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Lawmakers debate study on siting and oversight of community residences; advocates urge quality-based approach
Summary
HB 1763 would create a study committee to review rules for siting and maintaining community residences for people with developmental disabilities. Providers and advocates warned against using zoning as an exclusion tool and urged focus on oversight and quality; some local officials pressed for more transparency and public-safety attention.
Representative Liz Barber introduced House Bill 1763, saying the bill would establish a legislative study committee to examine whether rules governing the siting, operation and maintenance of community residences for people with intellectual/developmental disabilities and acquired brain injuries are clear, coordinated with federal law, and protective of neighborhood character.
Marissa Berg, executive director of Community Support Network, cautioned that housing and siting laws are tightly constrained by federal statute and case law (including Fair Housing Act guidance and a 1980 court decision discussed in materials) and that a study focused on quality and oversight might be a safer route than re-opening zoning debates. "We are concerned that [a study] could lead to efforts to exclude people with disabilities from communities," Berg said.
Providers and area-agency representatives described concrete quality concerns that motivated the bill: alleged lapses in supervision, maintenance, staffing, and incidents of residents leaving homes unsafely. Matthew Cordderero, a provider CEO, said recent structural changes to payment and oversight have made some enforcement tools less effective and argued a study could develop practical recommendations. "This is an opportunity for us to address issues in our system," he said.
Disability-rights advocates urged that any study include representatives from the agencies that administer assisted-living and developmental-services rules and that recommendations be consistent with federal fair-housing obligations. Senator members and some municipal officials told the committee they had fielded neighborhood complaints about safety, parking, and property maintenance, and sought clearer statewide guidance.
The committee heard technical and legal input and a range of perspectives on whether a stand-alone siting study or broader oversight commission would best address the problems. Committee members indicated willingness to pursue further work and to coordinate with an oversight commission already in development.
