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minority backgrounds and personnel who are
individuals with disabilities; and
‘‘(iii) the development and maintenance of
a system for determining on an annual basis
the number and type of personnel that are em-
ployed by the State agency in the provision of
vocational rehabilitation services, including ra-
tios of counselors to clients;’’;
(3) in paragraph (11)(A)—
(A) by inserting ‘‘the Rural Development
Administration of the Department of Agri-
culture,’’ after ‘‘the Department of Veterans
Affairs,’’;
(B) by striking ‘‘(20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.),
and’’ and inserting ‘‘(20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.),’’;
and
(C) by inserting after ‘‘(41 U.S.C. 46 et
seq.)’’ the following: ‘‘, and State use contract-
ing programs’’;
(4) by striking paragraph (13);
(5) by striking paragraph (17);
(6) in paragraph (24)—
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph
(A), by striking ‘‘students who are individuals’’
and inserting ‘‘students’’; and
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(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘in-
dividualized written rehabilitation program’’
and inserting ‘‘individualized education pro-
gram’’;
(7) in paragraph (25), by striking ‘‘Secretary’’
and inserting ‘‘Commissioner’’;
(8) in paragraph (28), by adding at the end be-
fore the semicolon the following: ‘‘and State use con-
tracting programs’’;
(9) by striking paragraph (30);
(10) in paragraph (33), by striking ‘‘and work-
ing relationships’’;
(11) in paragraph (35), by striking ‘‘and’’ at
the end;
(12) in paragraph (36)—
(A) in subparagraph (B)(i), by moving the
margin two ems to the left;
(B) in clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) of subpara-
graph (C) (including subclause (II) of each of
such clauses (ii) and (iii)), by moving the mar-
gin two ems to the left; and
(C) by striking the period at the end and
inserting ‘‘; and’’;
(13) by adding at the end the following:
301
‘‘(37) provide assurances that the State, or any recip-
ient of funds made available to the State under this title,
will comply with the guidelines established under section
508(a) of this Act.’’; and
(14) by redesignating paragraphs (14), (15),
(16), (18) through (22), (24) through (29), and (31)
through (37) as paragraphs (13) through (33), re-
spectively.
SEC. 2203. INDIVIDUALIZED PLAN FOR EMPLOYMENT.
(a) SECTION HEADING.—Section 102 of the Rehabili-
tation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 722) is amended in the
section heading by striking ‘‘INDIVIDUALIZED WRITTEN
REHABILITATION PROGRAM’’ and inserting ‘‘INDIVID-
UALIZED PLAN FOR EMPLOYMENT’’.
(b) ASSESSMENT.—Section 102(b) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 722(b)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b)(1) As soon as a determination has been made
that an individual is eligible for vocational rehabilitation
services, the designated State unit shall complete the as-
sessment described in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of sec-
tion 7(2), if such assessment is necessary, and ensure that
an individualized plan for employment is—
‘‘(A) either—
‘‘(i) at the request of the individual, devel-
oped by the individual or, as appropriate, the
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eligible individual’s representative and approved
by the vocational rehabilitation counselor; or
‘‘(ii) developed and approved by the indi-
vidual or, as appropriate, by a parent, a family
member, a guardian, an advocate, or an author-
ized representative of such individual (hereafter
referred to in this subsection as the ‘eligible in-
dividual’s representative’) and the vocational re-
habilitation counselor;
‘‘(B) based on the findings of the assessment to
determine the individual’s eligibility and vocational
rehabilitation needs described in section 7(2);
‘‘(C) written, and, as appropriate, otherwise
documented, and provided to the individual or, as
appropriate, to the eligible individual’s representa-
tive in the native language or mode of communica-
tion of the individual or, as appropriate, of the eligi-
ble individual’s representative;
‘‘(D) implemented in a timely manner;
‘‘(E) reviewed at least annually by the voca-
tional rehabilitation counselor and the individual or,
as appropriate, the eligible individual’s representa-
tive; and
‘‘(F) amended, as necessary, by the individual
or, as appropriate, the eligible individual’s represent-
303
ative, in collaboration with the counselor, when there
are substantive changes in the employment goal, the
services to be provided, or the service providers
(such revisions or amendments shall not take effect
until agreed to and signed by the individual or, as
appropriate, by the eligible individual’s representa-
tive, and the vocational rehabilitation counselor).
‘‘(2) The individual plan for employment shall be de-
veloped and implemented in a manner that affords eligible
individuals the opportunity to exercise informed choice in
selecting the employment goal, the specific vocational re-
habilitation services to be provided, the entity or entities
that will provide the vocational rehabilitation services, and
the methods used to procure the services, consistent with
the informed choice provisions in subsection (e).
‘‘(3) The individualized plan for employment shall
identify—
‘‘(A) the specific employment goal that is cho-
sen by the individual, consistent with the unique
strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities,
capabilities, and informed choice of the individual,
and is, to the maximum extent appropriate, in an in-
tegrated setting;
‘‘(B) the specific vocational rehabilitation serv-
ices that are—