Bill > S95

This bill updates the language used throughout Massachusetts state laws to be more inclusive and person-first when referring to individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Some key provisions include: - Replacing terms like "handicapped", "mentally retarded", and "disabled" with more respectful and accurate language like "individuals/persons with disabilities", "persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities", and similar phrasing. - Making similar updates across a wide range of laws and policy areas, such as employment, housing, transportation, education, healthcare, public benefits, and criminal justice. - Ensuring that the laws use terminology that focuses on the person rather than the disability, emphasizing that the disability is just one aspect of the individual. The goal of this bill appears to be modernizing the state's legal framework to be more inclusive and respectful towards individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This reflects an important shift towards person-first language and challenging outdated or stigmatizing terminology.