Sec. 17a-273. (Formerly Sec. 19a-468). Advisory and planning councils for state developmental services regions.
Sec. 17a-273. (Formerly Sec. 19a-468). Advisory and planning councils for
state developmental services regions. (a) The Commissioner of Developmental Services shall appoint at least one advisory and planning council for each state developmental services region operated by the Department of Developmental Services, which
council shall have the responsibility of consulting with and advising the director of the
region on the needs of persons with mental retardation in the region, the annual plan
and budget of the region and other matters deemed appropriate by the council.
(b) Each such council shall consist of at least ten members appointed from the state
developmental services region. No employee of any state agency or institution engaged
in the care or training of persons with mental retardation shall be eligible for appointment. At least one member shall be designated by the incorporated local association for
mentally retarded citizens in the region. In cases where a state developmental services
region serves an area with more than one such association, at least two members of the
council shall be designated by such associations. At least one member of each council
shall be an attorney practicing law in the state of Connecticut who is familiar with issues
in the field of mental retardation. At least two members shall be parents of persons with
mental retardation. Members shall be appointed for terms of three years. No member
may serve more than two consecutive terms. Each council shall appoint annually, from
among its members, a chairperson, vice-chairperson and secretary. The council may
make rules for the conduct of its affairs. The director of the region shall be an ex-officio
member of the council without vote and shall attend its meetings.
(c) The council shall meet at least six times a year and at other times upon the call
of the chair or the director of the state developmental services region or on the written
request of any two members. A majority of the council members in office shall constitute
a quorum. Any member who fails to attend three consecutive meetings or who fails to
attend fifty per cent of all meetings held during any calendar year shall be deemed to
have resigned from office.
(P.A. 73-207, S. 1-3; P.A. 75-638, S. 19, 23; P.A. 76-153, S. 11; P.A. 84-256, S. 14, 17; P.A. 85-373; P.A. 86-246, S.
2, 3; P.A. 07-73, S. 2(a), (b); P.A. 08-7, S. 6.)
History: P.A. 75-638 replaced office of mental retardation in health department with independent department of mental
retardation; P.A. 76-153 replaced commissioner of health with commissioner of mental retardation as appointing authority
for advisory and planning councils in Subsec. (a), reflecting creation of independent department of mental retardation;
Sec. 19-4h transferred to Sec. 19-575 in 1977; Sec. 19-575 transferred to Sec. 19a-468 in 1983; P.A. 84-256 amended
section to establish quorum and attendance requirements for members; P.A. 85-373 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) to give
the council responsibility for the annual plan and budget of the regional center, increased the membership from nine to
ten members, required at least two members to be parents of mentally retarded persons and precluded any member from
serving more than two consecutive terms; P.A. 86-246 substituted "director" for "superintendent" and mental retardation
"regions" for "regional centers" and made other technical changes; Sec. 19a-468 transferred to Sec. 17a-273 in 1991;
pursuant to P.A. 07-73 "Commissioner of Mental Retardation" and "Department of Mental Retardation" were changed
editorially by the Revisors to "Commissioner of Developmental Services" and "Department of Developmental Services",
effective October 1, 2007; P.A. 08-7 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) by substituting persons "with mental retardation" for
"mentally retarded" persons, amended Subsecs. (a) to (c) by renaming state mental retardation regions as state developmental services regions, and amended Subsec. (b) by changing "retarded citizens" to "mentally retarded citizens", effective
April 29, 2008.
See title 2c re termination under "Sunset Law".
See Sec. 19a-24 re liability of council members for damages.