Current through February, 2024
(a) The division
shall implement an information and referral system, adequate to ensure that
individuals with disabilities, including eligible individuals who do not meet
the division's order of selection criteria for receiving VR services when the
division is operating under an order of selection, are:
(1) Provided accurate VR information and
guidance (which may include counseling and referral for job placement) using
appropriate modes of communication to assist them in preparing for, securing,
retaining, or regaining employment.
(2) Referred to other appropriate Federal and
State programs, including programs carried out by other components of the
statewide workforce investment system, best suited to address the specific
employment needs of the individual.
(b) The division must refer to local extended
employment providers an individual with a disability who makes an informed
choice to pursue extended employment as the individual's employment outcome.
Before making the referral the division must:
(1) Consistent with section
17-401.1-7(b)(4)(A), explain to the individual that the purpose of the VR
program is to assist individuals to achieve an employment outcome as defined in
section 17-401.1-2 (i.e., employment in an integrated setting);
(2) Consistent with section 17-401.1-12,
provide the individual with information concerning the availability of
employment options, and of VR services, in integrated settings;
(3) Inform the individual that services under
the VR program can be provided to eligible individuals in an extended
employment setting if necessary for purposes of training or otherwise preparing
for employment in an integrated setting;
(4) Inform the individual that, if the
individual initially chooses not to pursue employment in an integrated setting,
the individual can seek services from the division at a later date if, at that
time, the individual chooses to pursue employment in an integrated setting;
and
(5) Refer the individual, as
appropriate, to the Social Security Administration in order to obtain
information concerning the ability of individuals with disabilities to work
while receiving benefits from the Social Security Administration.
(c) In making the referrals
identified in paragraph (a)(2), the division must:
(1) Provide the individual who is being
referred:
(A) A notice of the referral by the
division to the agency carrying out the program;
(B) Information identifying a specific point
of contact within the agency to which the individual is being referred;
and
(C) Information and advice
regarding the most suitable services to assist the individual to prepare for,
secure, retain, or regain employment.
(2) Document the nature and scope of services
provided by the division to the individual and on the referral itself in the
division's record of services for the individual.
(d) In providing the information and referral
services under this section to eligible individuals who are not in the priority
category or categories to receive VR services under the State's order of
selection, the division must identify, as part of its reporting under section
101(a)(10) of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended and
34 C.F.R.
section 361.40, the number of eligible
individuals who did not meet the division's order of selection criteria for
receiving VR services and did receive information and referral services under
this section.
(e) In the event an
individual is referred to another program through the division's information
and referral system under this section, including other components of the
statewide workforce investment system, documentation of the nature and scope of
services provided by the division to the individual and of the referral itself,
consistent with the requirements of this section, shall be included in the
division's record of services for the individual.
