after 

23 the Secretary makes the reductions de24 scribed in clause (i), additional funds be25 come available to carry out this section for 


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1 the fiscal year, the Secretary shall ratably 

2 increase the allotments, until the Secretary 

3 has allotted the entire base year amount 

4 under this paragraph. 

5 ‘‘(C) HIGHER APPROPRIATION YEARS.— 

6 For a fiscal year for which the amount of funds 

7 made available to carry out this section is 

8 greater than the base year amount described in 

9 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) make the allotments described in 

11 subparagraph (A); 

12 ‘‘(ii) from the funds remaining after 

13 the allotments described in clause (i), allot 

14 to each State or outlying area an equal 

15 amount of such funds, until each State has 

16 received an allotment under clause (i) and 

17 this clause of not less than $550,000, and 

18 each outlying area has received an allot19 ment of $167,500; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) from the remainder of the funds 

21 after the Secretary makes the allotments 

22 described in clause (ii)— 

23 ‘‘(I) from 50 percent of the re24 mainder allot to each State an 

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1 ship to such 50 percent as the popu2 lation of the State bears to the popu3 lation of all States; and 

4 ‘‘(II) from 50 percent of the re5 mainder, allot to each State an equal 

6 amount. 

7 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts made 

8 available for an award year under this section shall 

9 be available for the award year and the year fol10 lowing the award year. 

11 ‘‘(c) LEAD AGENCY, IMPLEMENTING ENTITY, AND

12 ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

13 ‘‘(1) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI14 TY.— 

15 ‘‘(A) LEAD AGENCY.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a 

17 State shall designate a public agency as a 

18 lead agency— 

19 ‘‘(I) to control and administer 

20 the funds made available through the 

21 grant awarded to the State under this 

22 section; and 

23 ‘‘(II) to submit the application 

24 described in subsection (d) on behalf 

25 of the State, to ensure conformance 


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1 with Federal and State accounting re2 quirements. 

3 ‘‘(ii) DUTIES.—The duties of the lead 

4 agency shall include— 

5 ‘‘(I) preparing the application de6 scribed in subsection (d) and carrying 

7 out State activities described in that 

8 application, including making pro9 grammatic and resource allocation de10 cisions necessary to implement the 

11 comprehensive statewide program of 

12 technology-related assistance; 

13 ‘‘(II) coordinating the activities 

14 of the comprehensive statewide pro15 gram of technology-related assistance 

16 among public and private entities, in17 cluding coordinating efforts related to 

18 entering into interagency agreements, 

19 and maintaining and evaluating the 

20 program; and 

21 ‘‘(III) coordinating culturally 

22 competent efforts related to the ac23 tive, timely, and meaningful participa24 tion by individuals with disabilities 

25 and their family members, guardians, 


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1 advocates, or authorized representa2 tives, and other appropriate individ3 uals, with respect to activities carried 

4 out through the grant. 

5 ‘‘(B) IMPLEMENTING ENTITY.—The Gov6 ernor or lead agency may designate an agency, 

7 office, or other entity to carry out all State ac8 tivities under this section (referred to in this 

9 section as the ‘implementing entity’), if such 

10 implementing entity is different from the lead 

11 agency. The implementing entity shall carry out 

12 responsibilities under this Act through a sub13 contract or another administrative agreement 

14 with the lead agency. 

15 ‘‘(C) CHANGE IN AGENCY OR ENTITY.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—On obtaining the 

17 approval of the Secretary— 

18 ‘‘(I) the Governor may redesig19 nate the lead agency of a State, if the 

20 Governor shows to the Secretary good 

21 cause why the entity designated as the 

22 lead agency should not serve as that 

23 agency; and 

24 ‘‘(II) the Governor or the lead 

25 agency may redesignate the impleVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 menting entity of a State, if the Gov2 ernor or lead agency shows to the Sec3 retary, in accordance with subsection 

4 (d)(2)(B), good cause why the entity 

5 designated as the implementing entity 

6 should not serve as that entity. 

7 ‘‘(ii) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

8 this paragraph shall be construed to re9 quire the Governor of a State to change 

10 the lead agency or implementing entity of 

11 the State to an agency other than the lead 

12 agency or implementing entity of such 

13 State as of the date of enactment of the 

14 Assistive Technology Act of 2004 (Public 

15 Law 108–364; 118 Stat. 1707). 

16 ‘‘(2) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There shall be estab18 lished an advisory council to provide consumer19 responsive, consumer-driven advice to the State 

20 for, planning of, implementation of, and evalua21 tion of the activities carried out through the 

22 grant, including setting the measurable goals 

23 described in subsection (d)(3)(C). 

24 ‘‘(B) COMPOSITION AND REPRESENTA25 TION.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) COMPOSITION.—The advisory 

2 council shall be composed of— 

3 ‘‘(I) individuals with disabilities 

4 that use assistive technology, includ5 ing individuals over 50 years of age, 

6 or the family members or guardians of 

7 the individuals; 

8 ‘‘(II) a representative of the des9 ignated State agency, as defined in 

10 section 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

11 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705) and the State 

12 agency for individuals who are blind 

13 (within the meaning of section 101 of 

14 that Act (29 U.S.C. 721)), if such 

15 agency is separate; 

16 ‘‘(III) a representative of a State 

17 center for independent living described 

18 in part C of title VII of the Rehabili19 tation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et 

20 seq.) or the Statewide Independent 

21 Living Council established under sec22 tion 705 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

23 796d); 

24 ‘‘(IV) a representative of the 

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1 tablished under section 101 of the 

2 Workforce Innovation and Oppor3 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111); 

4 ‘‘(V) a representative of 1 or 

5 more of the following: 

6 ‘‘(aa) the agency responsible 

7 for administering the State Med8 icaid program under title XIX of 

9 the Social Security Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); 

11 ‘‘(bb) the designated State 

12 agency for purposes of section 

13 124 of the Developmental Dis14 abilities Assistance and Bill of 

15 Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

16 15024); 

17 ‘‘(cc) the State agency des18 ignated under section 305(a)(1) 

19 of the Older Americans Act of 

20 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)(1)) or 

21 an organization that receives as22 sistant under such Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.); 

24 ‘‘(dd) an organization rep25 resenting injured veterans; 


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1 ‘‘(ee) A University Center 

2 for Excellence in Developmental 

3 Disabilities Education, Research, 

4 and Service designated under 

5 section 151(a) of the Develop6 mental Disabilities Assistance 

7 and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 

8 (42 U.S.C. 15061(a)); 

9 ‘‘(ff) the State protection 

10 and advocacy system established 

11 in accordance with section 143 of 

12 the Developmental Disabilities 

13 Assistance and Bill of Rights Act 

14 of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15043); or 

15 ‘‘(gg) the State Council on 

16 Developmental Disabilities estab17 lished under section 125 of the 

18 Developmental Disabilities As19 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 

20 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15025); 

21 ‘‘(VI) a representative of the 

22 State educational agency, as defined 

23 in section 8101 of the Elementary and 

24 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

25 U.S.C. 7801); 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(VII) a representative of an al2 ternative financing program for assist3 ive technology, if— 

4 ‘‘(aa) there is an alternative 

5 financing program for assistive 

6 technology in the State; 

7 ‘‘(bb) such program is sepa8 rate from the State assistive 

9 technology program supported 

10 under subsection (e)(2); and 

11 ‘‘(cc) the program described 

12 in item (aa) is operated by a non13 profit entity; and 

14 ‘‘(VIII) representatives of other 

15 State agencies, public agencies, or pri16 vate organizations, as determined by 

17 the State. 

18 ‘‘(ii) MAJORITY.— 

19 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 

20 51 percent of the members of the ad21 visory council shall be members ap22 pointed under clause (i)(I), in a man23 ner that ensures— 

24 ‘‘(aa) not less than 31 per25 cent of the members of the adviVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 sory council are individuals with 

2 disabilities described in such 

3 clause; and 

4 ‘‘(bb) not more than 20 per5 cent of the members of the advi6 sory council are family members 

7 or guardians of individuals with 

8 disabilities described in such 

9 clause. 

10 ‘‘(II) REPRESENTATIVES OF

11 AGENCIES.—Members appointed 

12 under subclauses (II) through (VIII) 

13 of clause (i) shall not count toward 

14 the majority membership requirement 

15 established in subclause (I). 

16 ‘‘(iii) REPRESENTATION.—The advi17 sory council shall be geographically rep18 resentative of the State and reflect the di19 versity of the State with respect to race, 

20 ethnicity, types of disabilities across the 

21 age span, and users of types of services 

22 that an individual with a disability may re23 ceive. 

24 ‘‘(C) EXPENSES.—The members of the ad25 visory council shall receive no compensation for 


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•S 2401 IS

1 their service on the advisory council, but shall 

2 be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary ex3 penses actually incurred in the performance of 

4 official duties for the advisory council. 

5 ‘‘(D) IMPACT ON EXISTING STATUTES, 

6 RULES, OR POLICIES.—Nothing in this para7 graph shall be construed to affect State stat8 utes, rules, or official policies relating to advi9 sory bodies for State assistive technology pro10 grams or require changes to governing bodies of 

11 incorporated agencies who carry out State as12 sistive technology programs. 

13 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any State that desires to 

15 receive a grant under this section shall submit an 

16 application to the Secretary, at such time, in such 

17 manner, and containing such information as the Sec18 retary may require. 

19 ‘‘(2) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI20 TY.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The application shall 

22 contain— 

23 ‘‘(i) information identifying and de24 scribing the lead agency referred to in sub25 section (c)(1)(A); 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) information identifying and de2 scribing the implementing entity referred 

3 to in subsection (c)(1)(B), if the Governor 

4 or lead agency of the State designates such 

5 an entity; 

6 ‘‘(iii) a description of how individuals 

7 with disabilities were involved in the devel8 opment of the application and will be in9 volved in the implementation of the activi10 ties to be carried out through the grant 

11 and through the advisory council estab12 lished in accordance with subsection (c)(2); 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(iv) a description of how individuals 

15 with disabilities were involved in the devel16 opment of the application and will be in17 volved in the implementation of the activi18 ties to be carried out through the grant 

19 and through the advisory council. 

20 ‘‘(B) CHANGE IN LEAD AGENCY OR IMPLE21 MENTING AGENCY.—In any case where the Gov22 ernor or lead agency requests to redesignate a 

23 lead agency or implementing entity, as the case 

24 may be, the Governor or lead agency shall in25 clude in, or amend, the application to request 


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•S 2401 IS

1 the redesignation and provide a written descrip2 tion of the rationale for why the entity des3 ignated as the lead agency or implementing en4 tity, as the case may be, should not serve as 

5 that agency or entity. 

6 ‘‘(3) STATE PLAN.—The application under this 

7 subsection shall include a State plan for assistive 

8 technology, consisting of— 

9 ‘‘(A) a description of how the State will 

10 carry out a statewide continuum of integrated 

11 assistive technology activities and implement all 

12 activities described in subsection (e) (unless ex13 cluded by the State pursuant to subsection 

14 (e)(6)); 

15 ‘‘(B) a description of how the State will al16 locate and utilize grant funds to implement the 

17 activities, including describing proposed budget 

18 allocations and planned procedures for tracking 

19 expenditures for the activities; 

20 ‘‘(C) measurable goals, and a timeline for 

21 meeting the goals, that the State has set for ad22 dressing the assistive technology needs of indi23 viduals with disabilities in the State related 

24 to— 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(i) education, including goals involv2 ing the provision of assistive technology to 

3 individuals with disabilities who receive 

4 services under the Individuals with Disabil5 ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 

6 seq.); 

7 ‘‘(ii) employment, including goals in8 volving the State vocational rehabilitation 

9 program carried out under title I of the 

10 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 720 

11 et seq.); 

12 ‘‘(iii) access to tele-assistive tech13 nology to aid in the access of health care 

14 services; 

15 ‘‘(iv) accessible information and com16 munication technology training; and 

17 ‘‘(v) community living; 

18 ‘‘(D) information describing how the State 

19 will quantifiably measure the goals to determine 

20 whether the goals have been achieved, in a 

21 manner consistent with the data submitted 

22 through the progress reports under subsection 

23 (f); and 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(E) a description of any activities de2 scribed in subsection (e) that the State will sup3 port with State or non-Federal funds. 

4 ‘‘(4) INVOLVEMENT OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

5 ENTITIES.—The application shall describe how var6 ious public and private entities were involved in the 

7 development of the application and will be involved 

8 in the implementation of the activities to be carried 

9 out through the grant, including— 

10 ‘‘(A) in cases determined to be appropriate 

11 by the State, a description of the nature and 

12 extent of resources that will be committed by 

13 public and private collaborators to assist in ac14 complishing identified goals; and 

15 ‘‘(B) a description of the mechanisms es16 tablished to ensure coordination of activities 

17 and collaboration between the implementing en18 tity, if any, and the State. 

19 ‘‘(5) ASSURANCES.—The application shall in20 clude assurances that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the State will annually collect data 

22 related to all activities described in paragraph 

23 (3)(A), including activities funded by State or 

24 non-Federal sources under subsection (e)(1)(B), 


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•S 2401 IS

1 in order to prepare the progress reports re2 quired under subsection (f); 

3 ‘‘(B) funds received through the grant— 

4 ‘‘(i) will be expended in accordance 

5 with this section; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) will be used to supplement, and 

7 not supplant, funds available from other 

8 sources for technology-related assistance, 

9 including the provision of assistive tech10 nology devices and assistive technology 

11 services; 

12 ‘‘(C) the lead agency will control and ad13 minister the funds received through the grant; 

14 ‘‘(D) the State will adopt such fiscal con15 trol and accounting procedures as may be nec16 essary to ensure proper disbursement of and ac17 counting for the funds received through the 

18 grant; 

19 ‘‘(E) the physical facility of the lead agen20 cy and implementing entity, if any, meets the 

21 requirements of the Americans with Disabilities 

22 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) regard23 ing accessibility for individuals with disabilities; 

24 ‘‘(F) a public agency or an individual with 

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•S 2401 IS

1 chased with funds received under the grant and 

2 administers that property; 

3 ‘‘(G) activities carried out in the State that 

4 are authorized under this Act, and supported by 

5 Federal funds received under this Act, will com6 ply with the standards established by the Archi7 tectural and Transportation Barriers Compli8 ance Board under section 508 of the Rehabilita9 tion Act of 1973 (20 U.S.C. 794d); and 

10 ‘‘(H) the State will— 

11 ‘‘(i) prepare reports to the Secretary 

12 in such form and containing such informa13 tion as the Secretary may require to carry 

14 out the Secretary’s functions under this 

15 Act; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) keep such records and allow ac17 cess to such records as the Secretary may 

18 require to ensure the correctness and 

19 verification of information provided to the 

20 Secretary under this subparagraph. 

21 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

24 subparagraph (B) and paragraph (6), any State 

25 that receives a grant under this section shall— 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(i) use a portion of not more than 40 

2 percent of the funds made available 

3 through the grant to carry out all of the 

4 activities described in paragraph (3), of 

5 which not less than 5 percent of such por6 tion shall be available for activities de7 scribed in paragraph (3)(A)(iii); and 

8 ‘‘(ii) use a portion of the funds made 

9 available through the grant to carry out all 

10 of the activities described in paragraph (2). 

11 ‘‘(B) STATE OR NON-FEDERAL FINANCIAL

12 SUPPORT.—A State receiving a grant under this 

13 section shall not be required to use grant funds 

14 to carry out the category of activities described 

15 in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of para16 graph (2) if, in that State— 

17 ‘‘(i) financial support is provided from 

18 State or other non-Federal resources or en19 tities for that category of activities; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the financial sup21 port is comparable to, or greater than, the 

22 amount of the portion of the funds made 

23 available through the grant that the State 

24 would have expended for that category of 


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•S 2401 IS

1 activities, in the absence of this subpara2 graph. 

3 ‘‘(2) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.— 

4 ‘‘(A) STATE FINANCING ACTIVITIES.—The 

5 State shall support State financing activities to 

6 increase access to, and funding for, assistive 

7 technology devices and assistive technology 

8 services (which shall not include direct payment 

9 for such a device or service for an individual 

10 with a disability but may include support and 

11 administration of a program to provide such 

12 payment), including development of systems to 

13 provide and pay for such devices and services, 

14 for targeted individuals and entities described 

15 in section 3(16)(A), including— 

16 ‘‘(i) support for the development of 

17 systems for the purchase, lease, or other 

18 acquisition of, or payment for, assistive 

19 technology devices and assistive technology 

20 services; 

21 ‘‘(ii) another mechanism that is ap22 proved by the Secretary; or 

23 ‘‘(iii) support for the development of a 

24 State-financed or privately financed alter25 native financing program engaged in the 


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•S 2401 IS

1 provision of assistive technology devices, 

2 such as— 

3 ‘‘(I) a low-interest loan fund; 

4 ‘‘(II) an interest buy-down pro5 gram; 

6 ‘‘(III) a revolving loan fund; or 

7 ‘‘(IV) a loan guarantee or insur8 ance program. 

9 ‘‘(B) DEVICE REUTILIZATION PRO10 GRAMS.—The State shall directly, or in collabo11 ration with public or private entities, carry out 

12 assistive technology device reutilization pro13 grams that provide for the exchange, repair, re14 cycling, or other reutilization of assistive tech15 nology devices, which may include redistribution 

16 through device sales, loans, rentals, or dona17 tions. 

18 ‘‘(C) DEVICE LOAN PROGRAMS.—The 

19 State shall directly, or in collaboration with 

20 public or private entities, carry out device loan 

21 programs that provide short-term loans of as22 sistive technology devices to individuals, employ23 ers, public agencies, or others seeking to meet 

24 the needs of targeted individuals and entities, 

25 including others seeking to comply with the InVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 dividuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 

2 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), the Americans with Dis3 abilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), 

4 and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

5 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794). 

6 ‘‘(D) DEVICE DEMONSTRATIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

8 directly, or in collaboration with public and 

9 private entities, such as one-stop partners, 

10 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce 

11 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

12 U.S.C. 3102), demonstrate a variety of as13 sistive technology devices and assistive 

14 technology services (including assisting in15 dividuals in making informed choices re16 garding, and providing experiences with, 

17 the devices and services), using personnel 

18 who are familiar with such devices and 

19 services and their applications. 

20 ‘‘(ii) COMPREHENSIVE INFORMA21 TION.—The State shall directly, or through 

22 referrals, provide to individuals, to the ex23 tent practicable, comprehensive informa24 tion about State and local assistive techVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:39 Jul 22, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2401.IS S2401

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1 nology venders, providers, and repair serv2 ices. 

3 ‘‘(3) STATE LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES.— 

4 ‘‘(A) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSIST5 ANCE.— 

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

7 directly, or provide support to public or 

8 private entities with demonstrated exper9 tise in collaborating with public or private 

10 agencies that serve individuals with disabil11 ities to, develop and disseminate training 

12 materials, conduct training, and provide 

13 technical assistance, for individuals from 

14 local settings statewide, including rep15 resentatives of State and local educational 

16 agencies, other State and local agencies, 

17 early intervention programs, adult service 

18 programs, hospitals and other health care 

19 facilities, institutions of higher education, 

20 and businesses. 

21 ‘‘(ii) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In 

22 carrying out activities under clause (i), the 

23 State shall carry out activities that en24 hance the knowledge, skills, and com25 petencies of individuals from local settings 


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•S 2401 IS

1 described in such clause, which may in2 clude— 

3 ‘‘(I) general awareness training 

4 on the benefits of assistive technology 

5 and the Federal, State, and private 

6 funding sources available to assist tar7 geted individuals, especially older indi8 viduals, and entities in acquiring as9 sistive technology; 

10 ‘‘(II) skills-development training 

11 in assessing the need for assistive 

12 technology devices and assistive tech13 nology services; 

14 ‘‘(III) training to ensure the ap15 propriate application and use of as16 sistive technology devices, assistive 

17 technology services, and accessible in18 formation and communication tech19 nology for e-government functions; 

20 ‘‘(IV) training in the importance 

21 of multiple approaches to assessment 

22 and implementation necessary to meet 

23 the individualized needs of individuals 

24 with disabilities and older individuals; 

25 and 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(V) technical training on inte2 grating assistive technology into the 

3 development and implementation of 

4 service plans, including any education, 

5 health, discharge, Olmstead, employ6 ment, or other plan required under 

7 Federal or State law. 

8 ‘‘(iii) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE TO IN9 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—The 

10 State shall directly, or provide support to 

11 public or private entities to, develop and 

12 disseminate training materials, conduct 

13 training, facilitate access to assistive tech14 nology, and provide technical assistance, to 

15 assist— 

16 ‘‘(I) students with disabilities, 

17 within the meaning of the Individuals 

18 with Disabilities Education Act (20 

19 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), that receive 

20 transition services; or 

21 ‘‘(II) adults who are individuals 

22 with disabilities maintaining or 

23 transitioning to community living. 

24 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC-AWARENESS ACTIVITIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

2 conduct public-awareness activities de3 signed to provide information to targeted 

4 individuals, including older individuals, and 

5 entities relating to the availability, bene6 fits, appropriateness, and costs of assistive 

7 technology devices and assistive technology 

8 services, including— 

9 ‘‘(I) the development of proce10 dures for providing direct communica11 tion between providers of assistive 

12 technology and targeted individuals 

13 and entities, which may include part14 nerships with entities in the statewide 

15 and local workforce development sys16 tems established under the Workforce 

17 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

18 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.), State vocational 

19 rehabilitation centers, public and pri20 vate employers, or elementary and 

21 secondary public schools; 

22 ‘‘(II) the development and dis23 semination, to targeted individuals 

24 and entities, of information about 


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•S 2401 IS

1 State efforts related to assistive tech2 nology; and 

3 ‘‘(III) the distribution of mate4 rials to appropriate public and private 

5 agencies that provide social, medical, 

6 educational, employment, and trans7 portation services to individuals with 

8 disabilities. 

9 ‘‘(ii) STATEWIDE INFORMATION AND

10 REFERRAL SYSTEM.— 

11 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The State 

12 shall directly, or in collaboration with 

13 public or private (such as nonprofit) 

14 entities, provide for the continuation 

15 and enhancement of a statewide infor16 mation and referral system designed 

17 to meet the needs of targeted individ18 uals and entities. 

19 ‘‘(II) CONTENT.—The system 

20 shall deliver information on assistive 

21 technology devices, assistive tech22 nology services (with specific data re23 garding provider availability within 

24 the State), and the availability of re25 sources, including funding through 


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•S 2401 IS

1 public and private sources, to obtain 

2 assistive technology devices and assist3 ive technology services. The system 

4 shall also deliver information on the 

5 benefits of assistive technology devices 

6 and assistive technology services with 

7 respect to enhancing the capacity of 

8 individuals with disabilities of all ages 

9 to perform activities of daily living. 

10 ‘‘(C) COORDINATION AND COLLABORA11 TION.—The State shall coordinate activities de12 scribed in paragraph (2) and this paragraph, 

13 among public and private entities that are re14 sponsible for policies, procedures, or funding for 

15 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

16 assistive technology services to individuals with 

17 disabilities, service providers, and others to im18 prove access to assistive technology devices and 

19 assistive technology services for individuals with 

20 disabilities of all ages in the State. 

21 ‘‘(4) INDIRECT COSTS.—Not more than 10 per22 cent of the funds made available through a grant to 

23 a State under this section may be used for indirect 

24 costs. 

25 ‘‘(5) FUNDING RULES.— 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—Funds made avail2 able through a grant to a State under this sec3 tion shall not be used for direct payment for an 

4 assistive technology device for an individual 

5 with a disability. 

6 ‘‘(B) FEDERAL PARTNER COLLABORA7 TION.—In order to provide the maximum avail8 ability of funding to access and acquire assistive 

9 technology through device demonstration, loan, 

10 reuse, and State financing activities, a State re11 ceiving a grant under this section shall ensure 

12 that the lead agency or implementing entity is 

13 conducting outreach to and, as appropriate, col14 laborating with, other State agencies that re15 ceive Federal funding for assistive technology, 

16 including— 

17 ‘‘(i) the State educational agency re18 ceiving assistance under the Individuals 

19 with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

20 1400 et seq.); 

21 ‘‘(ii) the State vocational rehabilita22 tion agency receiving assistance under title 

23 I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

24 U.S.C. 720 et seq.); 


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•S 2401 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) the agency responsible for ad2 ministering the State Medicaid program 

3 under title XIX of the Social Security Act 

4 (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); 

5 ‘‘(iv) the State agency receiving as6 sistance under the Older Americans Act of 

7 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.); and 

8 ‘‘(v) any other agency in a State that 

9 funds assistive technology. 

10 ‘‘(6) STATE FLEXIBILITY.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para12 graph (1)(A) and subject to subparagraph (B), 

13 a State may use funds that the State receives 

14 under a grant awarded under this section to 

15 carry out any 2 or more of the activities de16 scribed in paragraph (2). 

17 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding 

18 paragraph (1)(A), any State that exercises its 

19 authority under subparagraph (A)— 

20 ‘‘(i) shall carry out each of the re21 quired activities described in paragraph 

22 (3); and 

23 ‘‘(ii) shall use not more than 30 per24 cent of the funds made available through 

25 the grant to carry out such activities. 


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1 ‘‘(7) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICE DISPOSI2 TION.—Notwithstanding other equipment disposition 

3 policies under Federal law, an assistive technology 

4 device purchased to be used in activities authorized 

5 under this section may be reutilized to the maximum 

6 extent possible and then donated to a public agency, 

7 private non-profit agency, or individual with a dis8 ability in need of such device. 

9 ‘‘(f) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) DATA COLLECTION.—Each State receiving 

11 a grant under this section shall participate in data 

12 collection as required by law, including data collec13 tion required for preparation of the reports de14 scribed in paragraph (2). 

15 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall pre17 pare and submit to the Secretary an annual 

18 progress report on the activities carried out by 

19 the State in accordance with subsection (e), in20 cluding activities funded by State or non-Fed21 eral sources under subsection (e)(1)(B), at such 

22 time, and in such manner, as the Secretary may 

23 require. 

24 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The report shall include 

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1 port shall document, with respect to activities 

2 carried out under this section in the State— 

3 ‘‘(i) the type of State financing activi4 ties described in subsection (e)(2)(A) used 

5 by the State; 

6 ‘‘(ii) the amount and type of assist7 ance given to consumers of the State fi8 nancing activities described in subsection 

9 (e)(2)(A) (who shall be classified by type 

10 of assistive technology device or assistive 

11 technology service financed through the 

12 State financing activities, and geographic 

13 distribution within the State), including— 

14 ‘‘(I) the number of applications 

15 for assistance received; 

16 ‘‘(II) the numbers of applica17 tions— 

18 ‘‘(aa) approved; 

19 ‘‘(bb) denied; or 

20 ‘‘(cc) withdrawn; 

21 ‘‘(III) the number, and dollar 

22 amount, of defaults for the financing 

23 activities; 

24 ‘‘(IV) the range and average in25 terest rate for the financing activities; 


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1 ‘‘(V) the range and average in2 come of approved applicants for the 

3 financing activities; and 

4 ‘‘(VI) the types and dollar 

5 amounts of assistive technology fi6 nanced; 

7 ‘‘(iii) the number, type, and length of 

8 time of loans of assistive technology de9 vices provided to individuals with disabil10 ities, employers, public agencies, or public 

11 accommodations through the device loan 

12 program described in subsection (e)(2)(C), 

13 and an analysis of the individuals with dis14 abilities who have benefited from the de15 vice loan program; 

16 ‘‘(iv) the number, type, estimated 

17 value, and scope of assistive technology de18 vices exchanged, repaired, recycled, or re19 utilized (including redistributed through 

20 device sales, loans, rentals, or donations) 

21 through the device reutilization program 

22 described in subsection (e)(2)(B), and an 

23 analysis of the individuals with disabilities 

24 that have benefited from the device reutili25 zation program; 


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1 ‘‘(v) the number and type of device 

2 demonstrations and referrals provided 

3 under subsection (e)(2)(D), and an anal4 ysis of individuals with disabilities who 

5 have benefited from the demonstrations 

6 and referrals; 

7 ‘‘(vi)(I) the number and general char8 acteristics of individuals who participated 

9 in training under subsection (e)(3)(A) 

10 (such as individuals with disabilities, par11 ents, educators, employers, providers of 

12 employment services, health care workers, 

13 counselors, other service providers, or ven14 dors) and the topics of such training; and 

15 ‘‘(II) to the extent practicable, the ge16 ographic distribution of individuals who 

17 participated in the training; 

18 ‘‘(vii) the frequency of provision and 

19 nature of technical assistance provided to 

20 State and local agencies and other entities; 

21 ‘‘(viii) the number of individuals as22 sisted through the statewide information 

23 and referral system described in subsection 

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1 awareness activities under subsection 

2 (e)(3)(B) with a high impact; 

3 ‘‘(ix) the outcomes of any improve4 ment initiatives carried out by the State as 

5 a result of activities funded under this sec6 tion, including a description of any written 

7 policies, practices, and procedures that the 

8 State has developed and implemented re9 garding access to, provision of, and fund10 ing for, assistive technology devices, and 

11 assistive technology services, in the con12 texts of education, health care, employ13 ment, community living, and accessible in14 formation and communication technology, 

15 including e-government; 

16 ‘‘(x) the source of leveraged funding 

17 or other contributed resources, including 

18 resources provided through subcontracts or 

19 other collaborative resource-sharing agree20 ments, from and with public and private 

21 entities to carry out State activities de22 scribed in subsection (e)(3)(C), the number 

23 of individuals served with the contributed 

24 resources for which information is not re25 ported under clauses (i) through (ix) or 


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1 clause (xi), and other outcomes accom2 plished as a result of such activities carried 

3 out with the contributed resources; and 

4 ‘‘(xi) the level of customer satisfaction 

5 with the services provided. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5. STATE GRANTS FOR PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY 

7 SERVICES RELATED TO ASSISTIVE TECH8 NOLOGY. 

9 ‘‘(a) GRANTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail11 able to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 

12 make grants, through allotments under subsection 

13 (b), to protection and advocacy systems for the pur14 pose of enabling such systems to assist in the acqui15 sition, utilization, or maintenance of assistive tech16 nology devices or assistive technology services for in17 dividuals with disabilities. 

18 ‘‘(2) GENERAL AUTHORITIES.—In providing 

19 such assistance, protection and advocacy systems 

20 shall have the same general authorities as the sys21 tems are afforded under subtitle C of title I of the 

22 Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of 

23 Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15041 et seq.), as 

24 determined by the Secretary. 

25 ‘‘(b) RESERVATION; DISTRIBUTION.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

2 Secretary shall reserve, from amounts made avail3 able to carry out this section under section 

4 9(b)(3)(B), such sums as may be necessary to carry 

5 out paragraph (4). 

6 ‘‘(2) POPULATION BASIS.—From the funds ap7 propriated for this section for a fiscal year and re8 maining after the reservation required by paragraph 

9 (1) has been made, the Secretary shall make a grant 

10 to a protection and advocacy system within each 

11 State in an amount bearing the same ratio to the re12 maining funds as the population of the State bears 

13 to the population of all States. 

14 ‘‘(3) MINIMUMS.—Subject to the availability of 

15 appropriations and paragraph (5), the amount of a 

16 grant to a protection and advocacy system under 

17 paragraph (2) for a fiscal year shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) in the case of a protection and advo19 cacy system located in American Samoa, Guam, 

20 the United States Virgin Islands, or the Com21 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 

22 not be less than $30,000; and 

23 ‘‘(B) in the case of a protection and advo24 cacy system located in a State not described in 

25 subparagraph (A), not be less than $50,000. 


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1 ‘‘(4) PAYMENT TO THE SYSTEM SERVING THE

2 AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

4 make grants to the protection and advocacy 

5 system serving the American Indian Consortium 

6 to provide services in accordance with this sec7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—The amount 

9 of such grants shall be the same as the amount 

10 provided under paragraph (3)(A). 

11 ‘‘(5) ADJUSTMENT.—For each fiscal year in 

12 which the total amount appropriated under section 

13 9(b)(3)(B) to carry out this section is $8,000,000 or 

14 more and such appropriated amount exceeds the 

15 total amount appropriated to carry out this section 

16 in the preceding fiscal year, the Secretary shall in17 crease each of the minimum grant amounts de18 scribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph 

19 (3) by a percentage equal to the percentage increase 

20 in the total amount appropriated under section 9 to 

21 carry out this section for the preceding fiscal year 

22 and such total amount for the fiscal year for which 

23 the determination is being made. 

24 ‘‘(c) DIRECT PAYMENT.—Notwithstanding any other 

25 provision of law, the Secretary shall pay directly to any 


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1 protection and advocacy system that complies with this 

2 section, the total amount of the grant made for such sys3 tem under this section, unless the system provides other4 wise for payment of the grant amount. 

5 ‘‘(d) CARRYOVER; PROGRAM INCOME.— 

6 ‘‘(1) CARRYOVER.—Any amount paid to an eli7 gible system for a fiscal year under this section that 

8 remains unobligated at the end of such fiscal year 

9 shall remain available to such system for obligation 

10 during the subsequent fiscal year. 

11 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM INCOME.—Program income gen12 erated from any amount paid to an eligible system 

13 for a fiscal year shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) remain available to the eligible system 

15 until expended and be considered an addition to 

16 the grant; and 

17 ‘‘(B) only be used to improve the aware18 ness of individuals with disabilities about the 

19 accessibility of assistive technology and assist 

20 such individuals in the acquisition, utilization, 

21 or maintenance of assistive technology devices 

22 or assistive technology services. 

23 ‘‘(e) REPORT TO SECRETARY.—An entity that re24 ceives a grant under this section shall annually prepare 

25 and submit to the Secretary a report that contains such 


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1 information as the Secretary may require, including docu2 mentation of the progress of the entity in— 

3 ‘‘(1) conducting consumer-responsive activities, 

4 including activities that will lead to increased access, 

5 for individuals with disabilities, to funding for assist6 ive technology devices and assistive technology serv7 ices; 

8 ‘‘(2) engaging in informal advocacy to assist in 

9 securing assistive technology devices and assistive 

10 technology services for individuals with disabilities; 

11 ‘‘(3) engaging in formal representation for indi12 viduals with disabilities to secure systems change, 

13 and in advocacy activities to secure assistive tech14 nology devices and assistive technology services for 

15 individuals with disabilities; 

16 ‘‘(4) developing and implementing strategies to 

17 enhance the long-term abilities of individuals with 

18 disabilities and their family members, guardians, ad19 vocates, and authorized representatives to advocate 

20 the provision of assistive technology devices and as21 sistive technology services to which the individuals 

22 with disabilities are entitled under law other than 

23 this Act; 

24 ‘‘(5) coordinating activities with protection and 

25 advocacy services funded through sources other than 


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1 this Act, and coordinating activities with the capac2 ity building and advocacy activities carried out by 

3 the lead agency; and 

4 ‘‘(6) effectively allocating funds made available 

5 under this section to improve the awareness of indi6 viduals with disabilities about the accessibility of as7 sistive technology and assist such individuals in the 

8 acquisition, utilization, or maintenance of assistive 

9 technology devices or assistive technology services. 

10 ‘‘(f) REPORTS AND UPDATES TO STATE AGENCIES.— 

11 An entity that receives a grant under this section shall 

12 prepare and submit to the lead agency of the State des13 ignated under section 4(c)(1) the report described in sub14 section (e) and quarterly updates concerning the activities 

15 described in such subsection. 

16 ‘‘(g) COORDINATION.—On making a grant under this 

17 section to an entity in a State, the Secretary shall solicit 

18 and consider the opinions of the lead agency of the State 

19 with respect to efforts at coordination of activities, collabo20 ration, and promoting outcomes between the lead agency 

21 and the entity that receives the grant under this section. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 6. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND DATA COLLECTION 

23 SUPPORT. 

24 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED DATA COLLECTION AND RE2 PORTING ENTITY.—The term ‘qualified data collec3 tion and reporting entity’ means a national nonprofit 

4 organization with demonstrated expertise in data 

5 collection and reporting as described in section 

6 4(f)(2)(B), in order to— 

7 ‘‘(A) provide recipients of grants under 

8 this Act with training and technical assistance; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(B) assist such recipients with data col11 lection and data requirements. 

12 ‘‘(2) QUALIFIED PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY

13 SYSTEM TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROVIDER.—The 

14 term ‘qualified protection and advocacy system tech15 nical assistance provider’ means an entity that has 

16 experience in— 

17 ‘‘(A) working with protection and advocacy 

18 systems established in accordance with section 

19 143 of the Developmental Disabilities Assist20 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

21 15043); and 

22 ‘‘(B) providing technical assistance to pro23 tection and advocacy agencies. 

24 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED TRAINING AND TECHNICAL AS25 SISTANCE PROVIDER.—The term ‘qualified training 


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1 and technical assistance provider’ means a national 

2 nonprofit organization with demonstrated expertise 

3 in assistive technology and that has (directly or 

4 through grant or contract)— 

5 ‘‘(A) experience and expertise in admin6 istering programs, including developing, imple7 menting, and administering all of the activities 

8 described in section 4(e); and 

9 ‘‘(B) documented experience in and knowl10 edge about— 

11 ‘‘(i) assistive technology device loan 

12 and demonstration; 

13 ‘‘(ii) assistive technology device reuse; 

14 ‘‘(iii) financial loans and micro15 lending, including the activities of alter16 native financing programs for assistive 

17 technology; and 

18 ‘‘(iv) State leadership activities. 

19 ‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND DATA COLLEC20 TION SUPPORT AUTHORIZED.— 

21 ‘‘(1) SUPPORT FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

22 TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—From 

23 amounts made available under section 9(b)(1), the 

24 Secretary shall award, on a competitive basis— 


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1 ‘‘(A) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative 

2 agreement to a qualified training and technical 

3 assistance provider to support activities de4 scribed in subsection (d)(1) for States receiving 

5 grants under section 4; and 

6 ‘‘(B) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative 

7 agreement to a qualified protection and advo8 cacy system technical assistance provider to 

9 support activities described in subsection (d)(1) 

10 for protection and advocacy systems receiving 

11 grants under section 5. 

12 ‘‘(2) SUPPORT FOR DATA COLLECTION AND RE13 PORTING ASSISTANCE.—From amounts made avail14 able under section 9(b)(2), the Secretary shall 

15 award, on a competitive basis— 

16 ‘‘(A) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative 

17 agreement to a qualified data collection and re18 porting entity, to enable the qualified data col19 lection and reporting entity to carry out the ac20 tivities described in subsection (d)(2) for States 

21 receiving grants under section 4; and 

22 ‘‘(B) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative 

23 agreement to a qualified protection and advo24 cacy system technical assistance provider, to en25 able the eligible protection and advocacy system 


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1 to carry out the activities described in sub2 section (d)(2) for protection and advocacy sys3 tems receiving grants under section 5. 

4 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

6 grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this 

7 section, an entity shall submit an application to the 

8 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con9 taining such information as the Secretary may re10 quire. 

11 ‘‘(2) INPUT.—In awarding grants, contracts, or 

12 cooperative agreements under this section and in re13 viewing the activities proposed under the applica14 tions described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

15 consider the input of the recipients of grants under 

16 sections 4 and 5 and other individuals the Secretary 

17 determines to be appropriate, especially— 

18 ‘‘(A) individuals with disabilities who use 

19 assistive technology and understand the bar20 riers to the acquisition of such technology and 

21 assistive technology services; 

22 ‘‘(B) family members, guardians, advo23 cates, and authorized representatives of such 

24 individuals; 


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1 ‘‘(C) relevant employees from Federal de2 partments and agencies, other than the Depart3 ment of Health and Human Services; 

4 ‘‘(D) representatives of businesses; and 

5 ‘‘(E) venders and public and private re6 searchers and developers. 

7 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) USE OF FUNDS FOR ASSISTIVE TECH9 NOLOGY TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

10 ‘‘(A) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSIST11 ANCE EFFORTS.—A qualified training and tech12 nical assistance provider or qualified protection 

13 and advocacy system technical assistance pro14 vider receiving a grant, contract, or cooperative 

15 agreement under subsection (b)(1) shall support 

16 a training and technical assistance program for 

17 States or protection and advocacy systems re18 ceiving a grant under section 4 or 5, respec19 tively, that— 

20 ‘‘(i) addresses State-specific informa21 tion requests concerning assistive tech22 nology from entities funded under this Act 

23 and public entities not funded under this 

24 Act, including— 


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1 ‘‘(I) requests for information on 

2 effective approaches to Federal-State 

3 coordination of programs for individ4 uals with disabilities, related to im5 proving funding for or access to as6 sistive technology devices and assistive 

7 technology services for individuals 

8 with disabilities of all ages; 

9 ‘‘(II) requests for state-of-the10 art, or model, Federal, State, and 

11 local laws, regulations, policies, prac12 tices, procedures, and organizational 

13 structures, that facilitate, and over14 come barriers to, funding for, and ac15 cess to, assistive technology devices 

16 and assistive technology services; 

17 ‘‘(III) requests for information 

18 on effective approaches to developing, 

19 implementing, evaluating, and sus20 taining activities described in section 

21 4 or 5, as the case may be, and re22 lated to improving acquisition and ac23 cess to assistive technology devices 

24 and assistive technology services for 

25 individuals with disabilities of all ages, 


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1 and requests for assistance in devel2 oping corrective action plans; 

3 ‘‘(IV) requests for examples of 

4 policies, practices, procedures, regula5 tions, or judicial decisions that have 

6 enhanced or may enhance access to 

7 and acquisition of assistive technology 

8 devices and assistive technology serv9 ices for individuals with disabilities; 

10 ‘‘(V) requests for information on 

11 effective approaches to the develop12 ment of consumer-controlled systems 

13 that increase access to, funding for, 

14 and awareness of, assistive technology 

15 devices and assistive technology serv16 ices; and 

17 ‘‘(VI) other requests for training 

18 and technical assistance from entities 

19 funded under this Act; 

20 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a program that 

21 will serve States receiving grants under 

22 section 4— 

23 ‘‘(I) assists targeted individuals 

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1 ing to assistive technology by pro2 viding referrals to recipients of grants 

3 under section 4 or other public or pri4 vate resources; and 

5 ‘‘(II) provides State-specific, re6 gional, and national training and tech7 nical assistance concerning assistive 

8 technology to entities funded under 

9 this Act, other entities funded under 

10 this Act, and public and private enti11 ties not funded under this Act, includ12 ing— 

13 ‘‘(aa) annually providing a 

14 forum for exchanging information 

15 concerning, and promoting pro16 gram and policy improvements 

17 in, required activities of the State 

18 assistive technology programs; 

19 ‘‘(bb) facilitating onsite and 

20 electronic information sharing 

21 using state-of-the-art internet 

22 technologies such as real-time on23 line discussions, multipoint video 

24 conferencing, and web-based 

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1 ing topics that affect State as2 sistive technology programs; 

3 ‘‘(cc) convening experts from 

4 State assistive technology pro5 grams to discuss and make rec6 ommendations with regard to na7 tional emerging issues of impor8 tance to individuals with assistive 

9 technology needs; 

10 ‘‘(dd) sharing best practice 

11 and evidence-based practices 

12 among State assistive technology 

13 programs; 

14 ‘‘(ee) maintaining an acces15 sible website that includes links 

16 to State assistive technology pro17 grams, appropriate Federal de18 partments and agencies, and pri19 vate associations; 

20 ‘‘(ff) developing a resource 

21 that connects individuals from a 

22 State with the State assistive 

23 technology program in their 

24 State; 


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1 ‘‘(gg) providing access to ex2 perts in the areas of assistive 

3 technology device loan and dem4 onstration, assistive technology 

5 device reuse, State financing, 

6 banking, microlending, and fi7 nance, for entities funded under 

8 this Act, through site visits, tele9 conferences, and other means, to 

10 ensure access to information for 

11 entities that are carrying out new 

12 programs or programs that are 

13 not making progress in achieving 

14 the objectives of the programs; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(hh) supporting and coordi17 nating activities designed to re18 duce the financial costs of pur19 chasing assistive technology for 

20 the activities described in section 

21 4(e), and reducing duplication of 

22 activities among State assistive 

23 technology programs; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) includes such other activities as 

25 the Secretary may require. 


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1 ‘‘(B) COLLABORATION.—In developing and 

2 providing training and technical assistance 

3 under this paragraph, a qualified training and 

4 technical assistance provider or qualified protec5 tion and advocacy system technical assistance 

6 provider shall— 

7 ‘‘(i) collaborate with— 

8 ‘‘(I) organizations representing 

9 individuals with disabilities; 

10 ‘‘(II) national organizations rep11 resenting State assistive technology 

12 programs; 

13 ‘‘(III) organizations representing 

14 State officials and agencies engaged 

15 in the delivery of assistive technology; 

16 ‘‘(IV) other qualified data collec17 tion and reporting entities and tech18 nical assistance providers; 

19 ‘‘(V) providers of State financing 

20 activities, including alternative financ21 ing programs for assistive technology; 

22 ‘‘(VI) providers of device loans, 

23 device demonstrations, and device re24 utilization; and 


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1 ‘‘(VII) any other organizations 

2 determined appropriate by the pro3 vider or the Secretary; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a qualified training 

5 and technical assistance provider, include 

6 activities identified as priorities by State 

7 advisory councils and lead agencies and 

8 implementing entities for grants under sec9 tion 4. 

10 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS FOR ASSISTIVE TECH11 NOLOGY DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING ASSIST12 ANCE.—A qualified data collection and reporting en13 tity or a qualified protection and advocacy system 

14 technical assistance provider receiving a grant, con15 tract, or cooperative agreement under subsection 

16 (b)(2) shall assist States or protection and advocacy 

17 systems receiving a grant under section 4 or 5, re18 spectively, to develop and implement effective and 

19 accessible data collection and reporting systems 

20 that— 

21 ‘‘(A) focus on quantitative and qualitative 

22 data elements; 

23 ‘‘(B) help measure the accrued benefits of 

24 the activities to individuals who need assistive 

25 technology; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) in the case of systems that will serve 

2 States receiving grants under section 4— 

3 ‘‘(i) measure the outcomes of all ac4 tivities described in section 4(e) and the 

5 progress of the States toward achieving the 

6 measurable goals described in section 

7 4(d)(3)(C); and 

8 ‘‘(ii) provide States with the necessary 

9 information required under this Act or by 

10 the Secretary for reports described in sec11 tion 4(f)(2). 

12 ‘‘SEC. 7. PROJECTS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE. 

13 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF PROJECT OF NATIONAL SIG14 NIFICANCE.—In this section, the term ‘project of national 

15 significance’— 

16 ‘‘(1) means a project that— 

17 ‘‘(A) increases access to, and acquisition 

18 of, assistive technology; and 

19 ‘‘(B) creates opportunities for individuals 

20 with a spectrum of ability to directly and fully 

21 contribute to, and participate in, all facets of 

22 education, employment, community living, and 

23 recreational activities; and 

24 ‘‘(2) may— 


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1 ‘‘(A) build partnerships between State 

2 Medicaid agencies and recipients of grants 

3 under section 4 to reutilize durable medical 

4 equipment; 

5 ‘‘(B) increase collaboration between the re6 cipients of grants under section 4 and States 

7 receiving grants under the Money Follows the 

8 Person Rebalancing Demonstration under sec9 tion 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 

10 (42 U.S.C. 1396a note); 

11 ‘‘(C) increase collaboration between recipi12 ents of grants under section 4 and area agen13 cies on aging, as such term is defined in section 

14 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 

15 U.S.C. 3002), which may include collaboration 

16 on emergency preparedness, safety equipment, 

17 or assistive technology toolkits; 

18 ‘‘(D) provide aid to transition youth who 

19 are individuals with disabilities from school to 

20 adult life, including youth with intellectual and 

21 developmental disabilities, especially in— 

22 ‘‘(i) finding employment and postsec23 ondary education opportunities; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) upgrading and changing any as2 sistive technology devices that may be 

3 needed as a youth matures; 

4 ‘‘(E) increase access to and acquisition of 

5 assistive technology addressing the needs of 

6 aging individuals and aging caregivers in the 

7 community; 

8 ‘‘(F) increase effective and efficient use of 

9 assistive technology as part of early intervention 

10 for infants and toddlers with disabilities from 

11 birth to age 3; 

12 ‘‘(G) increase awareness of and access to 

13 the Disability Funds-Financial Assistance fund14 ing provided by the Community Development 

15 Financial Institutions Fund that supports ac16 quisition of assistive technology; and 

17 ‘‘(H) increase awareness of and access to 

18 other federally funded disability programs, or 

19 increase knowledge of assistive technology, as 

20 determined appropriate by the Secretary. 

21 ‘‘(b) PROJECTS AUTHORIZED.—If funds are available 

22 pursuant to section 9(c) to carry out this section for a 

23 fiscal year, the Secretary may award, on a competitive 

24 basis, grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements to 


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1 public or private nonprofit entities to enable the entities 

2 to carry out projects of national significance. 

3 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—A public or private nonprofit en4 tity desiring a grant under this section shall submit an 

5 application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 

6 and containing such information as the Secretary may re7 quire. 

8 ‘‘(d) AWARD BASIS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

10 section, the Secretary shall give priority to a public 

11 or private nonprofit entity funded under section 4 or 

12 5 for the most recent award period. 

13 ‘‘(2) PREFERENCE.—For each grant award pe14 riod, the Secretary may give preference for 1 or 

15 more categories of projects of national significance 

16 described in subparagraphs (A) through (H) of sub17 section (a)(2) or another category identified by the 

18 Secretary, if the Secretary determines that there is 

19 reason to prioritize that category of project. 

20 ‘‘(e) MINIMUM FUNDING LEVEL REQUIRED.—The 

21 Secretary may only award grants, contracts, or coopera22 tive agreements under this section if the amount made 

23 available under section 9 to carry out sections 4, 5, and 

24 6 is equal to or greater than $49,000,000. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

2 ‘‘(a) GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

4 provision of law, the Administrator of the Adminis5 tration for Community Living shall be responsible 

6 for the administration of this Act. 

7 ‘‘(2) COLLABORATION.—The Administrator of 

8 the Administration for Community Living shall con9 sult with the Office of Special Education Programs 

10 of the Department of Education, the Rehabilitation 

11 Services Administration of the Department of Edu12 cation, the Office of Disability Employment Policy of 

13 the Department of Labor, the National Institute on 

14 Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation 

15 Research, and other appropriate Federal entities in 

16 the administration of this Act. 

17 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In administering this 

19 Act, the Administrator of the Administration 

20 for Community Living shall ensure that pro21 grams funded under this Act will equitably ad22 dress— 

23 ‘‘(i) the needs of individuals with all 

24 types of disabilities and across the age 

25 span; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the use of assistive technology in 

2 all potential environments, including em3 ployment, education, and community liv4 ing, or for other reasons. 

5 ‘‘(B) FUNDING LIMITATION.—For each fis6 cal year, not more than one-half of one percent 

7 of the total funding appropriated for this Act 

8 shall be used by the Administrator of the Ad9 ministration for Community Living to support 

10 the administration of this Act. 

11 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF PARTICIPATING ENTITIES.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall assess 

13 the extent to which entities that receive grants under 

14 this Act are complying with the applicable require15 ments of this Act and achieving measurable goals 

16 that are consistent with the requirements of the 

17 grant programs under which the entities received the 

18 grants. 

19 ‘‘(2) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—To assist 

20 the Secretary in carrying out the responsibilities of 

21 the Secretary under this section, the Secretary may 

22 require States to provide relevant information, in23 cluding the information required under subsection 

24 (d). 

25 ‘‘(c) CORRECTIVE ACTION AND SANCTIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If the Secretary 

2 determines that an entity that receives a grant 

3 under this Act fails to substantially comply with the 

4 applicable requirements of this Act, or to make sub5 stantial progress toward achieving the measurable 

6 goals described in subsection (b)(1) with respect to 

7 the grant program, the Secretary shall assist the en8 tity, through technical assistance funded under sec9 tion 6 or other means, within 90 days after such de10 termination, to develop a corrective action plan. 

11 ‘‘(2) SANCTIONS.—If the entity fails to develop 

12 and comply with a corrective action plan described 

13 in paragraph (1) during a fiscal year, the entity 

14 shall be subject to one of the following corrective ac15 tions selected by the Secretary: 

16 ‘‘(A) Partial or complete termination of 

17 funding under the grant program, until the en18 tity develops and complies with such a plan. 

19 ‘‘(B) Ineligibility to participate in the 

20 grant program in the following year. 

21 ‘‘(C) Reduction in the amount of funding 

22 that may be used for indirect costs under sec23 tion 4 for the following year. 

24 ‘‘(D) Required redesignation of the lead 

25 agency designated under section 4(c)(1) or an 


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1 entity responsible for administering the grant 

2 program. 

3 ‘‘(3) APPEALS PROCEDURES.—The Secretary 

4 shall establish appeals procedures for entities that 

5 are determined to be in noncompliance with the ap6 plicable requirements of this Act, or have not made 

7 substantial progress toward achieving the measur8 able goals described in subsection (b)(1). 

9 ‘‘(4) SECRETARIAL ACTION.—As part of the an10 nual report required under subsection (d), the Sec11 retary shall describe each such action taken under 

12 paragraph (1) or (2) and the outcomes of each such 

13 action. 

14 ‘‘(5) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary 

15 shall notify the public, by posting on the internet 

16 website of the Department of Health and Human 

17 Services, of each action taken by the Secretary 

18 under paragraph (1) or (2). As a part of such notifi19 cation, the Secretary shall describe each such action 

20 taken under paragraph (1) or (2) and the outcomes 

21 of each such action. 

22 ‘‘(d) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 

24 31 of each year, the Secretary shall prepare, and 

25 submit to the President and to the Committee on 


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1 Education and Labor of the House of Representa2 tives and the Committee on Health, Education, 

3 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report on the 

4 activities funded under this Act to improve the ac5 cess of individuals with disabilities to assistive tech6 nology devices and assistive technology services. 

7 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Such report shall include— 

8 ‘‘(A) a compilation and summary of the in9 formation provided by the States in annual 

10 progress reports submitted under section 4(f); 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(B) a summary of the State applications 

13 described in section 4(d) and an analysis of the 

14 progress of the States in meeting the measur15 able goals established in State applications 

16 under section 4(d)(3)(C). 

17 ‘‘(e) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall 

18 be construed to affect the enforcement authority of the 

19 Secretary, another Federal officer, or a court under part 

20 D of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 

21 1234 et seq.) or other applicable law. 

22 ‘‘(f) EFFECT ON OTHER ASSISTANCE.—This Act may 

23 not be construed as authorizing a Federal or State agency 

24 to reduce medical or other assistance available, or to alter 


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1 eligibility for a benefit or service, under any other Federal 

2 law. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; RESERVA4 TIONS AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap6 propriated to carry out this Act— 

7 ‘‘(1) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

8 ‘‘(2) such sums as may be necessary for each 

9 of fiscal years 2023 through 2026. 

10 ‘‘(b) RESERVATIONS AND DISTRIBUTION OF

11 FUNDS.—Of the funds made available under subsection 

12 (a) to carry out this Act and subject to subsection (c), 

13 the Secretary shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) reserve an amount equal to 2 percent of 

15 such available funds to carry out section 6(b)(1), of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(A) an amount equal to 88.5 percent of 

18 the reservation shall be used for a grant, con19 tract, or cooperative agreement described in 

20 section 6(b)(1)(A); and 

21 ‘‘(B) an amount equal to 14.5 percent of 

22 the reservation shall be used for a grant, con23 tract, or cooperative agreement described in 

24 section 6(b)(1)(B); 


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1 ‘‘(2) reserve an amount equal to 1 percent of 

2 such available funds appropriated to carry out sec3 tion 6(b)(2); and 

4 ‘‘(3) of the amounts remaining after the res5 ervations under paragraphs (1) and (2)— 

6 ‘‘(A) use 85.5 percent of such amounts to 

7 carry out section 4; and 

8 ‘‘(B) use 14.5 percent of such amounts to 

9 carry out section 5. 

10 ‘‘(c) LIMIT FOR PROJECTS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFI11 CANCE.—In any fiscal year for which the amount made 

12 available under subsection (a) exceeds $49,000,000, the 

13 Secretary may reserve an amount, which shall not exceed 

14 the lesser of the excess amount made available or 

15 $2,000,000, for section 7 before carrying out subsection 

16 (b).’’. 

17 SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

18 This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, 

19 shall take effect on the day that is six months after the 

20 date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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