CHAPTER 174
EDUCATION OF THE BLIND

(a) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall consist of seven members. The Commissioner of Social Services shall be a member, ex officio. The other six members, two of whom shall be blind persons, shall be appointed by the Governor, and each shall be a resident of this state. The Governor may, for reasonable cause, remove any appointive member and appoint another person to fill the vacancy for the unexpired portion of the term. Said board shall meet annually in the month of September and may meet at any other time upon the call of its director; and the director shall call a meeting at the request of two members. Any appointed member who fails to attend three consecutive meetings or fifty per cent of all meetings held during any calendar year shall be deemed to have resigned. A majority of the members in office shall constitute a quorum. The board shall adopt rules for its own action and regulations for determining what persons shall receive benefits under the provisions of this chapter.
(b) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall be within the Department of Social Services for administrative purposes only.
(1949 Rev., S. 1608; 1957, P.A. 249; September, 1957, P.A. 13, S. 7; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 2; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 1; 1967, P.A. 582, S. 1; P.A. 74-150, S. 1; P.A. 77-614, S. 536, 610; P.A. 84-361, S. 1, 7; P.A. 88-156, S. 6; P.A. 93-262, S. 1, 87.)
History: 1961 act allowed governor to appoint staff member in his place and changed secretary of board to executive secretary; 1963 act changed name of board and made executive secretary its director; 1967 act changed membership requirements for board by adding an additional member who shall be a blind person for a total of eight members, two of whom shall be blind; P.A. 74-150 deleted requirement that one member be a woman; P.A. 77-614 removed governor and chief justice of supreme court as members, installed commissioner of human resources as member, decreased number of members to seven and added Subsec. (b) placing board within human resources department for administrative purposes, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 84-361 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provisions re attendance requirements for retaining membership and re members needed for quorum; P.A. 88-156 deleted language re four-year term of office; P.A. 93-262 authorized substitution of commissioner and department of social services for commissioner and department of human resources, effective July 1, 1993.
See title 2c re termination under "Sunset Law".
See Sec. 4-38f for definition of "administrative purposes only".

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Governor shall appoint an executive director of the board in accordance with the provisions of section 4-9a. The compensation of said director shall be determined in the manner provided in section 4-40. No member of the board shall receive compensation for services rendered unless such services are special and specially requested by the board, in which case a moderate allowance may be made for the time actually spent. The certificate of the director of the amount of any bill for such services and expenses shall be sufficient warrant to the Comptroller for the payment of the same.
(1949 Rev., S. 1609; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 3; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 2; 77-614, S. 537, 610.)
History: 1961 act changed secretary to executive secretary and changed certain fiscal procedures; 1963 act changed executive secretary to director; P.A. 77-614 provided that executive director be appointed by governor rather than by board, effective January 1, 1979.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

For the purposes of this chapter:
(a) A person is blind if his or her central visual acuity does not exceed 20/200 in the better eye with correcting lenses, or if his or her visual acuity is greater than 20/200 but is accompanied by a limitation in the fields of vision such that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater than twenty degrees;
(b) A person has impaired vision if his or her central visual acuity does not exceed 20/70 in the better eye with correcting lenses; and
(c) Products are made or manufactured by or services are provided by blind persons if not less than seventy-five per cent of the man hours of direct labor required for such products or services are performed by blind persons.
(1961, P.A. 539, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 767, S. 1; P.A. 75-231, S. 1, 6; P.A. 78-218, S. 200.)
History: 1969 act defined what is meant by impaired vision; P.A. 75-231 defined what is meant by products made or manufactured by the blind; P.A. 78-218 added feminine personal pronouns.
See Sec. 1-1f for definition of "blindness" applicable to statutes not in this chapter.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

(a) There is established a Braille Literacy Advisory Council which shall (1) review braille literacy and assess the availability of services for visually impaired children of school age, (2) collect data on the frequency with which an individualized education plan contains a recommendation or determination that a visually impaired child should not be taught braille and the reasons therefor, (3) evaluate the learning media assessments for visually impaired children and the need for a common standard for such assessments which shall be periodically reviewed, (4) develop a plan to attract qualified teachers for visually impaired children, (5) assess methods to improve coordination between the Board of Education and Services for the Blind and local education agencies which employ teachers of visually impaired children relative to braille instruction and the teaching of such children and the expansion of professional development programs for teachers of visually impaired children employed by said board and such agencies, (6) encourage local school districts to require vendors of school textbooks to provide electronic or braille versions of such books in the American Standard Code for Information Interchange format or other text- based computer accessible format in a timely fashion, and (7) review the caseloads and direct service time of teachers of visually impaired children employed by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind and teachers of such children employed by local education agencies, and assess the literacy of such children attending schools with such teachers.
(b) Said advisory council shall consist of the following members: (1) The Commissioner of Education or the commissioner's designee; (2) the executive director of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind or said director's designee; (3) one representative of the National Federation of the Blind of Connecticut, appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate; (4) one teacher of visually impaired children employed by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind, appointed by the majority leader of the Senate; (5) one teacher of visually impaired children employed by a local education agency, appointed by the minority leader of the Senate; (6) one public school administrator, appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives; (7) one visually impaired public high school student who reads and writes braille, appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives; (8) one representative of the Connecticut Council of the Blind, appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives; and (9) one parent of a visually impaired child of school age enrolled in a public school, appointed by the Governor.
(c) All appointments to the advisory council shall be made no later than sixty days after May 26, 2000. Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority.
(d) The advisory council shall elect a chairperson from among its members, except that the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate shall select the chairpersons for the first meeting of the advisory council. Such chairpersons shall schedule the first meeting of the advisory council, which shall be held no later than ninety days after May 26, 2000.
(e) Any member who fails to attend fifty per cent of all meetings held during any calendar year shall be deemed to have resigned from office. Members of the advisory council shall serve without compensation.
(f) Not later than January 1, 2001, and annually thereafter, the advisory council shall submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, human services and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies.
(P.A. 00-127, S. 1, 4.)
History: P.A. 00-127 effective May 26, 2000.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

(a) All residents of this state, regardless of age, who, because of blindness or impaired vision, require special educational programs, on the signed recommendation of the director of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind, shall be entitled to receive such instruction and for such length of time as is deemed expedient by said director. The director shall annually submit to the board the list of names of persons so recommended. Upon the petition of any parent or guardian of a blind educable child or a child with impaired vision, a local board of education may provide such instruction within the town or it may provide for such instruction by agreement with other towns as provided in subsection (d) of section 10-76d. The expense of such instruction shall be paid by the state to an amount not exceeding six thousand four hundred dollars for each of such persons in any one state fiscal year. When the parents or guardians of any such blind person or person with impaired vision are not able to provide clothing for such person, an additional sum not to exceed one hundred dollars per year may be allowed for such expenses. Where a local or regional board of education reimburses parents or legal guardians of a blind or visually impaired child for transportation to and from a specialized residential facility serving the blind, such board shall be reimbursed by the state for such validated actual cost up to a maximum of three hundred dollars per pupil per school year. Determination of reimbursable transportation costs and payment therefor shall be the responsibility of the State Board of Education and Services for the Blind. All educational privileges prescribed in part V of chapter 164, not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter, shall apply to the pupils covered by this subsection. The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may provide any of the educational services described in this section to a child whose vision may be greater than as defined in section 10-294a upon written referral by the local or regional board of education responsible for providing special education and related services pursuant to section 10-76d. A request from a local or regional board of education for reimbursement of such expenses to the Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall not be eligible for such reimbursement unless such request is received by the first of June for such expenses incurred during the preceding first of July through the thirty-first of December and by the first of December for expenses incurred during the preceding first of January through the thirtieth of June.
(b) Said board may expend funds up to eleven thousand dollars per fiscal year per child for the purpose of sending children who are both blind or visually impaired and deaf, or blind or visually impaired with other severe physical handicaps, to specialized facilities within or outside the state furnishing proper facilities for education of such children; provided blind children or children with visual impairment who are mentally retarded or emotionally maladjusted who can reasonably profit by special training, facilities and services may be included in the provisions of this section. Such funds may be spent outside the state for room, board, tuition and other items necessarily relevant to the education of such children. Said board may determine if such children should be sent to such out-of-state places and may promulgate such regulations as it deems necessary to carry out the purpose and intent of this subsection. To be eligible for aid under this subsection, the child and either of such child's parents or guardian shall be bona fide residents of this state.
(c) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may provide for the instruction of the adult blind in their homes, expending annually for this purpose such sums as the General Assembly may appropriate.
(d) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may expend up to ten thousand dollars per fiscal year per person twenty-one years of age or over who is both blind or visually impaired and deaf for the purpose of sending such person to a specialized public or private facility within the state furnishing programs from which such person can profit. Said board may determine the criteria by which a person is sent to a specialized public or private facility and may adopt regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this subsection.
(e) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may, within available appropriations, purchase adaptive equipment for persons receiving services pursuant to this chapter. The cost of such purchases shall not exceed, and shall be included in, the maximum amount authorized for instructional expenses under subsection (a) of this section.
(1949 Rev., S. 1610; 1949, 1953, 1955, S. 1002d; March, 1958, P.A. 17, S. 1; 1959, P.A. 582; 591; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 4; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 3; 577; February, 1965, P.A. 289, S. 1, 2; 574, S. 12; 1967, P.A. 462, S. 1, 2; 1969, P.A. 159, S. 1, 2; 580, S. 1, 2; 767, S. 2; 1971, P.A. 567, S. 1; 1972, P.A. 212, S. 1; P.A. 73-469, S. 1, 2; P.A. 74-260, S. 1, 2; P.A. 78- 211, S. 1, 2; 78-218, S. 201; P.A. 79-525, S. 1; P.A. 81-378, S. 1, 2; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 138, 165; P.A. 98-252, S. 26, 80.)
History: 1959 acts required that child and either parent or guardian have resided in state for three years immediately preceding application for aid and increased maximum payment by the state; 1961 act further increased maximum payment, increased the maximum additional sum payable, added the provision for blind children with other severe physical handicaps or mental retardation or emotionally maladjusted children, reduced the residence requirement from three years to one year and added Subsec. (c); 1963 acts increased the state's maximum payment and changed the name of the board; 1965 acts increased maximum payment for instruction in Subsec. (a) from twenty-one to twenty-seven hundred dollars per year and increased maximum payment in Subsec. (b) from forty-five hundred to five thousand dollars per year and substituted Sec. 10-75g for reference to repealed Sec. 10-81 in Subsec. (a); 1967 act increased maximum payment in Subsec. (a) to two thousand nine hundred dollars and in Subsec. (b) to five thousand five hundred dollars; 1969 acts amended Subsec. (a) to require recommendation of director rather than affirmative vote of three board members for special instruction, to require director to submit names of those recommended to the board, to substitute Sec. 10-76d for Sec. 10-75g, to increase maximum payment for instruction to three thousand four hundred dollars, to increase clothing payments from sixty to one hundred dollars, to add provisions re reimbursement for transportation costs and to extend provisions to those with impaired vision, amended Subsec. (b) to require bona fide residency for eligibility rather than three years' residency, to increase maximum payment to six thousand dollars and to extend provisions to those with impaired vision; 1971 act made provisions applicable to persons regardless of age, increased maximum payment in Subsec. (a) to four thousand dollars and in Subsec. (b) to seven thousand dollars; 1972 act increased maximum payment in Subsec. (a) to four thousand eight hundred dollars and in Subsec. (b) to eight thousand four hundred dollars; P.A. 73-469 increased payment in Subsec. (a) to five thousand four hundred dollars; P.A. 74-260 increased payment in Subsec. (a) to six thousand four hundred dollars and in Subsec. (b) to nine thousand four hundred dollars; P.A. 78-211 increased maximum payment in Subsec. (b) to twelve thousand dollars; P.A. 78-218 included regional boards of education in transportation reimbursement provisions in Subsec. (a) and removed masculine personal pronouns in Subsec. (b); P.A. 79-525 added Subsec. (d) re expenditures for persons twenty-one or older who are both blind or visually impaired and deaf; P.A. 81-378 raised maximum expenditure per year per child from twelve thousand to fourteen thousand dollars in Subsec. (b); June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 amended Subsec. (a) by requiring a local or regional board of education to request reimbursement by the first of June for expenses incurred during the preceding first of July through the thirty-first of December and by the first of December for expenses incurred during the preceding first of January through the thirtieth of June, amended Subsec. (b) by decreasing the amount of funds the board may expend for sending certain children to specialized facilities from fourteen to eleven thousand dollars, and added Subsec. (e) allowing the board to purchase adaptive equipment and specifying the cost limits of such purchases, effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 98-252 amended Subsec. (a) to substitute referral by a local or regional board of education for referral by the State Board of Education for purposes of providing instruction to children with vision greater than as defined in Sec. 10-294a, effective July 1, 1998.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Section 10-295a is repealed.
(1969, P.A. 767, S. 3; P.A. 78-218, S. 211.)

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The director may, within the expenditure therefor provided in section 10-295, contract with public or private institutions, individuals or private enterprises having facilities for the instruction of the blind, for the education, board and keep of blind persons who are bona fide residents of this state found by the director to be fitted for such instruction. Said director may compel attendance of any blind child, until such child attains the age of sixteen years, at an institution providing instruction as defined in this section; and, if the parents or guardians of such child do not assent thereto, on the application of the director the court of probate of the district wherein such child resides shall, after investigation and after reasonable notice to the parents or guardians of such child of the time and place of hearing upon such application, inquire further into the facts and, if such court finds action warranted, it shall issue an order as to the attendance of such child at a school or an institution deemed most suitable for his instruction.
(1949 Rev., S. 1612; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 5; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 4; 1969, P.A. 159, S. 3.)
History: 1961 act changed the technical language of the statute, changed the upper age limit from sixteen to eighteen years, added requirement that application be made by the executive secretary of the board, added requirement that an initial investigation be made and changed the substance of the court order; 1963 act changed executive secretary to director; 1969 act substituted director for board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The director is authorized to aid in securing employment for capable blind or partially blind persons in industrial and mercantile establishments and in other positions which offer financial returns. Said director may aid needy blind persons in such way as said director deems expedient, expending for such purpose such sum as the General Assembly appropriates, provided the maximum expenditure for any one person shall not exceed the sum of nine hundred and sixty dollars in a fiscal year, but, if said maximum amount is insufficient to furnish necessary medical or hospital treatment to a beneficiary, said director may authorize payment of such additional costs as he deems necessary and reasonable.
(1949 Rev., S. 1613; June, 1955, S. 1003d; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 6; 1969, P.A. 159, S. 4; P.A. 78-218, S. 202.)
History: 1961 act changed maximum expenditure from monthly to annual basis and clarified that additional payment was in discretion of board; 1969 act substituted director for board; P.A. 78-218 replaced personal pronoun "he" with "said director".

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The executive director of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind may make grants, within available appropriations, to the Connecticut Radio Information Service, Inc., for the purchase of receivers and for costs related to the operation of said service.
(P.A. 85-419, S. 1, 2.)

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Sec. 10-298. Powers and duties of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind. (a) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall, annually, as provided in section 4-60, submit to the Governor its report, containing a statement of the activities of the board during the preceding year. Said board shall prepare and maintain a register of the blind in this state which shall describe their condition, cause of blindness and capacity for education and industrial training. The board may register cases of persons whose eyesight is seriously defective and who are liable to become visually handicapped or blind, and may take such measures in cooperation with other authorities as it deems advisable for the prevention of blindness or conservation of eyesight and, in appropriate cases, for the education of children and for the vocational guidance of adults having seriously defective sight but who are not blind.
(b) The board may accept and receive any bequest or gift of personal property and, subject to the consent of the Governor and Attorney General as provided in section 4b- 22, any devise or gift of real property made to said board, and may hold and use such property for the purposes, if any, specified in connection with such bequest, devise or gift.
(1949 Rev., S. 1611; September, 1957, P.A. 11, S. 13; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 7; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 5; P.A. 77-147; P.A. 83-307, S. 1, 2; P.A. 84-546, S. 27, 173; P.A. 89-12, S. 1, 3.)
History: 1961 act changed inspection requirement from once every three months to annually, made preparation of register compulsory and clarified right to aid those with defective eyesight but not blind; 1963 act changed the name of the board; P.A. 77-147 added Subsec. (b) re acceptance of bequest or gift of real or personal property; P.A. 83-307 inserted new Subsec. (b) to require Connecticut Institute for the Blind to submit proposed operating budget for Oak Hill School to board of education and services for the blind, relettering former Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (c); P.A. 84-546 made technical change in Subsec. (a), substituting "activities" for "doings"; P.A. 89-12 deleted provision re the power of the board of education and services for the blind to visit, inspect and report on the Connecticut Institute for the Blind in Subsec. (a), deleted former Subsec. (b) re annual submission of proposed operating budget for Oak Hill School and relettered the remaining Subsec. accordingly.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind is authorized (1) to maintain and develop workshops for training and employing blind persons in trades and occupations suited to their abilities, for the purpose of producing suitable products and services used by departments, agencies and institutions of the state and its political subdivisions, including, but not limited to towns, cities, boroughs and school districts; (2) to aid blind persons in securing employment, in developing home industries and in marketing their products and services; and (3) to develop and implement rules and guidelines to guarantee that the dignity and rights of citizens involved in such workshops and work training programs shall be maintained.
(P.A. 75-231, S. 2, 6.)

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Whenever any of the products made or manufactured or services provided by blind persons under the direction or supervision of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind meet the requirements of any department, institution or agency supported in whole or in part by the state as to quantity, quality and price such products shall have preference, except over articles produced or manufactured by Department of Correction industries as provided in section 18-88, and except for emergency purchases made under section 4-98. All departments, institutions and agencies supported in whole or in part by the state shall purchase such articles and services from the Board of Education and Services for the Blind. Any political subdivision of the state may purchase such articles made or manufactured and services provided by the blind through the Board of Education and Services for the Blind. Said board shall issue at sufficiently frequent intervals for distribution to the Commissioner of Administrative Services, the Comptroller and the political subdivisions of the state, a catalog showing styles, designs, sizes and varieties of all products made by blind persons pursuant to this section or handicapped persons pursuant to section 17b-656 and describing all available services provided by the blind or handicapped.
(P.A. 75-231, S. 3, 6; P.A. 77-405, S. 3, 5; 77-614, S. 135, 610.)
History: P.A. 77-405 included products made by handicapped persons and services provided by them; P.A. 77-614 substituted commissioner of administrative services for director of purchases.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Sec. 10-298c. Commissioner of Administrative Services to regulate purchase of products and services of blind or handicapped persons. The Commissioner of Administrative Services shall (1) fix a fair market price, based on the cost of materials, labor and overhead, for all articles and services offered for sale and described in the most recent catalog issued by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind pursuant to section 10-298b, provided that the cost of labor on which such fair market price is based shall conform to federal minimum wage regulations for handicapped workers; (2) determine whether or not products produced or services provided by blind persons or handicapped persons meet the reasonable requirements of state departments, agencies and institutions; and (3) authorize state departments, agencies and institutions to purchase articles and services elsewhere when requisitions cannot be complied with through the products and services listed in the most current catalog issued by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind pursuant to section 10-298b.
(P.A. 75-231, S. 4, 6; P.A. 77-405, S. 4, 5; 77-614, S. 120, 610.)
History: P.A. 77-405 included reference to handicapped in committee name and included as members a representative of the Connecticut association of rehabilitation facilities and a handicapped person; P.A. 77-614 abolished committee and transferred its duties to the commissioner of administrative services.
See Sec. 17b-656 re preference given to products and services provided by handicapped persons.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Any responsible officer, commissioner or deputy of any department, institution or agency which violates the provisions of section 10-298b or 10-298c shall be immediately reported to the Governor who shall take whatever action, if any, the Governor deems necessary.
(P.A. 75-231, S. 5, 6; P.A. 78-218, S. 203.)
History: P.A. 78-218 substituted "the governor" for the personal pronoun "he".

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Sec. 10-299. Power of Connecticut Institute for Blind to receive bequests; tax exemption. Review of proposed operating budget of Oak Hill School. (a) The Connecticut Institute for the Blind is empowered to receive, hold, invest or employ, as it deems for the best interests of said institute, all property which comes to it by gift, bequest or devise or which it acquires in any manner; but the General Assembly may, at any time, limit the amount of property to be so held or acquired. All property of said institute shall be exempt from taxation.
(b) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 1990, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Connecticut Institute for the Blind shall submit by July first, its proposed operating budget for the Oak Hill School for the next succeeding fiscal year to the Office of Policy and Management. A copy of the proposed budget shall also be submitted to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of appropriations and matters relating to the budgets of state agencies. The proposed operating budget shall include a statement indicating whether the institute will request an increase in state support for the Oak Hill School.
(1949 Rev., S. 1614; P.A. 89-12, S. 2, 3.)
History: P.A. 89-12 added a new Subsec. (b) concerning the review of the proposed operating budget of Oak Hill School.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Any goods, wares or merchandise, manufactured or produced in whole or in part by the board or The Connecticut Institute for the Blind in furtherance of its purpose to instruct or employ the blind, may be sold or exchanged in any town, city or borough in this state and said board or institute, its agents or its employees shall not be required to procure a license therefor, and no law providing for the payment of a license fee for such privilege shall apply to said board or institute, its agents or employees, unless it or they are particularly referred to in its provisions.
(1949 Rev., S. 1615; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 8.)
History: 1961 act added activities of board to existing exemption for institute.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

(a) No goods, wares or merchandise shall be labeled, designated or represented as having been manufactured or produced in whole or in part by any blind person or by any public or private institute, agency or corporation serving the blind unless at least seventy-five per cent of the total hours of labor performed on such goods, wares or merchandise shall have been rendered by a blind person, as defined in section 10-294a. Any person, institute, agency or nonprofit corporation which so manufactures or produces such goods shall register annually, on July first, with the board of education and services for the blind and may affix or cause to be affixed to such goods a stamp or label which identifies such goods as the products of blind persons.
(b) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall adopt regulations pursuant to the provisions of chapter 54 to carry out the provisions of this section.
(c) Any person, institute, agency or nonprofit corporation which violates any of the provisions of this section shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars for each violation.
(P.A. 75-520, S. 1, 2.)
History: (Revisor's note: The words "and services" were added editorially by the Revisors to correct board's name in Subsec. (b)).

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Secs. 10-301 and 10-302. Instruction in useful occupation; trade implements. Aid for adults. Sections 10-301 and 10-302 are repealed.
(1949 Rev., S. 1616, 1617; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 12.)

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Sec. 10-303. Food service facilities and vending stands in public buildings controlled by Board of Education and Services for the Blind. Use of income for fringe benefits, training and support for vending facilities operators and other blind or vision-impaired children and adults. (a) The authority in charge of any building or property owned, operated or leased by the state or any municipality therein shall grant to the Board of Education and Services for the Blind a permit to operate in such building or on such property a food service facility, a vending machine or a stand for the vending of newspapers, periodicals, confections, tobacco products, food and such other articles as such authority approves when, in the opinion of such authority, such facility, machine or stand is desirable in such location. Any person operating such a stand in any such location on October 1, 1945, shall be permitted to continue such operation, but upon such person's ceasing such operation such authority shall grant a permit for continued operation to the Board of Education and Services for the Blind. Said board may establish a training facility at any such location.
(b) Pursuant to the Randolph-Sheppard Vending Stand Act, 49 Stat. 1559 (1936), 20 USC 107, as amended from time to time, the Board of Education and Services for the Blind is authorized to maintain a nonlapsing account and to accrue interest thereon for federal vending machine income which, in accordance with federal regulations, shall be used for the payment of fringe benefits to the vending facility operators by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind.
(c) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may maintain a nonlapsing account and accrue interest thereon for state and local vending machine income which shall be used for the payment of fringe benefits, training and support to vending facilities operators, and to provide entrepreneurial and independent-living training and equipment to children who are blind or visually impaired and adults who are blind.
(d) The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may disburse state and local vending machine income to student or client activity funds, as defined in section 4-52.
(1949 Rev., S. 1618; 1959, P.A. 264, S. 1; 615, S. 20; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 6; P.A. 75-549; P.A. 78-218, S. 204; P.A. 80- 59; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 163, 165; P.A. 98-252, S. 27, 80; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9, S. 35, 131.)
History: 1959 acts deleted reference to county buildings and property and extended section's application to food service machines and vending machines; 1963 act changed the name of the board; P.A. 75-549 clarified "state or municipal" building by replacing phrase with "building or property owned, operated or leased by the state or any municipality therein"; P.A. 78-218 substituted "such person's" for "his"; P.A. 80-59 added Subsec. (b) re savings account for nonstate vending machine income; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision allowing the board to establish a training facility at any location where the board operates a food service, vending machine, newsstand, etc., effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 98-252 made a technical change in Subsec. (a), effective July 1, 1998; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9 amended Subsec. (b) to provide for a nonlapsing account rather than a savings account and allow for the accrual of interest in such account for federal vending machine income, rather than nonstate income, added Subsec. (c) to allow the Board of Education and Services for the Blind to maintain a nonlapsing account for the payment of fringe benefits, training and support to vending facilities operators and provide entrepreneurial and independent-living training and equipment for blind or visually impaired children or blind adults, and added Subsec. (d) to authorize the board to disburse state and local vending machine income to student or client activity funds, effective July 1, 2001.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The sales and service account for the Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall be established as a separate account within the General Fund for the purpose of aiding the blind by providing sales and service opportunities. Any money received by the board from refunds for materials advanced for manufacture by the blind, and from the sales of articles or goods manufactured by the blind, and from the sale of other articles or goods, or from sales held to assist the blind, shall be deposited in the General Fund and credited to the account. Payments shall be made from the account for labor or services rendered in connection with the manufacture of articles for resale, for the purchase of materials used in such manufacture, for the purchase of merchandise for resale and for labor, supplies and other operating expenses connected with the operation of vending stands and sales and service opportunities. Bills contracted by the Board of Education and Services for the Blind for the purposes specified in this section shall be paid by order of the Comptroller against the account in the manner provided by law for the payment of all claims against the state. At the end of each fiscal year, any surplus as of June thirtieth determined by including cash, accounts receivable and inventories less accounts payable over the sum of three hundred thousand dollars derived from sales of manufactured goods or articles or other sales, in excess of such cost of labor or services, materials, merchandise, supplies and other such operating expenses, shall revert to the General Fund of the state.
(1949 Rev., S. 1619; 1949, 1953, S. 1004d; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 7; 1969, P.A. 572, S. 1; P.A. 78-323, S. 1, 3; P.A. 82- 107; P.A. 86-312, S. 3, 21.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board; 1969 act deleted employer's contributions for social security from payments to be made from fund and increased surplus amount beyond which excess funds revert to general fund from seventy-five to one hundred thousand dollars; P.A. 78-323 increased surplus limit to two hundred thousand dollars; P.A. 82-107 increased the amount over which funds revert to the general fund at the end of each fiscal year from two hundred thousand dollars to three hundred thousand dollars; P.A. 86-312 changed sales and service "fund" from a revolving fund to a separate "account" within the general fund.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

Each physician and optometrist shall report in writing to the Board of Education and Services for the Blind within thirty days each blind person coming under his or her private or institutional care within this state. The report of such blind person shall include the name, address, Social Security number, date of birth, date of diagnosis of blindness and degree of vision. Such reports shall not be open to public inspection.
(1955, S. 1005d; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 9; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 8; P.A. 78-218, S. 205; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 139, 165.)
History: 1961 act deleted provision defining "blind person"; 1963 act changed name of board; P.A. 78-218 included feminine personal pronoun; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 added requirement that report of each blind person in the care of a physician or optometrist include a social security number, date of birth and date of diagnosis of blindness, effective July 1, 1997.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may maintain a rehabilitation service for the vocational rehabilitation and placement in remunerative employment of persons whose capacity to earn a living has been lost or impaired by reason of lessened visual acuity. For the purpose of this section and sections 10-307 and 10-308: "Vocational rehabilitation" means any services, provided directly or through public or private instrumentalities, found to be necessary to compensate a person whose visual acuity has been impaired for his or her employment handicap and to enable such person to engage in a remunerative occupation, including, but not limited to, medical and vocational diagnosis, vocational guidance, counseling and placement, rehabilitation training, physical restoration, transportation, occupational licenses, customary occupational tools and equipment, maintenance and training books and materials; "rehabilitation training" means all necessary training provided for a person whose visual acuity has been impaired to compensate for his or her employment handicap, including, but not limited to, manual, preconditioning, prevocational, vocational and supplementary training and training provided for the purpose of achieving broader and more remunerative skills and capacity; and "physical restoration" means any medical, surgical or therapeutic treatment necessary to correct or substantially reduce within a reasonable length of time the employment handicap of a person whose visual acuity has been impaired, including, but not limited to, medical, psychiatric, dental and surgical treatment, nursing service, hospital care, convalescent home care, drugs, medical and surgical supplies and prosthetic appliances, but excluding curative treatment for acute or transitory conditions.
(1949 Rev., S. 1620; 1961, P.A. 539, S. 10; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 9; P.A. 78-218, S. 206.)
History: 1961 act deleted limitation on length of hospital care in definition of physical restoration; 1963 act changed name of board; P.A. 78-218 included feminine personal pronouns and substituted "such person" for "him".

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind is empowered to receive any federal funds made available to this state under which vocational rehabilitation is provided for a person whose visual acuity has been impaired and to expend such funds for the purpose or purposes for which they are made available. The State Treasurer shall be the custodian of such funds.
(1949 Rev., S. 1621; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 10.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may cooperate, pursuant to agreements, with the federal government in carrying out the purposes of any federal statutes pertaining to vocational rehabilitation, and is authorized to adopt such methods of administration as are found by the federal government to be necessary for the proper and efficient operation of such agreements or plans for vocational rehabilitation and to comply with such conditions as may be necessary to secure the full benefits of such federal statutes.
(1949 Rev., S. 1622; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 11.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, to determine the order to be followed in selecting those eligible persons to whom vocational rehabilitation services will be provided, in accordance with federal regulations.
(June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 141, 165.)
History: June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 effective July 1, 1997.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind may place in remunerative occupations persons whose capacity to earn a living has been lost or impaired by lessened visual acuity and who, in the opinion of the board, are susceptible of placement, and may make such regulations as are necessary for the administration of the provisions of sections 10-306 to 10-310, inclusive.
(1949 Rev., S. 1623; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 12.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The limitations on expenditures for a blind person provided in this chapter shall not apply to the expenditures for vocational rehabilitation of a person of lessened visual acuity as set forth in sections 10-306 to 10- 309, inclusive, provided the combined biennial expenditures under this chapter and under said sections shall not exceed the biennial appropriation to the Board of Education and Services for the Blind by the General Assembly.
(1949 Rev., S. 1624; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 13.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The Board of Education and Services for the Blind shall annually file with the Comptroller a balance sheet as of June thirtieth and a statement of operations for the fiscal year ending on that date. A copy of such statement shall be filed with the Auditors of Public Accounts.
(1949 Rev., S., 1625; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 14.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)

The case records of the Board of Education and Services for the Blind maintained for the purposes of this chapter shall be confidential and the names and addresses of recipients of assistance under this chapter shall not be published nor used for purposes not directly connected with the administration of this chapter, except as necessary to carry out the provisions of section 17b-6.
(1961 P.A. 539, S. 11; 1963, P.A. 386, S. 15; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2, S. 140, 165.)
History: 1963 act changed name of board; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-2 added provision allowing case records to be used to carry out the provisions of Sec. 17b-6, effective July 1, 1997.

(Return to List of Chapters)

(Return to List of Titles)