Legislative findings and purpose

* § 82.01 Legislative findings and purpose.

(a) The legislature finds that a person's right to make their own decisions is critical to their autonomy and self-determination. People with intellectual, developmental, cognitive and psychosocial disabilities are often denied that right because of stigma and outdated beliefs about their capability. This right is denied, despite the reality that very few people make decisions entirely on their own. Everyone uses supports, as do people with disabilities; who may just need more or different kinds of supports.

(b) The legislature further finds that the, now well recognized, practice of supported decision-making is a way in which many people with disabilities can make their own decisions with the support they need from trusted persons in their lives, and that supported decision-making can be a less restrictive alternative to guardianship. Recognizing that supported decision-making can take a variety of forms, the legislature finds that a more formal process, resulting in a supported decision-making agreement between the person with a disability (the decision-maker) and their supporter or supporters, can provide the basis for requiring third parties, who might otherwise question a person's legal capacity because of their disability, to recognize their decisions on the same basis as others. When this more formal process is followed, people with disabilities can make choices confident that they will be respected by others and knowing they will be solely responsible for their own decisions.

(c) The legislature further finds that supported decision-making and supported decision-making agreements should be encouraged when appropriate for persons with disabilities, and that the execution of a supported decision-making agreement should not detrimentally impact the eligibility of a person for other services, including adult protective services.

(d) The legislature also strongly urges relevant state agencies and civil society to research and develop appropriate and effective means of support for older persons with cognitive decline, persons with traumatic brain injuries, and persons with psychosocial disabilities, so that full legislative recognition can also be accorded to the decisions made with supported decision-making agreements by persons with such conditions, based on a consensus about what kinds of support are most effective and how they can best be delivered.

* NB Effective 90 days from the date that the regulations issued in accordance with § 1 of chapter 481 of 2022 appear in the New York State Register or the date such regulations are adopted, whichever is later.