Recognizing the Role of Direct Support Professionals Act
Bill: H.R.4779 | Sponsor: Rep. Rice, Kathleen M. (D-NY)
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Recognizing the Role of Direct Support Professionals Act
This bill requires the Office of Management and Budget to establish a separate category within the Standard Occupational Classification system for direct support professionals (i.e., individuals who provide services to promote independence in individuals with a disability) for data reporting purposes.

To require the Office of Management and Budget to revise the Standard 
  Occupational Classification system to establish a separate code for 
         direct support professionals, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Recognizing the Role of Direct 
Support Professionals Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Direct support professionals play a critical role in 
        the care provided to children and adults with intellectual and 
        developmental disabilities.
            (2) Providers of home- and community-based services are 
        experiencing difficulty hiring and retaining direct support 
        professionals, with a national turnover rate of 45 percent as 
        identified in a 2016 study by the National Core Indicators.
            (3) High turnover rates can lead to instability for 
        individuals receiving services, and this may result in 
        individuals not receiving enough personalized care to help them 
        reach their goals for independent living.
            (4) A discrete occupational category for direct support 
        professionals will help States and the Federal Government--
                    (A) better interpret the shortage in the labor 
                market of direct support professionals; and
                    (B) collect data on the high turnover rate of 
                direct support professionals.
            (5) The Standard Occupational Classification system is 
        designed and maintained solely for statistical purposes, and is 
        used by Federal statistical agencies to classify workers and 
        jobs into occupational categories for the purpose of 
        collecting, calculating, analyzing, or disseminating data.
            (6) Occupations in the Standard Occupational Classification 
        system are classified based on work performed and, in some 
        cases, on the skills, education, or training needed to perform 
        the work.
            (7) Establishing a discrete occupational category for 
        direct support professionals will--
                    (A) correct an inaccurate representation in the 
                Standard Occupational Classification system;
                    (B) recognize these professionals for the critical 
                and often times overlooked work that they perform for 
                the disabled community, which work is different than 
                the work of a home health aide or a personal care aide; 
                and
                    (C) better align the Standard Occupational 
                Classification system with related classification 
                systems.

SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF DIRECT SUPPORT PERSONNEL.

    In this Act, the term ``direct support personnel'' means an 
individual who, in exchange for compensation, provides services to an 
individual with a disability (as defined in section 3 of the Americans 
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102)) that promote such 
individual's independence, including--
            (1) services that enhance independence and community 
        inclusion for such individual, including traveling with such 
        individual, attending and assisting such individual while 
        visiting friends and family, shopping, or socializing;
            (2) services such as coaching and supporting such 
        individual in communicating needs, achieving self-expression, 
        pursuing personal goals, living independently, and 
        participating actively in employment or voluntary roles in the 
        community;
            (3) services such as providing assistance with activities 
        of daily living (such as feeding, bathing, toileting, and 
        ambulation) and with tasks such as meal preparation, shopping, 
        light housekeeping, and laundry; or
            (4) services that support such individual at home, work, 
        school, or any other community setting.

SEC. 4. REVISION OF STANDARD OCCUPATIONAL CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM.

    The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall, not 
later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, revise the 
Standard Occupational Classification system to establish a separate 
code (31-1123) for direct support professionals as a healthcare support 
occupation. Such code shall be a subset of 31-1120, which includes home 
health aides and personal care aides.
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