(a) To encourage competitive integrated employment opportunities statewide for individuals with developmental disabilities, the department shall establish guidelines and oversee a program, to the extent funds are appropriated in the annual Budget Act for this purpose, to increase paid internship opportunities for individuals with developmental disabilities that produce outcomes consistent with the individual program plan. The department shall consult with the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, regional centers, employers, supported employment provider organizations, and clients’ rights advocates, to establish a program that shall be administered by community service providers and that meets all of the following criteria:

(1) Internships shall not exceed 1,040 hours per year for each individual placed in an internship.

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(2) Payments for internship hours under this program shall include all required employer-related costs.

(3) Individuals participating in an internship shall be paid at or above minimum wage and equal to the customary wage paid by the employer for the same or similar work performed by individuals who do not have disabilities.

(4) A payment of seven hundred fifty dollars ($750) shall be made to the regional center service provider if both of the following apply:

(A) On or after July 1, 2021, the regional center provider places an individual in a paid internship opportunity.

(B) That individual remains in the paid internship after 30 consecutive days.

(5) An additional payment of one thousand dollars ($1,000) shall be made to the regional center provider for an individual described in paragraph (4) who remains in the paid internship for 60 consecutive days.

(6) Placements shall be made into competitive, integrated work environments.

(7) Placements shall be made into internships that develop vocational skills that will facilitate paid employment opportunities in the future.

(8) Regional centers shall increase awareness of these internships to consumers outside of current employment programs through outreach to consumers once the program is implemented, as well as during the individual program plan process.

(b) The department shall require annual reporting by regional centers and vendors that ensures program accountability and achievement of program goals. This shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:

(1) The number of interns placed who might not otherwise have achieved the placement absent this internship program.

(2) Types of employment in which interns are placed.

(3) Length of internships.

(4) Demographic information of interns.

(5) Amount of each intern placement payment.

(6) Employment-related supports provided by another agency or individual to the intern.

(7) Number of interns who subsequently entered paid employment, including salary and benefit information.

(8) Any additional information, as determined by the department.

(c) (1) The department shall include in its annual May Revision fiscal estimate a description of the implementation of the program, including, but not limited to, a description of the stakeholder consultation, the data described in subdivision (b), aggregated by regional center and statewide, and any recommendations for program changes that may be necessary or desirable to maximize program effectiveness and accountability.

(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the amounts included in this section be considered for changes or adjustments as part of the budget process that develops the budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year.

(d) Consistent with the individual program plan, the program shall increase sustained and appropriate competitive integrated employment placements by regional center service providers, as follows:

(1) A payment of one thousand dollars ($1,000) shall be made to the regional center service provider that, on or after July 1, 2016, places an individual into competitive integrated employment, and the individual is still competitively employed after 30 consecutive days, as described in subdivision (o) of Section 4851 and subdivision (d) of Section 4868.

(2) An additional payment of one thousand two hundred fifty dollars ($1,250) shall be made to the regional center service provider for an individual described in paragraph (1) who remains in competitive integrated employment for six consecutive months.

(3) An additional payment of one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) shall be made to the regional center service provider for an individual described in paragraphs (1) and (2) who remains in competitive integrated employment for 12 consecutive months.

(4) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) to (3), inclusive, effective July 1, 2021, until June 30, 2025, the competitive integrated employment incentive payments for each milestone shall be as follows:

(A) A payment of two thousand dollars ($2,000) if the individual is still engaged in competitive employment after 30 consecutive days, as described in subdivision (o) of Section 4851 and subdivision (d) of Section 4868.

(B) An additional payment of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), if the individual in subparagraph (A) remains in competitive integrated employment for six consecutive months.

(C) An additional payment of three thousand dollars ($3,000), if the individual in subparagraph (B) remains in competitive integrated employment for 12 consecutive months.

(e) Regional centers shall annually report to the department the payments for placements pursuant to subdivision (d). The information shall be reported in a format determined by the department, and shall include the number of individuals placed in internships or other employment as described in this section each year.

(f) The payments made pursuant to this section shall not be in addition to the placement payments made pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 4860.

(g) Regional center service providers that place individuals into internships under subdivision (a) are not eligible for the employment placement incentives under this section, until the individual is transitioned into a competitive integrated employment placement that is not funded as an internship.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 76, Sec. 52. (AB 136) Effective July 16, 2021.)