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13 <br /> <br />KITTITAS COUNTY DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES PROGRAM <br />The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Developmental Disabilities <br />Administration (DDA) provides funding to counties for employment and other support services for <br />people with developmental disabilities. Eligibility for services is determined by DDA and is based on <br />Washington State residency, evidence of a qualifying developmental disabil ity7 that began before age <br />18, and evidence of substantial limitations (see more detailed information about eligibility for DDA <br />services in Appendix A). The funding varies based on availability, number of people receiving services, <br />and the needs of each individual and is intended to help people keep a job or gain skills for obtaining <br />employment. Kittitas County has received an average of around $600,000 per year for the past 5 years <br />from DDA. <br /> <br />Additionally, per Revised Code of Washington 71.20.110, counties are required to annually budget and <br />levy a property tax for developmental disabilities or mental health services. In Kittitas County, this tax <br />is split equally between developmental disabiliti es and mental health services. Commonly referred to <br />as “millage”, the county has discretion on how these funds are spent. The developmental disabilities <br />program has received around $100,000 annually from this tax over the past 2 years. <br /> <br />Kittitas County’s developmental disabilities (DD) program is overseen by the Kittitas County Public <br />Health Department through a qualified and experienced DD Coordinator. The county publishes an open <br />Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to solicit qualified employment support providers. Responses to the <br />RFQ are reviewed thoroughly by the DD Coordinator and DDA staff, and if qualifications are met, the <br />provider is placed on a list of available employment services providers for clients to choose from when <br />they qualify for services. A Request for Proposals (RFP) is also published to solicit proposals from local <br />agencies who propose to provide indirect services related to community information and education, <br />training, and/or other activities that will benefit people living with developmental disabilities, their <br />families, and/or service providers. The proposals are reviewed by the DD Coordinator and the <br />Developmental Disabilities Advisory Committee, who make funding recommendations for approval by <br />the Kittitas County Board of Commissioners. <br /> <br />DD services funded by DDA fall into two major categories: Consumer Support Services and Additional <br />Consumer Services, each of which contain several different specific services that can be provided. <br />Each type of service as well as the targeted outcomes for that service are described below. <br />Approximately 5% of the Additional Consumer Services funding is set aside each year for emerging <br />needs that may come about during the biennium, such as new trainings or sponsorships. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />7 The Revised Code of Washington 71A.10.020(5) defines a developmental disability as: “a disability attributable to <br />intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, autism, or another neurological or other condition of an individual <br />found by the secretary to be closely related to an intellectual disability or to require treatment similar to that <br />required for individuals with intellectual disabilities, which originates before the individual attains age eighteen, <br />which has continued or can be expected to continue indefinitely, and which constitutes a substantial limitation to <br />the individual.”