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Read. Follow. Verify.New Jersey Bill A986 Updates Extended Employment Programs for Persons with Disabilities
Last action · January 13, 2026: Introduced, Referred to Assembly Labor CommitteeSponsors: Carol Murphy and 17 others
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What This Bill Would Do
New Jersey Assembly Bill 986 renames and updates state laws regarding programs for persons with disabilities, shifting terminology from sheltered workshops to extended employment and modifying funding baselines and eligibility criteria. The legislation sets minimum funding levels tied to the FY 2024 state budget and the consumer price index, while removing the certification role of the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Changes program standards, funding formulas, and administrative oversight for providers and workers with significant disabilities across New Jersey.
- New Jersey's extended employment programs historically operated under the 'Sheltered Workshop Act of 1971' to provide vocational rehabilitation and work opportunities for persons with disabilities. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Persons with disabilities
Individuals with significant disabilities experience updated program terminology, eligibility standards, and expanded vocational and community employment opportunities.
Extended employment providers
Nonprofit providers are subject to new contracting standards, functional expense reporting requirements, and adjusted baseline funding formulas.
Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services
The division assumes sole administrative responsibility for determining eligibility, setting standards, and contracting with extended employment providers.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What terminology does the bill change regarding facilities for persons with disabilities?
How is the funding for extended employment programs determined under the bill?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
1 action- Jan 13, 2026HouseIntroducedIntroduced, Referred to Assembly Labor Committee
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Show 13 more sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Modernization of Disability Employment Terminology
The bill systematically replaces legacy terms like 'sheltered workshop' and 'severe disability' with 'extended employment' and 'significant disability' to reflect modern workforce integration goals.
Connected Entities
Sources
njleg.state.nj.us
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance60How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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