II 

Calendar No. 121 

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, Mr. CRAMER, and Ms. 

MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

AUGUST 7, 2021 

Reported by Mrs. MURRAY, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

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’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION. 

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

3 3001 et seq.) is amended to read as follows: 

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

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

6 ‘Assistive Technology Act of 1998’. 

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

8 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. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

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

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

12 States have disabilities, with almost half experi13 encing severe disabilities that affect their ability to 

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

15 other basic life functions. 

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

17 experience and in no way diminishes the right of in18 dividuals to— 

19 ‘‘(A) live independently; 

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

21 choices; 


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1 ‘‘(C) benefit from an education; 

2 ‘‘(D) pursue competitive, integrated em3 ployment; and 

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

5 the economic, political, social, cultural, and edu6 cational mainstream of society in the United 

7 States. 

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

9 for economic activity, education, and innovation in 

10 the Nation, and throughout the world. The commit11 ment of the United States to the development and 

12 utilization of technology is one of the main factors 

13 underlying the strength and vibrancy of the economy 

14 of the United States. 

15 ‘‘(4) As technology has come to play an increas16 ingly important role in the lives of all persons in the 

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

18 functioning of government, in the fostering of com19 munication, in the conduct of commerce, and in the 

20 provision of education, its impact upon the lives of 

21 individuals with disabilities in the United States has 

22 been comparable to its impact upon the remainder 

23 of the citizens of the United States. Any develop24 ment in mainstream technology will have profound 


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1 implications for individuals with disabilities in the 

2 United States. 

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

4 development of assistive technology devices, includ5 ing adaptations to existing devices that facilitate ac6 tivities of daily living that significantly benefit indi7 viduals with disabilities of all ages. These devices, 

8 including adaptations, increase involvement in, and 

9 reduce expenditures associated with, programs and 

10 activities that facilitate communication, ensure inde11 pendent functioning, enable early childhood develop12 ment, support educational achievement, provide and 

13 enhance employment options, and enable full partici14 pation in community living for individuals with dis15 abilities. Access to such devices can also reduce ex16 penditures associated with early childhood interven17 tion, education, rehabilitation and training, health 

18 care, employment, residential living, independent liv19 ing, recreation opportunities, and other aspects of 

20 daily living. 

21 ‘‘(6) Over the last 15 years, the Federal Gov22 ernment has invested in the development of com23 prehensive statewide programs of technology-related 

24 assistance, which have proven effective in assisting 

25 individuals with disabilities in accessing assistive 


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1 technology devices and assistive technology services. 

2 This partnership between the Federal Government 

3 and the States provided an important service to indi4 viduals with disabilities by strengthening the capac5 ity of each State to assist individuals with disabil6 ities of all ages meet their assistive technology 

7 needs. 

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

9 partnership in providing access to assistive tech10 nology devices and assistive technology services, 

11 there is a continued need to provide information and 

12 legally based advocacy about the availability of as13 sistive technology, advances in improving accessi14 bility and functionality of assistive technology, and 

15 appropriate methods to secure and utilize assistive 

16 technology in order to maximize the independence 

17 and participation of individuals with disabilities in 

18 society. 

19 ‘‘(8) The combination of significant recent 

20 changes in Federal policy (including changes to sec21 tion 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

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

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

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

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


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1 6301 et seq.) by the No Child Left Behind Act of 

2 2001 (Public Law 107–110; 115 Stat. 1425) and 

3 the rapid and unending evolution of technology re4 quire a Federal-State investment in State assistive 

5 technology programs, as well as an investment in 

6 protection and advocacy systems, to continue to en7 sure that individuals with disabilities reap the bene8 fits of the technological revolution and participate 

9 fully in life in their communities. 

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

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

12 provision of assistive technology to individuals with 

13 disabilities through a comprehensive statewide con14 tinuum of integrated activities, for individuals with 

15 disabilities of all ages, that are designed to— 

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

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

18 assistive technology devices and assistive tech19 nology services; 

20 ‘‘(B) increase the ability of individuals 

21 with disabilities of all ages to secure and main22 tain possession of assistive technology devices 

23 as such individuals make the transition between 

24 services offered by educational or human service 


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1 agencies or between settings of daily living (for 

2 example, between home and work); 

3 ‘‘(C) increase the capacity of public agen4 cies and private entities to provide and pay for 

5 assistive technology devices and assistive tech6 nology services on a statewide basis for individ7 uals with disabilities of all ages; 

8 ‘‘(D) increase the involvement of individ9 uals with disabilities and, if appropriate, their 

10 family members, guardians, advocates, and au11 thorized representatives, in decisions related to 

12 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

13 assistive technology services; 

14 ‘‘(E) increase and promote coordination 

15 among State agencies, between State and local 

16 agencies, among local agencies, and between 

17 State and local agencies and private entities 

18 (such as managed care providers), that are in19 volved or are eligible to be involved in carrying 

20 out activities under this Act; 

21 ‘‘(F) increase the awareness and facilitate 

22 the change of laws, regulations, policies, prac23 tices, procedures, and organizational structures, 

24 that facilitate the availability or provision of asVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 sistive technology devices and assistive tech2 nology services; and 

3 ‘‘(G) increase awareness and knowledge of 

4 the benefits of assistive technology devices and 

5 assistive technology services among individuals 

6 with disabilities and their families, older indi7 viduals and their families, and the general pop8 ulation; and 

9 ‘‘(2) to provide States and protection and advo10 cacy systems with financial assistance that supports 

11 programs designed to maximize the ability of indi12 viduals with disabilities and their family members, 

13 guardians, advocates, and authorized representatives 

14 to obtain assistive technology devices and assistive 

15 technology services. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

17 ‘‘In this Act: 

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

19 ‘adult service program’ means a program that pro20 vides services to, or is otherwise substantially in21 volved with the major life functions of, individuals 

22 with disabilities. Such term includes— 

23 ‘‘(A) a program providing residential, sup24 portive, or employment services, or employment25 related services, to individuals with disabilities; 


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

2 independent living, such as a center described 

3 in part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation Act 

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

5 ‘‘(C) a program carried out by an employ6 ment support agency connected to adult voca7 tional rehabilitation, such as a one-stop partner, 

8 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Inno9 vation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102); 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(D) a program carried out by another or12 ganization or vender licensed or registered by 

13 the designated State agency, as defined in sec14 tion 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

15 U.S.C. 705). 

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

17 term ‘American Indian consortium’ means an entity 

18 that is an American Indian Consortium (as defined 

19 in section 102 of the Developmental Disabilities As20 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

21 15002)), and that is established to provide protec22 tion and advocacy services for purposes of receiving 

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

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


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1 ‘‘(3) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘as2 sistive technology’ means technology designed to be 

3 utilized in an assistive technology device or assistive 

4 technology service. 

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

6 term ‘assistive technology device’ means any item, 

7 piece of equipment, or product system, whether ac8 quired commercially, modified, or customized, that is 

9 used to increase, maintain, or improve functional ca10 pabilities of individuals with disabilities. 

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

12 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service 

13 that directly assists an individual with a disability in 

14 the selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive tech15 nology device. Such term includes— 

16 ‘‘(A) the evaluation of the assistive tech17 nology needs of an individual with a disability, 

18 including a functional evaluation of the impact 

19 of the provision of appropriate assistive tech20 nology and appropriate services to the indi21 vidual in the customary environment of the in22 dividual; 

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

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1 tion of assistive technology devices by individ2 uals with disabilities; 

3 ‘‘(C) a service consisting of selecting, de4 signing, fitting, customizing, adapting, apply5 ing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, or donat6 ing assistive technology devices; 

7 ‘‘(D) coordination and use of necessary 

8 therapies, interventions, or services with assist9 ive technology devices, such as therapies, inter10 ventions, or services associated with education 

11 and rehabilitation plans and programs; 

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

13 individual with a disability or, where appro14 priate, the family members, guardians, advo15 cates, or authorized representatives of such an 

16 individual; 

17 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for 

18 professionals (including individuals providing 

19 education and rehabilitation services and enti20 ties that manufacture or sell assistive tech21 nology devices), employers, providers of employ22 ment and training services, or other individuals 

23 who provide services to, employ, or are other24 wise substantially involved in the major life 

25 functions of individuals with disabilities; and 


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

2 availability of access to technology, including 

3 electronic and information technology, to indi4 viduals with disabilities. 

5 ‘‘(6) CAPACITY BUILDING AND ADVOCACY AC6 TIVITIES.—The term ‘capacity building and advo7 cacy activities’ means efforts that— 

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

9 practices, procedures, or organizational struc10 tures that promote consumer-responsive pro11 grams or entities; and 

12 ‘‘(B) facilitate and increase access to, pro13 vision of, and funding for, assistive technology 

14 devices and assistive technology services, in 

15 order to empower individuals with disabilities to 

16 achieve greater independence, productivity, and 

17 integration and inclusion within the community 

18 and the workforce. 

19 ‘‘(7) COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE PROGRAM OF

20 TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ASSISTANCE.—The term 

21 ‘comprehensive statewide program of technology-re22 lated assistance’ means a consumer-responsive pro23 gram of technology-related assistance for individuals 

24 with disabilities— 

25 ‘‘(A) implemented by a State; 


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1 ‘‘(B) equally available to all individuals 

2 with disabilities residing in the State, regardless 

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

4 location of residence in the State, or the type 

5 of assistive technology device or assistive tech6 nology service required; and 

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

8 described in section 4(e) (unless excluded pur9 suant to section 4(e)(6)). 

10 ‘‘(8) CONSUMER-RESPONSIVE.—The term ‘con11 sumer-responsive’— 

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

13 the policies are consistent with the principles 

14 of— 

15 ‘‘(i) respect for individual dignity, per16 sonal responsibility, self-determination, and 

17 pursuit of meaningful careers, based on in18 formed choice, of individuals with disabil19 ities; 

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

21 and equal access (including the use of ac22 cessible formats) of such individuals; 

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

24 participation of such individuals in society; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) support for the involvement in 

2 decisions of a family member, a guardian, 

3 an advocate, or an authorized representa4 tive, if an individual with a disability re5 quests, desires, or needs such involvement; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(v) support for individual and sys8 tems advocacy and community involve9 ment; and 

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

11 activity, means that the entity, program, or ac12 tivity— 

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

14 by, individuals with disabilities and, when 

15 appropriate, their family members, guard16 ians, advocates, or authorized representa17 tives; 

18 ‘‘(ii) responds to the needs of individ19 uals with disabilities in a timely and appro20 priate manner; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) facilitates the full and meaning22 ful participation of individuals with disabil23 ities (including individuals from underrep24 resented populations and rural popu25 lations) and their family members, guardVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ians, advocates, and authorized representa2 tives, in— 

3 ‘‘(I) decisions relating to the pro4 vision of assistive technology devices 

5 and assistive technology services to 

6 such individuals; and 

7 ‘‘(II) decisions related to the 

8 maintenance, improvement, and eval9 uation of the comprehensive statewide 

10 program of technology-related assist11 ance, including decisions that affect 

12 capacity building and advocacy activi13 ties. 

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

15 meaning given the term under section 3 of the 

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

17 12102). 

18 ‘‘(10) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY; INDI19 VIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.— 

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

21 The term ‘individual with a disability’ means 

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

23 ‘‘(i) who has a disability; and 

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

25 assistive technology device or an assistive 


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1 technology service to minimize deteriora2 tion in functioning, to maintain a level of 

3 functioning, or to achieve a greater level of 

4 functioning in any major life activity. 

5 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.— 

6 The term ‘individuals with disabilities’ means 

7 more than 1 individual with a disability. 

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

9 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

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

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

12 and includes a community college receiving funding 

13 under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Univer14 sities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et 

15 seq.). 

16 ‘‘(12) PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SERV17 ICES.—The term ‘protection and advocacy services’ 

18 means services that— 

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

20 of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 

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

22 15041 et seq.), the Protection and Advocacy for 

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

24 10801 et seq.), or section 509 of the Rehabilita25 tion Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794e); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) assist individuals with disabilities 

2 with respect to assistive technology devices and 

3 assistive technology services. 

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

5 means the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 

6 acting through the Administrator for Community 

7 Living. 

8 ‘‘(14) STATE.— 

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

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

11 of the 50 States of the United States, the Dis12 trict of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 

13 Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

14 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of 

15 the Northern Mariana Islands. 

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

17 ‘‘(i) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘out18 lying area’ means the United States Virgin 

19 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

20 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

21 Islands. 

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

23 not include the United States Virgin Is24 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 


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1 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

2 Islands. 

3 ‘‘(15) STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO4 GRAM.—The term ‘State assistive technology pro5 gram’ means a program authorized under section 4. 

6 ‘‘(16) TARGETED INDIVIDUALS AND ENTI7 TIES.—The term ‘targeted individuals and entities’ 

8 means— 

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

10 and their family members, guardians, advo11 cates, and authorized representatives; 

12 ‘‘(B) underrepresented populations, includ13 ing the aging workforce; 

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

15 private entities (including centers for inde16 pendent living described in part C of title VII 

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

18 796f et seq.), insurers, or managed care pro19 viders) that have contact, or provide services to, 

20 with individuals with disabilities; 

21 ‘‘(D) educators at all levels (including pro22 viders of early intervention services, elementary 

23 schools, secondary schools, community colleges, 

24 and vocational and other institutions of higher 

25 education) and related services personnel; 


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1 ‘‘(E) technology experts (including web de2 signers and procurement officials); 

3 ‘‘(F) health, allied health, and rehabilita4 tion professionals and hospital employees (in5 cluding discharge planners); 

6 ‘‘(G) employers, especially small business 

7 employers, and providers of employment and 

8 training services; 

9 ‘‘(H) entities that manufacture or sell as10 sistive technology devices; 

11 ‘‘(I) entities that carry out community pro12 grams designed to develop essential community 

13 services in rural and urban areas; and 

14 ‘‘(J) other appropriate individuals and en15 tities, as determined for a State by the State. 

16 ‘‘(17) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION.— 

17 The term ‘underrepresented population’ means a 

18 population that is typically underrepresented in serv19 ice provision, and includes populations such as indi20 viduals who have low-incidence disabilities, individ21 uals who are minorities, individuals with a total fam22 ily income that is below the poverty line (as defined 

23 in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor24 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)), individuals with limVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ited English proficiency, older individuals, or individ2 uals from rural areas. 

3 ‘‘(18) UNIVERSAL DESIGN.—The term ‘uni4 versal design’ means a concept or philosophy for de5 signing and delivering products and services that are 

6 usable by people with the widest possible range of 

7 functional capabilities, which include products and 

8 services that are directly accessible (without requir9 ing assistive technologies) and products and services 

10 that are interoperable with assistive technologies. 

11 ‘‘SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO12 GRAMS. 

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

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

15 a comprehensive statewide continuum of integrated assist16 ive technology activities described in subsection (e) 

17 through State assistive technology programs that are de18 signed to— 

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

20 disabilities across the human lifespan and across the 

21 wide array of disabilities, and their family members, 

22 guardians, advocates, and authorized representa23 tives, to obtain assistive technology; and 

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

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


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

2 to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award 

3 a grant to each eligible State and eligible outlying 

4 area from an allotment determined in accordance 

5 with paragraph (2). 

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

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

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

9 allot to each State and outlying area for a fiscal 

10 year an amount that is not less than the 

11 amount the State or outlying area received 

12 under the grants provided under section 4 of 

13 this Act (as in effect on the day before the ef14 fective date of the 21st Century Assistive Tech15 nology Act) for fiscal year 2021. 

16 ‘‘(B) RATABLE REDUCTION.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If funds made 

18 available to carry out this section for any 

19 fiscal year are insufficient to make the al20 lotments required for each State and out21 lying area under subparagraph (A) for 

22 such fiscal year, the Secretary shall ratably 

23 reduce the allotments for such fiscal year. 

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

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1 scribed in clause (i), additional funds be2 come available to carry out this section for 

3 the fiscal year, the Secretary shall ratably 

4 increase the allotments, until the Secretary 

5 has allotted the entire base year amount 

6 under this paragraph. 

7 ‘‘(C) HIGHER APPROPRIATION YEARS.— 

8 For a fiscal year for which the amount of funds 

9 made available to carry out this section is 

10 greater than the base year amount described in 

11 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 

12 ‘‘(i) make the allotments described in 

13 subparagraph (A); 

14 ‘‘(ii) from the funds remaining after 

15 the allotments described in clause (i), allot 

16 to each State or outlying area an equal 

17 amount of such funds, until each State has 

18 received an allotment under clause (i) and 

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

20 each outlying area has received an allot21 ment of $167,500; and 

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

23 after the Secretary makes the allotments 

24 described in clause (ii)— 


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1 ‘‘(I) from 50 percent of the re2 mainder allot to each State an 

3 amount that bears the same relation4 ship to such 50 percent as the popu5 lation of the State bears to the popu6 lation of all States; and 

7 ‘‘(II) from 50 percent of the re8 mainder, allot to each State an equal 

9 amount. 

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

11 available for an award year under this section shall 

12 be available for the award year and the year fol13 lowing the award year. 

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

15 ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

16 ‘‘(1) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI17 TY.— 

18 ‘‘(A) LEAD AGENCY.— 

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

20 State shall designate a public agency as a 

21 lead agency— 

22 ‘‘(I) to control and administer 

23 the funds made available through the 

24 grant awarded to the State under this 

25 section; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) to submit the application 

2 described in subsection (d) on behalf 

3 of the State, to ensure conformance 

4 with Federal and State accounting re5 quirements. 

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

7 agency shall include— 

8 ‘‘(I) preparing the application de9 scribed in subsection (d) and carrying 

10 out State activities described in that 

11 application, including making pro12 grammatic and resource allocation de13 cisions necessary to implement the 

14 comprehensive statewide program of 

15 technology-related assistance; 

16 ‘‘(II) coordinating the activities 

17 of the comprehensive statewide pro18 gram of technology-related assistance 

19 among public and private entities, in20 cluding coordinating efforts related to 

21 entering into interagency agreements, 

22 and maintaining and evaluating the 

23 program; and 

24 ‘‘(III) coordinating culturally 

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1 tive, timely, and meaningful participa2 tion by individuals with disabilities 

3 and their family members, guardians, 

4 advocates, or authorized representa5 tives, and other appropriate individ6 uals, with respect to activities carried 

7 out through the grant. 

8 ‘‘(B) IMPLEMENTING ENTITY.—The Gov9 ernor or lead agency may designate an agency, 

10 office, or other entity to carry out all State ac11 tivities under this section (referred to in this 

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

13 implementing entity is different from the lead 

14 agency. The implementing entity shall carry out 

15 responsibilities under this Act through a sub16 contract or another administrative agreement 

17 with the lead agency. 

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

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

20 approval of the Secretary— 

21 ‘‘(I) the Governor may redesig22 nate the lead agency of a State, if the 

23 Governor shows to the Secretary good 

24 cause why the entity designated as the 


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1 lead agency should not serve as that 

2 agency; and 

3 ‘‘(II) the Governor or the lead 

4 agency may redesignate the imple5 menting entity of a State, if the Gov6 ernor or lead agency shows to the Sec7 retary, in accordance with subsection 

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

9 designated as the implementing entity 

10 should not serve as that entity. 

11 ‘‘(ii) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

12 this paragraph shall be construed to re13 quire the Governor of a State to change 

14 the lead agency or implementing entity of 

15 the State to an agency other than the lead 

16 agency or implementing entity of such 

17 State as of the date of enactment of the 

18 Assistive Technology Act of 2004 (Public 

19 Law 108–364; 118 Stat. 1707). 

20 ‘‘(2) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There shall be estab22 lished an advisory council to provide consumer23 responsive, consumer-driven advice to the State 

24 for, planning of, implementation of, and evalua25 tion of the activities carried out through the 


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1 grant, including setting the measurable goals 

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

3 ‘‘(B) COMPOSITION AND REPRESENTA4 TION.— 

5 ‘‘(i) COMPOSITION.—The advisory 

6 council shall be composed of— 

7 ‘‘(I) individuals with disabilities 

8 that use assistive technology, includ9 ing individuals over 50 years of age, 

10 or the family members or guardians of 

11 the individuals; 

12 ‘‘(II) a representative of the des13 ignated State agency, as defined in 

14 section 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

15 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705) and the State 

16 agency for individuals who are blind 

17 (within the meaning of section 101 of 

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

19 agency is separate; 

20 ‘‘(III) a representative of a State 

21 center for independent living described 

22 in part C of title VII of the Rehabili23 tation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et 

24 seq.) or the Statewide Independent 

25 Living Council established under secVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 tion 705 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

2 796d); 

3 ‘‘(IV) a representative of the 

4 State workforce development board es5 tablished under section 101 of the 

6 Workforce Innovation and Oppor7 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111); 

8 ‘‘(V) a representative of 1 or 

9 more of the following: 

10 ‘‘(aa) the agency responsible 

11 for administering the State Med12 icaid program under title XIX of 

13 the Social Security Act (42 

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

15 ‘‘(bb) the designated State 

16 agency for purposes of section 

17 124 of the Developmental Dis18 abilities Assistance and Bill of 

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

20 15024); 

21 ‘‘(cc) the State agency des22 ignated under section 305(a)(1) 

23 of the Older Americans Act of 

24 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)(1)) or 

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1 sistant under such Act (42 

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

3 ‘‘(dd) an organization rep4 resenting injured veterans; 

5 ‘‘(ee) A University Center 

6 for Excellence in Developmental 

7 Disabilities Education, Research, 

8 and Service designated under 

9 section 151(a) of the Develop10 mental Disabilities Assistance 

11 and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 

12 (42 U.S.C. 15061(a)); 

13 ‘‘(ff) the State protection 

14 and advocacy system established 

15 in accordance with section 143 of 

16 the Developmental Disabilities 

17 Assistance and Bill of Rights Act 

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

19 ‘‘(gg) the State Council on 

20 Developmental Disabilities estab21 lished under section 125 of the 

22 Developmental Disabilities As23 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 

24 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15025); 


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1 ‘‘(VI) a representative of the 

2 State educational agency, as defined 

3 in section 8101 of the Elementary and 

4 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

5 U.S.C. 7801); 

6 ‘‘(VII) a representative of an al7 ternative financing program for assist8 ive technology, if— 

9 ‘‘(aa) there is an alternative 

10 financing program for assistive 

11 technology in the State; 

12 ‘‘(bb) such program is sepa13 rate from the State assistive 

14 technology program supported 

15 under subsection (e)(2); and 

16 ‘‘(cc) the program described 

17 in item (aa) is operated by a non18 profit entity; and 

19 ‘‘(VIII) representatives of other 

20 State agencies, public agencies, or pri21 vate organizations, as determined by 

22 the State. 

23 ‘‘(ii) MAJORITY.— 

24 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 

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1 visory council shall be members ap2 pointed under clause (i)(I), in a man3 ner that ensures— 

4 ‘‘(aa) not less than 31 per5 cent of the members of the advi6 sory council are individuals with 

7 disabilities described in such 

8 clause; and 

9 ‘‘(bb) not more than 20 per10 cent of the members of the advi11 sory council are family members 

12 or guardians of individuals with 

13 disabilities described in such 

14 clause. 

15 ‘‘(II) REPRESENTATIVES OF

16 AGENCIES.—Members appointed 

17 under subclauses (II) through (VIII) 

18 of clause (i) shall not count toward 

19 the majority membership requirement 

20 established in subclause (I). 

21 ‘‘(iii) REPRESENTATION.—The advi22 sory council shall be geographically rep23 resentative of the State and reflect the di24 versity of the State with respect to race, 

25 ethnicity, types of disabilities across the 


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1 age span, and users of types of services 

2 that an individual with a disability may re3 ceive. 

4 ‘‘(C) EXPENSES.—The members of the ad5 visory council shall receive no compensation for 

6 their service on the advisory council, but shall 

7 be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary ex8 penses actually incurred in the performance of 

9 official duties for the advisory council. 

10 ‘‘(D) IMPACT ON EXISTING STATUTES, 

11 RULES, OR POLICIES.—Nothing in this para12 graph shall be construed to affect State stat13 utes, rules, or official policies relating to advi14 sory bodies for State assistive technology pro15 grams or require changes to governing bodies of 

16 incorporated agencies who carry out State as17 sistive technology programs. 

18 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION.— 

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

20 receive a grant under this section shall submit an 

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

22 manner, and containing such information as the Sec23 retary may require. 

24 ‘‘(2) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI25 TY.— 


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

2 contain— 

3 ‘‘(i) information identifying and de4 scribing the lead agency referred to in sub5 section (c)(1)(A); 

6 ‘‘(ii) information identifying and de7 scribing the implementing entity referred 

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

9 or lead agency of the State designates such 

10 an entity; 

11 ‘‘(iii) a description of how individuals 

12 with disabilities were involved in the devel13 opment of the application and will be in14 volved in the implementation of the activi15 ties to be carried out through the grant 

16 and through the advisory council estab17 lished in accordance with subsection (c)(2); 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(iv) a description of how individuals 

20 with disabilities were involved in the devel21 opment of the application and will be in22 volved in the implementation of the activi23 ties to be carried out through the grant 

24 and through the advisory council. 


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1 ‘‘(B) CHANGE IN LEAD AGENCY OR IMPLE2 MENTING AGENCY.—In any case where the Gov3 ernor or lead agency requests to redesignate a 

4 lead agency or implementing entity, as the case 

5 may be, the Governor or lead agency shall in6 clude in, or amend, the application to request 

7 the redesignation and provide a written descrip8 tion of the rationale for why the entity des9 ignated as the lead agency or implementing en10 tity, as the case may be, should not serve as 

11 that agency or entity. 

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

13 subsection shall include a State plan for assistive 

14 technology, consisting of— 

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

16 carry out a statewide continuum of integrated 

17 assistive technology activities and implement all 

18 activities described in subsection (e) (unless ex19 cluded by the State pursuant to subsection 

20 (e)(6)); 

21 ‘‘(B) a description of how the State will al22 locate and utilize grant funds to implement the 

23 activities, including describing proposed budget 

24 allocations and planned procedures for tracking 

25 expenditures for the activities; 


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

2 meeting the goals, that the State has set for ad3 dressing the assistive technology needs of indi4 viduals with disabilities in the State related 

5 to— 

6 ‘‘(i) education, including goals involv7 ing the provision of assistive technology to 

8 individuals with disabilities who receive 

9 services under the Individuals with Disabil10 ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 

11 seq.); 

12 ‘‘(ii) employment, including goals in13 volving the State vocational rehabilitation 

14 program carried out under title I of the 

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

16 et seq.); 

17 ‘‘(iii) access to tele-assistive tech18 nology to aid in the access of health care 

19 services; 

20 ‘‘(iv) accessible information and com21 munication technology training; and 

22 ‘‘(v) community living; 

23 ‘‘(D) information describing how the State 

24 will quantifiably measure the goals to determine 

25 whether the goals have been achieved, in a 


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1 manner consistent with the data submitted 

2 through the progress reports under subsection 

3 (f); and 

4 ‘‘(E) a description of any activities de5 scribed in subsection (e) that the State will sup6 port with State or non-Federal funds. 

7 ‘‘(4) INVOLVEMENT OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

8 ENTITIES.—The application shall describe how var9 ious public and private entities were involved in the 

10 development of the application and will be involved 

11 in the implementation of the activities to be carried 

12 out through the grant, including— 

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

14 by the State, a description of the nature and 

15 extent of resources that will be committed by 

16 public and private collaborators to assist in ac17 complishing identified goals; and 

18 ‘‘(B) a description of the mechanisms es19 tablished to ensure coordination of activities 

20 and collaboration between the implementing en21 tity, if any, and the State. 

22 ‘‘(5) ASSURANCES.—The application shall in23 clude assurances that— 

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

25 related to all activities described in paragraph 


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

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

3 in order to prepare the progress reports re4 quired under subsection (f); 

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

6 ‘‘(i) will be expended in accordance 

7 with this section; and 

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

9 not supplant, funds available from other 

10 sources for technology-related assistance, 

11 including the provision of assistive tech12 nology devices and assistive technology 

13 services; 

14 ‘‘(C) the lead agency will control and ad15 minister the funds received through the grant; 

16 ‘‘(D) the State will adopt such fiscal con17 trol and accounting procedures as may be nec18 essary to ensure proper disbursement of and ac19 counting for the funds received through the 

20 grant; 

21 ‘‘(E) the physical facility of the lead agen22 cy and implementing entity, if any, meets the 

23 requirements of the Americans with Disabilities 

24 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) regard25 ing accessibility for individuals with disabilities; 


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

2 a disability holds title to any property pur3 chased with funds received under the grant and 

4 administers that property; 

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

6 are authorized under this Act, and supported by 

7 Federal funds received under this Act, will com8 ply with the standards established by the Archi9 tectural and Transportation Barriers Compli10 ance Board under section 508 of the Rehabilita11 tion Act of 1973 (20 U.S.C. 794d); and 

12 ‘‘(H) the State will— 

13 ‘‘(i) prepare reports to the Secretary 

14 in such form and containing such informa15 tion as the Secretary may require to carry 

16 out the Secretary’s functions under this 

17 Act; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) keep such records and allow ac19 cess to such records as the Secretary may 

20 require to ensure the correctness and 

21 verification of information provided to the 

22 Secretary under this subparagraph. 

23 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.— 


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

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

3 that receives a grant under this section shall— 

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

5 percent of the funds made available 

6 through the grant to carry out all of the 

7 activities described in paragraph (3), of 

8 which not less than 5 percent of such por9 tion shall be available for activities de10 scribed in paragraph (3)(A)(iii); and 

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

12 available through the grant to carry out all 

13 of the activities described in paragraph (2). 

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

15 SUPPORT.—A State receiving a grant under this 

16 section shall not be required to use grant funds 

17 to carry out the category of activities described 

18 in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of para19 graph (2) if, in that State— 

20 ‘‘(i) financial support is provided from 

21 State or other non-Federal resources or en22 tities for that category of activities; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the financial sup24 port is comparable to, or greater than, the 

25 amount of the portion of the funds made 


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1 available through the grant that the State 

2 would have expended for that category of 

3 activities, in the absence of this subpara4 graph. 

5 ‘‘(2) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.— 

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

7 State shall support State financing activities to 

8 increase access to, and funding for, assistive 

9 technology devices and assistive technology 

10 services (which shall not include direct payment 

11 for such a device or service for an individual 

12 with a disability but may include support and 

13 administration of a program to provide such 

14 payment), including development of systems to 

15 provide and pay for such devices and services, 

16 for targeted individuals and entities described 

17 in section 3(16)(A), including— 

18 ‘‘(i) support for the development of 

19 systems for the purchase, lease, or other 

20 acquisition of, or payment for, assistive 

21 technology devices and assistive technology 

22 services; 

23 ‘‘(ii) another mechanism that is ap24 proved by the Secretary; or 


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

2 State-financed or privately financed alter3 native financing program engaged in the 

4 provision of assistive technology devices, 

5 such as— 

6 ‘‘(I) a low-interest loan fund; 

7 ‘‘(II) an interest buy-down pro8 gram; 

9 ‘‘(III) a revolving loan fund; or 

10 ‘‘(IV) a loan guarantee or insur11 ance program. 

12 ‘‘(B) DEVICE REUTILIZATION PRO13 GRAMS.—The State shall directly, or in collabo14 ration with public or private entities, carry out 

15 assistive technology device reutilization pro16 grams that provide for the exchange, repair, re17 cycling, or other reutilization of assistive tech18 nology devices, which may include redistribution 

19 through device sales, loans, rentals, or dona20 tions. 

21 ‘‘(C) DEVICE LOAN PROGRAMS.—The 

22 State shall directly, or in collaboration with 

23 public or private entities, carry out device loan 

24 programs that provide short-term loans of as25 sistive technology devices to individuals, employVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ers, public agencies, or others seeking to meet 

2 the needs of targeted individuals and entities, 

3 including others seeking to comply with the In4 dividuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 

5 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), the Americans with Dis6 abilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), 

7 and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

8 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794). 

9 ‘‘(D) DEVICE DEMONSTRATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

11 directly, or in collaboration with public and 

12 private entities, such as one-stop partners, 

13 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce 

14 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

15 U.S.C. 3102), demonstrate a variety of as16 sistive technology devices and assistive 

17 technology services (including assisting in18 dividuals in making informed choices re19 garding, and providing experiences with, 

20 the devices and services), using personnel 

21 who are familiar with such devices and 

22 services and their applications. 

23 ‘‘(ii) COMPREHENSIVE INFORMA24 TION.—The State shall directly, or through 

25 referrals, provide to individuals, to the exVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 tent practicable, comprehensive informa2 tion about State and local assistive tech3 nology venders, providers, and repair serv4 ices. 

5 ‘‘(3) STATE LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES.— 

6 ‘‘(A) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSIST7 ANCE.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

9 directly, or provide support to public or 

10 private entities with demonstrated exper11 tise in collaborating with public or private 

12 agencies that serve individuals with disabil13 ities to, develop and disseminate training 

14 materials, conduct training, and provide 

15 technical assistance, for individuals from 

16 local settings statewide, including rep17 resentatives of State and local educational 

18 agencies, other State and local agencies, 

19 early intervention programs, adult service 

20 programs, hospitals and other health care 

21 facilities, institutions of higher education, 

22 and businesses. 

23 ‘‘(ii) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In 

24 carrying out activities under clause (i), the 

25 State shall carry out activities that enVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 hance the knowledge, skills, and com2 petencies of individuals from local settings 

3 described in such clause, which may in4 clude— 

5 ‘‘(I) general awareness training 

6 on the benefits of assistive technology 

7 and the Federal, State, and private 

8 funding sources available to assist tar9 geted individuals, especially older indi10 viduals, and entities in acquiring as11 sistive technology; 

12 ‘‘(II) skills-development training 

13 in assessing the need for assistive 

14 technology devices and assistive tech15 nology services; 

16 ‘‘(III) training to ensure the ap17 propriate application and use of as18 sistive technology devices, assistive 

19 technology services, and accessible in20 formation and communication tech21 nology for e-government functions; 

22 ‘‘(IV) training in the importance 

23 of multiple approaches to assessment 

24 and implementation necessary to meet 

25 the individualized needs of individuals 


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1 with disabilities and older individuals; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(V) technical training on inte4 grating assistive technology into the 

5 development and implementation of 

6 service plans, including any education, 

7 health, discharge, Olmstead, employ8 ment, or other plan required under 

9 Federal or State law. 

10 ‘‘(iii) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE TO IN11 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—The 

12 State shall directly, or provide support to 

13 public or private entities to, develop and 

14 disseminate training materials, conduct 

15 training, facilitate access to assistive tech16 nology, and provide technical assistance, to 

17 assist— 

18 ‘‘(I) students with disabilities, 

19 within the meaning of the Individuals 

20 with Disabilities Education Act (20 

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

22 transition services; or 

23 ‘‘(II) adults who are individuals 

24 with disabilities maintaining or 

25 transitioning to community living. 


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

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

3 conduct public-awareness activities de4 signed to provide information to targeted 

5 individuals, including older individuals, and 

6 entities relating to the availability, bene7 fits, appropriateness, and costs of assistive 

8 technology devices and assistive technology 

9 services, including— 

10 ‘‘(I) the development of proce11 dures for providing direct communica12 tion between providers of assistive 

13 technology and targeted individuals 

14 and entities, which may include part15 nerships with entities in the statewide 

16 and local workforce development sys17 tems established under the Workforce 

18 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

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

20 rehabilitation centers, public and pri21 vate employers, or elementary and 

22 secondary public schools; 

23 ‘‘(II) the development and dis24 semination, to targeted individuals 

25 and entities, of information about 


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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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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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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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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 

25 data collected pursuant to this section. The reVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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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 

25 audio/video broadcasts, on emergVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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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. 

21 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

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

23 Technology Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION. 

2 The Assistive Technology Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3001 

3 et seq.) is amended to read as follows: 

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

5 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘As6 sistive Technology Act of 1998’. 

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

8 this Act is as follows: 

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

‘‘Sec. 2. Purposes. 

‘‘Sec. 3. Definitions. 

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

‘‘Sec. 5. 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. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

10 ‘‘The purposes of this Act are— 

11 ‘‘(1) to support State efforts to improve the pro12 vision of assistive technology to individuals with dis13 abilities through comprehensive statewide programs of 

14 technology-related assistance, for individuals with dis15 abilities of all ages, that are designed to— 

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

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

18 assistive technology devices and assistive tech19 nology services; 

20 ‘‘(B) increase the ability of individuals with 

21 disabilities of all ages to secure and maintain 


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1 possession of assistive technology devices as such 

2 individuals make the transition between services 

3 offered by educational or human service agencies 

4 or between settings of daily living (for example, 

5 between home and work); 

6 ‘‘(C) increase the capacity of public agen7 cies and private entities to provide and pay for 

8 assistive technology devices and assistive tech9 nology services on a statewide basis for individ10 uals with disabilities of all ages; 

11 ‘‘(D) increase the involvement of individ12 uals with disabilities and, if appropriate, their 

13 family members, guardians, advocates, and au14 thorized representatives, in decisions related to 

15 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

16 assistive technology services; 

17 ‘‘(E) increase and promote coordination 

18 among State agencies, between State and local 

19 agencies, among local agencies, and between 

20 State and local agencies and private entities 

21 (such as managed care providers), that are in22 volved or are eligible to be involved in carrying 

23 out activities under this Act; 

24 ‘‘(F) increase the awareness and facilitate 

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1 tices, procedures, and organizational structures 

2 that facilitate the availability or provision of as3 sistive technology devices and assistive technology 

4 services; and 

5 ‘‘(G) increase awareness and knowledge of 

6 the benefits of assistive technology devices and 

7 assistive technology services among targeted indi8 viduals and entities and the general population; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(2) to provide States and protection and advo11 cacy systems with financial assistance that supports 

12 programs designed to maximize the ability of individ13 uals with disabilities and their family members, 

14 guardians, advocates, and authorized representatives 

15 to obtain assistive technology devices and assistive 

16 technology services. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

18 ‘‘In this Act: 

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

20 ‘adult service program’ means a program that pro21 vides services to, or is otherwise substantially involved 

22 with the major life functions of, individuals with dis23 abilities. Such term includes— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a program providing residential, sup2 portive, or employment services, or employment3 related services, to individuals with disabilities; 

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

5 independent living, such as a center described in 

6 part C of title VII of the Rehabilitation Act of 

7 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et seq.); 

8 ‘‘(C) a program carried out by an employ9 ment support agency connected to adult voca10 tional rehabilitation, such as a one-stop partner, 

11 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Innova12 tion and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102); and 

13 ‘‘(D) a program carried out by another or14 ganization or vender licensed or registered by the 

15 designated State agency, as defined in section 7 

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

17 705). 

18 ‘‘(2) AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.—The term 

19 ‘American Indian consortium’ means an entity that 

20 is an American Indian Consortium (as defined in 

21 section 102 of the Developmental Disabilities Assist22 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

23 15002)), and that is established to provide protection 

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1 ing under subtitle C of title I of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 15041 et seq.). 

3 ‘‘(3) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘assist4 ive technology’ means technology designed to be uti5 lized in an assistive technology device or assistive 

6 technology service. 

7 ‘‘(4) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICE.—The term 

8 ‘assistive technology device’ means any item, piece of 

9 equipment, or product system, whether acquired com10 mercially, modified, or customized, that is used to in11 crease, maintain, or improve functional capabilities 

12 of individuals with disabilities. 

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

14 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service 

15 that directly assists an individual with a disability 

16 in the selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive 

17 technology device. Such term includes— 

18 ‘‘(A) the evaluation of the assistive tech19 nology needs of an individual with a disability, 

20 including a functional evaluation of the impact 

21 of the provision of appropriate assistive tech22 nology and appropriate services to the indi23 vidual in the customary environment of the indi24 vidual; 


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

2 leasing, or otherwise providing for the acquisi3 tion of assistive technology devices by individ4 uals with disabilities; 

5 ‘‘(C) a service consisting of selecting, de6 signing, fitting, customizing, adapting, apply7 ing, maintaining, repairing, replacing, or donat8 ing assistive technology devices; 

9 ‘‘(D) coordination and use of necessary 

10 therapies, interventions, or services with assistive 

11 technology devices, such as therapies, interven12 tions, or services associated with education and 

13 rehabilitation plans and programs; 

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

15 individual with a disability or, where appro16 priate, the family members, guardians, advo17 cates, or authorized representatives of such an 

18 individual; 

19 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for 

20 professionals (including individuals providing 

21 education and rehabilitation services and entities 

22 that manufacture or sell assistive technology de23 vices), employers, providers of employment and 

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1 stantially involved in the major life functions of 

2 individuals with disabilities; and 

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

4 availability of access to technology, including 

5 electronic and information technology, to indi6 viduals with disabilities. 

7 ‘‘(6) CAPACITY BUILDING AND ADVOCACY ACTIVI8 TIES.—The term ‘capacity building and advocacy ac9 tivities’ means efforts that— 

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

11 practices, procedures, or organizational struc12 tures that promote consumer-responsive pro13 grams or entities; and 

14 ‘‘(B) facilitate and increase access to, provi15 sion of, and funding for, assistive technology de16 vices and assistive technology services, in order 

17 to empower individuals with disabilities to 

18 achieve greater independence, productivity, and 

19 integration and inclusion within the community 

20 and the workforce. 

21 ‘‘(7) COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE PROGRAM OF

22 TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘com23 prehensive statewide program of technology-related as24 sistance’ means a consumer-responsive program of 


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1 technology-related assistance for individuals with dis2 abilities that— 

3 ‘‘(A) is implemented by a State; 

4 ‘‘(B) is equally available to all individuals 

5 with disabilities residing in the State, regardless 

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

7 location of residence in the State, or the type of 

8 assistive technology device or assistive technology 

9 service required; and 

10 ‘‘(C) incorporates all the activities described 

11 in section 4(e) (unless excluded pursuant to sec12 tion 4(e)(6)). 

13 ‘‘(8) CONSUMER-RESPONSIVE.—The term ‘con14 sumer-responsive’— 

15 ‘‘(A) with regard to policies, means that the 

16 policies are consistent with the principles of— 

17 ‘‘(i) respect for individual dignity, per18 sonal responsibility, self-determination, and 

19 pursuit of meaningful careers, based on in20 formed choice, of individuals with disabil21 ities; 

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

23 and equal access (including the use of acces24 sible formats) of such individuals; 


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

2 participation of such individuals in society; 

3 ‘‘(iv) support for the involvement in 

4 decisions of a family member, a guardian, 

5 an advocate, or an authorized representa6 tive, if an individual with a disability re7 quests, desires, or needs such involvement; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(v) support for individual and sys10 tems advocacy and community involvement; 

11 and 

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

13 activity, means that the entity, program, or ac14 tivity— 

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

16 by, individuals with disabilities and, when 

17 appropriate, their family members, guard18 ians, advocates, or authorized representa19 tives; 

20 ‘‘(ii) responds to the needs of individ21 uals with disabilities in a timely and ap22 propriate manner; and 

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1 represented populations and rural popu2 lations) and their family members, guard3 ians, advocates, and authorized representa4 tives, in— 

5 ‘‘(I) decisions relating to the pro6 vision of assistive technology devices 

7 and assistive technology services to 

8 such individuals; and 

9 ‘‘(II) decisions related to the 

10 maintenance, improvement, and eval11 uation of the comprehensive statewide 

12 program of technology-related assist13 ance, including decisions that affect ca14 pacity building and advocacy activi15 ties. 

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

17 meaning given the term under section 3 of the Ameri18 cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102). 

19 ‘‘(10) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.—The 

20 term ‘individual with a disability’ means any indi21 vidual of any age, race, or ethnicity— 

22 ‘‘(A) who has a disability; and 

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1 tioning, to maintain a level of functioning, or to 

2 achieve a greater level of functioning in any 

3 major life activity. 

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 seq.). 

11 ‘‘(12) PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SERVICES.— 

12 The term ‘protection and advocacy services’ means 

13 services that— 

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

15 the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and 

16 Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15041 et 

17 seq.), the Protection and Advocacy for Individ18 uals with Mental Illness Act (42 U.S.C. 10801 et 

19 seq.), or section 509 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

20 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794e); and 

21 ‘‘(B) assist individuals with disabilities 

22 with respect to assistive technology devices and 

23 assistive technology services. 

24 ‘‘(13) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 

25 the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting 


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1 through the Administrator of the Administration for 

2 Community Living. 

3 ‘‘(14) STATE.— 

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

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

6 of the 50 States of the United States, the District 

7 of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 

8 the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, Amer9 ican Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the 

10 Northern Mariana Islands. 

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

12 ‘‘(i) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘out13 lying area’ means the United States Virgin 

14 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

15 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is16 lands. 

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

18 not include the United States Virgin Is19 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

20 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is21 lands. 

22 ‘‘(15) STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO23 GRAM.—The term ‘State assistive technology program’ 

24 means a program authorized under section 4. 


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1 ‘‘(16) TARGETED INDIVIDUALS AND ENTITIES.— 

2 The term ‘targeted individuals and entities’ means— 

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

4 and their family members, guardians, advocates, 

5 and authorized representatives; 

6 ‘‘(B) underrepresented populations, includ7 ing the aging workforce; 

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

9 private entities (including centers for inde10 pendent living described in part C of title VII of 

11 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f 

12 et seq.), insurers, or managed care providers) 

13 that have contact with, or provide services to, in14 dividuals with disabilities; 

15 ‘‘(D) educators at all levels (including pro16 viders of early intervention services, elementary 

17 schools, secondary schools, community colleges, 

18 and vocational and other institutions of higher 

19 education) and related services personnel; 

20 ‘‘(E) technology experts (including web de21 signers and procurement officials); 

22 ‘‘(F) health, allied health, and rehabilita23 tion professionals and hospital employees (in24 cluding discharge planners); 


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1 ‘‘(G) employers, especially small business 

2 employers, and providers of employment and 

3 training services; 

4 ‘‘(H) entities that manufacture or sell as5 sistive technology devices; 

6 ‘‘(I) entities that carry out community pro7 grams designed to develop essential community 

8 services in rural and urban areas; and 

9 ‘‘(J) other appropriate individuals and en10 tities, as determined for a State by the State. 

11 ‘‘(17) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION.—The 

12 term ‘underrepresented population’ means a popu13 lation that is typically underrepresented in service 

14 provision, and includes populations such as individ15 uals who have low-incidence disabilities, racial and 

16 ethnic minorities, low income individuals, homeless 

17 individuals (including children and youth), children 

18 in foster care, individuals with limited English pro19 ficiency, older individuals, or individuals living in 

20 rural areas. 

21 ‘‘(18) UNIVERSAL DESIGN.—The term ‘universal 

22 design’ means a concept or philosophy for designing 

23 and delivering products and services that are usable 

24 by people with the widest possible range of functional 

25 capabilities, which include products and services that 


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1 are directly accessible (without requiring assistive 

2 technologies) and products and services that are inter3 operable with assistive technologies. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR STATE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PRO5 GRAMS. 

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

7 grants under subsection (b) to States to maintain a com8 prehensive statewide continuum of integrated assistive tech9 nology activities described in subsection (e) through State 

10 assistive technology programs that are designed— 

11 ‘‘(1) to maximize the ability of individuals with 

12 disabilities across the human lifespan and across the 

13 wide array of disabilities, and their family members, 

14 guardians, advocates, and authorized representatives, 

15 to obtain assistive technology; and 

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

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

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

19 to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award a 

20 grant to each eligible State and eligible outlying area 

21 from an allotment determined in accordance with 

22 paragraph (2). 

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

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

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


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1 allot to each State and outlying area for a fiscal 

2 year an amount that is not less than the amount 

3 the State or outlying area received under the 

4 grants provided under section 4 of this Act (as 

5 in effect on the day before the effective date of the 

6 21st Century Assistive Technology Act) for fiscal 

7 year 2021. 

8 ‘‘(B) RATABLE REDUCTION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If funds made 

10 available to carry out this section for any 

11 fiscal year are insufficient to make the al12 lotments required for each State and out13 lying area under subparagraph (A) for such 

14 fiscal year, the Secretary shall ratably re15 duce the allotments for such fiscal year. 

16 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—If, after the 

17 Secretary makes the reductions described in 

18 clause (i), additional funds become avail19 able to carry out this section for the fiscal 

20 year, the Secretary shall ratably increase 

21 the allotments, until the Secretary has allot22 ted the entire base year amount under sub23 paragraph (A). 

24 ‘‘(C) APPROPRIATION HIGHER THAN BASE

25 YEAR AMOUNT.—For a fiscal year for which the 


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1 amount of funds made available to carry out this 

2 section is greater than the base year amount 

3 under subparagraph (A) and no greater than 

4 $40,000,000, the Secretary shall— 

5 ‘‘(i) make the allotments described in 

6 subparagraph (A); 

7 ‘‘(ii) from a portion of the remainder 

8 of the funds after the Secretary makes the 

9 allotments described in clause (i), the Sec10 retary shall— 

11 ‘‘(I) from 50 percent of the por12 tion, allot to each State an equal 

13 amount; and 

14 ‘‘(II) from 50 percent of the por15 tion, allot to each State an amount 

16 that bears the same relationship to 

17 such 50 percent as the population of 

18 the State bears to the population of all 

19 States; 

20 until each State has received an allotment 

21 of not less than $410,000 under clause (i) 

22 and this clause; and 

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

24 after the Secretary makes the allotments de25 scribed in clause (ii), the Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(I) from 80 percent of the re2 mainder, allot to each State an 

3 amount that bears the same relation4 ship to such 80 percent as the popu5 lation of the State bears to the popu6 lation of all States; and 

7 ‘‘(II) from 20 percent of the re8 mainder, allot to each State an equal 

9 amount. 

10 ‘‘(D) APPROPRIATION HIGHER THAN

11 THRESHOLD AMOUNT.—For a fiscal year for 

12 which the amount of funds made available to 

13 carry out this section is $40,000,000 or greater, 

14 the Secretary shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) make the allotments described in 

16 subparagraph (A); 

17 ‘‘(ii) from the funds remaining after 

18 the allotment described in clause (i), allot to 

19 each outlying area an amount of such funds 

20 until each outlying area has received an al21 lotment of exactly $150,000 under clause (i) 

22 and this clause; 

23 ‘‘(iii) from a portion of the remainder 

24 of the funds after the Secretary makes the 


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1 allotments described in clauses (i) and (ii), 

2 the Secretary shall— 

3 ‘‘(I) from 50 percent of the por4 tion, allot to each State an equal 

5 amount; and 

6 ‘‘(II) from 50 percent of the por7 tion, allot to each State an amount 

8 that bears the same relationship to 

9 such 50 percent as the population of 

10 the State bears to the population of all 

11 States; 

12 until each State has received an allotment 

13 of not less than $450,000 under clause (i) 

14 and this clause; and 

15 ‘‘(iv) from the remainder of the funds 

16 after the Secretary makes the allotments de17 scribed in clause (iii), the Secretary shall— 

18 ‘‘(I) from 80 percent of the re19 mainder, allot to each State an 

20 amount that bears the same relation21 ship to such 80 percent as the popu22 lation of the State bears to the popu23 lation of all States; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) from 20 percent of the re2 mainder, allot to each State an equal 

3 amount. 

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

5 available for a fiscal year under this section shall be 

6 available for the fiscal year and the year following the 

7 fiscal year. 

8 ‘‘(c) LEAD AGENCY, IMPLEMENTING ENTITY, AND AD9 VISORY COUNCIL.— 

10 ‘‘(1) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI11 TY.— 

12 ‘‘(A) LEAD AGENCY.— 

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

14 State shall designate a public agency as a 

15 lead agency— 

16 ‘‘(I) to control and administer the 

17 funds made available through the grant 

18 awarded to the State under this sec19 tion; and 

20 ‘‘(II) to submit the application 

21 described in subsection (d) on behalf of 

22 the State, to ensure conformance with 

23 Federal and State accounting require24 ments. 


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

2 agency shall include— 

3 ‘‘(I) preparing the application de4 scribed in subsection (d) and carrying 

5 out State activities described in that 

6 application, including making pro7 grammatic and resource allocation de8 cisions necessary to implement the 

9 comprehensive statewide program of 

10 technology-related assistance; 

11 ‘‘(II) coordinating the activities of 

12 the comprehensive statewide program 

13 of technology-related assistance among 

14 public and private entities, including 

15 coordinating efforts related to entering 

16 into interagency agreements, and 

17 maintaining and evaluating the pro18 gram; and 

19 ‘‘(III) coordinating culturally 

20 competent efforts related to the active, 

21 timely, and meaningful participation 

22 by individuals with disabilities and 

23 their family members, guardians, ad24 vocates, or authorized representatives, 

25 and other appropriate individuals, 


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1 with respect to activities carried out 

2 through the grant. 

3 ‘‘(B) IMPLEMENTING ENTITY.—The Gov4 ernor may designate an agency, office, or other 

5 entity to carry out State activities under this 

6 section (referred to in this section as the ‘imple7 menting entity’), if such implementing entity is 

8 different from the lead agency. The implementing 

9 entity shall carry out responsibilities under this 

10 Act through a subcontract or another adminis11 trative agreement with the lead agency. 

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

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

14 approval of the Secretary— 

15 ‘‘(I) the Governor may redesignate 

16 the lead agency of a State, if the Gov17 ernor shows to the Secretary good cause 

18 why the agency designated as the lead 

19 agency should not serve as that agency; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(II) the Governor may redesig22 nate the implementing entity of a 

23 State, if the Governor shows to the Sec24 retary in accordance with subsection 

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


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1 designated as the implementing entity 

2 should not serve as that entity. 

3 ‘‘(ii) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

4 paragraph shall be construed to require the 

5 Governor of a State to change the lead agen6 cy or implementing entity of the State to an 

7 agency other than the lead agency or imple8 menting entity of such State as of the date 

9 of enactment of the Assistive Technology Act 

10 of 2004 (Public Law 108–364; 118 Stat. 

11 1707). 

12 ‘‘(2) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There shall be estab14 lished an advisory council to provide consumer15 responsive, consumer-driven advice to the State 

16 for planning of, implementation of, and evalua17 tion of the activities carried out through the 

18 grant, including setting the measurable goals de19 scribed in subsection (d)(3)(C). 

20 ‘‘(B) COMPOSITION AND REPRESENTA21 TION.— 

22 ‘‘(i) COMPOSITION.—The advisory 

23 council shall be composed of— 

24 ‘‘(I) individuals with disabilities 

25 who use assistive technology, including 


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1 older individuals, or the family mem2 bers or guardians of the individuals; 

3 ‘‘(II) a representative of the des4 ignated State agency, as defined in sec5 tion 7 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

6 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705) and the State 

7 agency for individuals who are blind 

8 (within the meaning of section 101 of 

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

10 agency is separate; 

11 ‘‘(III) a representative of a State 

12 center for independent living described 

13 in part C of title VII of the Rehabilita14 tion Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 796f et 

15 seq.) or the Statewide Independent Liv16 ing Council established under section 

17 705 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 796d); 

18 ‘‘(IV) a representative of the State 

19 workforce development board estab20 lished under section 101 of the Work21 force Innovation and Opportunity Act 

22 (29 U.S.C. 3111); 

23 ‘‘(V) a representative of the State 

24 educational agency, as defined in sec25 tion 8101 of the Elementary and SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00108 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

2 U.S.C. 7801); 

3 ‘‘(VI) a representative of an alter4 native financing program for assistive 

5 technology if— 

6 ‘‘(aa) there is an alternative 

7 financing program for assistive 

8 technology in the State; 

9 ‘‘(bb) such program is sepa10 rate from the State assistive tech11 nology program supported under 

12 subsection (e)(2); and 

13 ‘‘(cc) the program described 

14 in item (aa) is operated by a non15 profit entity; 

16 ‘‘(VII) representatives of other 

17 State agencies, public agencies, or pri18 vate organizations, as determined by 

19 the State; and 

20 ‘‘(VIII) a representative of 1 or 

21 more of the following: 

22 ‘‘(aa) The agency responsible 

23 for administering the State Med24 icaid program under title XIX of 


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1 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 1396 et seq.). 

3 ‘‘(bb) The designated State 

4 agency for purposes of section 124 

5 of the Developmental Disabilities 

6 Assistance and Bill of Rights Act 

7 of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15024). 

8 ‘‘(cc) The State agency des9 ignated under section 305(a)(1) of 

10 the Older Americans Act of 1965 

11 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)(1)) or an or12 ganization that receives assistance 

13 under such Act (42 U.S.C. 3001 et 

14 seq.). 

15 ‘‘(dd) An organization rep16 resenting disabled veterans. 

17 ‘‘(ee) A University Center for 

18 Excellence in Developmental Dis19 abilities Education, Research, and 

20 Service designated under section 

21 151(a) of the Developmental Dis22 abilities Assistance and Bill of 

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

24 15061(a)). 


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1 ‘‘(ff) The State protection 

2 and advocacy system established 

3 in accordance with section 143 of 

4 the Developmental Disabilities As5 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 

6 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15043). 

7 ‘‘(gg) The State Council on 

8 Developmental Disabilities estab9 lished under section 125 of the De10 velopmental Disabilities Assist11 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 

12 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15025). 

13 ‘‘(ii) MAJORITY.— 

14 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 

15 51 percent of the members of the advi16 sory council shall be members ap17 pointed under clause (i)(I), a majority 

18 of whom shall be individuals with dis19 abilities. 

20 ‘‘(II) REPRESENTATIVES OF

21 AGENCIES.—Members appointed under 

22 subclauses (II) through (VIII) of clause 

23 (i) shall not count toward the majority 

24 membership requirement established in 

25 subclause (I). 


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1 ‘‘(iii) REPRESENTATION.—The advi2 sory council shall be geographically rep3 resentative of the State and reflect the diver4 sity of the State with respect to race, eth5 nicity, types of disabilities across the age 

6 span, and users of types of services that an 

7 individual with a disability may receive. 

8 ‘‘(C) EXPENSES.—The members of the advi9 sory council shall receive no compensation for 

10 their service on the advisory council, but shall be 

11 reimbursed for reasonable and necessary expenses 

12 actually incurred in the performance of official 

13 duties for the advisory council. 

14 ‘‘(D) IMPACT ON EXISTING STATUTES, 

15 RULES, OR POLICIES.—Nothing in this para16 graph shall be construed to affect State statutes, 

17 rules, or official policies relating to advisory 

18 bodies for State assistive technology programs or 

19 require changes to governing bodies of incor20 porated agencies that carry out State assistive 

21 technology programs. 

22 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any State that desires to re24 ceive a grant under this section shall submit an ap25 plication to the Secretary, at such time, in such manVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00112 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ner, and containing such information as the Sec2 retary may require. 

3 ‘‘(2) LEAD AGENCY AND IMPLEMENTING ENTI4 TY.— 

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

6 contain— 

7 ‘‘(i) information identifying and de8 scribing the lead agency referred to in sub9 section (c)(1)(A); 

10 ‘‘(ii) information identifying and de11 scribing the implementing entity referred to 

12 in subsection (c)(1)(B), if the Governor of 

13 the State designates such an entity; and 

14 ‘‘(iii) 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 and 

19 through the advisory council established in 

20 accordance with subsection (c)(2). 

21 ‘‘(B) CHANGE IN LEAD AGENCY OR IMPLE22 MENTING ENTITY.—In any case where— 

23 ‘‘(i) the Governor requests to redesig24 nate a lead agency, the Governor shall in25 clude in, or amend, the application to reVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00113 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 quest the redesignation and provide a writ2 ten description of the rationale for why the 

3 agency designated as the lead agency should 

4 not serve as that agency; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) the Governor requests to redesig6 nate an implementing entity, the Governor 

7 shall include in, or amend, the application 

8 to request the redesignation and provide a 

9 written description of the rationale for why 

10 the entity designated as the implementing 

11 entity should not serve as that entity. 

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

13 subsection shall include a State plan for assistive 

14 technology consisting of— 

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

16 carry out a statewide continuum of integrated 

17 assistive technology activities described in sub18 section (e) (unless excluded by the State pursu19 ant to subsection (e)(6)); 

20 ‘‘(B) a description of how the State will al21 locate and utilize grant funds to implement the 

22 activities, including describing proposed budget 

23 allocations and planned procedures for tracking 

24 expenditures for the activities; 


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

2 meeting the goals, that the State has set for ad3 dressing the assistive technology needs of individ4 uals with disabilities in the State related to— 

5 ‘‘(i) education, including goals involv6 ing the provision of assistive technology to 

7 individuals with disabilities who receive 

8 services under the Individuals with Disabil9 ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 

10 seq.); 

11 ‘‘(ii) employment, including goals in12 volving the State vocational rehabilitation 

13 program carried out under title I of the Re14 habilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 720 et 

15 seq.); 

16 ‘‘(iii) access to tele-assistive technology 

17 to aid in the access of health care services, 

18 including mental health and substance use 

19 disorder; 

20 ‘‘(iv) accessible information and com21 munication technology training; and 

22 ‘‘(v) community living; 

23 ‘‘(D) information describing how the State 

24 will quantifiably measure the goals to determine 

25 whether the goals have been achieved in a manVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00115 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ner consistent with the data submitted through 

2 the progress reports under subsection (f); and 

3 ‘‘(E) a description of any activities de4 scribed in subsection (e) that the State will sup5 port with State or non-Federal funds. 

6 ‘‘(4) INVOLVEMENT OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE EN7 TITIES.—The application shall describe how various 

8 public and private entities were involved in the devel9 opment of the application and will be involved in the 

10 implementation of the activities to be carried out 

11 through the grant, including— 

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

13 by the State, a description of the nature and ex14 tent of resources that will be committed by public 

15 and private collaborators to assist in accom16 plishing identified goals; and 

17 ‘‘(B) a description of the mechanisms estab18 lished to ensure coordination of activities and 

19 collaboration between the implementing entity, if 

20 any, and the State. 

21 ‘‘(5) ASSURANCES.—The application shall in22 clude assurances that— 

23 ‘‘(A) the State will annually collect data re24 lated to the required activities implemented by 

25 the State under this section in order to prepare 


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1 the progress reports required under subsection 

2 (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, in9 cluding the provision of assistive technology 

10 devices and assistive technology services; 

11 ‘‘(C) the lead agency will control and ad12 minister the funds received through the grant; 

13 ‘‘(D) the State will adopt such fiscal control 

14 and accounting procedures as may be necessary 

15 to ensure proper disbursement of and accounting 

16 for the funds received through the grant; 

17 ‘‘(E) the physical facility of the lead agency 

18 and implementing entity, if any, meets the re19 quirements of the Americans with Disabilities 

20 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) regarding 

21 accessibility for individuals with disabilities; 

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

23 a disability holds title to any property pur24 chased with funds received under the grant and 

25 administers that property; 


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

2 are authorized under this Act, and supported by 

3 Federal funds received under this Act, will com4 ply with the standards established by the Archi5 tectural and Transportation Barriers Compli6 ance Board under section 508 of the Rehabilita7 tion Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d); and 

8 ‘‘(H) the State will— 

9 ‘‘(i) prepare reports to the Secretary in 

10 such form and containing such information 

11 as the Secretary may require to carry out 

12 the Secretary’s functions under this Act; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) keep such records and allow ac15 cess to such records as the Secretary may 

16 require to ensure the correctness and 

17 verification of information provided to the 

18 Secretary under this subparagraph. 

19 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.— 

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

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

23 that receives a grant under this section shall— 

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

25 percent of the funds made available through 


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1 the grant to carry out all activities de2 scribed in paragraph (3), of which not less 

3 than 5 percent of such portion shall be 

4 available for activities described in para5 graph (3)(A)(iii); and 

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

7 available through the grant to carry out all 

8 of the activities described in paragraph (2). 

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

10 SUPPORT.—A State receiving a grant under this 

11 section shall not be required to use grant funds 

12 to carry out the category of activities described 

13 in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of para14 graph (2) if, in that State— 

15 ‘‘(i) financial support is provided from 

16 State or other non-Federal resources or enti17 ties for that category of activities; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the financial sup19 port is comparable to, or greater than, the 

20 amount of the portion of the funds made 

21 available through the grant that the State 

22 would have expended for that category of 

23 activities, in the absence of this subpara24 graph. 

25 ‘‘(2) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.— 


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

2 State shall support State financing activities to 

3 increase access to, and funding for, assistive 

4 technology devices and assistive technology serv5 ices (which shall not include direct payment for 

6 such a device or service for an individual with 

7 a disability but may include support and ad8 ministration of a program to provide such pay9 ment), including development of systems to pro10 vide and pay for such devices and services, for 

11 targeted individuals and entities described in 

12 section 3(16)(A), including— 

13 ‘‘(i) support for the development of sys14 tems for the purchase, lease, or other acqui15 sition of, or payment for, assistive tech16 nology devices and assistive technology serv17 ices; 

18 ‘‘(ii) another mechanism that is ap19 proved by the Secretary; or 

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

21 State-financed or privately financed alter22 native financing program engaged in the 

23 provision of assistive technology devices, 

24 such as— 

25 ‘‘(I) a low-interest loan fund; 


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1 ‘‘(II) an interest buy-down pro2 gram; 

3 ‘‘(III) a revolving loan fund; or 

4 ‘‘(IV) a loan guarantee or insur5 ance program. 

6 ‘‘(B) DEVICE REUTILIZATION PROGRAMS.— 

7 The State shall directly, or in collaboration with 

8 public or private entities, carry out assistive 

9 technology device reutilization programs that 

10 provide for the exchange, repair, recycling, or 

11 other reutilization of assistive technology devices, 

12 which may include redistribution through device 

13 sales, loans, rentals, or donations. 

14 ‘‘(C) DEVICE LOAN PROGRAMS.—The State 

15 shall directly, or in collaboration with public or 

16 private entities, carry out device loan programs 

17 that provide short-term loans of assistive tech18 nology devices to individuals, employers, public 

19 agencies, or others seeking to meet the needs of 

20 targeted individuals and entities, including oth21 ers seeking to comply with the Individuals with 

22 Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et 

23 seq.), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 

24 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), and section 504 


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

2 794). 

3 ‘‘(D) DEVICE DEMONSTRATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall di5 rectly, or in collaboration with public and 

6 private entities, such as one-stop partners, 

7 as defined in section 3 of the Workforce In8 novation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

9 3102), demonstrate a variety of assistive 

10 technology devices and assistive technology 

11 services (including assisting individuals in 

12 making informed choices regarding, and 

13 providing experiences with, the devices and 

14 services), using personnel who are familiar 

15 with such devices and services and their ap16 plications. 

17 ‘‘(ii) COMPREHENSIVE INFORMA18 TION.—The State shall directly, or through 

19 referrals, provide to individuals, to the ex20 tent practicable, comprehensive information 

21 about State and local assistive technology 

22 venders, providers, and repair services. 

23 ‘‘(3) STATE LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSIST25 ANCE.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall (di2 rectly or through the provision of support to 

3 public or private entities with demonstrated 

4 expertise in collaborating with public or 

5 private agencies that serve individuals with 

6 disabilities) develop and disseminate train7 ing materials, conduct training, and pro8 vide technical assistance, for individuals 

9 from local settings statewide, including rep10 resentatives of State and local educational 

11 agencies, State vocational rehabilitation 

12 programs, other State and local agencies, 

13 early intervention programs, adult service 

14 programs, hospitals and other health care 

15 facilities, institutions of higher education, 

16 and businesses. 

17 ‘‘(ii) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In 

18 carrying out activities under clause (i), the 

19 State shall carry out activities that enhance 

20 the knowledge, skills, and competencies of 

21 individuals from local settings described in 

22 such clause, which may include— 

23 ‘‘(I) general awareness training 

24 on the benefits of assistive technology 

25 and the Federal, State, and private 


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1 funding sources available to assist tar2 geted individuals, especially older indi3 viduals and transition-age youth with 

4 disabilities, and entities in acquiring 

5 assistive technology; 

6 ‘‘(II) skills-development training 

7 in assessing the need for assistive tech8 nology devices and assistive technology 

9 services; 

10 ‘‘(III) training to ensure the ap11 propriate application and use of as12 sistive technology devices, assistive 

13 technology services, and accessible in14 formation and communication tech15 nology for e-government functions; 

16 ‘‘(IV) training in the importance 

17 of multiple approaches to assessment 

18 and implementation necessary to meet 

19 the individualized needs of individuals 

20 with disabilities and older individuals; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(V) technical training on inte23 grating assistive technology into the 

24 development and implementation of 

25 service plans, including any education, 


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1 health, discharge, Olmstead, employ2 ment, or other plan required under 

3 Federal or State law. 

4 ‘‘(iii) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE TO IN5 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—The State 

6 shall (directly or through the provision of 

7 support to public or private entities) de8 velop and disseminate training materials, 

9 conduct training, facilitate access to assist10 ive technology, and provide technical assist11 ance, to assist— 

12 ‘‘(I) students with disabilities, 

13 within the meaning of the Individuals 

14 with Disabilities Education Act (20 

15 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), that receive tran16 sition services; and 

17 ‘‘(II) adults who are individuals 

18 with disabilities maintaining or 

19 transitioning to community living. 

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

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State shall 

22 conduct public-awareness activities designed 

23 to provide information to targeted individ24 uals, including older individuals and tran25 sition-age youth with disabilities, and entiVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00125 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2401.RS S2401

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1 ties relating to the availability, benefits, ap2 propriateness, and costs of assistive tech3 nology devices and assistive technology serv4 ices, including— 

5 ‘‘(I) the development of procedures 

6 for providing direct communication be7 tween providers of assistive technology 

8 and targeted individuals and entities, 

9 which may include partnerships with 

10 entities in the statewide and local 

11 workforce development systems estab12 lished under the Workforce Innovation 

13 and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3101 

14 et seq.), State vocational rehabilitation 

15 programs, public and private employ16 ers, or elementary and secondary pub17 lic schools; 

18 ‘‘(II) the development and dis19 semination to targeted individuals, in20 cluding older individuals and transi21 tion-age youth with disabilities, and 

22 entities, of information about State ef23 forts related to assistive technology; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(III) the distribution of mate2 rials to appropriate public and private 

3 agencies that provide social, medical, 

4 educational, employment, and trans5 portation services to individuals with 

6 disabilities. 

7 ‘‘(ii) STATEWIDE INFORMATION AND

8 REFERRAL SYSTEM.— 

9 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The State 

10 shall directly, or in collaboration with 

11 public or private (such as nonprofit) 

12 entities, provide for the continuation 

13 and enhancement of a statewide infor14 mation and referral system designed to 

15 meet the needs of targeted individuals 

16 and entities. 

17 ‘‘(II) CONTENT.—The system shall 

18 deliver information on assistive tech19 nology devices, assistive technology 

20 services (with specific data regarding 

21 provider availability within the State), 

22 and the availability of resources, in23 cluding funding through public and 

24 private sources, to obtain assistive 

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1 nology services. The system shall also 

2 deliver information on the benefits of 

3 assistive technology devices and assist4 ive technology services with respect to 

5 enhancing the capacity of individuals 

6 with disabilities of all ages to perform 

7 activities of daily living. 

8 ‘‘(C) COORDINATION AND COLLABORA9 TION.—The State shall coordinate activities de10 scribed in paragraph (2) and this paragraph, 

11 among public and private entities that are re12 sponsible for policies, procedures, or funding for 

13 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

14 assistive technology services to individuals with 

15 disabilities, service providers, and others to im16 prove access to assistive technology devices and 

17 assistive technology services for individuals with 

18 disabilities of all ages in the State. 

19 ‘‘(4) INDIRECT COSTS.—Not more than 10 per20 cent of the funds made available through a grant to 

21 a State under this section may be used for indirect 

22 costs. 

23 ‘‘(5) FUNDING RULES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—Funds made available 

25 through a grant to a State under this section 


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1 shall not be used for direct payment for an as2 sistive technology device for an individual with 

3 a disability. 

4 ‘‘(B) FEDERAL PARTNER COLLABORA5 TION.—In order to provide the maximum avail6 ability of funding to access and acquire assistive 

7 technology through device demonstration, loan, 

8 reuse, and State financing activities, a State re9 ceiving a grant under this section shall ensure 

10 that the lead agency or implementing entity is 

11 conducting outreach to and, as appropriate, col12 laborating with, other State agencies that receive 

13 Federal funding for assistive technology, includ14 ing— 

15 ‘‘(i) the State educational agency re16 ceiving assistance under the Individuals 

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

18 1400 et seq.); 

19 ‘‘(ii) the State vocational rehabilita20 tion agency receiving assistance under title 

21 I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

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

23 ‘‘(iii) the agency responsible for ad24 ministering the State Medicaid program 


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1 under title XIX of the Social Security Act 

2 (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); 

3 ‘‘(iv) the State agency receiving assist4 ance under the Older Americans Act of 1965 

5 (42 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.); and 

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

7 funds assistive technology. 

8 ‘‘(6) STATE FLEXIBILITY.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para10 graph (1)(A) and subject to subparagraph (B), a 

11 State may use funds that the State receives 

12 under a grant awarded under this section to 

13 carry out any 2 or more of the activities de14 scribed in paragraph (2). 

15 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding 

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

17 authority under subparagraph (A)— 

18 ‘‘(i) shall carry out each of the re19 quired activities described in paragraph (3); 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(ii) shall use not more than 30 per22 cent of the funds made available through the 

23 grant to carry out such activities. 

24 ‘‘(7) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICE DISPOSI25 TION.—Notwithstanding other equipment disposition 


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1 policy under Federal law, an assistive technology de2 vice purchased to be used in activities authorized 

3 under this section may be reutilized to the maximum 

4 extent possible and then donated to a public agency, 

5 private nonprofit agency, or individual with a dis6 ability in need of such device. 

7 ‘‘(f) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) DATA COLLECTION.—Each State receiving a 

9 grant under this section shall participate in data col10 lection as required by law, including data collection 

11 required for preparation of the reports described in 

12 paragraph (2). 

13 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall pre15 pare and submit to the Secretary an annual 

16 progress report on the activities carried out by 

17 the State in accordance with subsection (e), in18 cluding activities funded by State or non-Federal 

19 sources under subsection (e)(1)(B) at such time, 

20 and in such manner, as the Secretary may re21 quire. 

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

23 data collected pursuant to this section. The re24 port shall document, with respect to activities 

25 carried out under this section in the State— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the type of State financing activi2 ties described in subsection (e)(2)(A) used 

3 by the State; 

4 ‘‘(ii) the amount and type of assistance 

5 given to consumers of the State financing 

6 activities described in subsection (e)(2)(A) 

7 (which shall be classified by type of assistive 

8 technology device or assistive technology 

9 service financed through the State financing 

10 activities, and geographic distribution with11 in the State), including— 

12 ‘‘(I) the number of applications 

13 for assistance received; 

14 ‘‘(II) the number of applica15 tions— 

16 ‘‘(aa) approved; 

17 ‘‘(bb) denied; or 

18 ‘‘(cc) withdrawn; 

19 ‘‘(III) the number, percentage, 

20 and dollar amount of defaults for the 

21 financing activities; 

22 ‘‘(IV) the range and average inter23 est rate for the financing activities; 


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1 ‘‘(V) the range and average in2 come of approved applicants for the fi3 nancing 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 devices 

9 provided to individuals with disabilities, 

10 employers, public agencies, or public accom11 modations through the device loan program 

12 described in subsection (e)(2)(C), and an 

13 analysis of the individuals with disabilities 

14 who have benefited from the device loan pro15 gram; 

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

17 value, and scope of assistive technology de18 vices exchanged, repaired, recycled, or reuti19 lized (including redistributed through device 

20 sales, loans, rentals, or donations) through 

21 the device reutilization program described 

22 in subsection (e)(2)(B), and an analysis of 

23 the individuals with disabilities that have 

24 benefited from the device reutilization pro25 gram; 


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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 analysis 

4 of individuals with disabilities who have 

5 benefited from the demonstrations and refer6 rals; 

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

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

10 as individuals with disabilities, parents, 

11 educators, employers, providers of employ12 ment services, health care workers, coun13 selors, other service providers, or venders) 

14 and the topics of such training; and 

15 ‘‘(II) to the extent practicable, the geo16 graphic 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 

24 (e)(3)(B)(ii) and descriptions of the public 


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1 awareness activities under subsection 

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

3 ‘‘(ix) the outcomes of any improvement 

4 initiatives carried out by the State as a re5 sult of activities funded under this section, 

6 including a description of any written poli7 cies, practices, and procedures that the 

8 State has developed and implemented re9 garding access to, provision of, and funding 

10 for, assistive technology devices, and assist11 ive technology services, in the contexts of 

12 education, health care, employment, commu13 nity living, and accessible information and 

14 communication technology, including e-gov15 ernment; 

16 ‘‘(x) the source of leveraged funding or 

17 other contributed resources, including re18 sources 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. GRANTS FOR PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SERV7 ICES RELATED TO ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY. 

8 ‘‘(a) GRANTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

10 grants under subsection (b) to protection and advo11 cacy systems in each State for the purpose of enabling 

12 such systems to assist in the acquisition, utilization, 

13 or maintenance of assistive technology devices or as14 sistive technology services for individuals with dis15 abilities. 

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

17 such assistance, protection and advocacy systems shall 

18 have the same general authorities as the systems are 

19 afforded under subtitle C of title I of the Develop20 mental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act 

21 of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15041 et seq.), as determined by 

22 the Secretary. 

23 ‘‘(b) RESERVATION; DISTRIBUTION.— 

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

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1 able to carry out this section under section 9(b)(2)(B), 

2 such sums as may be necessary to carry out para3 graph (4). 

4 ‘‘(2) POPULATION BASIS.—From the funds ap5 propriated for this section for a fiscal year and re6 maining after the reservation required by paragraph 

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

8 to a protection and advocacy system within each 

9 State in an amount bearing the same ratio to the re10 maining funds as the population of the State bears to 

11 the population of all States. 

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

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

14 grant to a protection and advocacy system under 

15 paragraph (2) for a fiscal year shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) in the case of a protection and advo17 cacy system located in American Samoa, Guam, 

18 the United States Virgin Islands, or the Com19 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, not 

20 be less than $30,000; and 

21 ‘‘(B) in the case of a protection and advo22 cacy system located in a State not described in 

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

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

25 AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.— 


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

2 make grants to the protection and advocacy sys3 tem serving the American Indian Consortium to 

4 provide services in accordance with this section. 

5 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—The amount of 

6 such grants shall be the same as the amount pro7 vided under paragraph (3)(A). 

8 ‘‘(5) ADJUSTMENTS.—For each fiscal year in 

9 which the total amount appropriated under section 

10 9(b)(2)(B) to carry out this section is $8,000,000 or 

11 more and such appropriated amount exceeds the total 

12 amount appropriated to carry out this section in the 

13 preceding fiscal year, the Secretary shall increase 

14 each of the minimum grant amounts described in sub15 paragraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3) by a per16 centage equal to the percentage increase in the total 

17 amount appropriated under section 9 to carry out 

18 this section for the preceding fiscal year and such 

19 total amount for the fiscal year for which the deter20 mination is being made. 

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

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

23 protection and advocacy system that complies with this sec24 tion, the total amount of the grant made for such system 


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1 under this section, unless the system provides otherwise for 

2 payment of the grant amount. 

3 ‘‘(d) CARRYOVER; PROGRAM INCOME.— 

4 ‘‘(1) CARRYOVER.—Any amount paid to an eli5 gible system for a fiscal year under this section that 

6 remains unobligated at the end of such fiscal year 

7 shall remain available to such system for obligation 

8 during the subsequent fiscal year. 

9 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM INCOME.—Program income gen10 erated from any amount paid to an eligible system 

11 for a fiscal year shall— 

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

13 until expended and be considered an addition to 

14 the grant; and 

15 ‘‘(B) only be used to improve the awareness 

16 of individuals with disabilities about the accessi17 bility of assistive technology and assist such in18 dividuals in the acquisition, utilization, or 

19 maintenance of assistive technology devices or as20 sistive technology services. 

21 ‘‘(e) REPORT TO SECRETARY.—An entity that receives 

22 a grant under this section shall annually prepare and sub23 mit to the Secretary a report that contains such informa24 tion as the Secretary may require, including documentation 

25 of the progress of the entity in— 


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

2 including activities that will lead to increased access 

3 for individuals with disabilities, to funding for assist4 ive technology devices and assistive technology serv5 ices; 

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

7 securing assistive technology devices and assistive 

8 technology services for individuals with disabilities; 

9 ‘‘(3) engaging in formal representation for indi10 viduals with disabilities to secure systems change, and 

11 in advocacy activities to secure assistive technology 

12 devices and assistive technology services for individ13 uals with disabilities; 

14 ‘‘(4) developing and implementing strategies to 

15 enhance the long-term abilities of individuals with 

16 disabilities and their family members, guardians, ad17 vocates, and authorized representatives to advocate the 

18 provision of assistive technology devices and assistive 

19 technology services to which the individuals with dis20 abilities are entitled under law other than this Act; 

21 ‘‘(5) coordinating activities with protection and 

22 advocacy services funded through sources other than 

23 this Act, and coordinating activities with the capac24 ity building and advocacy activities carried out by 

25 the lead agency; and 


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1 ‘‘(6) effectively allocating funds made available 

2 under this section to improve the awareness of indi3 viduals with disabilities about the accessibility of as4 sistive technology and assist such individuals in the 

5 acquisition, utilization, or maintenance of assistive 

6 technology devices or assistive technology services. 

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

8 An entity that receives a grant under this section shall pre9 pare and submit to the lead agency of the State designated 

10 under section 4(c)(1) the report described in subsection (e) 

11 and quarterly updates concerning the activities described 

12 in such subsection. 

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

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

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

16 with respect to efforts at coordination of activities, collabo17 ration, and promoting outcomes between the lead agency 

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

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

20 SUPPORT. 

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

22 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED DATA COLLECTION AND REPORT23 ING ENTITY.—The term ‘qualified data collection and 

24 reporting entity’ means an entity with demonstrated 


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1 expertise in data collection and reporting as described 

2 in section 4(f)(2)(B), in order to— 

3 ‘‘(A) provide recipients of grants under this 

4 Act with training and technical assistance; and 

5 ‘‘(B) assist such recipients with data collec6 tion and data requirements. 

7 ‘‘(2) QUALIFIED PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY

8 SYSTEM TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROVIDER.—The 

9 term ‘qualified protection and advocacy system tech10 nical assistance provider’ means an entity that has 

11 experience in— 

12 ‘‘(A) working with protection and advocacy 

13 systems established in accordance with section 

14 143 of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 

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

16 15043); and 

17 ‘‘(B) providing technical assistance to pro18 tection and advocacy agencies. 

19 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED TRAINING AND TECHNICAL AS20 SISTANCE PROVIDER.—The term ‘qualified training 

21 and technical assistance provider’ means an entity 

22 with demonstrated expertise in assistive technology 

23 and that has (directly or through grant or con24 tract)— 


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1 ‘‘(A) experience and expertise in admin2 istering programs, including developing, imple3 menting, and administering all of the activities 

4 described in section 4(e); and 

5 ‘‘(B) documented experience in and knowl6 edge about— 

7 ‘‘(i) assistive technology device loan 

8 and demonstration; 

9 ‘‘(ii) assistive technology device reuse; 

10 ‘‘(iii) financial loans and micro11 lending, including the activities of alter12 native financing programs for assistive 

13 technology; and 

14 ‘‘(iv) State leadership activities. 

15 ‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND DATA COLLECTION

16 SUPPORT AUTHORIZED.— 

17 ‘‘(1) SUPPORT FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

18 TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—From 

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

20 Secretary shall award, on a competitive basis— 

21 ‘‘(A) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative agree22 ment to a qualified training and technical as23 sistance provider to support activities described 

24 in subsection (d)(1) for States receiving grants 

25 under section 4; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative agree2 ment to a qualified protection and advocacy sys3 tem technical assistance provider to support ac4 tivities described in subsection (d)(1) for protec5 tion and advocacy systems receiving grants 

6 under section 5. 

7 ‘‘(2) SUPPORT FOR DATA COLLECTION AND RE8 PORTING ASSISTANCE.—From amounts made avail9 able under section 9(b)(1), the Secretary shall award, 

10 on a competitive basis— 

11 ‘‘(A) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative agree12 ment to a qualified data collection and reporting 

13 entity, to enable the qualified data collection and 

14 reporting entity to carry out the activities de15 scribed in subsection (d)(2) for States receiving 

16 grants under section 4; and 

17 ‘‘(B) 1 grant, contract, or cooperative agree18 ment to a qualified protection and advocacy sys19 tem technical assistance provider, to enable the 

20 eligible protection and advocacy system to carry 

21 out the activities described in subsection (d)(2) 

22 for protection and advocacy systems receiving 

23 grants under section 5. 

24 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 


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

2 grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this 

3 section, an entity shall submit an application to the 

4 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con5 taining such information as the Secretary may re6 quire. 

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

8 cooperative agreements under this section and in re9 viewing the activities proposed under the applications 

10 described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall con11 sider the input of the recipients of grants under sec12 tions 4 and 5 and other individuals the Secretary de13 termines to be appropriate, especially— 

14 ‘‘(A) individuals with disabilities who use 

15 assistive technology and understand the barriers 

16 to the acquisition of such technology and assist17 ive technology services; 

18 ‘‘(B) family members, guardians, advocates, 

19 and authorized representatives of such individ20 uals; 

21 ‘‘(C) relevant employees from Federal de22 partments and agencies, other than the Depart23 ment of Health and Human Services; 

24 ‘‘(D) representatives of businesses; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) venders and public and private re2 searchers and developers. 

3 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.— 

4 ‘‘(1) USE OF FUNDS FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

5 TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

6 ‘‘(A) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

7 EFFORTS.—A qualified training and technical 

8 assistance provider or qualified protection and 

9 advocacy system technical assistance provider re10 ceiving a grant, contract, or cooperative agree11 ment under subsection (b)(1) shall support a 

12 training and technical assistance program for 

13 States or protection and advocacy systems receiv14 ing a grant under section 4 or 5, respectively, 

15 that— 

16 ‘‘(i) addresses State-specific informa17 tion requests concerning assistive technology 

18 from entities funded under this Act and 

19 public entities not funded under this Act, 

20 including— 

21 ‘‘(I) requests for information on 

22 effective approaches to Federal-State 

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1 ive technology devices and assistive 

2 technology services for individuals with 

3 disabilities of all ages; 

4 ‘‘(II) requests for state-of-the-art, 

5 or model, Federal, State, and local 

6 laws, regulations, policies, practices, 

7 procedures, and organizational struc8 tures, that facilitate, and overcome 

9 barriers to, funding for, and access to, 

10 assistive technology devices and assist11 ive technology services; 

12 ‘‘(III) requests for information on 

13 effective approaches to developing, im14 plementing, evaluating, and sustaining 

15 activities described in section 4 or 5, 

16 as the case may be, and related to im17 proving acquisition and access to as18 sistive technology devices and assistive 

19 technology services for individuals with 

20 disabilities of all ages, and requests for 

21 assistance in developing corrective ac22 tion plans; 

23 ‘‘(IV) requests for examples of 

24 policies, practices, procedures, regula25 tions, or judicial decisions that have 


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1 enhanced or may enhance access to and 

2 acquisition of assistive technology de3 vices and assistive technology services 

4 for individuals with disabilities; 

5 ‘‘(V) requests for information on 

6 effective approaches to the development 

7 of consumer-controlled systems that in8 crease access to, funding for, and 

9 awareness of, assistive technology de10 vices and assistive technology services; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(VI) other requests for training 

13 and technical assistance from entities 

14 funded under this Act; 

15 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a program that will 

16 serve States receiving grants under section 

17 4— 

18 ‘‘(I) assists targeted individuals 

19 and entities by disseminating informa20 tion and responding to requests relat21 ing to assistive technology by pro22 viding referrals to recipients of grants 

23 under section 4 or other public or pri24 vate resources; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) provides State-specific, re2 gional, and national training and 

3 technical assistance concerning assist4 ive technology to entities funded under 

5 this Act, other entities funded under 

6 this Act, and public and private enti7 ties not funded under this Act, includ8 ing— 

9 ‘‘(aa) annually providing a 

10 forum for exchanging information 

11 concerning, and promoting pro12 gram and policy improvements 

13 in, required activities of the State 

14 assistive technology programs; 

15 ‘‘(bb) facilitating onsite and 

16 electronic information sharing 

17 using state-of-the-art Internet 

18 technologies such as real-time on19 line discussions, multipoint video 

20 conferencing, and web-based audio 

21 or video broadcasts, on emerging 

22 topics that affect State assistive 

23 technology programs; 

24 ‘‘(cc) convening experts from 

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1 grams to discuss and make rec2 ommendations with regard to na3 tional emerging issues of impor4 tance to individuals with assistive 

5 technology needs; 

6 ‘‘(dd) sharing best practice 

7 and evidence-based practices 

8 among State assistive technology 

9 programs; 

10 ‘‘(ee) maintaining an acces11 sible website that includes links to 

12 State assistive technology pro13 grams, appropriate Federal de14 partments and agencies, and pri15 vate associations; 

16 ‘‘(ff) developing a resource 

17 that connects individuals from a 

18 State with the State assistive tech19 nology program in their State; 

20 ‘‘(gg) providing access to ex21 perts in the areas of assistive tech22 nology device loan and dem23 onstration, assistive technology de24 vice reuse, State financing, bank25 ing, microlending, and finance, 


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1 for entities funded under this Act, 

2 through site visits, teleconferences, 

3 and other means, to ensure access 

4 to information for entities that 

5 are carrying out new programs or 

6 programs that are not making 

7 progress in achieving the objec8 tives of the programs; and 

9 ‘‘(hh) supporting and coordi10 nating activities designed to re11 duce the financial costs of pur12 chasing assistive technology for 

13 the activities described in section 

14 4(e), and reducing duplication of 

15 activities among State assistive 

16 technology programs; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) includes such other activities as 

18 the Secretary may require. 

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

20 providing training and technical assistance 

21 under this paragraph, a qualified training and 

22 technical assistance provider or qualified protec23 tion and advocacy system technical assistance 

24 provider shall— 

25 ‘‘(i) collaborate with— 


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1 ‘‘(I) organizations representing 

2 individuals with disabilities; 

3 ‘‘(II) national organizations rep4 resenting State assistive technology 

5 programs; 

6 ‘‘(III) organizations representing 

7 State officials and agencies engaged in 

8 the delivery of assistive technology; 

9 ‘‘(IV) other qualified data collec10 tion and reporting entities and tech11 nical assistance providers; 

12 ‘‘(V) providers of State financing 

13 activities, including alternative financ14 ing programs for assistive technology; 

15 ‘‘(VI) providers of device loans, 

16 device demonstrations, and device re17 utilization; and 

18 ‘‘(VII) any other organizations 

19 determined appropriate by the pro20 vider or the Secretary; and 

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

22 and technical assistance provider, include 

23 activities identified as priorities by State 

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1 plementing entities for grants under section 

2 4. 

3 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY

4 DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING ASSISTANCE.—A 

5 qualified data collection and reporting entity or a 

6 qualified protection and advocacy system technical 

7 assistance provider receiving a grant, contract, or co8 operative agreement under subsection (b)(2) shall as9 sist States or protection and advocacy systems receiv10 ing a grant under section 4 or 5, respectively, to de11 velop and implement effective and accessible data col12 lection and reporting systems that— 

13 ‘‘(A) focus on quantitative and qualitative 

14 data elements; 

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

16 the activities to individuals who need assistive 

17 technology; and 

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

19 States receiving grants under section 4— 

20 ‘‘(i) measure the outcomes of all activi21 ties described in section 4(e) and the 

22 progress of the States toward achieving the 

23 measurable goals described in section 

24 4(d)(3)(C); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) provide States with the necessary 

2 information required under this Act or by 

3 the Secretary for reports described in sec4 tion 4(f)(2). 

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

6 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF PROJECT OF NATIONAL SIGNIFI7 CANCE.—In this section, the term ‘project of national sig8 nificance’— 

9 ‘‘(1) means a project that— 

10 ‘‘(A) increases access to, and acquisition of, 

11 assistive technology; and 

12 ‘‘(B) creates opportunities for individuals 

13 with disabilities to directly and fully contribute 

14 to, and participate in, all facets of education, 

15 employment, community living, and recreational 

16 activities; and 

17 ‘‘(2) may— 

18 ‘‘(A) develop and expand partnerships be19 tween State Medicaid agencies and recipients of 

20 grants under section 4 to reutilize durable med21 ical equipment; 

22 ‘‘(B) increase collaboration between the re23 cipients of grants under section 4 and States re24 ceiving grants under the Money Follows the Per25 son Rebalancing Demonstration under section 


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1 6071 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (42 

2 U.S.C. 1396a note); 

3 ‘‘(C) increase collaboration between recipi4 ents of grants under section 4 and area agencies 

5 on aging, as such term is defined in section 102 

6 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 

7 3002), which may include collaboration on emer8 gency preparedness, safety equipment, or assist9 ive technology toolkits; 

10 ‘‘(D) provide aid to assist youth with dis11 abilities (including youth with intellectual and 

12 developmental disabilities) to transition from 

13 school to adult life, especially in— 

14 ‘‘(i) finding employment and postsec15 ondary education opportunities; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) upgrading and changing any as17 sistive technology devices that may be need18 ed as a youth matures; 

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

20 assistive technology addressing the needs of aging 

21 individuals and aging caregivers in the commu22 nity; 

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

24 assistive technology as part of early intervention 


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1 for infants and toddlers with disabilities from 

2 birth to age 3; 

3 ‘‘(G) increase awareness of and access to the 

4 Disability Funds-Financial Assistance funding 

5 provided by the Community Development Finan6 cial Institutions Fund that supports acquisition 

7 of assistive technology; and 

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

9 other federally funded disability programs or in10 crease knowledge of assistive technology, as deter11 mined appropriate by the Secretary. 

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

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

14 year, the Secretary may award, on a competitive basis, 

15 grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements to public or 

16 private nonprofit entities to enable the entities to carry out 

17 projects of national significance. 

18 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—A public or private nonprofit en19 tity desiring a grant under this section shall submit an ap20 plication to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 

21 and containing such information as the Secretary may re22 quire. 

23 ‘‘(d) AWARD BASIS.— 

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

25 section, the Secretary shall give priority to a public 


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1 or private nonprofit entity funded under section 4 or 

2 5 for the most recent award period. 

3 ‘‘(2) PREFERENCE.—For each grant award pe4 riod, the Secretary may give preference for 1 or more 

5 categories of projects of national significance de6 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (H) of sub7 section (a)(2) or another category identified by the 

8 Secretary, if the Secretary determines that there is a 

9 reason to prioritize that category of project. 

10 ‘‘(e) MINIMUM FUNDING LEVEL REQUIRED.—The Sec11 retary may only award grants, contracts, or cooperative 

12 agreements under this section if the amount made available 

13 under section 9 to carry out sections 4, 5, and 6 is equal 

14 to or greater than $49,000,000. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

16 ‘‘(a) GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.— 

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

18 provision of law, the Administrator of the Adminis19 tration for Community Living shall be responsible for 

20 the administration of this Act. 

21 ‘‘(2) COLLABORATION.—The Administrator of the 

22 Administration for Community Living shall consult 

23 with the Office of Special Education Programs of the 

24 Department of Education, the Rehabilitation Services 

25 Administration of the Department of Education, the 


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1 Office of Disability Employment Policy of the De2 partment of Labor, the National Institute on Dis3 ability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Re4 search, and other appropriate Federal entities in the 

5 administration of this Act. 

6 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.— 

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

8 Act, the Administrator of the Administration for 

9 Community Living shall ensure that programs 

10 funded under this Act will address— 

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

12 types of disabilities and across the lifespan; 

13 and 

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

15 all potential environments, including em16 ployment, education, and community liv17 ing, or for other reasons. 

18 ‘‘(B) FUNDING LIMITATIONS.—For each fiscal year, not more than 1 19 ⁄2 of 1 percent of the 

20 total funding appropriated for this Act shall be 

21 used by the Administrator of the Administration 

22 for Community Living to support the adminis23 tration of this Act. 

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


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

2 the extent to which entities that receive grants under 

3 this Act are complying with the applicable require4 ments of this Act and achieving measurable goals that 

5 are consistent with the requirements of the grant pro6 grams under which the entities received the grants. 

7 ‘‘(2) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—To assist the 

8 Secretary in carrying out the responsibilities of the 

9 Secretary under this section, the Secretary may re10 quire States to provide relevant information, includ11 ing the information required under subsection (d). 

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

13 ‘‘(1) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If the Secretary de14 termines that an entity that receives a grant under 

15 this Act fails to substantially comply with the appli16 cable requirements of this Act, or to make substantial 

17 progress toward achieving the measurable goals de18 scribed in subsection (b)(1) with respect to the grant 

19 program, the Secretary shall assist the entity, through 

20 technical assistance funded under section 6 or other 

21 means, within 90 days after such determination, to 

22 develop a corrective action plan. 

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

24 and comply with a corrective action plan described in 

25 paragraph (1) during a fiscal year, the entity shall 


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1 be subject to 1 of the following corrective actions se2 lected by the Secretary: 

3 ‘‘(A) Partial or complete termination of 

4 funding under the grant program, until the enti5 ty develops and complies with such a plan. 

6 ‘‘(B) Ineligibility to participate in the 

7 grant program in the following year. 

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

9 that may be used for indirect costs under section 

10 4 for the following year. 

11 ‘‘(D) Required redesignation of the lead 

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

13 entity responsible for administering the grant 

14 program. 

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

16 shall establish appeals procedures for entities that are 

17 determined to be in noncompliance with the applica18 ble requirements of this Act, or have not made sub19 stantial progress toward achieving the measurable 

20 goals described in subsection (b)(1). 

21 ‘‘(4) SECRETARIAL ACTION.—As part of the an22 nual report required under subsection (d), the Sec23 retary shall describe each such action taken under 

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

25 action. 


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1 ‘‘(5) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall 

2 notify the public, by posting on the internet website 

3 of the Department of Health and Human Services, of 

4 each action taken by the Secretary under paragraph 

5 (1) or (2). As a part of such notification, the Sec6 retary shall describe each such action taken under 

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

8 action. 

9 ‘‘(d) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31 

11 of each year, the Secretary shall prepare, and submit 

12 to the President and to the Committee on Health, 

13 Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the 

14 Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 

15 Representatives, a report on the activities funded 

16 under this Act to improve the access of assistive tech17 nology devices and assistive technology services to in18 dividuals with disabilities. 

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

20 ‘‘(A) a compilation and summary of the in21 formation provided by the States in annual 

22 progress reports submitted under section 4(f); 

23 and 

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

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


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1 progress of the States in meeting the measurable 

2 goals established in State applications under sec3 tion 4(d)(3)(C). 

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

5 construed to affect the enforcement authority of the Sec6 retary, another Federal officer, or a court under part D 

7 of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1234 

8 et seq.) or other applicable law. 

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

10 not be construed as authorizing a Federal or State agency 

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

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

13 law. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; RESERVA15 TIONS AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro17 priated to carry out this Act— 

18 ‘‘(1) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2022; and 

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

20 fiscal years 2023 through 2026. 

21 ‘‘(b) RESERVATIONS AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 

22 Of the funds made available under subsection (a) to carry 

23 out this Act and subject to subsection (c), the Secretary 

24 shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) reserve an amount equal to 3 percent of 

2 such available funds to carry out section 6(b)(1) and 

3 section 6(b)(2); and 

4 ‘‘(2) of the amounts remaining after the reserva5 tion under paragraph (1)— 

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 Sec13 retary may reserve an amount, which shall not exceed the 

14 lesser of the excess amount made available or $2,000,000, 

15 for section 7 before carrying out subsection (b).’’. 

16 SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

17 This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, shall 

18 take effect on the day that is 6 months after the date of 

19 enactment of this Act. 


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Calendar No. 121 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2401 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Assistive Technology Act of 

1998, and for other purposes. 

AUGUST 7, 2021 

Reported with an amendment 


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