(1) For the purposes of KRS § 151B.211 to KRS § 151B.214, “competitive integrated employment” means work that is performed on a full-time or part-time basis for which an individual is:
(a) Earning compensation at or above minimum wage and comparable to the customary rate paid by the employer to employees without disabilities performing similar duties and with similar training and experience;
(b) Receiving the same level of benefits provided to other employees without disabilities in similar positions;
(c) Working at a location where the employee interacts with other individuals without disabilities; and
(d) Receiving opportunities for advancement when appropriate similar to other employees without disabilities in similar positions.
(2) The Employment First Council is hereby established within the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation as an advisory council to the executive and legislative branches of government on matters pertaining to increasing meaningful opportunities for competitive integrated employment for citizens with a disability seeking employment, regardless of their level of disability.
(3) The Employment First Council shall be composed of twenty-eight (28) members.
Members of the council shall be appointed by the Governor in a manner that is geographically and culturally representative of the population of the Commonwealth and shall include:
(a) One (1) representative from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation;
(b) One (1) representative from the Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board; (c) One (1) representative from the Department of Education;
(d) One (1) representative from the Office of Career and Technical Education; (e) One (1) representative from the Department for Medicaid Services;
(f) One (1) representative from the Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities;
(g) One (1) representative from the Commonwealth Council on Developmental
Disabilities;
(h) One (1) representative from Kentucky Protection and Advocacy;
(i) One (1) representative from the Department for Income Support, Disability
Determination Services;
(j) One (1) representative from the Division of Behavioral Health;
(k) One (1) representative from the Kentucky Autism Training Center;
(l) One (1) representative from the Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities, Office of Autism;
(m) One (1) representative from the University of Kentucky Human Development
Institute;
(n) Two (2) representatives from a state vocational rehabilitation provider
agency;
(o) One (1) representative from the Statewide Council for Vocational
Rehabilitation;
(p) One (1) representative from the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce; (q) One (1) representative from the Council of State Governments;
(r) Four (4) representatives each having at least one (1) of the following qualifications:
1. A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one (1) or more major life activity;
2. A history or record of such an impairment; or
3. A person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment;
(s) Two (2) representatives who have an immediate family member with a disability; and
(t) Four (4) representatives of business, industry, and labor.
(4) After the initial appointments, members of the Employment First Council shall serve terms of three (3) years. Members shall be eligible to succeed themselves and shall serve until their successor is appointed.
(5) Members of the Employment First Council shall not be paid for their service as council members, and shall not be reimbursed for any expenses involved in attending council meetings.
(6) The Employment First Council shall elect a chair, a vice chair, and a legislative liaison from its council members who shall serve in those capacities until replaced. The legislative liaison shall communicate with the legislative and executive branch about the council’s progress and ensure that the work of the council is separate and distinct from the work of the Statewide Council for Vocational Rehabilitation.
(7) A majority of council members shall constitute a quorum for the purposes of conducting business. The council shall be subject to the provisions of the Kentucky Open Records Act, as set forth in KRS § 61.870 to KRS § 61.884.
(8) The Employment First Council shall meet quarterly, upon the call of the chair, or at the request of the secretary of the Education and Labor Cabinet. The council shall receive assistance in carrying out its administrative functions from the Department of Workforce Development and shall be attached to the Education and Labor Cabinet for administrative purposes.
Effective: July 14, 2022
History: Created 2022 Ky. Acts ch. 28, sec. 2, effective July 14, 2022.
Legislative Research Commission Note (7/14/2022). 2022 Ky. Acts ch. 236 merged the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet and Labor Cabinet into the newly created Education and Labor Cabinet. Under the authority of KRS § 7.136(2), references to the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet in this statute have been changed to the Education and Labor Cabinet in codification to conform.