Programs

Disability Rights New Jersey operates the following programs: 

Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PADD) 

The PADD program was created by the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights (DD) Act of 1975. PADD was established to ensure the humane care, treatment, habilitation and protection of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) 

The PAIMI program was established by Congress in 1986 and receives funding from the National Center for Mental Health Services. The purpose of the PAIMI program is to protect and advocate for the rights of people with mental illness and investigate reports of abuse and neglect. 

The federal mandate requires the establishment of an advisory council.  Disability Rights NJ PAIMI Advisory Council advises on priorities and issues important to people receiving mental health services in NJ. 

Protection and Advocacy for Individual Rights (PAIR) 

The PAIR program was established by Congress as a national program under the Rehabilitation Act as amended in 1993. The PAIR programs protect and advocate for the legal and human rights of people with disabilities who are not eligible to be served in the CAP, PAIMI, or PADD programs. 

The Client Assistance Program (CAP) 

CAP was established as a mandatory program by the 1984 Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act. CAP advocates for and protects the rights of people with disabilities who are seeking or receiving services from the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, Commission for Blind and Visually Impaired, and the Independent Living Centers. 

Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury (PATBI) 

PATBI was authorized by the Traumatic Brain Injury Act of 1996 and its reauthorization as part of the Children’s Health Act of 2000. The PATBI program ensures that individuals with TBI and their families have access to: information, referrals and advice; individual and family advocacy; legal representation; and specific assistance in self-advocacy. 

Richard West Assistive Technology Advocacy Center (ATAC) 

The Richard West Assistive Technology Advocacy Center serves as New Jersey’s federally funded assistive technology project through a sub-contract with New Jersey’s Department of Labor. ATAC provides assistance to people with disabilities to obtain assistive technology devices and/or services. 

Protection and Advocacy for Assistive Technology (PAAT) 

Congress expanded the Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act in 1994 to include funding for a Protection and Advocacy system to assist people with disabilities and their family members in accessing assistive technology devices and/or assistive technology services through legal representation and self-advocacy. 

Protection and Advocacy for Voter Access (PAVA) 

Mandated by the Help America Vote Act of 2002, the PAVA program ensures that every qualified person with a disability has the opportunity to vote on Election Day. Through the PAVA program, Disability Rights NJ, educates individuals, communities, poll workers and boards of election about voting rights of people with disabilities; investigates complaints about polling place accessibility; and collaborates with other voting rights advocates for systemic change. 

Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) 

The PABSS program is a federally funded program that was established under the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Act of 1999. The Act authorizes the Social Security Administration (SSA) to fund each state’s protection and advocacy system to provide information and advocacy services to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries seeking vocational rehabilitation, employment and other support services to secure, retain or regain employment. 

Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries with Representative Payees (PABRP) 

The PABRP program is a federally funded program that was established under the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018. The Act allows Disability Rights NJ to investigate and review how representative payees administer funds and allows for reporting of representative payees who are misusing funds, or otherwise exploiting, or neglecting their beneficiaries.