Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman JOANN DOWNEY
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Requires certain group homes to install electronic monitoring devices in common areas, upon request and with uniform resident consent, and to permit consensual use of such devices in private rooms; Billy Cray s Law.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the installation and use of electronic monitoring devices at group homes for individuals with developmental disabilities, and supplementing Title 30 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as Billy Cray s Law.
2. As used in this act:
Authorized representative means a group home resident s court-appointed guardian of the person or, if there is no guardian of the person, the person who holds a valid power of attorney or is otherwise legally authorized to act as the representative of the group home resident for the purposes of making decisions related to the resident s care and living arrangements. Authorized representative does not include a caregiver or any other person who is employed or contracted, on a paid or unpaid basis, by the group home licensee.
Common areas means the living areas, dining areas, entrances, outdoor areas, stairwells, and any other areas within a group home, except bathrooms, which are commonly and communally accessible to all residents, and are not dedicated for private use by a particular resident.
Division means the Division of Developmental Disabilities in the Department of Human Services.
Electronic monitoring device means a camera or other electronic device that uses video, but not audio, recording capabilities to monitor the activities taking place in the area where the device is installed.
Group home means a living arrangement that is licensed by the division, and is operated in a residence or residences leased or owned by a licensee; which living arrangement either provides the opportunity for multiple adults with developmental disabilities to live together in a home, sharing in chores and the overall management of the residence, or provides the opportunity for a single adult with developmental disabilities and extreme behavioral difficulties to live more independently while receiving full-time care, and in which on-site staff provides supervision, training, or assistance, in a variety of forms and intensity, as required to assist the individual or individuals as they move toward independence. Group home does not include a living arrangement that is dedicated for use by children with developmental disabilities.
Licensee means an individual, partnership, or corporation that is licensed by the division, and is responsible for providing services associated with the operation of a group home.
Private room means the private bedroom of a group home resident.
Private single occupancy room means a private room that is occupied by only a single group home resident.
Private double occupancy room means a private room that is occupied by two or more group home residents.
3. a. A group home that does not have electronic monitoring devices already installed in the group home s common areas shall be required to install electronic monitoring devices in those common areas, upon the collective request of the residents and the residents authorized representatives, if all of the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives agree to have such electronic monitoring devices installed and expressly consent to the installation and use of such devices. A licensee shall not require current residents to consent to the installation and use of electronic monitoring devices in the common areas as a condition of their continued residency in the group home. Each licensee operating a group home that does not have electronic monitoring devices already installed in the common areas shall:
(1) within six months after the group home adopts an internal electronic monitoring policy pursuant to section 5 of this act, take affirmative action to determine whether the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives want and consent to have electronic monitoring devices installed and used in the group home s common areas pursuant to this section; and
(2) annually provide written notice to all residents and their authorized representatives informing them of their right to request the installation and use of electronic monitoring devices in the group home s common areas, as provided by this section.
b. A group home that installs and uses electronic monitoring devices in its common areas pursuant to the agreement, request, and consent of the residents, as provided by this section, shall:
(1) require each person employed by the group home to provide express written consent to the use of the electronic monitoring devices in the group home s common areas, as a condition of the person s employment;
(2) ensure that a prominent written notice is posted at the entrance and exit doors to the home informing visitors that they will be subject to electronic video monitoring while present in the home; and
(3) ensure that, in the future, the group home only allows residence by those individuals who consent to the ongoing use of electronic monitoring devices in the group home s common areas.
c. An individual s refusal to agree and consent to the use of electronic monitoring devices in a group home s common areas shall not be used as a basis to prevent the timely placement of the individual in appropriate housing without surveillance.
d. Any electronic monitoring devices installed pursuant to this section shall be unobstructed and recording at all times, and any recordings produced by the devices shall be retained by the program for a period of 45 days. Each licensee shall inspect the devices, and shall document the results of each inspection, on a weekly basis.
e. The Department of Human Services shall annually conduct an on-site device inspection at each group home, in order to ensure that any electronic monitoring devices installed in the common areas are functioning properly, as required by subsection d. of this section. The department may elect to conduct the on-site device inspection required by this subsection as part of the broader inspection of each group home that it is required to perform under section 8 of P.L.2017, c.328 (C.30:11B-4.3).
f. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit a group home licensee from installing and utilizing electronic monitoring devices in the group home s common areas, pursuant to the group home s internal policies, in cases where the group home s residents have not submitted a collective request for such monitoring.
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