(a)The Office of the Developmental Services Ombudsperson shall do all of the following:
(1)
(A)Disseminate information and provide training and technical assistance to individuals served by a regional center, family members, regional center staff, tribes, advocacy groups, service provider organizations, and other interested parties on the rights of persons with developmental disabilities and services provided by the office. The information shall include methods of contacting the office and notification that conversations with the office may be disclosed to other persons, as necessary, to adequately investigate and resolve a complaint. The
information and training shall include information about the rights of persons with developmental disabilities under this division, including t
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(a)
The Office of the Developmental Services Ombudsperson shall do all of the following:
(1)
(A)
Disseminate information and provide training and technical assistance to individuals served by a regional center, family members, regional center staff, tribes, advocacy groups, service provider organizations, and other interested parties on the rights of persons with developmental disabilities and services provided by the office. The information shall include methods of contacting the office and notification that conversations with the office may be disclosed to other persons, as necessary, to adequately investigate and resolve a complaint. The
information and training shall include information about the rights of persons with developmental disabilities under this division, including the rights specified in Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 4502) and the Self-Determination Program under Section 4685.8.
(B)
Commencing on January 1, 2028, at the end of every two-year legislative session, review amendments to the laws applicable to individuals served by a regional center and recommend to the department any updates to materials published by the department. The department, if workload capacity allows using existing resources, shall update those documents to the best of its ability after receiving recommendations from the ombudsperson.
(2)
Receive complaints made by or on behalf of individuals served by a regional
center related to their care, placement, or services.
(3)
Decide, in its discretion, whether to investigate a complaint, or refer complaints to another agency for investigation. After rendering a decision to investigate a complaint, attempt to resolve the complaint without using a judicial or administrative proceeding, including attempting to facilitate solutions to disagreements about eligibility and services.
(4)
Upon rendering a decision to investigate a complaint from a complainant, notify the complainant of the intention to investigate. If the office declines to investigate a complaint or continue an investigation, the office shall notify the complainant of the reason for the action of the office.
(5)
Update the complainant on the progress of the investigation and the attempts to resolve the complaint, and notify the complainant of the final outcome.
(6)
(A)
Compile and make available data to the Legislature in their quarterly legislative updates. This data shall include, but is not limited to, the number of contacts to the office, the number of contacts specific to the Self-Determination Program, the number of complaints made and the modality of the submission of those complaints, the number of investigations performed by the office, the trends and issues that arose in the course of resolving complaints, the number of referrals made, and the number of unresolved contacts. The office shall include recommendations consistent with this data for improving the developmental services system.
(B)
It is the intent of the Legislature that representatives of the organizations described in subparagraph (B) consider this data in the development of any recommendations offered toward improving the developmental services system.
(C)
The deidentified compiled data shall be posted so that it is available to the public on the existing internet website of the office.
(D)
Nothing shall preclude the office from issuing data, findings, or reports other than the annual compilation of data described in this paragraph.
(7)
Have access to copies of any record of a state agency, local agency, or regional center, and contractors or vendors with the state agency, local
agencies, and regional centers that is necessary to carry out their responsibilities, and may meet or communicate with an individual served by a regional center in their placement or elsewhere.
(b)
The office may present the data compiled under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (6) of subdivision (a) on an annual basis at appropriate conferences, forums, and other events, as determined by the ombudsperson, that may include presentations to, but are not limited to, representatives of the Legislature, the Association of Regional Center Agencies, the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, tribes, developmental services organizations, advocacy groups, consumer and service provider organizations, and other interested parties.
(c)
(1)
Information obtained by the
office from a complaint, regardless of whether it is investigated by the office, referred to another entity for investigation, or determined not to be the proper subject of an investigation, shall remain confidential under relevant state and federal confidentiality laws. Disclosure of information that is not confidential under state and federal confidentiality laws shall occur only as necessary to carry out the mission of the office, including as necessary to provide explanation and support for the office’s recommendations for improving the developmental services system to the Legislature and state and local agencies that provide services and supports to an individual served by a regional center.
(2)
The ombudsperson shall maintain confidentiality with respect to the identities of the complainants or witnesses coming before them,
except insofar as disclosure may be necessary to enable the ombudsperson to carry out the duties of the office set forth in paragraphs (2) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a). The ombudsperson may not disclose a record that is confidential under relevant state and federal confidentiality laws, except as authorized by law.
(3)
If an individual served by a regional center is represented by a conservator, legal guardian, or counsel, the office may notify the conservator, legal guardian, or counsel of a complaint in order for those entities to satisfy their obligations specified in this division. Notifying these entities of an investigation shall not limit the ombudsperson’s ability to investigate or resolve a complaint or take any other action authorized by this section. If appropriate, the office may also share the outcome of any
investigation performed by the office with the consumer’s conservator, legal guardian, or counsel.