2022 Annual Report
Our mission is to vigorously advocate for and enforce the legal rights of people with disabilities.
Youth in Institutional Settings | Media Outreach | Access Authority Litigation | Representative Payee Overview | DRA By the Numbers | Leadership | Financial Activities
Youth In Institutional Settings
DRA’s abuse/neglect team is focusing on monitoring the conditions in our state’s 13 psychiatric residential treatment facilities and holding oversight agencies accountable for a system that is often harming more than helping the children and youth from Arkansas and around the country that have been sent to these facilities to receive treatment.
The PRTF database has been expanded to include more information on the treatment conditions at each facility. Additions include a new type of report, called Medicaid Inspection of Care Reports, as well as continual updates to information already on the database, including police reports, incident reports, and compliance reports. DRA has reviewed more than 1600 documents related to incidents at or inspections of PRTFs this year. This included 453 serious occurrence reports, 362 police reports, and 850 notices of incidents, compliance reports, and surveys from state agencies.
Specific information on the actual services and treatment provided in facilities is often not readily available in the materials provided by the facilities themselves. DRA believes that individuals and their guardians should have as much information as possible when making decisions about treatment options, and that this information should be readily available and easy to access.
Media Outreach
DRA continues to expand its effort to share information with our community. DRA transitioned our three-day virtual conference to quarterly webinars to better serve people with disabilities, their families, supporters, service providers, and the public. The topics included:
Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis & Treatment | What Parents of Children with Disabilities Need to Know
Let’s Get to Work | The Intersection of Disability & Employment
Parents: What You Need to Know About Your Child’s IEP
Understanding the Americans with Disabilities Act
Access Authority Litigation
DRA investigated an incident in the state prison system wherein an individual took his own life. Our investigators discovered that the individual previously tried to take his own life and was allegedly assaulted by prison staff repeatedly. We obtained records from multiple sources, including the Arkansas State Police, the state’s crime laboratory, and the Arkansas State Hospital. However, the state prison system refused to provide records to us. DRA filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, (Case No. 4:20-CV-1081) to obtain their records under our federal authority. During this effort, the United States Department of Justice filed a Statement of Interest on DRA’s behalf. In an interim decision, the court recognized that federal law “authorizes broad access to records that are relevant to [DRA’s] investigation into abuse or neglect.” Ultimately DRA and the state prison system achieved a comprehensive resolution, authorizing DRA access to records in this case as well as future cases in which DRA has probable cause to believe an individual has been abused or neglected. The state prison system “did not admit liability and [. . .] settled to bring finality to the litigation.” As a result, DRA will have enhanced timely access to records, improving the scope and breadth of our investigations.
Representative Payee Overview
At the request of the Social Security Administration, DRA conducts routine payee reviews, educational visits, and reviews based on allegations of payee misconduct. These reviews determine if the selected representative payee is:
- Managing funds so beneficiaries have no unmet needs
- Accounting for all funds received and spent
- Conserving any unspent funds in an appropriate manner
- Complying with mandated accounting and reporting responsibilities
In four years of the Representative Payee program’s five-year grant cycle, DRA has completed 152 reviews assigned by SSA.
There are four main types of deficiencies: Financial/fiduciary, non-financial/programmatic; record keeping; and reporting; each containing numerous subtypes.
DRA by the Numbers
DRA Board of Directors
The DRA Board of Directors are the fiduciaries who steer the organization towards a sustainable future by adopting sound and ethical governance and ensuring it has adequate resources to advance its mission. The board plays a crucial leadership function in shaping the DRA’s future, ensuring its success, keeping it on track, and is focused on its mission and strategic plans and objectives.
John Jones – President
Raysha Clark – Vice President
Mark George – Immediate Past President
Scott Hall – Secretary
James Mason – Treasurer
Nancy Sullivan
Shannon Rivas
Jane Browning
Early Jasper
Kim Weser
PAIMI Advisory Council
The Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) Advisory Council supports DRA by working with its staff and Board of Directors to develop priorities for the agency’s PAIMI program. Advisory members oversee the general effectiveness of the program and work with staff to bring about any needed changes.
James Mason – Chair
Cory Bates-Rogers – Vice-Chair
Kim Weser – Past Chair
Dorcas Johnson – Secretary
Kitty Cone
Elaine Williams
Roger Isbell
Angela Corder
Sabrena Harris
Meggin Mews
2022 Statement of Financial Activities
Year Ended September 30, 2022
| Revenues | Without Donor Restriction | With Donor Restriction | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal Grants | $2,173,521 | – | $2,173.521 |
| Program Revenue | – | $94 | $94 |
| Other | $18,476 | – | $18,476 |
| Total revenues and support | $2,191,997 | $94 | $2,192,091 |
| Expenses | Without Donor Restriction | With Donor Restriction | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Program Services | $1,650,533 | – | $1,650,533 |
| Management and General | $522,893 | – | $522,893 |
| Fundraising | $1,930 | – | $1,930 |
| Total Expenses | $2,175,356 | – | $2,175,356 |
| Change in net assets | $16, 641 | $94 | $16,735 |
| Net Assets, Beginning of year | $47, 991 | $197,102 | $245,093 |
| Net assets, End of year | $64, 632 | $197,196 | $261,828 |
Revenue by Program
| Access to COVID-19 Vaccines | $12,869 | 1% |
| Public Health – PAPH | $34,049 | 2% |
| Assistive Technology. – PAAT | $38,909 | 2% |
| Individuals with Mental Illness – PAIMI | $398,469 | 18% |
| Traumatic Brain Injury – PATBI | $70,083 | 3% |
| Social Security Rep Payee – SBSSB | $309, 513 | 14% |
| Beneficiaries of Social Security – PABSS | $97,554 | 4% |
| Voting Access – PAVA | $107,561 | 5% |
| Arkansas Alliance for Disability Advocacy – AADA | $399,092 | 18% |
| Individual Rights – PAIR | $108,952 | 5% |
| Developmental Disabilities – PADD | $405,620 | 19% |
| Client Assistance Program – CAP | $161,043 | 7% |
| Other Grants, Donations, etc. | $48,377 | 2% |
| Total Revenues | $2,191,091 |
How to Support DRA
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Previous Annual Reports
Disability Rights Arkansas is a non-profit organization funded by federal grants. For a complete list of funders, visit our Funding Page.