42 U.S.C. § 15002 — Definitions

(1) American Indian Consortium — two or more recognized American Indian tribes that officially join together, with a combined total resident population of 150,000 enrolled tribal members and connected ("contiguous") Indian land in two or more states. (2) Areas of emphasis — the topics this subchapter covers: quality assurance, education, early intervention, child care, health, employment, housing, transportation, and recreation activities, plus other services (formal or informal) available to people in a community that affect their quality of life. (3) Assistive technology device — any item, piece of equipment, or product system — bought as-is, modified, or custom-made — used to increase, maintain, or improve what a person with a developmental disability can functionally do. (4) Assistive technology service — any service that directly helps a person with a developmental disability select, get, or use an assistive technology device. This includes (A) evaluating the person's needs, including in their own everyday environment; (B) buying, leasing, or otherwise getting the device for them; (C) selecting, designing, fitting, adjusting, maintaining, repairing, or replacing the device; (D) coordinating the device with another therapy, intervention, or service, such as an education or rehabilitation plan; (E) training the person, or their family member, guardian, advocate, or representative, to use it; and (F) training professionals, employers, or others who work with the person, on how to use it. (5) Center — a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service, established under Part D. (6) Child care-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that get families of children with developmental disabilities access to and use of child care services, including before-school, after-school, and out-of-school services, in their communities. (7) Culturally competent — used about services, supports, or assistance that is provided in a way that responds to the beliefs, communication styles, attitudes, language, and behaviors of the people receiving it, in whatever way is most likely to get them to fully participate. (8) Developmental disability — (A) In general: a severe, chronic disability that (i) comes from a mental or physical impairment, or a combination of both; (ii) shows up before the person turns 22; (iii) is likely to continue indefinitely; (iv) causes substantial functional limits in 3 or more of these major life areas: self-care, receptive and expressive language, learning, mobility, self-direction, capacity for independent living, or economic self-sufficiency; and (v) means the person needs a combination and sequence of special, interdisciplinary, or general services, individualized supports, or other assistance that is lifelong or extended, and individually planned and coordinated. (B) Infants and young children: a child from birth through age 9 with a substantial developmental delay, or a specific condition present at birth or acquired, can count as having a developmental disability without meeting 3 or more of the criteria in (A) if, without services and supports now, the child would likely meet those criteria later in life. (9) Early intervention activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities provided to the infants and young children described in paragraph (8)(B) and their families, to (A) help the children develop to their full potential, and (B) help families meet those children's special needs. (10) Education activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that help people with developmental disabilities access appropriate supports and modifications at school, get the most from lifelong learning, and be fully included in student life. (11) Employment-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that help people with developmental disabilities get, keep, or advance in paid employment — including supported employment or self-employment — in integrated community settings. (12) Family support services — (A) In general: services, supports, and other assistance for families with a member who has a developmental disability, designed to (i) strengthen the family's role as primary caregiver, (ii) prevent that member from being placed outside the home when it isn't necessary, and keep the family together, and (iii) reunite families whose member was placed outside the home, whenever possible. (B) Specific services: this includes respite care, rehabilitation and assistive technology, personal assistance services, parent training and counseling, support for families headed by aging caregivers, home and vehicle modifications, and help with extraordinary expenses tied to the family member's needs. (13) Health-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that get people with developmental disabilities access to and use of coordinated health, dental, mental health, and other human and social services, including prevention activities, in their communities. (14) Housing-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that get people with developmental disabilities access to and use of housing and housing supports and services in their communities, including help renting, owning, or modifying a home. (15) Inclusion — the acceptance and encouragement of people with developmental disabilities taking part in social, educational, work, and community activities alongside people without disabilities, so that they can (A) have friendships and relationships of their own choosing; (B) live in homes close to community resources, with regular contact with people without disabilities; (C) fully access and actively take part in the same community activities and types of employment as people without disabilities; and (D) fully use the same community resources as people without disabilities, in regular contact with them. (16) Individualized supports — supports that (A) let a person with a developmental disability exercise self-determination, be independent, be productive, and be included in all facets of community life; (B) are designed to (i) let the person control their own environment as independently as possible, (ii) prevent placement in a more restrictive living arrangement than necessary, and (iii) let the person live, learn, work, and enjoy life in the community; and (C) include early intervention services, respite care, personal assistance services, family support services, supported employment services, support services for families headed by aging caregivers, and rehabilitation technology, assistive technology, and assistive technology services. (17) Integration — a person with a developmental disability's equal right to access and use the same community resources used by, and available to, other individuals. (18) Not-for-profit — used about an agency, institution, or organization owned or run by one or more corporations or associations, where none of its net earnings go, or may lawfully go, to any private shareholder or individual. (19) Personal assistance services — a range of services, provided by one or more people, that help a person with a disability do daily activities — including activities on or off a job — that they would typically do if they didn't have a disability. These services must be designed to increase the person's control over their life and their ability to handle everyday activities. (20) Prevention activities — activities addressing the causes of developmental disabilities and worsening functional limits, such as activities that (A) eliminate or reduce the factors that cause, predispose people to, or increase how common developmental disabilities are; (B) catch problems early to eliminate circumstances that create or worsen functional limits; and (C) reduce the effects of developmental disabilities across a person's life. (21) Productivity — either (A) income-producing work measured by more income, better employment status, or job advancement, or (B) work that contributes to a household or community. (22) Protection and advocacy system — the system set up under section 15043. (23) Quality assurance activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that produce better consumer- and family-centered quality assurance, through systems of quality assurance and consumer protection that (A) monitor services, supports, and assistance to make sure the individual (i) won't experience abuse, neglect, exploitation, or violations of legal or human rights, and (ii) won't be subject to improper restraint or seclusion; (B) train people with developmental disabilities, their families, and their guardians in leadership, self-advocacy, and self-determination, for those same protective goals; or (C) coordinate agencies and integrate systems to improve services that protect self-determination, independence, productivity, and inclusion. (24) Recreation-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that get people with developmental disabilities access to and use of recreational, leisure, and social activities in their communities. (25) Rehabilitation technology — the systematic application of technology, engineering methods, or scientific principles to meet the needs of, and remove barriers for, people with developmental disabilities in areas including education, rehabilitation, employment, transportation, independent living, and recreation. This includes rehabilitation engineering and providing assistive technology devices and services. (26) Secretary — the Secretary of Health and Human Services. (27) Self-determination activities — activities that, with appropriate assistance, give people with developmental disabilities (A) the ability and opportunity to communicate and make personal decisions; (B) the ability and opportunity to communicate choices and control the type and intensity of services, supports, and assistance they receive; (C) the authority to control resources to get needed services, supports, and assistance; (D) opportunities to participate in and contribute to their communities; and (E) support — including financial support — to advocate for themselves and others, build leadership skills through self-advocacy training, join coalitions, educate policymakers, and help shape public policy that affects them. (28) State — except where otherwise stated, this includes each of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. (29) State Council on Developmental Disabilities — a Council established under section 15025. (30) Supported employment services — services that let people with developmental disabilities do competitive work in integrated work settings, for people (A)(i) for whom competitive employment hasn't traditionally happened, or (ii) whose competitive employment has been interrupted or occasional because of significant disabilities; and (B) who, because of how serious their disabilities are, need intensive supported-employment services or ongoing extended services to do that work. (31) Transportation-related activities — advocacy, capacity building, and systemic change activities that get people with developmental disabilities access to and use of transportation. (32) Unserved and underserved — includes groups such as people from racial and ethnic minority backgrounds, disadvantaged individuals, people with limited English proficiency, people from underserved rural or urban areas, and specific groups within the developmental disability population, including people who need assistive technology to take part in and contribute to community life.