Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, March 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
KRS 138.170,
151B.185,
151B.190,
151B.200,
34
C.F.R. 361.42,
361.49,
29 U.S.C.
722,
723
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
151B.200 authorizes the office comply with
federal acts relating to vocational rehabilitation when these acts apply to
joint state and federally funded vocational rehabilitation programs.
KRS
151B.195(1) requires the
Executive Director of the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation to promulgate
administrative regulations governing services, personnel, and administration of
the State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency. This administrative regulation
establishes general criteria for the provision of rehabilitation services and
is necessary in order to distribute limited funds available for that
purpose.
Section 1. Definitions.
(1) "Applicant" means an individual who has
signed a letter or document requesting vocational rehabilitation services and
who is available to complete an assessment.
(2) "Eligible individual" means an individual
with a disability who has been determined by the office to meet the basic
conditions of eligibility for vocational rehabilitation services as defined in
34
C.F.R. 361.42.
(3) "Occupational equipment" means equipment
essential to perform the job duties at the job site and required as a condition
of employment.
(4) "Office" means
the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and its staff members who are
authorized under state law to perform the functions of the state regarding the
state plan and its supplement.
(5)
"Relative" means an individual related to another individual by lineage,
marriage, or adoption and includes a:
(a)
Spouse;
(b) Parent;
(c) Grandparent;
(d) Brother;
(e) Sister;
(f) Son;
(g) Daughter;
(h) Grandchild;
(i) Aunt;
(j) Uncle;
(k) Niece;
(l) Nephew; and
(m) First cousin.
Section 2. Employees' Request for
Services.
(1) An employee of the office who
wishes to request rehabilitation services shall advise the Director of Field
Services or a designee.
(2) The
Director of Field Services or a designee and the employee shall select a
counselor to take the request for services. If practicable, the counselor shall
be located in an adjacent district to the district in which the employee
resides.
Section 3.
Employees' Relatives' Request for Services.
(1) An employee of the office shall not take
a request for services or provide vocational rehabilitation services to a
relative.
(2) The relative shall be
referred to the Director of Field Services or a designee.
(3) The Director of Field Services or a
designee and the individual shall identify a staff member who is not a relative
to take the request for services and to provide services as deemed
appropriate.
Section 4.
Legal Fees. The office shall not be responsible for any fees incurred by an
applicant or eligible individual for legal services.
Section 5. Payment Rates for Purchased
Services.
(1) A service vendor shall not
charge or accept from the applicant, eligible individual, or a relative payment
for services unless the amount of the charge or payment is first presented to
the office.
(2) Payment to
out-of-state vendors shall be governed by the rates established by the
vocational rehabilitation agency in the state where services shall be
provided.
Section 6.
Potentially Terminal Illness. Services shall not be provided to individuals
with a potentially terminal illness unless:
(1) There is a favorable medical prognosis
for recovery; or
(2) There is a
prospect of survival for a reasonable period of time, allowing a return to work
for at least twelve (12) months (work life expectancy).
(a) If surgery, chemotherapy, nuclear medical
treatment, or similar ancillary medical service is expected to cure the
condition, it may be provided as with another medical problem.
(b) If the attending physician feels the
prognosis is guarded, the office shall request a letter indicating the
individual's work life expectancy. For those individuals with a twelve (12)
month work life expectancy services may be considered.
Section 7. Second Opinions.
(1) The office may seek a second opinion from
a qualified practitioner before determining eligibility or before authorizing
services if the office has reason to believe that a second opinion would
provide more information necessary to determine eligibility.
(2) If the office determines that eligibility
is not met or does not authorize services, an individual may utilize the
appeals process established in
782 KAR
1:010.
Section 8. Self-employment Enterprises. The
requirements established in this section shall be met prior to planning for
self-employment for an eligible individual.
(1) An eligible individual shall undergo an
assessment to determine work skills interests, interpersonal skills, related
functional capacities, and other pertinent characteristics.
(2) An eligible individual shall participate
in prevocational and small business training as established in the Kentucky
Office of Vocational Rehabilitation Policies and Procedures Manual,
incorporated by reference in
781
KAR 1:010.
(3) An eligible individual shall obtain any
required license, permit, certificate, or lease, and be in conformity with all
federal and state laws and local ordinances to commence an
enterprise.
(4) An eligible
individual seeking to develop a self-employment enterprise requiring start up
costs of more than $1,000 shall:
(a) Complete
a feasibility study; and
(b) Submit
a business plan and have it approved by the office pursuant to the Kentucky
Office of Vocational Rehabilitation Policies and Procedures Manual,
incorporated by reference in
781
KAR 1:010, prior to provision of services. The
business plan shall consist of the following:
1. Executive summary;
2. Description of product or
service;
3. Assessment of available
consumers to be served;
4.
Competitors currently in operation in the industry;
5. Marketing plan;
6. Costs of production;
7. Management details and structure;
and
8. Detailed financial
analysis.
(5)
The office shall not be the sole source of capitalization for a self-employment
enterprise with start up costs of $5,000 or more.
(a) In addition to requirements under
subsection (4) of this section, an eligible individual seeking financial
assistance with start up costs of $5000 to $10,000 shall contribute fifty (50)
percent of the cost in excess of $5,000 either in capital or documented value
of existing equipment used in the daily operation of the business and ninety
(95) percent of the cost in excess of $10,000.
(b) An eligible individual shall provide
documentation that the assets necessary for the required financial
participation are in place prior to provision of services by the
office.
(6) The total
office expenditures toward the start up costs for a self-employment enterprise
shall not exceed $10,000 unless:
(a) All
provisions of subsections (1) through (5) of this section are met;
and
(b)
1. The nature of the individual's vocational
rehabilitation needs make it necessary that the service be provided;
2. The denial of the service will prohibit
the individual from achieving the vocational goal; or
3. The provision of the service will result
in a cost savings to the office.
Section 9. Gender Reassignment. Office funds
shall not be used to pay for gender reassignment surgery.
Section 10. Tools and Equipment. The eligible
individual shall return tools, equipment, and supplies to the office if no
longer used for the employment outcome.
Section
11. Training. Postsecondary training shall be provided for an
eligible individual pursuant to this section.
(1) Except as provided in subsections (3) and
(4) of this section, tuition and initial registration fees provided to the
training facility of the eligible individual's choice shall not exceed those of
the highest rate charged by a state-supported training facility in Kentucky
that offers similar vocational preparation. If there is no similar program in
the state, the amount of support shall be determined by the current fee for
service memo.
(2) The Director of
Field Services or a designee shall make exceptions to the limitations provided
by subsection (1) if it is clearly demonstrated that exceptions are necessary
to achieve the employment outcome as established in
34 C.F.R.
361.5(b)(16).
(3) The office shall provide tuition and
initial registration fees for postsecondary programs for the deaf recognized by
the U.S. Congress as national programs due to the provision of essential
support services including:
(a) Interpreting
services;
(b) Note-taking services;
and
(c) Tutoring
services.
(4) Other
postsecondary programs for the deaf offering interpreting services, note-taking
services, and tutoring services shall be used if the total cost of attendance
does not exceed the total cost of tuition, fees and interpreting services,
note-taking services, and tutoring services at the highest rate charged by a
state-supported training facility in Kentucky that offers similar vocational
preparation.
(5) Training shall be
purchased only from training facilities that are accredited or licensed by
accrediting or licensing bodies and that comply with all applicable state and
federal requirements.
(6) An
eligible individual planning to attend a postsecondary training facility shall
apply for all financial assistance available through the training
facility.
(7) An eligible
post-secondary student shall:
(a) Maintain
full-time status as defined by the institution;
(b) Maintain less than full-time status if
full-time status is inconsistent with the consumer's unique strengths,
abilities, and capabilities; or
(c)
Maintain less than full-time status for one (1) semester if those hours are
needed to graduate in the current year;
(d) All course work shall facilitate the
achievement of positive outcomes.
(e) By the end of the second term or semester
and throughout each subsequent term or semester, the student shall achieve the
higher of:
1. An overall "C" grade average;
or
2. Standing required for
admission, licensure, or certification.
(f) An exception to a requirement established
in subsection (1) or (4) of this section shall:
1. Be granted if the student:
a. Has a need or circumstance that renders
him unable to meet the requirement; and
b. Notifies the counselor of the need or
circumstance prior to a change of standing at the institution.
2. Not be granted for the
requirements established in subsection (5) of this section for a period beyond
one (1) semester.
(8) The student shall provide the counselor
with a copy of course grades as soon as possible after the end of each term or
semester.
(9) If the student does
not maintain the standards of this section, the counselor shall:
(a) Terminate service at the institution of
higher education; and
(b)
Simultaneously notify the student of the appeal procedure established in
KRS 138.170.
(10) A service terminated under
subsection (12) of this section shall be reinstituted if the student:
(a) Successfully appeals the counselors
decision, in accordance with
KRS 138.170;
or
(b) Subsequently meets the
standard under which the service was terminated.
Section 12. Computer Hardware and
Software Purchases.
(1) Except as provided in
subsection (2) of this section or in Section 13 of this administrative
regulation, the office shall not purchase a computer, microcomputer, or other
hardware or software for the personal use of an applicant or eligible
individual.
(2) The office shall
consider the provision or upgrade or replacement of computer hardware and
software if the equipment is:
(a)
1. Essential to compensate for the
limitations caused by the disability; or
2. Required for the eligible individual to
achieve or maintain a vocational objective of competitive integrated
employment; and
(b) One
(1) of the following criteria are met:
1. The
equipment is required for vocational preparation;
2. The equipment is required to perform the
job and no provision is made by the employer to supply the equipment;
or
3. The equipment enables an
eligible individual to become competitive in an integrated setting with
nondisabled employees performing the same duties.
Section 13. Medical
Treatment. A medical treatment or procedure that is experimental or that does
not have a consistent record of significant improvement in vocational
functioning in better than fifty (50) percent of the subjects shall not be
provided by the office.
Section 14.
Vehicle Purchase. The office shall not purchase a vehicle unless the occupation
of the eligible individual requires a vehicle as occupational
equipment.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS
151B.195(1)