IB 

Union Calendar No. 294

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4278

[Report No. 108–514] 

To amend the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 to support programs of 

grants to States to address the assistive technology needs of individuals 

with disabilities, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 5, 2004

Mr. MCKEON (for himself and Mr. BOEHNER) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

JUNE 1, 2004

Additional sponsors: Mr. KILDEE, Mr. HOLT, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. RAMSTAD, 

Mr. BALLENGER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. 

TOWNS, Mr. HOYER, Mr. KELLER, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. 

BURNS, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. PETRI, Mr. CANNON, Mr. MCNULTY, Ms. 

KAPTUR, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. OWENS, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, 

Mr. SANDERS, Mr. MATHESON, and Mr. FROST

JUNE 1, 2004

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

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

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 5, 2004] 

A BILL

To amend the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 to support 

programs of grants to States to address the assistive 
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technology needs of individuals with disabilities, 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 ‘‘Improving Access to As5 sistive Technology for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 

6 2004’’. 

7 SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY ACT 

8 OF 1998. 

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

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

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

12 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘As13 sistive Technology Act of 1998’. 

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

15 this Act is as follows:

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

‘‘Sec. 2. Findings and purposes. 

‘‘Sec. 3. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 4. Grants to States for purchase of assistive technology devices and assistive 

technology services. 

‘‘Sec. 5. Grants to States for protection and advocacy related to assistive technology. 

‘‘Sec. 6. Administrative provisions. 

‘‘Sec. 7. National activities. 

‘‘Sec. 8. Authorization of appropriations.

16 ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

17 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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1 ‘‘(1) Disability is a natural part of the human 

2 experience and in no way diminishes the right of in3 dividuals to—

4 ‘‘(A) live independently; 

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

6 choices; 

7 ‘‘(C) benefit from an education; 

8 ‘‘(D) pursue meaningful careers; and 

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

10 the economic, political, social, cultural, and edu11 cational mainstream of society in the United 

12 States. 

13 ‘‘(2) Technology is one of the primary engines 

14 for economic activity, education, and innovation in 

15 the Nation, and throughout the world. The commit16 ment of the United States to the development and uti17 lization of technology is one of the main factors un18 derlying the strength and vibrancy of the economy of 

19 the United States. 

20 ‘‘(3) As technology has come to play an increas21 ingly important role in the lives of all persons in the 

22 United States, in the conduct of business, in the func23 tioning of government, in the fostering of communica24 tion, in the conduct of commerce, and in the provi25 sion of education, its impact upon the lives of indi-
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1 viduals with disabilities in the United States has been 

2 comparable to its impact upon the remainder of the 

3 citizens of the United States. Any development in 

4 mainstream technology would have profound implica5 tions for individuals with disabilities in the United 

6 States. 

7 ‘‘(4) Over the last 15 years, the Federal Govern8 ment has invested in the development of statewide 

9 comprehensive systems to help individuals with dis10 abilities gain access to assistive technology devices 

11 and services. This partnership with States provided 

12 an important service to individuals with disabilities 

13 by strengthening the capacity of each State to assist 

14 individuals with disabilities of all ages with their as15 sistive technology needs. 

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

17 development of assistive technology devices, including 

18 adaptations to existing devices that facilitate activi19 ties of daily living, that significantly benefit individ20 uals with disabilities of all ages. These devices and 

21 adaptations increase the involvement, and reduce ex22 penditures associated with, programs and activities 

23 that facilitate communication, ensure independent 

24 living and functioning, enable early childhood devel25 opment, support educational achievement, provide 
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1 and enhance employment options, and enable full 

2 participation in community living and recreation for 

3 individuals with disabilities. 

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

5 partnership in providing access to assistive tech6 nology and services, there is a continued need to pro7 vide information about the availability of assistive 

8 technology, advances in improving accessibility and 

9 functionality of assistive technology, and appropriate 

10 methods to secure and utilize assistive technology in 

11 order to maximize their independence and participa12 tion of individuals with disabilities in society. 

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

14 ‘‘(1) to support State efforts to improve the pro15 vision of assistive technology to individuals with dis16 abilities through comprehensive statewide programs of 

17 technology-related assistance, for individuals with dis18 abilities of all ages, that are designed to—

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

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

21 assistive technology devices and assistive tech22 nology services; 

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

24 disabilities of all ages to secure and maintain 

25 possession of assistive technology devices as such 
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1 individuals make the transition between services 

2 offered by human service agencies or between set3 tings of daily living (for example, between home 

4 and work); 

5 ‘‘(C) increase the capacity of public agen6 cies and private entities to provide and pay for

7 assistive technology devices and assistive tech8 nology services on a statewide basis for individ9 uals with disabilities of all ages; 

10 ‘‘(D) increase the involvement of individ11 uals with disabilities and, if appropriate, their 

12 family members, guardians, advocates, and au13 thorized representatives, in decisions related to 

14 the provision of assistive technology devices and 

15 assistive technology services; 

16 ‘‘(E) increase and promote coordination 

17 among State agencies, between State and local 

18 agencies, among local agencies, and between 

19 State and local agencies and private entities 

20 (such as managed care providers), that are in21 volved or are eligible to be involved in carrying 

22 out activities under this Act; 

23 ‘‘(F) increase the awareness and facilitate 

24 the change of laws, regulations, policies, prac25 tices, procedures, and organizational structures, 
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1 that facilitate the availability or provision of as2 sistive technology devices and assistive technology 

3 services; and 

4 ‘‘(G) increase awareness and knowledge of 

5 the benefits of assistive technology devices and 

6 assistive technology services among targeted indi7 viduals and the general population; and 

8 ‘‘(2) to provide States with financial assistance 

9 that supports programs designed to maximize the 

10 ability of individuals with disabilities and their fam11 ily members, guardians, advocates, and authorized 

12 representatives to obtain assistive technology devices 

13 and assistive technology services. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

15 ‘‘In this Act: 

16 ‘‘(1) ADVOCACY SERVICES.—The term ‘advocacy 

17 services’, except as used as part of the term ‘protection 

18 and advocacy services’, means services provided to as19 sist individuals with disabilities and their family 

20 members, guardians, advocates, and authorized rep21 resentatives in accessing assistive technology devices 

22 and assistive technology services. 

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

24 ‘American Indian Consortium’ has the meaning given 

25 the term in section 102(1) of the Developmental Dis-
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1 abilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 

2 and that is established to provide protection and ad3 vocacy services for purposes of receiving funding 

4 under subtitle C of title I of such Act. 

5 ‘‘(3) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘assist6 ive technology’ means technology designed to be uti7 lized in an assistive technology device or assistive 

8 technology service. 

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

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

11 equipment, or product system, whether acquired com12 mercially, modified, or customized, that is used to in13 crease, maintain, or improve functional capabilities 

14 of individuals with disabilities. 

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

16 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service 

17 that directly assists an individual with a disability 

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

19 technology device. Such term includes—

20 ‘‘(A) the evaluation of the assistive tech21 nology needs of an individual with a disability, 

22 including a functional evaluation of the impact 

23 of the provision of appropriate assistive tech24 nology and appropriate services to the indi-
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1 vidual in the customary environment of the indi2 vidual; 

3 ‘‘(B) services consisting of purchasing, leas4 ing, or otherwise providing for the acquisition of 

5 assistive technology devices by individuals with 

6 disabilities; 

7 ‘‘(C) services consisting of selecting, design8 ing, fitting, customizing, adapting, applying, 

9 maintaining, repairing, or replacing assistive 

10 technology devices; 

11 ‘‘(D) coordination and use of necessary 

12 therapies, interventions, or services with assistive 

13 technology devices, such as therapies, interven14 tions, or services associated with education and 

15 rehabilitation plans and programs; 

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

17 individual with disabilities, or, where appro18 priate, the family members, guardians, advo19 cates, or authorized representatives of such an 

20 individual; and 

21 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for 

22 professionals (including individuals providing 

23 education and rehabilitation services), employ24 ers, or other individuals who provide services to, 

25 employ, or are otherwise substantially involved 
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1 in the major life functions of individuals with 

2 disabilities. 

3 ‘‘(6) CAPACITY BUILDING AND ADVOCACY ACTIVI4 TIES.—The term ‘capacity building and advocacy ac5 tivities’ means efforts that—

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

7 practices, procedures, or organizational struc8 tures that promote consumer-responsive pro9 grams or entities; and 

10 ‘‘(B) facilitate and increase access to, provi11 sion of, and funding for, assistive technology de12 vices and assistive technology services, 

13 in order to empower individuals with disabilities to 

14 achieve greater independence, productivity, and inte15 gration and inclusion within the community and the 

16 workforce. 

17 ‘‘(7) COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE PROGRAM OF

18 TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘com19 prehensive statewide program of technology-related as20 sistance’ means a consumer-responsive program of 

21 technology-related assistance for individuals with dis22 abilities, implemented by a State, and equally avail23 able to all individuals with disabilities residing in 

24 the State, regardless of their type of disability, age, 

25 income level, or location of residence in the State, or 
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1 the type of assistive technology device or assistive 

2 technology service required.

3 ‘‘(8) CONSUMER-RESPONSIVE.—The term ‘con4 sumer-responsive’—

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

6 policies are consistent with the principles of—

7 ‘‘(i) respect for individual dignity, per8 sonal responsibility, self-determination, and 

9 pursuit of meaningful careers, based on in10 formed choice, of individuals with disabil11 ities; 

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

13 and equal access (including the use of acces14 sible formats) of such individuals; 

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

16 participation of such individuals in society; 

17 ‘‘(iv) support for the involvement in 

18 decisions of a family member, a guardian, 

19 an advocate, or an authorized representa20 tive, if an individual with a disability re21 quests, desires, or needs such involvement; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(v) support for individual and sys24 tems advocacy and community involvement; 

25 and 
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1 ‘‘(B) with respect to an entity, program, or 

2 activity, means that the entity, program, or ac3 tivity—

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

5 by, individuals with disabilities and, when 

6 appropriate, their family members, guard7 ians, advocates, or authorized representa8 tives; 

9 ‘‘(ii) responds to the needs of individ10 uals with disabilities in a timely and ap11 propriate manner; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) facilitates the full and meaning13 ful participation of individuals with dis14 abilities (including individuals from under15 represented populations and rural popu16 lations) and their family members, guard17 ians, advocates, and authorized representa18 tives, in—

19 ‘‘(I) decisions relating to the pro20 vision of assistive technology devices 

21 and assistive technology services to 

22 such individuals; and 

23 ‘‘(II) decisions related to the 

24 maintenance, improvement, and eval25 uation of the comprehensive statewide 
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1 program of technology-related assist2 ance, including decisions that affect ca3 pacity building and advocacy activi4 ties. 

5 ‘‘(9) DISABILITY.—The term ‘disability’ means a 

6 condition of an individual that is considered to be a 

7 disability or handicap for the purposes of any Fed8 eral law other than this Act or for the purposes of the 

9 law of the State in which the individual resides. 

10 ‘‘(10) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY; INDIVID11 UALS WITH DISABILITIES.—

12 ‘‘(A) INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.—The 

13 term ‘individual with a disability’ means any 

14 individual of any age, race, or ethnicity—

15 ‘‘(i) who has a disability; and 

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

17 assistive technology device or an assistive 

18 technology service to minimize deterioration 

19 in functioning, to maintain a level of func20 tioning, or to achieve a greater level of func21 tioning in any major life activity. 

22 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.—

23 The term ‘individuals with disabilities’ means 

24 more than one individual with a disability. 
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1 ‘‘(11) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—

2 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

3 meaning given such term in section 101 of the Higher 

4 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1141(a)), and in5 cludes a community college receiving funding under 

6 the Tribally Controlled Community College Assistance 

7 Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 

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

9 The term ‘protection and advocacy services’ means 

10 services that—

11 ‘‘(A) are described in part C of the Develop12 mental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights 

13 Act (42 U.S.C. 6041 et seq.), the Protection and 

14 Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act of 

15 1986 (42 U.S.C. 10801 et seq.), or section 509 of 

16 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; and 

17 ‘‘(B) assist individuals with disabilities 

18 with respect to assistive technology devices and 

19 assistive technology services. 

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

21 the Secretary of Education. 

22 ‘‘(14) STATE.—

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

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

25 of the several States of the United States, the 
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1 District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 

2 Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 

3 Guam, American Samoa, and the Common4 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

5 ‘‘(B) OUTLYING AREAS.—In sections 4(c) 

6 and 5(b): 

7 ‘‘(i) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘out8 lying area’ means the United States Virgin 

9 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

10 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is11 lands. 

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

13 not include the United States Virgin Is14 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 

15 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Is16 lands. 

17 ‘‘(15) TARGETED INDIVIDUALS.—The term ‘tar18 geted individuals’ means—

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

20 and their family members, guardians, advocates, 

21 and authorized representatives; 

22 ‘‘(B) individuals who work for public or 

23 private entities (including insurers or managed 

24 care providers), that have contact with individ25 uals with disabilities;
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1 ‘‘(C) educators and related services per2 sonnel; 

3 ‘‘(D) technology experts (including engi4 neers); 

5 ‘‘(E) health and allied health professionals; 

6 ‘‘(F) employers; and 

7 ‘‘(G) other appropriate individuals and en8 tities. 

9 ‘‘(16) TECHNOLOGY-RELATED ASSISTANCE.—The 

10 term ‘technology-related assistance’ means assistance 

11 provided through capacity building and advocacy ac12 tivities that accomplish the purposes described in any 

13 of subparagraphs (A) through (G) of section 2(b)(1). 

14 ‘‘(17) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATION.—The 

15 term ‘underrepresented population’ means a popu16 lation that is typically underrepresented in service 

17 provision, and includes populations such as persons 

18 who have low-incidence disabilities, persons who are 

19 minorities, poor persons, persons with limited-English 

20 proficiency, older individuals, or persons from rural 

21 areas. 

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

23 design’ means a concept or philosophy for designing 

24 and delivering products and services that are usable 

25 by people with the widest possible range of functional 
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1 capabilities, which include products and services that 

2 are directly usable (without requiring assistive tech3 nologies) and products and services that are made us4 able with assistive technologies. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATES FOR PURCHASE OF ASSISTIVE 

6 TECHNOLOGY DEVICES AND ASSISTIVE TECH7 NOLOGY SERVICES. 

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

9 grants, in accordance with this section, to States to main10 tain comprehensive statewide programs of technology re11 lated assistance to support programs that are designed to 

12 maximize the ability of individuals with disabilities and 

13 their family members, guardians, advocates, and authorized 

14 representatives to obtain assistive technology devices and 

15 assistive technology services. 

16 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

18 ‘‘(A) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—Except as 

19 provided in subparagraph (C), any State that 

20 receives a grant under this section shall use a 

21 portion of the funds made available through the 

22 grant to carry out the activities described in sub23 paragraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2). 

24 ‘‘(B) DISCRETIONARY ACTIVITIES.—Any 

25 State that receives a grant under this section 
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1 may use the funds made available through the 

2 grant to carry out the activities described in sub3 paragraph (C) or (D) of paragraph (2). 

4 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE.—Any State in which 

5 financial support for the activities described in 

6 subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (2) is 

7 provided from State or other resources shall not 

8 be required to expend the funds provided under 

9 the grant to carry out the activities described in 

10 subparagraph (A) or (B), as the case may be. 

11 Such financial support shall be comparable to 

12 the amount of the grant the State would other13 wise have expended for such activities. 

14 ‘‘(2) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—

15 ‘‘(A) STATE FINANCE SYSTEMS.—The State 

16 shall support activities to increase access to, and 

17 funding for, assistive technology devices and as18 sistive technology services, including the develop19 ment of systems to provide assistive technology 

20 devices and assistive technology services to indi21 viduals with disabilities of all ages, and that 

22 pay for such devices and services, such as—

23 ‘‘(i) the development of systems for the 

24 purchase, lease, other acquisition, or pay25 ment for the provision of assistive tech-
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1 nology devices and assistive technology serv2 ices; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) the establishment of alternative 

4 State or privately funded systems of sub5 sidies for the provision of assistive tech6 nology devices or assistive technology serv7 ices, such as—

8 ‘‘(I) a low-interest loan fund; 

9 ‘‘(II) an interest buy-down pro10 gram; 

11 ‘‘(III) a revolving loan fund; 

12 ‘‘(IV) a loan guarantee or insur13 ance program; 

14 ‘‘(V) a program operated by a 

15 partnership among private entities for 

16 the purchase, lease, or other acquisition 

17 of assistive technology devices or assist18 ive technology services; or 

19 ‘‘(VI) another mechanism ap20 proved by the Secretary. 

21 ‘‘(B) DEVICE LOAN PROGRAMS.—The State 

22 shall directly, or in collaboration with public or 

23 private entities, carry out device loan programs 

24 that support the short-term loan of assistive tech25 nology devices to individuals, employers, public 
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1 agencies, public accommodations, or others seek2 ing to meet the needs of targeted individuals, in3 cluding to comply with the Individuals with Dis4 abilities Education Act, the Americans with Dis5 abilities Act of 1990, and section 504 of the Re6 habilitation Act of 1973. 

7 ‘‘(C) DEVICE REUTILIZATION PROGRAMS.—

8 The State shall directly, or in collaboration with 

9 public or private entities, carry out assistive 

10 technology device reutilization programs that 

11 provide for the exchange, recycling, or other re12 utilization of assistive technology devices, which 

13 may include redistribution through device and 

14 equipment loans, rentals, or gifts. 

15 ‘‘(D) DEVICE DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.—

16 The State shall directly, or in collaboration with 

17 public or private entities, carry out assistive 

18 technology device demonstration programs that 

19 provide for the ability of targeted individuals to 

20 learn about the use and operation of assistive 

21 technology devices. 

22 ‘‘(3) STATE LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any State that receives 

24 a grant under this section may use up to 40 per25 cent of the funds made available through the
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1 grant to carry out the activities described in sub2 paragraph (B). 

3 ‘‘(B) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—The State 

4 shall support—

5 ‘‘(i) public awareness activities de6 signed to provide information to targeted 

7 individuals relating to the availability and 

8 benefits of assistive technology devices and 

9 assistive technology services, including—

10 ‘‘(I) the development and dissemi11 nation of information relating to—

12 ‘‘(aa) the nature of assistive 

13 technology devices and assistive 

14 technology services; 

15 ‘‘(bb) the appropriateness of, 

16 cost of, availability of, evaluation 

17 of, and access to, assistive tech18 nology devices and assistive tech19 nology services; and 

20 ‘‘(cc) the benefits of assistive 

21 technology devices and assistive 

22 technology services with respect to 

23 enhancing the capacity of individ24 uals with disabilities of all ages to 

25 perform activities of daily living; 
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1 ‘‘(II) the development of proce2 dures for providing direct communica3 tion between providers of assistive tech4 nology and targeted individuals, which 

5 may include partnerships with the 

6 State and local workforce investment 

7 system established under the Workforce 

8 Investment Act of 1998, State voca9 tional rehabilitation centers, public 

10 and private employers, or elementary 

11 and secondary public schools; 

12 ‘‘(III) the development and dis13 semination, to targeted individuals, of 

14 information about State efforts related 

15 to assistive technology; and 

16 ‘‘(IV) the distribution of materials 

17 to appropriate public and private 

18 agencies that provide social, medical, 

19 educational, employment, and trans20 portation services to individuals with 

21 disabilities; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) technical assistance and training 

23 on—

24 ‘‘(I) the development of training 

25 materials and the conduct of training 
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1 in the use of assistive technology de2 vices and assistive technology services; 

3 ‘‘(II) providing technical assist4 ance, including technical assistance 

5 concerning how—

6 ‘‘(aa) to consider the needs of 

7 an individual with a disability 

8 for assistive technology devices 

9 and assistive technology services 

10 in developing any individualized 

11 plan or program authorized under 

12 Federal or State law; and 

13 ‘‘(bb) to increase consumer 

14 participation regarding assistive 

15 technology devices and assistive 

16 technology services; and 

17 ‘‘(III) the enhancement of the as18 sistive technology skills and com19 petencies of—

20 ‘‘(aa) individuals who work 

21 for public or private entities (in22 cluding insurers and managed 

23 care providers), who have contact 

24 with individuals with disabilities; 
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1 ‘‘(bb) educators and related 

2 services personnel; 

3 ‘‘(cc) technology experts (in4 cluding engineers); 

5 ‘‘(dd) health and allied 

6 health professionals; 

7 ‘‘(ee) employers; and 

8 ‘‘(ff) other appropriate per9 sonnel; and 

10 ‘‘(iii) outreach and support to state11 wide and community-based organizations 

12 that provide assistive technology devices and 

13 assistive technology services to individuals 

14 with disabilities or that assist individuals 

15 with disabilities in using assistive tech16 nology devices and assistive technology serv17 ices, including a focus on organizations as18 sisting individuals from underrepresented 

19 populations and rural populations, and fur20 ther including support such as outreach to 

21 consumer organizations and groups in the 

22 State to coordinate efforts to assist individ23 uals with disabilities of all ages and their 

24 family members, guardians, advocates, or 

25 authorized representatives, to obtain fund-
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1 ing for, access to, and information on eval2 uation of assistive technology devices and 

3 assistive technology services. 

4 ‘‘(C) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The State 

5 may support the operation and administration 

6 of the activities in paragraph (2), through inter7 agency coordination to develop and promote the 

8 adoption of policies that improve access to assist9 ive technology devices and assistive technology 

10 services for individuals with disabilities of all 

11 ages in the State and that result in improved co12 ordination among public and private entities 

13 that are responsible or have the authority to be 

14 responsible, for policies, procedures, or funding 

15 for, or the provision of assistive technology de16 vices and assistive technology services to, such 

17 individuals. 

18 ‘‘(4) INDIRECT COSTS.—Not more than 10 per19 cent of the funds made available through a grant to 

20 a State under this section may be used for indirect 

21 costs. 

22 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION.—Funds made available 

23 through a grant to a State under this section shall 

24 not be used for direct payment for an assistive tech25 nology device for an individual with a disability.
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1 ‘‘(6) STATE FLEXIBILITY.—

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para3 graph (1)(A) and subject to subparagraph (B), a 

4 State may use funds that it receives under a 

5 grant under this section to carry out any of the 

6 activities described in paragraph (2). 

7 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding 

8 paragraph (3)(A), any State which exercises its 

9 authority under subparagraph (A) may not use 

10 more than 30 percent of the funds made avail11 able through the grant to carry out the activities 

12 described in paragraph (3)(B). 

13 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—

14 ‘‘(1) GRANTS TO OUTLYING AREAS.—From the 

15 funds appropriated under section 8(a) for any fiscal 

16 year for grants under this section, the Secretary shall 

17 make a grant in an amount of not more than 

18 $105,000 to each eligible outlying area. 

19 ‘‘(2) GRANTS TO STATES.—From the funds de20 scribed in paragraph (1) that are not used to make 

21 grants under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make 

22 grants to States in accordance with the requirements 

23 described in paragraph (3). 

24 ‘‘(3) CALCULATION OF STATE GRANTS.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

2 subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall allocate 

3 funds to each State for a fiscal year in an 

4 amount that bears the same ratio as the popu5 lation of the State bears to the population of all 

6 States. 

7 ‘‘(B) MINIMUM ALLOTMENT.—A State shall 

8 receive an amount under a grant for a fiscal 

9 year that is not less than the amount the State 

10 received under the grant provided under title I 

11 of this Act (as in effect on the day before the date 

12 of the enactment of the Improving Access to As13 sistive Technology for Individuals with Disabil14 ities Act of 2004) for fiscal year 2004. 

15 ‘‘(C) RATABLE REDUCTIONS.—

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If amounts made 

17 available to carry out this section for any 

18 fiscal year are insufficient to meet the min19 imum allotment requirement for each State 

20 under subparagraph (B) for such fiscal 

21 year, the Secretary shall ratably reduce 

22 such amounts for such fiscal year. 

23 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—If addi24 tional funds become available for making 

25 payments described under this subsection 
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1 for any such fiscal year, the amounts that 

2 were reduced under clause (i) shall be in3 creased on the same basis as such amounts 

4 were reduced. 

5 ‘‘(d) LEAD AGENCY.—

6 ‘‘(1) DESIGNATION.—To be eligible to receive a 

7 grant under this section, the Governor of the State 

8 shall designate in accordance with paragraph (2) a 

9 lead agency to administer the grant under this sec10 tion. 

11 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—For purposes of 

12 paragraph (1), the Governor of the State may des13 ignate one of the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) The State agency responsible for the 

15 administration of vocational rehabilitation in 

16 the State. 

17 ‘‘(B) A commission, council, or other offi18 cial body appointed by the Governor. 

19 ‘‘(C) A public-private partnership or con20 sortium. 

21 ‘‘(D) A public agency (including the office 

22 of the Governor, a State oversight office, a State 

23 agency, a public institution of higher education, 

24 or other public entity). 
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1 ‘‘(E) A council established under Federal or 

2 State law. 

3 ‘‘(F) An organization described in section 

4 501(c)(3) of Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and 

5 exempt from tax under section 501(a) of that 

6 Act. 

7 ‘‘(G) Another appropriate office, agency, en8 tity, or organization. 

9 ‘‘(3) DUTIES OF THE LEAD AGENCY.—The duties 

10 of the lead agency shall include—

11 ‘‘(A) submitting the application described 

12 in subsection (e) on behalf of the State; 

13 ‘‘(B) administering and supervising the use 

14 of amounts made available under the grant re15 ceived by the State under this section; 

16 ‘‘(C)(i) coordinating efforts related to, and 

17 supervising the preparation of, the application 

18 described in subsection (e); 

19 ‘‘(ii) coordinating, maintaining, and evalu20 ating the comprehensive statewide program of 

21 technology-related assistance among public agen22 cies and between public agencies and private en23 tities, including coordinating efforts related to 

24 entering into interagency agreements; and
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1 ‘‘(iii) coordinating efforts, especially efforts 

2 carried out with entities that provide protection 

3 and advocacy services described in section 5, re4 lated to the active, timely, and meaningful par5 ticipation by individuals with disabilities and 

6 their family members, guardians, advocates, or 

7 authorized representatives, and other appro8 priate individuals, with respect to activities car9 ried out under the grant; 

10 ‘‘(D) delegating, in whole or in part, any 

11 responsibilities described in subparagraph (A), 

12 (B), or (C) to one or more appropriate offices, 

13 agencies, entities, or individuals; and 

14 ‘‘(E) establishing a partnership or partner15 ships with private providers of social, medical, 

16 educational, employment, and transportation 

17 services to individuals with disabilities. 

18 ‘‘(4) CHANGE IN LEAD AGENCY.—The Governor 

19 may change the lead agency of the State (to an agen20 cy other than the lead agency of the State as of the 

21 date of the enactment of the Improving Access to As22 sistive Technology for Individuals with Disabilities 

23 Act of 2004) if the Governor provides a justification 

24 in the application to the Secretary for such action. 

25 Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to re-
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1 quire the Governor of a State to change the lead agen2 cy of the State to an agency other than the lead agen3 cy of such State as of the date of the enactment of the 

4 Improving Access to Assistive Technology for Individ5 uals with Disabilities Act of 2004. 

6 ‘‘(e) STATE APPLICATION.—

7 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION.—Any State that desires to re8 ceive a grant under this section shall submit to the 

9 Secretary an application at such time and in such 

10 manner as the Secretary may specify. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—Each application shall contain, 

12 at a minimum, the following information: 

13 ‘‘(A) PLANNED ACTIVITIES.—A description 

14 of those activities described in subsection (b)(2) 

15 that the State will carry out under the grant. 

16 ‘‘(B) MEASURABLE GOALS.—A description 

17 of—

18 ‘‘(i) the measurable goals the State has 

19 set for addressing the assistive technology 

20 needs of individuals with disabilities in the 

21 State, including any measurable goals, and 

22 a timeline for meeting such goals, related 

23 to—

24 ‘‘(I) education, including goals in25 volving the provision of assistive tech-
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1 nology to individuals with disabilities 

2 that receive services under the Individ3 uals with Disabilities Education Act; 

4 ‘‘(II) employment, including goals 

5 involving the State vocational rehabili6 tation program carried out under title 

7 I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; 

8 ‘‘(III) telecommunication and in9 formation technology; and 

10 ‘‘(IV) community living; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) how the State will quantifiably 

12 measure the goals to determine whether the 

13 goals have been achieved. 

14 ‘‘(C) INVOLVEMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH

15 DISABILITIES OF ALL AGES AND THEIR FAMI16 LIES.—A description of how individuals with 

17 disabilities of all ages and their families—

18 ‘‘(i) were involved in selecting—

19 ‘‘(I) the goals; 

20 ‘‘(II) the activities to be under21 taken in achieving the goals; and 

22 ‘‘(III) the measures to be used in 

23 judging if the goals have been achieved; 

24 and 
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1 ‘‘(ii) will be involved in measuring 

2 whether the goals have been achieved. 

3 ‘‘(D) STATE SUPPORT.—A description of 

4 those activities described in subsection (b)(2) that 

5 the State will support under the grant, including 

6 at a minimum the State’s plans to provide fi7 nancial support, consistent with subsection 

8 (b)(1), for the activities described in subpara9 graphs (A) and (B) of such subsection. 

10 ‘‘(E) ASSURANCE.—An assurance that the 

11 physical location of the entity responsible for 

12 conducting the State activities under this Act 

13 meets the requirements of the Americans with 

14 Disabilities Act of 1990 regarding accessibility 

15 for individuals with disabilities. 

16 ‘‘(F) OTHER INFORMATION.—Such other in17 formation as the Secretary may reasonably re18 quire. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 5. GRANTS TO STATES FOR PROTECTION AND ADVO20 CACY RELATED TO ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY. 

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

22 a grant to an entity in each State to support protection 

23 and advocacy services through the systems established to 

24 provide protection and advocacy services under the Develop25 mental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (42 
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1 U.S.C. 6000 et seq.) for the purposes of assisting in the ac2 quisition, utilization, or maintenance of assistive tech3 nology or assistive technology services for individuals with 

4 disabilities. 

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

6 ‘‘(1) GRANTS TO OUTLYING AREAS AND AMER7 ICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.—

8 ‘‘(A) OUTLYING AREAS.—From the funds 

9 appropriated under section 8(b) for any fiscal 

10 year, the Secretary shall make a grant in an 

11 amount of not more than $30,000 to each eligible 

12 system within an outlying area. 

13 ‘‘(B) AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.—

14 From the funds appropriated under section 8(b) 

15 for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall make a 

16 grant in an amount of not more than $30,000 to 

17 the American Indian Consortium to provide 

18 services in the same manner as an eligible sys19 tem described under this section. If the amount 

20 appropriated under section 8(b) for a fiscal year 

21 exceeds the amount appropriated under such sec22 tion for the preceding fiscal year, then the 

23 amount referred to in the preceding sentence 

24 shall be increased for such fiscal year by the 

25 same percentage as such amount appropriated
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1 under section 8(b) exceeds the amount appro2 priated under such section for the preceding fis3 cal year. 

4 ‘‘(2) GRANTS TO STATES.—For any fiscal year, 

5 after reserving funds to make grants under paragraph 

6 (1), the Secretary shall make allotments from the re7 mainder of the funds in accordance with paragraph 

8 (3) to eligible systems within States to support protec9 tion and advocacy services as described in subsection 

10 (a). The Secretary shall make grants to the eligible 

11 systems from the allotments. 

12 ‘‘(3) SYSTEMS WITHIN STATES.—

13 ‘‘(A) POPULATION BASIS.—Except as pro14 vided in subparagraph (B), from such remainder 

15 for each fiscal year, the Secretary shall make an 

16 allotment to the eligible system within a State of 

17 an amount bearing the same ratio to such re18 mainder as the population of the State bears to 

19 the population of all States. 

20 ‘‘(B) MINIMUMS.—Subject to the avail21 ability of appropriations to carry out this sec22 tion, the allotment to any system under subpara23 graph (A) shall be not less than $50,000, and the 

24 allotment to any system under this paragraph 
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1 for any fiscal year that is less than $50,000 shall 

2 be increased to $50,000. 

3 ‘‘(4) REALLOTMENT.—Whenever the Secretary 

4 determines that any amount of an allotment under 

5 paragraph (3) to a system within a State for any fis6 cal year will not be expended by such system in car7 rying out the provisions of this section, the Secretary 

8 shall make such amount available for carrying out the 

9 provisions of this section to all other systems in the 

10 same proportion such amounts were first allocated to 

11 such systems. 

12 ‘‘(5) CARRYOVER.—Any amount paid to an eli13 gible system for a fiscal year under this section that 

14 remains unobligated at the end of such fiscal year 

15 shall remain available to such system for obligation 

16 during the subsequent fiscal year, except that program 

17 income generated from such amount shall remain 

18 available for two additional fiscal years and may 

19 only be used to improve the awareness of individuals 

20 with disabilities on the accessibility of assistive tech21 nology and assisting such individuals in the acquisi22 tion, utilization, or maintenance of assistive tech23 nology or assistive technology services. 

24 ‘‘(c) REPORT TO SECRETARY.—An entity that receives 

25 a grant under this section shall annually prepare and sub-
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1 mit to the Secretary a report that contains such informa2 tion as the Secretary may require, including documentation 

3 of the progress of the entity in—

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

5 including activities that will lead to increased access, 

6 for individuals with disabilities, to funding for assist7 ive technology devices and assistive technology serv8 ices; 

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

10 securing assistive technology and assistive technology 

11 services for individuals with disabilities; 

12 ‘‘(3) engaging in formal representation for indi13 viduals with disabilities to secure systems change, and 

14 in advocacy activities to secure assistive technology 

15 and assistive technology services for individuals with 

16 disabilities; 

17 ‘‘(4) developing and implementing strategies to 

18 enhance the long-term abilities of individuals with 

19 disabilities and their family members, guardians, ad20 vocates, and authorized representatives to advocate the 

21 provision of assistive technology devices and assistive 

22 technology services to which the individuals with dis23 abilities are entitled under law other than 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 carryover funds de5 scribed in subsection (b)(5) to improve the awareness 

6 of individuals with disabilities on the accessibility of 

7 assistive technology and assisting them in the acquisi8 tion, utilization, or maintenance of assistive tech9 nology or assistive technology services. 

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

11 An entity that receives a grant under this section shall pre12 pare and submit to the lead agency the report described in 

13 subsection (c) and quarterly updates concerning the activi14 ties described in subsection (c). 

15 ‘‘(e) COORDINATION.—On making a grant under this 

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

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

18 designated under section 4(d) with respect to efforts at co19 ordination, collaboration, and promoting outcomes between 

20 the lead agency and the entity that receives the grant under 

21 this section. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

23 ‘‘(a) GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.—Notwithstanding 

24 any other provision of law, the Rehabilitation Services Ad25 ministration in the Office of Special Education and Reha-
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1 bilitative Services of the Department of Education shall be 

2 responsible for the administration of this Act. 

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

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

5 the extent to which entities that receive grants pursu6 ant to this Act are complying with the applicable re7 quirements of this Act and achieving the quantifiable, 

8 measurable goals that are consistent with the require9 ments of the grant programs under which the entities 

10 applied for the grants. 

11 ‘‘(2) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—To assist the 

12 Secretary in carrying out the responsibilities of the 

13 Secretary under this section, the Secretary may re14 quire States to provide relevant information, includ15 ing the information required under subsection (d). 

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

17 ‘‘(1) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If the Secretary de18 termines that an entity fails to substantially comply 

19 with the requirements of this Act or to substantially 

20 make progress towards meeting the goals established 

21 under section 4(e)(2)(B) with respect to a grant pro22 gram, the Secretary shall assist the entity through 

23 technical assistance funded under section 7 or other 

24 means, within 90 days after such determination, to 

25 develop a corrective action plan.
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1 ‘‘(2) SANCTIONS.—An entity that fails to develop 

2 and comply with a corrective action plan as described 

3 in paragraph (1) during a fiscal year shall be subject 

4 to one of the following corrective actions selected by 

5 the Secretary: 

6 ‘‘(A) Partial or complete withholding of 

7 funds under the grant program until such plan 

8 is developed and implemented. 

9 ‘‘(B) Reduction in the amount of funding 

10 that may be used for indirect costs under section 

11 4(b)(4) for the following year under the grant 

12 program. 

13 ‘‘(C) Required redesignation of the lead 

14 agency designated under section 4(d) or an enti15 ty responsible for administering the grant pro16 gram. 

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

18 shall establish appeals procedures for entities that are 

19 found to be in noncompliance with the requirements 

20 of this Act or have not substantially made progress to21 wards meeting the goals established under section 

22 4(e)(2)(B). 

23 ‘‘(4) SECRETARIAL ACTION.—As part of the an24 nual report required under subsection (d), the Sec25 retary shall describe each such action taken under 
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1 paragraph (1) or (2) and the outcomes of each such 

2 action. 

3 ‘‘(5) PUBLIC NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall 

4 notify the public by posting on the Internet website 

5 of the Department of Education of each action taken 

6 by the Secretary under paragraph (1) or (2). As a 

7 part of such notification, the Secretary shall describe 

8 each such action taken under paragraph (1) or (2) 

9 and the outcomes of each such action. 

10 ‘‘(d) ANNUAL REPORT.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31 

12 of each year, the Secretary shall prepare, and submit 

13 to the President and to the Committee on Education 

14 and the Workforce of the House of Representatives 

15 and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 

16 Pensions of the Senate, a report on the activities 

17 funded under this Act to improve the access of indi18 viduals with disabilities to assistive technology devices 

19 and assistive technology services. 

20 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Such report shall include in21 formation on—

22 ‘‘(A) the type of alternative financing mech23 anisms used by each State under the program; 

24 ‘‘(B) the amount and type of assistance 

25 given to consumers (who shall be classified by 
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1 age, type of disability, type of assistive tech2 nology device or assistive technology service fi3 nanced through the program, geographic dis4 tribution within the State, gender, and whether 

5 the consumers are part of an underrepresented 

6 population or rural population), including—

7 ‘‘(i) the number of applications for as8 sistance received; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the number of applications ap10 proved and rejected; 

11 ‘‘(iii) the default rate; 

12 ‘‘(iv) the range and average interest 

13 rate; 

14 ‘‘(v) the range and average income of 

15 approved loan applicants; and 

16 ‘‘(vi) the types and dollar amounts of 

17 assistive technology financed; 

18 ‘‘(C) the number, type, and length of time 

19 of loans of assistive technology devices provided 

20 to individuals with disabilities, employers, pub21 lic agencies, or public accomodations, including 

22 an analysis of the individuals with disabilities 

23 who have benefited from the device loan program; 

24 ‘‘(D) the number, type, estimated value, and 

25 scope of device reutilization programs, including 
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1 an analysis of the individuals with disabilities 

2 that have benefited from the device loan pro3 gram; 

4 ‘‘(E) the number and type of equipment 

5 demonstrations provided, including an analysis 

6 of individuals with disabilities who have bene7 fited from the program; 

8 ‘‘(F) a summary of the State plans and an9 nual reports submitted by the States, including 

10 an analysis of the progress of the States in meet11 ing their goals established in the State applica12 tion; 

13 ‘‘(G) the number of individuals who re14 ceived training and the topics of such training; 

15 ‘‘(H) the frequency and nature of technical 

16 assistance provided to State and local govern17 mental agencies and other entities; and 

18 ‘‘(I) the outcomes of interagency coordina19 tion and collaboration activities carried out by 

20 the State, as applicable, that support access to 

21 assistive technology including the type, purpose, 

22 and source of leveraged funding or other contrib23 uted resources from public and private entities. 

24 ‘‘(e) EFFECT ON OTHER ASSISTANCE.—This Act may 

25 not be construed as authorizing a Federal or a State agency 
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1 to reduce medical or other assistance available, or to alter 

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

3 law. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 7. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Through grants, contracts, or co6 operative agreements, awarded on a competitive basis, the 

7 Secretary is authorized to provide technical assistance to 

8 entities, principally entities funded under section 4 or 5. 

9 ‘‘(b) INPUT.—In designing the program to be funded 

10 under this section, and in deciding the differences in func11 tion between national and regionally based technical assist12 ance efforts carried out through the program, the Secretary 

13 shall consider the input of the directors of comprehensive 

14 statewide programs of technology-related assistance and 

15 other individuals the Secretary determines to be appro16 priate, especially—

17 ‘‘(1) individuals with disabilities who use assist18 ive technology and understand the barriers to the ac19 quisition of such technology and assistive technology 

20 services; 

21 ‘‘(2) family members, guardians, advocates, and 

22 authorized representatives of such individuals; and 

23 ‘‘(3) individuals employed by protection and ad24 vocacy systems funded under section 5.
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1 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary shall 

2 support activities designed to maximize the impact and 

3 benefit of assistive technology devices and assistive tech4 nology services for individuals with disabilities, including 

5 the following activities: 

6 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL PUBLIC INTERNET SITE.—

7 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT OF INTERNET

8 SITE.—The Secretary shall fund the establish9 ment and maintenance of a National Public 

10 Internet Site for the purposes of providing to in11 dividuals with disabilities and the general public 

12 technical assistance and information on in13 creased access to assistive technology devices, as14 sistive technology services, and other disability15 related resources. 

16 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—To be eligible to 

17 receive a grant or enter into a contract or coop18 erative agreement under subsection (a) to estab19 lish and maintain the Internet site, an entity 

20 shall be an institution of higher education that 

21 emphasizes research and engineering, has a mul22 tidisciplinary research center, and has dem23 onstrated expertise in—
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1 ‘‘(i) working with assistive technology 

2 and intelligent agent interactive informa3 tion dissemination systems; 

4 ‘‘(ii) managing libraries of assistive 

5 technology and disability-related resources; 

6 ‘‘(iii) delivering education, informa7 tion, and referral services to individuals 

8 with disabilities, including technology-based 

9 curriculum development services for adults 

10 with low-level reading skills; 

11 ‘‘(iv) developing cooperative partner12 ships with the private sector, particularly 

13 with private sector computer software, hard14 ware, and Internet services entities; and 

15 ‘‘(v) developing and designing ad16 vanced Internet sites. 

17 ‘‘(C) FEATURES OF INTERNET SITE.—The 

18 National Public Internet Site described in sub19 paragraph (A) shall contain the following fea20 tures: 

21 ‘‘(i) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION AT

22 ANY TIME.—The site shall be designed so 

23 that any member of the public may obtain 

24 information posted on the site at any time. 
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1 ‘‘(ii) INNOVATIVE AUTOMATED INTEL2 LIGENT AGENT.—The site shall be con3 structed with an innovative automated in4 telligent agent that is a diagnostic tool for 

5 assisting users in problem definition and 

6 the selection of appropriate assistive tech7 nology devices and assistive technology serv8 ices resources. 

9 ‘‘(iii) RESOURCES.—

10 ‘‘(I) LIBRARY ON ASSISTIVE

11 TECHNOLOGY.—The site shall include 

12 access to a comprehensive working li13 brary on assistive technology for all en14 vironments, including home, work15 place, transportation, and other envi16 ronments. 

17 ‘‘(II) RESOURCES FOR A NUMBER

18 OF DISABILITIES.—The site shall in19 clude resources relating to the largest 

20 possible number of disabilities, includ21 ing resources relating to low-level read22 ing skills. 

23 ‘‘(iv) LINKS TO PRIVATE SECTOR RE24 SOURCES AND INFORMATION.—To the extent 

25 feasible, the site shall be linked to relevant 
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1 private sector resources and information, 

2 under agreements developed between the in3 stitution of higher education and cooper4 ating private sector entities. 

5 ‘‘(D) MINIMUM LIBRARY COMPONENTS.—At 

6 a minimum, the Internet site shall maintain up7 dated information on—

8 ‘‘(i) how to plan, develop, implement, 

9 and evaluate activities to further extend 

10 comprehensive statewide programs of tech11 nology-related assistance, including the de12 velopment and replication of effective ap13 proaches to—

14 ‘‘(I) providing information and 

15 referral services; 

16 ‘‘(II) promoting interagency co17 ordination of training and service de18 livery among public and private enti19 ties; 

20 ‘‘(III) conducting outreach to 

21 underrepresented populations and 

22 rural populations; 

23 ‘‘(IV) mounting successful public 

24 awareness activities;
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1 ‘‘(V) improving capacity building 

2 in service delivery; 

3 ‘‘(VI) training personnel from a 

4 variety of disciplines; and 

5 ‘‘(VII) improving evaluation 

6 strategies, research, and data collec7 tion; 

8 ‘‘(ii) effective approaches to the devel9 opment of consumer-controlled systems that 

10 increase access to, funding for, and aware11 ness of, assistive technology devices and as12 sistive technology services; 

13 ‘‘(iii) successful approaches to increas14 ing the availability of public and private 

15 funding for and access to the provision of 

16 assistive technology devices and assistive 

17 technology services by appropriate State 

18 agencies; and 

19 ‘‘(iv) demonstration sites where indi20 viduals may try out assistive technology. 

21 ‘‘(2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE EFFORTS.—The 

22 Secretary shall, on a competitive basis, make grants 

23 to, or enter into cooperative agreements with, eligible 

24 entities—
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1 ‘‘(A) to address State-specific information 

2 requests concerning assistive technology from 

3 other entities funded under this Act and public 

4 entities not funded under this Act, including—

5 ‘‘(i) requests for state-of-the-art, or 

6 model, Federal, State, and local laws, regu7 lations, policies, practices, procedures, and 

8 organizational structures, that facilitate, 

9 and overcome barriers to, funding for, and 

10 access to, assistive technology devices and 

11 assistive technology services; 

12 ‘‘(ii) requests for examples of policies, 

13 practices, procedures, regulations, or judi14 cial decisions that have enhanced or may 

15 enhance access to funding for assistive tech16 nology devices and assistive technology serv17 ices for individuals with disabilities; 

18 ‘‘(iii) requests for information on effec19 tive approaches to Federal-State coordina20 tion of programs for individuals with dis21 abilities, related to improving funding for 

22 or access to assistive technology devices and 

23 assistive technology services for individuals 

24 with disabilities of all ages; 
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1 ‘‘(iv) requests for information on effec2 tive approaches to the development of con3 sumer-controlled systems that increase ac4 cess to, funding for, and awareness of, as5 sistive technology devices and assistive tech6 nology services; 

7 ‘‘(v) other requests for technical assist8 ance from other entities funded under this 

9 Act and public entities not funded under 

10 this Act; and 

11 ‘‘(vi) other assignments specified by the 

12 Secretary, including assisting entities de13 scribed in section 6(b) to develop corrective 

14 action plans; and 

15 ‘‘(B) to assist targeted individuals by dis16 seminating information about—

17 ‘‘(i) Federal, State, and local laws, reg18 ulations, policies, practices, procedures, and 

19 organizational structures, that facilitate, 

20 and overcome barriers to, funding for, and 

21 access to, assistive technology devices and 

22 assistive technology services, to promote 

23 fuller independence, productivity, and in24 clusion in society for individuals with dis25 abilities of all ages; and 
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1 ‘‘(ii) technical assistance activities un2 dertaken under subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to compete 

4 for grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements under this 

5 section, entities shall have documented experience with and 

6 expertise in assistive technology service delivery or systems, 

7 interagency coordination, and capacity building and advo8 cacy activities. 

9 ‘‘(e) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant, 

10 contract, or cooperative agreement under this section, an 

11 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 

12 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

13 the Secretary may require. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

15 ‘‘(a) STATE GRANTS FOR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY; 

16 NATIONAL ACTIVITIES.—There are authorized to be appro17 priated to carry out sections 4 and 7 of this Act $21,524,000 

18 for fiscal year 2005 and such sums as may be necessary 

19 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010. Of the amount 

20 appropriated pursuant to the authorization of appropria21 tions under this subsection for a fiscal year, not more than 

22 $1,235,000 may be made available to carry out section 7 

23 of this Act. 

24 ‘‘(b) STATE GRANTS FOR PROTECTION AND ADVO25 CACY.—There are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
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1 out section 5 of this Act $4,419,000 for fiscal year 2005 

2 and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

3 2006 through 2010.’’.
Union Calendar No. 294

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4278

[Report No. 108–514] 

A BILL

To amend the Assistive Technology Act of 1998 to 

disabilities, and for other purposes. the assistive technology needs of individuals with support programs of grants to States to address 

JUNE 1, 2004

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union,