Title 51.5, Title 51.5. Persons with Disabilities

A. Not later than December 31, 2013, the Director, in consultation with the Board, shall establish a nonprofit entity to provide advocacy, legal, and ombudsman services to persons with disabilities. Such nonprofit entity shall be established in such a manner that the entity is in…

No person with a disability who is otherwise qualified shall on the basis of his disability be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving state financial assistance or under any program or a…

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Hearing dog" means a dog trained to alert its owner by touch to sounds of danger and sounds to which the owner should respond. "Mental impairment" means (i) a disability attributable to intellectual disabi…

A. No employer shall discriminate in employment or promotion practices against an otherwise qualified person with a disability solely because of such disability. For the purposes of this section, an "otherwise qualified person with a disability" means a person qualified to perfor…

A. No public educational institution or private educational institution, or agent of either, that is a recipient of state funds shall deny admission to the institution, or full and equal access to and enjoyment of any of its educational or extracurricular programs, to an otherwis…

No person with a disability who is otherwise entitled to vote under the provisions of § 24.2-400 and who is not disqualified from voting under the provisions of § 24.2-101 shall be denied the opportunity to register or vote in this Commonwealth because of such disability. However…

A. A person with a disability has the same rights as other persons to the full and free use of the streets, highways, sidewalks, walkways, paths of travel, public playgrounds, public buildings, public facilities, public entities, and other public places. For purposes of this sect…

A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Drive-in theater" means a facility where films are viewed from motor vehicles parked in an outdoor venue. "Open captioning" means the visible on-screen display of a film's dialogue and non-speech elemen…

Any person who knowingly and willfully fits a dog with a harness, collar, vest, or sign, or uses an identification card commonly used by a person with a disability, in order to represent that the dog is a service dog or hearing dog to fraudulently gain public access for such dog …

A. All persons with disabilities unrelated to their ability to acquire, rent, or maintain property shall be entitled to full and equal opportunity to acquire, as other members of the general public, any housing accommodations offered for sale, rent, lease, or compensation, subjec…

A. Any circuit court having jurisdiction and venue pursuant to Title 8.01, on the petition of any person with a disability, shall have the right to enjoin the abridgement of rights set forth in this chapter and to order such affirmative equitable relief as is appropriate and to a…

As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning: "Assistive technology" means any item, piece of equipment or device that enables an individual with a disability to improve his or her independence and quality of life. "Authority" means the Assisti…

A. It is hereby found and determined by the General Assembly that there exists in the Commonwealth a need to provide assistance with loans and in the purchase of assistive technology equipment, or other equipment, which is designed to enable persons with disabilities to become mo…

A. All powers, rights and duties conferred by this chapter or other provisions of law upon the Authority shall be exercised by the Board of Directors of the Authority. The Board shall consist of 12 members as follows: the Secretary of Health and Human Resources or his designee; a…

The Authority is hereby granted all powers necessary or appropriate to carry out and effectuate its purposes including, but not limited to, the following powers to: 1. Have perpetual existence as a public body corporate and as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth; 2. Adopt…

A. There is hereby established a permanent and perpetual fund to be known as the Assistive Technology Loan Fund, consisting of such moneys as may be appropriated by the General Assembly from time to time, gifts, bequests, endowments or grants from the United States government, it…

A. The Board may enter into loan agreements with any qualifying borrower who demonstrates (i) that the loan will be used to acquire assistive technology, other equipment, or other authorized purposes designed to help one or more persons with disabilities to improve their independ…

The Board shall submit an annual report that includes a statement of the receipts, disbursements, and current investments of the Fund for the preceding year to the Governor and the General Assembly. The report shall set forth a complete operating and financial statement covering …

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Blind person" means a person who has central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye, as measured with best correction, or a limitation in the field of vision of the better eye, such that the wid…

The Board for the Blind and Vision Impaired is continued. The Board shall consist of seven members who shall be appointed by the Governor for terms of four years. No person shall be eligible to serve more than two successive terms, provided that a person heretofore or hereafter a…

A. The Board shall exercise the following general powers and duties: 1. Advise the Governor, the Secretary of Health and Human Resources, the Commissioner, and the General Assembly on the delivery of public services to and the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities…

The Board is authorized to create and hold an institutional fund for its exclusive use and purposes into which it may deposit the proceeds of any gift, grant, bequest, allotment, or devise of any nature received from private sources. Such fund shall be subject to the Uniform Prud…

The supervision of the Department shall be the responsibility of the Commissioner of the Department under the direction and control of the Governor. The Commissioner shall be appointed by the Governor, subject to confirmation by the General Assembly, to serve at the pleasure of t…

In addition to the functions, duties and powers conferred and imposed upon the Commissioner by other provisions of law, he shall: 1. Ensure that the provisions of this chapter are properly administered; 2. Assist and cooperate with local authorities in the administration of this …

The Department is authorized to receive, for and on behalf of the Commonwealth and its subdivisions, from the United States and agencies thereof, and from any and all other sources, gifts and grants-in-aid, made for the purpose of providing, or to assist in providing, services to…

The Department shall retain title to items of nonexpendable equipment purchased by the Department for individuals or groups of individuals, in accordance with this chapter and the federal Rehabilitation Act, while such equipment has an undepreciated monetary value. Once the equip…

The Department shall, as to matters relating to rehabilitation of the blind or vision impaired, establish minimum standards of service and personnel based upon training, experience and general ability for the personnel employed by the Department and the Commissioner in the admini…

The State Rehabilitation Council for the Blind and Vision Impaired is hereby created to provide advice to the Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired regarding vocational services provided pursuant to Title I and Title VI of the federal Rehabilitation Act. Membership and dut…

The Department may (i) establish, equip and maintain rehabilitative manufacturing and service industries for the employment of suitable blind persons, (ii) pay its employees suitable wages and contribute five percent of the creditable compensation of those employees who elect to …

A. The State Advisory Board for the Virginia Industries for the Blind (the Board) is established as an advisory board in the executive branch of state government. The purpose of the Board is to provide advice for creating opportunities in career development and employment-related…

The Department shall have the authority and responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Vision Impaired for the purpose of providing services to eligible blind and vision impaired individuals.

The Department is hereby authorized to maintain and operate a library service for persons who are blind, vision impaired, and disabled who are eligible for such services pursuant to the Pratt-Smoot Act (P.L. 89-522). Special materials that are provided through this program may in…

In furtherance of the purposes of §§ 51.5-63, 51.5-66, and 51.5-72 through 51.5-76, the Department shall have authority to use any receipts or earnings that accrue from the operation of rehabilitative manufacturing and service industries as provided in such sections, but a detail…

The Department shall cooperate with the State Board of Health and other state agencies in the adoption and enforcement of blindness prevention efforts.

The Department shall cooperate with the federal Department of Education and any other agencies of the United States, in any reasonable manner that may be necessary for this Commonwealth to qualify for and to receive grants or aid from such agencies for social services, rehabilita…

A. The Department, in cooperation with the Department of Transportation, is authorized to operate vending machines at rest areas on the interstate highways in the Commonwealth and to use the net proceeds from such operations to establish and operate vending stands and other busin…

The Department is hereby authorized to operate vending stands and other business enterprises in public and private buildings for the purpose of providing blind persons with employment, enlarging the economic opportunities of the blind, and stimulating the blind to make themselves…

Blind persons under the provisions of this article shall be authorized to operate vending stands and other business enterprises on any property where, in the discretion of the owner or custodian of the property, vending stands and other business enterprises may be properly and sa…

The Department may contract with any nominee to provide all necessary equipment and merchandise for the operation of the vending stand and business enterprise program in the rehabilitation of the blind.

The Department may contract with the nominee, as agent of the Department, to furnish services, including the purchase of vending stand and other business enterprise equipment and stock, the collection of the funds required to be set aside for the purposes specified in § 51.5-97 a…

The Department may contract with agencies of the federal government for the installation and supervision of vending stands and business enterprises on federal property in this Commonwealth.

The Department shall make surveys of vending stand and other business enterprise opportunities for blind persons in public and private buildings and other properties throughout the Commonwealth.

The Department shall be the agency to license blind persons who are residents of the Commonwealth and who are at least eighteen years of age for the operation of vending stands and other business enterprises. In licensing operators, the Department shall give preference to those b…

The Department shall be the agency to select the location of the vending stand and other business enterprise, to select the operator, and to provide all necessary supervision of the operator and the vending stand and other business enterprise.

The Department shall perform such other duties as may be necessary and proper to carry out the provisions of this article.

All such privileges to operate vending stands and other business enterprises shall be revocable by the Department in accordance with departmental regulations.