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2000 SESSION

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SB 709 Office for Protection and Advocacy.

Introduced by: Warren E. Barry | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles

SUMMARY AS PASSED: (all summaries)

Persons with mental retardation, developmental disabilities, or mental illness. Revises the external human rights system for such persons. The Department for Rights of Virginians with Disabilities is removed from the executive branch and becomes an independent state agency renamed the Virginia Office for Protection and Advocacy. The bill creates a governing board for the Office consisting of 11 members who are appointed by the Governor and the General Assembly for staggered terms. This board shall hire the agency director who, in turn, shall retain legal counsel. The Office is given the authority to access facilities and programs and to protect the confidentiality of records. The Office will also monitor compliance with human rights regulations and make the reports available to the public. The bill establishes within the Office an ombudsman program and creates the Protection and Advocacy Fund. The bill contains technical amendments. The bill is a recommendation of the Joint Subcommittee Studying the Future Delivery of Publicly Funded Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services, HJR 225 (1998). This bill is identical to HB 491.


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