The bill that would tie Pennsylvania's intellectual disability and autism service rates to inflation, and require agencies to pass the same increase on to direct support professionals, is headed to the full House. The House Human Services Committee reported House Bill 1939 as amended on a 26-0 vote on Oct. 6, 2026, according to the General Assembly's bill record, which shows the bill also received first consideration and was laid on the table that day. The House Republican Caucus announced the vote in a release from co-prime sponsor Rep. Jason Ortitay, R-Washington/Allegheny; the prime sponsor is Rep. Jessica Benham, D-Allegheny.
We covered the bill's August committee hearing here. The committee's amendment (A04467) changed the timeline and several details, so the version now headed to the floor is Printer's No. 4004.
What the amendment changed
| Provision | As introduced (PN 2447) | As reported (PN 4004) |
|---|---|---|
| First annual rate adjustment | Oct. 1, 2026 | Oct. 1, 2027 |
| Inflation measure | Consumer Price Index | Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers |
| What DSPs must receive | Total wages raised by the same percentage | Total compensation raised by the published percentage |
| Enforcement | Financial penalty starting July 1, 2027 | Corrective action, a financial penalty or both, starting July 1, 2028 |
| Effective date | Immediately | 120 days after enactment |
The amended text also says that in a year after the index falls, the next increase is reduced by the earlier decline, and it directs the Department of Human Services to consider a provider's total compensation before taking corrective action or imposing a penalty.
What stays the same
- Rates rise only if money is appropriated. Each Oct. 1, the fee schedule rates for intellectual disability and autism home and community-based services run by the Office of Developmental Programs would rise by the latest 12-month change in the index, subject to federal approval. If the appropriation falls short, the increase shrinks to fit. A flat or falling index means no change.
- Agencies must pass it through. When rates rise, a provider must raise each DSP's total compensation by the published percentage no later than Jan. 1 of that fiscal year.
- A published minimum. The department would publish a lower-bound DSP wage each year in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, and no provider could pay below it. The amended bill defines that floor as the lowest point of the wage range the Office of Developmental Programs sets for each service, using the market-based wage assumptions behind the fee schedule and federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
- Penalties and reporting. A penalty could not exceed the hours each underpaid DSP worked times the shortfall, and collected penalties would go to the state's augmentation account for intellectual disability home and community services. Providers would report each year the number of DSPs, average and starting wages by service, and compensation details including benefits and the employer share of payroll taxes.
- Rate-setting years are skipped. The automatic increase and the pass-through would not apply in a year when the department sets new fee schedule rates under its existing regulation. Under current rules, the department must update the data behind the rates every three years, a rate review that carries no requirement to raise them, according to the sponsors' release.
What happens next
As of Oct. 7, 2026, the bill awaits further action in the full House. It would then need Senate passage and the governor's signature, and every year's increase would still depend on the budget. A statewide compensation study released in April put average DSP pay at $18.53 an hour.
Why this matters for providers and DSPs
For DSPs, the amendment pushes the earliest raise under the bill back a year: if it becomes law and is funded, rates would first rise Oct. 1, 2027, with the pass-through due by Jan. 1, 2028. Switching from wages to total compensation gives agencies room to count benefits toward the required increase, so DSPs should not assume the full percentage will show up in the hourly rate. For agencies, the bill trades budget-year uncertainty for a yearly obligation: pass through the increase, stay above a published wage floor, and file pay data every year, with enforcement starting in July 2028.