Stout was engaged by Supported Decision-Making New York (SDMNY) to perform an analysis of the estimated potential economic benefit of facilitated supported decision making (facilitated SDM) and supported decision-making agreement (SDMA) legislation to New York.

Facilitated SDM describes a formal process where people with developmental disabilities (PWDD) work with a facilitator to identify the people from whom they would like decision-making support as well as the specific areas in their life in which they would like that support. Facilitated SDM often takes the place of guardianship, which is a legal process where PWDD can have their power to make their own decisions removed.

Our study found that the use of facilitated SDM by people with development disabilities (PWDD) in lieu of the current system will result in a positive economic benefit for New York. In addition to this, facilitated SDM could increase the efficiency of New York Surrogate’s Court and improve the use of court resources as guardianship filings may decrease. Lastly, we estimated that a $3.5 million investment in facilitated SDM from New York could lead to an annual benefit of $9.6 million to the state.

Our analysis demonstrated that facilitated SDM and/or SDMA legislation would result in numerous benefits for New York: A decrease in guardianship filings, a delayed use of residential rehabilitation services among PWDD, and a decrease in emergency department care, among other benefits. PWDD would experience an increased quality of life, increased wages/employment opportunities, increased likelihood of formal education enrollment, and a reduction in the number of PWDD interacting with law enforcement.