HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3191        FILED ON: 1/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2990

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

David Biele and Daniel J. Hunt

_________________

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to the employment of persons with disabilities.

_______________

PETITION OF:

 

Name:

District/Address:

Date Added:

David Biele

4th Suffolk

1/19/2023

Daniel J. Hunt

13th Suffolk

1/20/2023

Danielle W. Gregoire

4th Middlesex

1/30/2023

Josh S. Cutler

6th Plymouth

1/30/2023

William J. Driscoll, Jr.

7th Norfolk

1/30/2023

Bruce J. Ayers

1st Norfolk

1/30/2023

Christopher Hendricks

11th Bristol

1/30/2023

Brian W. Murray

10th Worcester

1/30/2023

Bradley H. Jones, Jr.

20th Middlesex

1/30/2023

Hannah Kane

11th Worcester

2/1/2023

Tackey Chan

2nd Norfolk

2/3/2023

Adrian C. Madaro

1st Suffolk

2/6/2023

Carole A. Fiola

6th Bristol

2/15/2023

Thomas M. Stanley

9th Middlesex

2/15/2023

James J. O'Day

14th Worcester

2/15/2023

Edward R. Philips

8th Norfolk

2/15/2023

Natalie M. Higgins

4th Worcester

3/22/2023

Denise C. Garlick

13th Norfolk

1/26/2024

Tommy Vitolo

15th Norfolk

1/26/2024


HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3191        FILED ON: 1/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2990

By Representatives Biele of Boston and Hunt of Boston, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 2990) of David Biele, Daniel J. Hunt and others relative to the employment of persons with disabilities on state contracts.  State Administration and Regulatory Oversight.

 

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

 

_______________

In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

_______________

 

An Act relative to the employment of persons with disabilities.

 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

Chapter 7 of the Massachusetts General Laws is hereby amended by placing after Section 38P the following: -

SECTION 38Q. (a) Any contract issued for services in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or any political subdivision there-in that receives appropriated funds from the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts shall employ up to 2% of individuals with disabilities hired within such contract.  Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contract, the Supplier Diversity Office in consultation with the Massachusetts Office on Disability, the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind and the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission shall implement and regulate said law.

(b) Such services shall include but not be limited to janitorial and custodial services, landscaping services, mailroom services, food services, fleet management, manufacturing, trash removal, document destruction, electronic scanning of documents, and facility management services including but not limited to HVAC Services, Painting, Emergency Repair Series, and Snow Removal.

(c) For the purpose of this act, an individual with a disability will be defined as: someone (i) who has a severe physical or mental impairment which seriously limits one or more functional capacities (such as mobility, communication, self-care, self-direction, interpersonal skills, work tolerance, or work skills) in terms of an employment outcome; (ii) someone whose vocational rehabilitation can be expected to require multiple vocational rehabilitation services over an extended period of time; (iii) someone  who has one or more physical or mental disabilities resulting from amputation, arthritis, autism, blindness, burn injury, cancer, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, deafness, head injury, heart disease, hemiplegia, hemophilia, respiratory or pulmonary dysfunction, mental retardation, mental illness, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, musculo-skeletal disorders, neurological disorders (including stroke and epilepsy), paraplegia, quadriplegia, and other spinal cord conditions, sickle cell anemia, specific learning disability, end-stage renal disease, or another disability or combination of disabilities determined on the basis of an assessment for determining eligibility and vocational rehabilitation to cause comparable substantial functional limitation.

(d) The percentage requirements shall be met within one year of award of such contract, and steps shall be taken to minimize the displacement of any workers already providing the services covered by such contract.