Conn. Gen. Stat. § 17a-217 (2025)

(a) The Department of Developmental Services shall develop day camp programs and recreational programs for children and adults with intellectual disability. Any nonprofit organization that establishes or maintains day camp programs or recreational programs for children or adults with intellectual disability may apply to the Department of Developmental Services for funds to be used to assist in establishing, maintaining or expanding such programs. For the purposes of this section: (1) A day camp program may provide children or adults with intellectual disability with a supervised program of outdoor activities that may be conducted during all or part of the months of June, July, August and September; and (2) a recreational program may provide planned and supervised recreational activities for children or adults with intellectual disability, which activities may be of a social, athletic or purely diversionary nature and which programs shall be considered separate and apart from the day camp program described in subdivision (1) of this subsection.

(b) No grant made under this section to assist in establishing, maintaining or expanding any program set forth in subsection (a) of this section shall exceed the ordinary and recurring annual operating expenses of such program, nor shall any grant be made to pay for all or any part of capital expenditures. The Department of Developmental Services shall: (1) Define minimum requirements to be met by each program in order to be eligible to receive funds as provided for by this section in regard to qualification and number of staff members and program operation, including, but not limited to, physical plant and record keeping; (2) establish procedures to be used in making application for such funds; and (3) adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, governing the granting of funds to assist in the establishment of day camp programs and recreational programs for persons with intellectual disability. Upon receipt of proper application, the Department of Developmental Services, within available appropriations, may grant such funds, provided the plans for financing and the standards of operation of such programs shall be approved by the department in accordance with the provisions of this section. For the purpose of developing such programs, the department may accept grants from the federal government, a municipality or any other source.

(1959, P.A. 148, S. 33; 1971, P.A. 719, S. 1; P.A. 75-638, S. 12, 23; P.A. 76-340, S. 1; P.A. 79-171, S. 1; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-11, S. 1, 25; P.A. 01-195, S. 125, 181; P.A. 07-73, S. 2(a); P.A. 11-16, S. 6; P.A. 23-111, S. 2.)

History: 1971 act added provision making retired circuit court judges state referees and replaced references to superior court with “court from which case was referred”; P.A. 75-638 replaced office of mental retardation and department of health with department of mental retardation; P.A. 76-340 changed wording re eligible nonprofit organization in Subsec. (a) slightly; Sec. 19-4d transferred to Sec. 19-571 in 1977; P.A. 79-171 deleted reference to children judged inadmissible to special classes and school-excluded children in Subsec. (a)(1)(A) and allowed department to accept federal, municipal or other grants in Subsec. (b); Sec. 19-571 transferred to Sec. 19a-464 in 1983; Sec. 19a-464 transferred to Sec. 17a-217 in 1991; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-11 amended Subsec. (b) to make funding by the department subject to available appropriations; P.A. 01-195 made technical changes, effective July 11, 2001; pursuant to P.A. 07-73 “Department of Mental Retardation” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Department of Developmental Services”, effective October 1, 2007; P.A. 11-16 substituted “intellectual disability” for “mental retardation” and made a technical change, effective May 24, 2011; P.A. 23-111 deleted former Subsec. (a)(1) re day care programs, redesignated existing Subsecs. (a)(2) and (a)(3) as Subsecs. (a)(1) and (a)(2), deleted references to day care programs throughout, and made technical and conforming changes, effective June 26, 2023.

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