August 20, 2008

+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+
|                                               | ### Contact Persons  |
|                                               |                      |
|                                               | Name: Ruth Ryder     |
|                                               |                      |
|                                               | Telephone:           |
|                                               | 202.245.7513         |
|                                               |                      |
|                                               | Name: Rex Shipp      |
|                                               |                      |
|                                               | Telephone:           |
|                                               | 202.245.7523         |
+-----------------------------------------------+----------------------+

+-----------------------------------------------------+----------------+
|                                                     | ## OSEP - 11   |
+-----------------------------------------------------+----------------+

# MEMORANDUM

**TO:** Chief State School Officers, State Directors of Special
Education, and State Data Managers

**FROM:** William W. Knudsen, Acting Director

Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP)

**SUBJECT:** Part B State Performance Plan (Part B -- SPP) and Part B
Annual Performance Report (Part B -- APR)

**ACTION**

**REQUIRED:** Submission of the Part B Annual Performance Report and
Revisions to the Part B State Performance Plan by February 2, 2009

In accordance with 20 U.S.C. 1416(b)(1) of Part B of the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA or Part B), each State has in
place a Part B State performance plan (Part B - SPP) that evaluates the
State's efforts to implement the requirements and purposes of Part B and
describes how the State will improve such implementation. In accordance
with 20 U.S.C. 1416(b)(2)(C)(ii) and 34 CFR §300.602, each State must
report annually to the public on the performance of each local
educational agency (LEA) located in the State on the targets in its Part
B - SPP. The State also must report annually to the Secretary on the
State's performance under its Part B - SPP. This report is called the
Part B Annual Performance Report (Part B -- APR).

The enclosed Information Collection 1820-0624, *Part B State Performance
Plan (Part B -- SPP) and Annual Performance Report (Part B -- APR)*,
contains both Part B -- SPP and Part B -- APR instructions.

The instruction sheet in the enclosed Information Collection is divided
into four sections: 1) General Instructions; 2) State Performance Plan;
3) Annual Performance Report; and 4) Related Requirements. States are
encouraged to make note of the following due dates and implement a
development schedule accordingly:

**[By February 2, 2009]{.underline}**, States must submit:

1)  Progress data and improvement activities [for Indicator 7 (using the
    SPP template)]{.underline}. In addition, the State must indicate
    where, on its Web site, a complete copy of the State's SPP is
    available.

> 2\) The State's FFY 2007 Part B APR, which must contain actual target
> data from the FFY 2007 reporting period (July 1, 2007 through June 30,
> 2008) and other responsive APR information for Indicators 1, 2, 3, 4A,
> 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20. [For
> Indicators 1 and 2]{.underline}, States are not required to report the
> percent of all youth graduating or dropping out. [States need not
> report on Indicator 6 for FFY 2007]{.underline}.
>
> 3\) Information to address any deficiencies identified in OSEP's
> letter responding to the State's February 1, 2008 SPP/APR.

When completing the SPP and APR, States will need to use the following
parts of Information Collections 1820-0624, 1820-0677, and 1820-0659.

> SPP Materials --

-   SPP Instructions (See Section II of the enclosed Instructions.)

-   Part B Indicator/Measurement Table with Instructions[^1]

-   SPP Template

> APR Materials --

-   APR Instructions (See Section III of the enclosed Instructions.)

-   Part B Indicator/Measurement Table with Instructions

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   For the FFY 2007 APR, use Table 7 of Information Collection
    1820-0677 when addressing Indicators 16, 17, 18, and 19.

-   For the FFY 2007 APR, use Table 6 of Information Collection
    1820-0659 when addressing Indicator 3.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   APR Template

As noted in the conference report to HR 1350, it is Congress'
expectation that SPPs, indicators, and targets will be developed with
broad stakeholder input and public dissemination. Therefore, the State
is required to provide information in the Overview to State Performance
Plan Development section of the SPP template to specify how the
State: 1) Obtained "broad input" from stakeholders related to new
indicators and revisions to the SPP; and 2) Disseminated the SPP to the
public. Similarly, in the APR, the State is to provide a description of
the process the State used to develop the APR. The description must
include how and when the State will report annually to the public on: 1)
the State's progress and/or slippage in meeting the "measurable and
rigorous targets" found in the SPP; and 2) the performance of each LEA
located in the State on the targets in the SPP.

The Department will review the information provided in the State's FFY
2007 APR, other State-reported data, information obtained through
monitoring visits, and other public information and will determine,
under IDEA section 616(d), if the State meets the purpose and
requirements of Part B of the IDEA or needs assistance, needs
intervention or needs substantial intervention in meeting the
requirements of Part B of the IDEA. The State should review IDEA section
616(e) regarding the potential future impact of the Department's
determination.

The Department's determination will be based on the totality of the
State's data in its APR and other publicly available information,
including any compliance issues. The factors in each State's FFY 2007
APR submission that the Department will consider in making its
determination are whether the State: (1) provided valid and reliable FFY
2007 data that reflect the measurement for each indicator; and (2) for
each compliance indicator, whether the State: (a) demonstrated
compliance or timely correction of noncompliance, and (b) in instances
where it did not demonstrate compliance, had nonetheless made progress
in ensuring compliance over prior performance in that area. We will also
consider whether the State has other IDEA compliance issues that were
identified previously through the Department's monitoring, audit or
other activities, and the State's progress in resolving those problems
and whether the State provided the additional information requested in
OSEP's June, 2008 response table. In addition, we will consider whether
the State has reported publicly on the performance of each LEA on the
State's FFY 2006 SPP targets. If we have not been able to locate this
public reporting on your Web site, we will contact you shortly to notify
you of this issue.

Prior to finalizing the Department's determination, OSEP will offer the
State the opportunity to clarify or correct the data submitted in its
FFY 2007 SPP/APR. OSEP will email each State Director a summary of the
State's February 2, 2009, FFY 2007 data that OSEP will consider in
making the Department's determination under IDEA section 616(d). The
State will have one week to submit to OSEP by e-mail any corrected data
and to clarify any misunderstandings by OSEP about the data submitted.
In order for the State's clarifications or corrections to data to be
considered, the State's response must be received by OSEP no later than
close-of-business one week from receipt of OSEP's summary. If the State
submits clarifications or corrections to data that were in the original
FFY 2007 SPP/APR submission, it must also submit a complete revised
SPP/APR submission with any changes redlined or highlighted. Any
clarifications or corrected FFY 2007 SPP/APRs must be submitted
electronically to <OSERS.bapr@ed.gov> .

Please note that any State that does not meet the February 2, 2009
timeline for submission will not be permitted to submit clarifications
or corrections for purposes of the Department's determination under IDEA
section 616(d).

Pursuant to section 616(e) of the IDEA and 34 CFR §300.604in the June,
2008 response letters, the Secretary advised States that were needs
assistance for two consecutive years (FFYs 2005 and 2006) of available
sources of technical assistance related to the indicator(s) that
resulted in the determination of needs assistance. For the indicator(s)
that resulted in the determination of needs assistance the State must
report with its FFY 2007 APR submission (due February 2, 2009) on: (1)
the technical assistance sources from which the State received
assistance and (2) what actions the State took as a result of that
technical assistance. The extent to which your State takes advantage of
available technical assistance for these indicators may affect the
actions we take under section 616 should your State not be identified as
meets requirements next year.

To submit an SPP and/or APR:

Submit a copy of the SPP and/or APR to the following address:

> U.S. Department of Education
>
> ATTN: Janet Scire / Mail Stop 2600
>
> 7100 Old Landover Road
>
> Landover, MD, 20785-1506

If available, a corresponding electronic text file of the SPP and/or APR
should be submitted to <OSERS.bapr@ed.gov>.

The submission requirements, tables, and templates that should be used
to complete the Part B - SPP and/or Part B - APR can be accessed
electronically at:
<http://www.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/monitor/index.html>.

If you have any further questions about the Part B - SPP and/or Part B -
APR and/or the submission options listed above, please contact your Part
B State contact.

Enclosures

cc: Federal Resource Center

Regional Resource Centers

National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC)

[^1]: Monitoring Priorities, Indicators, and measurements included on
    the *Part B Indicator Measurement Table* are to be used to populate
    designated sections of the SPP and APR Templates. Populated
    templates can be found at
    <http://www.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/bapr/index.html>.