IB 

Union Calendar No. 44

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1350

[Report No. 108–77] 

To reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 19, 2003

Mr. CASTLE (for himself, Mr. BOEHNER, Mr. BALLENGER, Mr. MCKEON, Mr. 

SAM JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr. DEMINT, Mrs. BIGGERT, 

Mr. TIBERI, Mr. KELLER, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, and Mr. 

COLE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Education and the Workforce 

APRIL 29, 2003

Additional sponsors: Mr. EHLERS, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mr. PUTNAM, Mr. KENNEDY of Minnesota, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. BURGESS, Mr. GORDON, and Mr. 

BELL

APRIL 29, 2003

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 19, 2003] 

A BILL

To reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act, and for other purposes.
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Improving Education 

5 Results for Children With Disabilities Act of 2003’’. 

6 TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

7 SEC. 101. SECTIONS 601 THROUGH 603 OF THE INDIVIDUALS 

8 WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. 

9 Sections 601 through 603 of the Individuals with Dis10 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400–1402) are amend11 ed to read as follows:

12 ‘‘SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS; FINDINGS; 

13 PURPOSES. 

14 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘In15 dividuals with Disabilities Education Act’.

16 ‘‘(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

17 this Act is as follows:

‘‘PART A—GENERAL PROVISIONS

‘‘Sec. 601. Short title; table of contents; findings; purposes. 

‘‘Sec. 602. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 603. Office of Special Education Programs. 

‘‘Sec. 604. Abrogation of State sovereign immunity. 

‘‘Sec. 605. Acquisition of equipment; construction or alteration of facilities. 

‘‘Sec. 606. Employment of individuals with disabilities. 

‘‘Sec. 607. Requirements for prescribing regulations. 

‘‘Sec. 608. State administration. 

‘‘PART B—ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATION OF ALL CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

‘‘Sec. 611. Authorization; allotment; use of funds; authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘Sec. 612. State eligibility. 

‘‘Sec. 613. Local educational agency eligibility. 

‘‘Sec. 614. Evaluations, eligibility determinations, individualized education programs, and educational placements. 
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‘‘Sec. 615. Procedural safeguards. 

‘‘Sec. 616. Monitoring, enforcement, withholding, and judicial review. 

‘‘Sec. 617. Administration. 

‘‘Sec. 618. Program information. 

‘‘Sec. 619. Preschool grants. 

‘‘PART C—INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES

‘‘Sec. 631. Findings and policy. 

‘‘Sec. 632. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 633. General authority. 

‘‘Sec. 634. Eligibility. 

‘‘Sec. 635. Requirements for statewide system. 

‘‘Sec. 636. Individualized family service plan. 

‘‘Sec. 637. State application and assurances. 

‘‘Sec. 638. Uses of funds. 

‘‘Sec. 639. Procedural safeguards. 

‘‘Sec. 640. Payor of last resort. 

‘‘Sec. 641. State Interagency Coordinating Council. 

‘‘Sec. 642. Federal administration. 

‘‘Sec. 643. Allocation of funds. 

‘‘Sec. 644. Authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘PART D—NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH

DISABILITIES

‘‘Sec. 651. Findings. 

‘‘SUBPART 1—STATE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS

‘‘Sec. 652. Purpose. 

‘‘Sec. 653. Eligibility and collaborative process. 

‘‘Sec. 654. Applications. 

‘‘Sec. 655. Use of funds. 

‘‘Sec. 656. State grant amounts. 

‘‘Sec. 657. Authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘SUBPART 2—SCIENTIFICALLY BASED RESEARCH; TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE; 

MODEL DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS; DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION; AND

PERSONNEL PREPARATION PROGRAMS

‘‘Sec. 661. Purpose. 

‘‘Sec. 662. Administrative provisions. 

‘‘Sec. 663. Research to improve results for children with disabilities. 

‘‘Sec. 664. Technical assistance, demonstration projects, dissemination of information, and implementation of scientifically based research. 

‘‘Sec. 665. Personnel preparation programs to improve services and results for 

children with disabilities. 

‘‘Sec. 666. Studies and evaluations. 

‘‘Sec. 667. Authorization of appropriations.

‘‘SUBPART 3—SUPPORTS TO IMPROVE RESULTS FOR CHILDREN WITH

DISABILITIES

‘‘Sec. 671. Purposes. 

‘‘Sec. 672. Parent training and information centers. 

‘‘Sec. 673. Community parent resource centers. 

‘‘Sec. 674. Technical assistance for parent training and information centers. 
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‘‘Sec. 675. Technology development, demonstration, and utilization; and media 

services.

1 ‘‘(c) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

2 ‘‘(1) Disability is a natural part of the human 

3 experience and in no way diminishes the right of in4 dividuals to participate in or contribute to society. 

5 Improving educational results for children with dis6 abilities is an essential element of our national policy 

7 of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participa8 tion, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency 

9 for individuals with disabilities. 

10 ‘‘(2) Before the date of the enactment of the Edu11 cation for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 

12 (Public Law 94–142), the special educational needs of 

13 millions of children with disabilities were not being 

14 fully met and there were many children with disabil15 ities participating in regular school programs whose 

16 undiagnosed disabilities prevented them from having 

17 a successful educational experience. 

18 ‘‘(3) Since the enactment and implementation of 

19 the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 

20 1975, this Act has been successful in ensuring chil21 dren with disabilities and the families of such chil22 dren access to a free appropriate public education 

23 and in improving educational results for children 

24 with disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘(4) Over 25 years of research and experience 

2 has demonstrated that the education of children with 

3 disabilities can be made more effective by—

4 ‘‘(A) having high expectations for such chil5 dren and ensuring their access to the general 

6 education curriculum in the regular classroom to 

7 the maximum extent possible in order—

8 ‘‘(i) to meet developmental goals and, 

9 to the maximum extent possible, the chal10 lenging expectations that have been estab11 lished for all children; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) to be prepared to lead productive 

13 and independent adult lives, to the max14 imum extent possible; 

15 ‘‘(B) strengthening the role and responsi16 bility of parents and ensuring that families of 

17 such children have meaningful opportunities to 

18 participate in the education of their children at 

19 school and at home; 

20 ‘‘(C) coordinating this Act with other local, 

21 State, and Federal school improvement efforts, 

22 including efforts under the Elementary and Sec23 ondary Education Act of 1965, in order to en24 sure that children with disabilities benefit from 

25 such efforts and that special education can be-
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1 come a service for such children rather than a 

2 place where they are sent; 

3 ‘‘(D) supporting high-quality, intensive pro4 fessional development for personnel who work 

5 with children with disabilities; 

6 ‘‘(E) providing incentives for scientifically 

7 based reading programs and prereferral inter8 vention services to reduce the need to label chil9 dren as disabled in order to address their learn10 ing needs; 

11 ‘‘(F) focusing resources on teaching and 

12 learning while reducing paperwork and require13 ments that do not assist in improving edu14 cational results; and 

15 ‘‘(G) supporting the development and use of 

16 technology, including assistive technology devices 

17 and services, to maximize accessibility for chil18 dren with disabilities. 

19 ‘‘(5) While States, local educational agencies, 

20 and educational service agencies are primarily re21 sponsible for providing an education for all children 

22 with disabilities, it is in the national interest that the 

23 Federal Government has a supporting role in assist24 ing State and local efforts to educate children with 
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1 disabilities in order to improve results for such chil2 dren and to ensure equal protection of the law. 

3 ‘‘(6) A more equitable allocation of resources is 

4 essential for the Federal Government to meet its re5 sponsibility to provide an equal educational oppor6 tunity for all individuals. 

7 ‘‘(7)(A) The Federal Government must respond 

8 to the growing needs of an increasingly diverse soci9 ety. 

10 ‘‘(B) America’s ethnic profile is rapidly chang11 ing. In the year 2000, nearly one of every three per12 sons in America was a member of a minority group 

13 or was limited English proficient. 

14 ‘‘(C) Minority children comprise an increasing 

15 percentage of public school students. 

16 ‘‘(D) With such changing demographics, recruit17 ment efforts for special education personnel should 

18 focus on increasing the participation of minorities in 

19 the teaching profession in order to provide appro20 priate role models with sufficient knowledge to ad21 dress the special education needs of these students.

22 ‘‘(8)(A) The limited English proficient popu23 lation is the fastest growing in our Nation, and the 

24 growth is occurring in many parts of our Nation. 
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1 ‘‘(B) Studies have documented apparent discrep2 ancies in the levels of referral and placement of lim3 ited English proficient children in special education. 

4 ‘‘(C) This poses a special challenge for special 

5 education in the referral, assessment, and provision of 

6 services for our Nation’s students from non-English 

7 language backgrounds. 

8 ‘‘(9)(A) Greater efforts are needed to prevent the 

9 intensification of problems connected with mislabeling 

10 and high dropout rates among minority children with 

11 disabilities. 

12 ‘‘(B) More minority children continue to be 

13 served in special education than would be expected 

14 from the percentage of minority students in the gen15 eral school population. 

16 ‘‘(C) African American children are overidenti17 fied as having mental retardation and emotional dis18 turbance at rates greater than their white counter19 parts.

20 ‘‘(D) In the 1998–99 school year, African Amer21 ican children represented just 14.8 percent of the pop22 ulation aged 6 through 21, but comprised 20.2 percent 

23 of all children with disabilities. 

24 ‘‘(E) Studies have found that schools with pre25 dominantly Caucasian students and teachers have 
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1 placed disproportionately high numbers of their mi2 nority students into special education. 

3 ‘‘(10)(A) As the number of minority students in 

4 special education increases, the number of minority 

5 teachers and related services personnel produced in 

6 colleges and universities continues to decrease. 

7 ‘‘(B) The opportunity for full participation by 

8 minority individuals, organizations, and historically 

9 black colleges and universities in awards for grants 

10 and contracts, boards of organizations receiving as11 sistance under this Act, peer review panels, and 

12 training of professionals in the area of special edu13 cation is essential to obtain greater success in the edu14 cation of minority children with disabilities. 

15 ‘‘(d) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title are—

16 ‘‘(1)(A) to ensure that all children with disabil17 ities have available to them a free appropriate public 

18 education that emphasizes special education and re19 lated services designed to meet their unique needs and 

20 prepare them for further education, employment, and 

21 independent living; 

22 ‘‘(B) to ensure that the rights of children with 

23 disabilities and parents of such children are protected; 

24 and 
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1 ‘‘(C) to assist States, localities, educational serv2 ice agencies, and Federal agencies to provide for the 

3 education of all children with disabilities; 

4 ‘‘(2) to assist States in the implementation of a 

5 statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisci6 plinary, interagency system of early intervention 

7 services for infants and toddlers with disabilities and 

8 their families; 

9 ‘‘(3) to ensure that educators and parents have 

10 the necessary tools to improve educational results for 

11 children with disabilities by supporting system im12 provement activities; coordinated research and per13 sonnel preparation; coordinated technical assistance, 

14 dissemination, and support; and technology develop15 ment and media services; and 

16 ‘‘(4) to assess, and ensure the effectiveness of, ef17 forts to educate children with disabilities. 

18 ‘‘SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS. 

19 ‘‘Except as otherwise provided, as used in this Act: 

20 ‘‘(1) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVICE.—The term 

21 ‘assistive technology device’ means any item, piece of 

22 equipment, or product system, whether acquired com23 mercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that 

24 is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional 

25 capabilities of a child with a disability. 
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1 ‘‘(2) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SERVICE.—The 

2 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service 

3 that directly assists a child with a disability in the 

4 selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive technology 

5 device. Such term includes—

6 ‘‘(A) the evaluation of the needs of such 

7 child, including a functional evaluation of the 

8 child in the child’s customary environment; 

9 ‘‘(B) purchasing, leasing, or otherwise pro10 viding for the acquisition of assistive technology 

11 devices by such child; 

12 ‘‘(C) selecting, designing, fitting, custom13 izing, adapting, applying, maintaining, repair14 ing, or replacing of assistive technology devices; 

15 ‘‘(D) coordinating and using other thera16 pies, interventions, or services with assistive 

17 technology devices, such as those associated with 

18 existing education and rehabilitation plans and 

19 programs; 

20 ‘‘(E) training or technical assistance for 

21 such child, or, where appropriate, the family of 

22 such child; and 

23 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for 

24 professionals (including individuals providing 

25 education and rehabilitation services), employ-
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1 ers, or other individuals who provide services to, 

2 employ, or are otherwise substantially involved 

3 in the major life functions of such child. 

4 ‘‘(3) CHILD WITH A DISABILITY.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘child with a 

6 disability’ means a child—

7 ‘‘(i) with mental retardation, hearing 

8 impairments (including deafness), speech or 

9 language impairments, visual impairments 

10 (including blindness), serious emotional dis11 turbance (hereinafter referred to as ‘emo12 tional disturbance’), orthopedic impair13 ments, autism, traumatic brain injury, 

14 other health impairments, or specific learn15 ing disabilities; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) who, by reason thereof, needs spe17 cial education and related services. 

18 ‘‘(B) CHILD AGED 3 THROUGH 9.—The term 

19 ‘child with a disability ’ for a child aged 3 

20 through 9 or any subset of that age range, in21 cluding ages 3 through 5, may, at the discretion 

22 of the State and the local educational agency, in23 clude a child—

24 ‘‘(i) experiencing developmental delays, 

25 as defined by the State and as measured by 
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1 appropriate diagnostic instruments and 

2 procedures, in one or more of the following 

3 areas: physical development, cognitive devel4 opment, communication development, social 

5 or emotional development, or adaptive de6 velopment; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) who, by reason thereof, needs spe8 cial education and related services. 

9 ‘‘(4) EDUCATIONAL SERVICE AGENCY.—The term 

10 ‘educational service agency’—

11 ‘‘(A) means a regional public multiservice 

12 agency—

13 ‘‘(i) authorized by State law to de14 velop, manage, and provide services or pro15 grams to local educational agencies; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) recognized as an administrative 

17 agency for purposes of the provision of spe18 cial education and related services provided 

19 within public elementary and secondary 

20 schools of the State; and 

21 ‘‘(B) includes any other public institution 

22 or agency having administrative control and di23 rection over a public elementary or secondary 

24 school. 
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1 ‘‘(5) ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘elemen2 tary school’ means a nonprofit institutional day or 

3 residential school that provides elementary education, 

4 as determined under State law. 

5 ‘‘(6) EQUIPMENT.—The term ‘equipment’ in6 cludes—

7 ‘‘(A) machinery, utilities, and built-in 

8 equipment and any necessary enclosures or 

9 structures to house such machinery, utilities, or 

10 equipment; and 

11 ‘‘(B) all other items necessary for the func12 tioning of a particular facility as a facility for 

13 the provision of educational services, including 

14 items such as instructional equipment and nec15 essary furniture; printed, published, and audio16 visual instructional materials; telecommuni17 cations, sensory, and other technological aids 

18 and devices; and books, periodicals, documents, 

19 and other related materials. 

20 ‘‘(7) EXCESS COSTS.—The term ‘excess costs’ 

21 means those costs that are in excess of the average an22 nual per-student expenditure in a local educational 

23 agency during the preceding school year for an ele24 mentary or secondary school student, as may be ap-
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1 propriate, and which shall be computed after deduct2 ing—

3 ‘‘(A) amounts received—

4 ‘‘(i) under part B of this title; 

5 ‘‘(ii) under part A of title I of the Ele6 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 

7 1965; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) under title III of that Act; and 

9 ‘‘(B) any State or local funds expended for 

10 programs that would qualify for assistance under 

11 any of the provisions of law described in sub12 paragraph (A). 

13 ‘‘(8) FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION.—

14 The term ‘free appropriate public education’ means 

15 special education and related services that—

16 ‘‘(A) have been provided at public expense, 

17 under public supervision and direction, and 

18 without charge; 

19 ‘‘(B) meet the standards of the State edu20 cational agency; 

21 ‘‘(C) include an appropriate preschool, ele22 mentary, or secondary school education in the 

23 State involved; and 
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1 ‘‘(D) are provided in conformity with the 

2 individualized education program required 

3 under section 614(d). 

4 ‘‘(9) HIGHLY QUALIFIED.—The term ‘highly 

5 qualified’ has the same meaning as that term in sec6 tion 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu7 cation Act of 1965. 

8 ‘‘(10) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ means an in9 dividual who is a member of an Indian tribe. 

10 ‘‘(11) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’ 

11 means any Federal or State Indian tribe, band, 

12 rancheria, pueblo, colony, or community, including 

13 any Alaska Native village or regional village corpora14 tion (as defined in or established under the Alaska 

15 Native Claims Settlement Act). 

16 ‘‘(12) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM.—

17 The term ‘individualized education program’ or ‘IEP’ 

18 means a written statement for each child with a dis19 ability that is developed, reviewed, and revised in ac20 cordance with section 614(d). 

21 ‘‘(13) INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN.—

22 The term ‘individualized family service plan’ has the 

23 meaning given such term in section 636. 

24 ‘‘(14) INFANT OR TODDLER WITH A DIS25 ABILITY.—The term ‘infant or toddler with a dis-
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1 ability ’ has the meaning given such term in section 

2 632. 

3 ‘‘(15) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—

4 The term ‘institution of higher education’—

5 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given that term in 

6 subsection (a) or (b) of section 101 of the Higher 

7 Education Act of 1965; and 

8 ‘‘(B) also includes any community college 

9 receiving funding from the Secretary of the Inte10 rior under the Tribally Controlled Community 

11 College Assistance Act of 1978. 

12 ‘‘(16) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—

13 ‘‘(A) The term ‘local educational agency’ 

14 means a public board of education or other pub15 lic authority legally constituted within a State 

16 for either administrative control or direction of, 

17 or to perform a service function for, public ele18 mentary or secondary schools in a city, county, 

19 township, school district, or other political sub20 division of a State, or for such combination of 

21 school districts or counties as are recognized in 

22 a State as an administrative agency for its pub23 lic elementary or secondary schools. 

24 ‘‘(B) The term includes—
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1 ‘‘(i) an educational service agency, as 

2 defined in paragraph (4); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) any other public institution or 

4 agency having administrative control and 

5 direction of a public elementary or sec6 ondary school. 

7 ‘‘(C) The term includes an elementary or 

8 secondary school funded by the Bureau of Indian 

9 Affairs, but only to the extent that such inclusion 

10 makes the school eligible for programs for which 

11 specific eligibility is not provided to the school in 

12 another provision of law and the school does not 

13 have a student population that is smaller than 

14 the student population of the local educational 

15 agency receiving assistance under this Act with 

16 the smallest student population, except that the 

17 school shall not be subject to the jurisdiction of 

18 any State educational agency other than the Bu19 reau of Indian Affairs. 

20 ‘‘(17) NATIVE LANGUAGE.—The term ‘native lan21 guage’, when used with reference to an individual of 

22 limited English proficiency, means the language nor23 mally used by the individual, or, in the case of a 

24 child, the language normally used by the parents of 

25 the child. 
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1 ‘‘(18) NONPROFIT.—The term ‘nonprofit’, as ap2 plied to a school, agency, organization, or institution, 

3 means a school, agency, organization, or institution 

4 owned and operated by one or more nonprofit cor5 porations or associations no part of the net earnings 

6 of which inures, or may lawfully inure, to the benefit 

7 of any private shareholder or individual. 

8 ‘‘(19) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘outlying 

9 area’ means the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

10 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the 

11 Northern Mariana Islands. 

12 ‘‘(20) PARENT.—The term ‘parent’—

13 ‘‘(A) includes a legal guardian; and 

14 ‘‘(B) except as used in sections 615(b)(2) 

15 and 639(a)(5), includes an individual assigned 

16 under either of those sections to be a surrogate 

17 parent. 

18 ‘‘(21) PARENT ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘par19 ent organization’ has the meaning given that term in 

20 section 672(g). 

21 ‘‘(22) PARENT TRAINING AND INFORMATION CEN22 TER.—The term ‘parent training and information 

23 center’ means a center assisted under sections 672 

24 and 673. 
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1 ‘‘(23) RELATED SERVICES.—The term ‘related 

2 services’ means transportation, and such develop3 mental, corrective, and other supportive services (in4 cluding speech-language pathology and audiology 

5 services, psychological services, physical and occupa6 tional therapy, recreation, including therapeutic 

7 recreation, social work services, counseling services, 

8 including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and 

9 mobility services, and medical services, except that 

10 such medical services shall be for diagnostic and eval11 uation purposes only) as may be required to assist a 

12 child with a disability to benefit from special edu13 cation, and includes the early identification and as14 sessment of disabling conditions in children. 

15 ‘‘(24) SECONDARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘sec16 ondary school’ means a nonprofit institutional day or 

17 residential school that provides secondary education, 

18 as determined under State law, except that it does not 

19 include any education beyond grade 12. 

20 ‘‘(25) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 

21 the Secretary of Education. 

22 ‘‘(26) SPECIAL EDUCATION.—The term ‘special 

23 education’ means specially designed instruction, at no 

24 cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child 

25 with a disability, including—
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1 ‘‘(A) instruction conducted in the classroom, 

2 in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and 

3 in other settings; and 

4 ‘‘(B) instruction in physical education. 

5 ‘‘(27) SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITY.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘specific 

7 learning disability ’ means a disorder in one or 

8 more of the basic psychological processes involved 

9 in understanding or in using language, spoken 

10 or written, which disorder may manifest itself in 

11 imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, 

12 write, spell, or do mathematical calculations. 

13 ‘‘(B) DISORDERS INCLUDED.—Such term 

14 includes such conditions as perceptual disabil15 ities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, 

16 dyslexia, and developmental aphasia. 

17 ‘‘(C) DISORDERS NOT INCLUDED.—Such 

18 term does not include a learning problem that is 

19 primarily the result of visual, hearing, or motor 

20 disabilities, of mental retardation, of emotional 

21 disturbance, or of environmental, cultural, or 

22 economic disadvantage. 

23 ‘‘(28) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means each of 

24 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Common25 wealth of Puerto Rico, and each of the outlying areas. 
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1 ‘‘(29) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 

2 ‘State educational agency’ means the State board of 

3 education or other agency or officer primarily respon4 sible for the State supervision of public elementary 

5 and secondary schools, or, if there is no such officer 

6 or agency, an officer or agency designated by the Gov7 ernor or by State law. 

8 ‘‘(30) SUPPLEMENTARY AIDS AND SERVICES.—

9 The term ‘supplementary aids and services’ means 

10 aids, services, and other supports that are provided in 

11 regular education classes or other education-related 

12 settings to enable children with disabilities to be edu13 cated with nondisabled children to the maximum ex14 tent appropriate in accordance with section 

15 612(a)(5). 

16 ‘‘(31) TRANSITION SERVICES.—The term ‘transi17 tion services’ means a coordinated set of activities for 

18 a child with a disability that—

19 ‘‘(A) is designed within a results-oriented 

20 process, that is focused on improving the aca21 demic and developmental achievement of the 

22 child with a disability to facilitate the child’s 

23 move from school to post-school activities, includ24 ing post-secondary education, vocational train25 ing, integrated employment (including supported 
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1 employment), continuing and adult education, 

2 adult services, independent living, or community 

3 participation; 

4 ‘‘(B) is based upon the individual child’s 

5 needs, taking into account the child’s skills, pref6 erences, and interests; and 

7 ‘‘(C) includes instruction, related services, 

8 community experiences, the development of em9 ployment and other post-school adult living ob10 jectives, and, when appropriate, acquisition of 

11 daily living skills and functional vocational 

12 evaluation. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 603. OFFICE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS. 

14 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There shall be, within the Of15 fice of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services in the 

16 Department of Education, an Office of Special Education 

17 Programs, which shall be the principal agency in such De18 partment for administering and carrying out this Act and 

19 other programs and activities concerning the education of 

20 children with disabilities. 

21 ‘‘(b) DIRECTOR.—The Office established under sub22 section (a) shall be headed by a Director who shall be se23 lected by the Secretary and shall report directly to the As24 sistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 

25 Services. 
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1 ‘‘(c) VOLUNTARY AND UNCOMPENSATED SERVICES.—

2 Notwithstanding section 1342 of title 31, United States 

3 Code, the Secretary is authorized to accept voluntary and 

4 uncompensated services in furtherance of the purposes of 

5 this Act.’’. 

6 SEC. 102. SECTIONS 605 THROUGH 607 OF THE INDIVIDUALS 

7 WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. 

8 Sections 605 through 607 of the Individuals with Dis9 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1404–1406) are amend10 ed to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 605. ACQUISITION OF EQUIPMENT; CONSTRUCTION 

12 OR ALTERATION OF FACILITIES. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary determines that 

14 a program authorized under this Act would be improved 

15 by permitting program funds to be used to acquire appro16 priate equipment, or to construct new facilities or alter ex17 isting facilities, the Secretary is authorized to allow the use 

18 of those funds for those purposes. 

19 ‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE WITH CERTAIN REGULATIONS.—

20 Any construction of new facilities or alteration of existing 

21 facilities under subsection (a) shall comply with the require22 ments of—

23 ‘‘(1) appendix A of part 36 of title 28, Code of 

24 Federal Regulations (commonly known as the ‘Ameri-
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1 cans with Disabilities Accessibility Guidelines for 

2 Buildings and Facilities’); or 

3 ‘‘(2) appendix A of part 101–19.6 of title 41, 

4 Code of Federal Regulations (commonly known as the 

5 ‘Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards’). 

6 ‘‘SEC. 606. EMPLOYMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABIL7 ITIES. 

8 ‘‘The Secretary shall ensure that each recipient of as9 sistance under this Act makes positive efforts to employ and 

10 advance in employment qualified individuals with disabil11 ities, particularly as teachers, related services personnel, 

12 early intervention providers, and administrators, in pro13 grams assisted under this Act. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 607. REQUIREMENTS FOR PRESCRIBING REGULA15 TIONS. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may issue regula17 tions under this Act only to the extent that such regulations 

18 are reasonably necessary to ensure that there is compliance 

19 with the specific requirements of this Act. 

20 ‘‘(b) PROTECTIONS PROVIDED TO CHILDREN.—The 

21 Secretary may not implement, or publish in final form, any 

22 regulation prescribed pursuant to this Act that would—

23 ‘‘(1) violate or contradict any provision of this 

24 Act; and 
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1 ‘‘(2) procedurally or substantively lessen the pro2 tections provided to children with disabilities under 

3 this Act, as embodied in regulations in effect on July 

4 20, 1983 (particularly as such protections relate to 

5 parental consent to initial evaluation or initial place6 ment in special education, least restrictive environ7 ment, related services, timelines, attendance of evalua8 tion personnel at individualized education program 

9 meetings, or qualifications of personnel), except to the 

10 extent that such regulation reflects the clear and un11 equivocal intent of the Congress in legislation. 

12 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.—The Secretary shall 

13 provide a public comment period of at least 60 days on 

14 any regulation proposed under part B or part C of this 

15 Act on which an opportunity for public comment is other16 wise required by law. 

17 ‘‘(d) POLICY LETTERS AND STATEMENTS.—The Sec18 retary may not issue policy letters or other statements (in19 cluding on issues of national significance) that—

20 ‘‘(1) would violate or contradict any provision of 

21 this Act; or 

22 ‘‘(2) establish a rule that is required for compli23 ance with, and eligibility under, this Act without fol24 lowing the requirements of section 553 of title 5, 

25 United States Code. 
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1 ‘‘(e) CORRESPONDENCE FROM DEPARTMENT OF EDU2 CATION DESCRIBING INTERPRETATIONS OF THIS PART.—

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, on a 

4 quarterly basis, publish in the Federal Register, and 

5 widely disseminate to interested entities through var6 ious additional forms of communication, a list of cor7 respondence from the Department of Education re8 ceived by individuals during the previous quarter 

9 that describes the interpretations of the Department of 

10 Education of this Act or the regulations implemented 

11 pursuant to this Act. 

12 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—For each item 

13 of correspondence published in a list under paragraph 

14 (1), the Secretary shall—

15 ‘‘(A) identify the topic addressed by the cor16 respondence and shall include such other sum17 mary information as the Secretary determines to 

18 be appropriate; and 

19 ‘‘(B) ensure that all such correspondence is 

20 issued, where applicable, in compliance with sec21 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code. 

22 ‘‘(f) EXPLANATION AND ASSURANCES.—Any written 

23 response by the Secretary under subsection (e) regarding a 

24 policy, question, or interpretation under this Act shall in-
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1 clude an explanation in the written response that the re2 sponse—

3 ‘‘(1) is issued, when required, in compliance 

4 with the requirements of section 553 of title 5, United 

5 States Code; and 

6 ‘‘(2) is provided as informal guidance and rep7 resents only the interpretation by the Department of 

8 Education of the applicable statutory or regulatory 

9 requirements in the context of the specific facts pre10 sented in the original question.’’. 

11 SEC. 103. SECTION 608 OF THE INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABIL12 ITIES EDUCATION ACT. 

13 Part A of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

14 Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 

15 end the following:

16 ‘‘SEC. 608. STATE ADMINISTRATION. 

17 ‘‘(a) RULEMAKING.—Each State that receives funds 

18 under this Act shall—

19 ‘‘(1) ensure that any State rules, regulations, 

20 and policies relating to this Act conform to the pur21 poses of this Act; and 

22 ‘‘(2) minimize the number of rules, regulations, 

23 and policies to which the State’s local educational 

24 agencies and schools are subject to under this Act. 
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1 ‘‘(b) SUPPORT AND FACILITATION.—All State rules, 

2 regulations, and policies relating to this Act shall support 

3 and facilitate local educational agency and school-level sys4 temic reform designed to enable children with disabilities 

5 to meet the challenging State student academic achievement 

6 standards.’’. 

7 SEC. 104. GAO REVIEW; REPORT. 

8 (a) REVIEW.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

9 a review of all Federal requirements under the Individuals 

10 with Disabilities Education Act, and the requirements of 

11 a reasonable sample of State and local educational agencies 

12 relating to such Act, to determine which requirements result 

13 in excessive paperwork completion burdens for teachers, re14 lated services providers, and school administrators. 

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

16 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

17 prepare and submit to Congress a report that contains the 

18 results of the review under subsection (a).

19 SEC. 105. GAO REVIEW OF CERTAIN STATE DEFINITIONS 

20 AND EVALUATION PROCESSES. 

21 (a) REVIEW.—The Comptroller General of the United 

22 States shall conduct a review of—

23 (1) variation among States in definitions, and 

24 evaluation processes, relating to the provision of serv25 ices under the Individuals with Disabilities Edu-
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1 cation Act to children having conditions described in 

2 section 602(a)(3) of such Act using the terms ‘‘emo3 tional disturbance’’, ‘‘other health impairments’’, and 

4 ‘‘specific learning disability’’; and 

5 (2) the degree to which these definitions and 

6 evaluation processes conform to scientific, peer-re7 viewed research. 

8 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

9 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

10 prepare and submit to Congress a report that contains the 

11 results of the review under subsection (a). 

12 SEC. 106. ADDITIONAL GAO STUDY AND REPORT. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

14 United States shall conduct a study on existing or devel15 oping professional development programs for special edu16 cation personnel delivered through the use of technology and 

17 distance learning. 

18 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

20 United States shall submit a report containing the findings 

21 from the study conducted under subsection (a) to the Com22 mittee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Rep23 resentatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 

24 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 
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1 SEC. 107. STUDY ON LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT STU2 DENTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

4 United States shall conduct a study on how limited English 

5 proficient students are being served under the Individuals 

6 with Disabilities Education Act. 

7 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

8 of the enactment of the Improving Education Results for 

9 Children With Disabilities Act of 2003, the Comptroller 

10 General of the United States shall submit a report con11 taining the findings from the study conducted under sub12 section (a) to the Committee on Education and the Work13 force of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

14 on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 

15 TITLE II—ASSISTANCE FOR EDU16 CATION OF ALL CHILDREN 

17 WITH DISABILITIES 

18 SEC. 201. AUTHORIZATION; ALLOTMENT; USE OF FUNDS; 

19 AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 Section 611 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu21 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1411) is amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 611. AUTHORIZATION; ALLOTMENT; USE OF FUNDS; 

23 AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 ‘‘(a) GRANTS TO STATES.—

25 ‘‘(1) PURPOSE OF GRANTS.—The Secretary shall 

26 make grants to States and the outlying areas, and 
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1 provide funds to the Secretary of the Interior, to as2 sist them to provide special education and related 

3 services to children with disabilities in accordance 

4 with this part.

5 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM AMOUNTS.—The maximum 

6 amount of the grant a State may receive under this 

7 section for any fiscal year is—

8 ‘‘(A) the number of children with disabil9 ities in the State who are receiving special edu10 cation and related services—

11 ‘‘(i) aged 3 through 5 if the State is el12 igible for a grant under section 619; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) aged 6 through 21; multiplied by 

14 ‘‘(B) 40 percent of the average per-pupil ex15 penditure in public elementary and secondary 

16 schools in the United States. 

17 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subpara18 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2), the maximum 

19 amount of the grant a State may receive under this 

20 section for a fiscal year may not be based on the 

21 number of children ages 3 through 17, inclusive, in 

22 excess of 13.5 percent of the number of all children in 

23 that age range in the State. 

24 ‘‘(b) OUTLYING AREAS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) FUNDS RESERVED.—From the amount ap2 propriated for any fiscal year under subsection (i), 

3 the Secretary shall reserve not more than one percent, 

4 which shall be used to provide assistance to the out5 lying areas in accordance with their respective popu6 lations of individuals aged 3 through 21. 

7 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—The provisions of Public 

8 Law 95–134, permitting the consolidation of grants 

9 by the outlying areas, shall not apply to funds pro10 vided to those areas under this section. 

11 ‘‘(c) SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR.—From the 

12 amount appropriated for any fiscal year under subsection 

13 (i), the Secretary shall reserve 1.226 percent to provide as14 sistance to the Secretary of the Interior in accordance with 

15 subsection (h). 

16 ‘‘(d) ALLOCATIONS TO STATES.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—After reserving funds for 

18 payments to the outlying areas and the Secretary of 

19 the Interior under subsections (b) and (c), the Sec20 retary shall allocate the remaining amount among the 

21 States in accordance with this subsection. 

22 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR USE OF FISCAL YEAR

23 1999 AMOUNT.—If a State does not make a free appro24 priate public education available to all children with 

25 disabilities aged 3 through 5 in the State in any fis-
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1 cal year, the Secretary shall compute the State’s 

2 amount for fiscal year 1999, solely for the purpose of 

3 calculating the State’s allocation in the subsequent 

4 year under paragraph (3) or (4), by subtracting the 

5 amount allocated to the State for fiscal year 1999 on 

6 the basis of those children. 

7 ‘‘(3) INCREASE IN FUNDS.—If the amount avail8 able for allocations to States under paragraph (1) is 

9 greater than the amount allocated to the States under 

10 this paragraph for the preceding fiscal year, those al11 locations shall be calculated as follows: 

12 ‘‘(A)(i) Except as provided in subparagraph 

13 (B), the Secretary shall allocate—

14 ‘‘(I) to each State the amount it re15 ceived for fiscal year 1999; 

16 ‘‘(II) 85 percent of any remaining 

17 funds to States on the basis of their relative 

18 populations of children aged 3 through 21 

19 who are of the same age as children with 

20 disabilities for whom the State ensures the 

21 availability of a free appropriate public 

22 education under this part; and 

23 ‘‘(III) 15 percent of those remaining 

24 funds to States on the basis of their relative 
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1 populations of children described in sub2 clause (II) who are living in poverty. 

3 ‘‘(ii) For the purpose of making grants 

4 under this paragraph, the Secretary shall use the 

5 most recent population data, including data on 

6 children living in poverty, that are available and 

7 satisfactory to the Secretary. 

8 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), 

9 allocations under this paragraph shall be subject 

10 to the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) No State’s allocation shall be less 

12 than its allocation for the preceding fiscal 

13 year. 

14 ‘‘(ii) No State’s allocation shall be less 

15 than the greatest of—

16 ‘‘(I) the sum of—

17 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

18 for fiscal year 1999; and 

19 ‘‘(bb) one-third of one percent 

20 of the amount by which the 

21 amount appropriated under sub22 section (i) exceeds the amount ap23 propriated under this section for 

24 fiscal year 1999; 

25 ‘‘(II) the sum of—
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1 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

2 for the preceding fiscal year; and 

3 ‘‘(bb) that amount multiplied 

4 by the percentage by which the in5 crease in the funds appropriated 

6 from the preceding fiscal year ex7 ceeds 1.5 percent; or 

8 ‘‘(III) the sum of—

9 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

10 for the preceding fiscal year; and 

11 ‘‘(bb) that amount multiplied 

12 by 90 percent of the percentage 

13 increase in the amount appro14 priated from the preceding fiscal 

15 year. 

16 ‘‘(iii) Notwithstanding clause (ii), no 

17 State’s allocation under this paragraph 

18 shall exceed the sum of—

19 ‘‘(I) the amount it received for the 

20 preceding fiscal year; and 

21 ‘‘(II) that amount multiplied by 

22 the sum of 1.5 percent and the percent23 age increase in the amount appro24 priated. 
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1 ‘‘(C) If the amount available for allocations 

2 under this paragraph is insufficient to pay those 

3 allocations in full, those allocations shall be rat4 ably reduced, subject to subparagraph (B)(i). 

5 ‘‘(4) DECREASE IN FUNDS.—If the amount avail6 able for allocations to States under paragraph (1) is 

7 less than the amount allocated to the States under 

8 this section for the preceding fiscal year, those alloca9 tions shall be calculated as follows: 

10 ‘‘(A) If the amount available for allocations 

11 is greater than the amount allocated to the 

12 States for fiscal year 1999, each State shall be 

13 allocated the sum of—

14 ‘‘(i) the amount it received for fiscal 

15 year 1999; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) an amount that bears the same 

17 relation to any remaining funds as the in18 crease the State received for the preceding 

19 fiscal year over fiscal year 1999 bears to the 

20 total of all such increases for all States. 

21 ‘‘(B)(i) If the amount available for alloca22 tions is equal to or less than the amount allo23 cated to the States for fiscal year 1999, each 

24 State shall be allocated the amount it received 

25 for fiscal year 1999. 
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1 ‘‘(ii) If the amount available is insufficient 

2 to make the allocations described in clause (i), 

3 those allocations shall be ratably reduced. 

4 ‘‘(e) STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

6 ‘‘(A) Each State may retain not more than 

7 the amount described in subparagraph (B) for 

8 administration and other State-level activities in 

9 accordance with paragraphs (2), (3), and (4). 

10 ‘‘(B) For each fiscal year, the Secretary 

11 shall determine and report to the State edu12 cational agency an amount that is 25 percent of 

13 the amount the State received under this section 

14 for fiscal year 1997, cumulatively adjusted by 

15 the Secretary for each succeeding fiscal year by 

16 the lesser of—

17 ‘‘(i) the percentage increase, if any, 

18 from the preceding fiscal year in the State’s 

19 allocation under this section; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) the rate of inflation, as measured 

21 by the percentage increase, if any, from the 

22 preceding fiscal year in the Consumer Price 

23 Index For All Urban Consumers, published 

24 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the De25 partment of Labor. 
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1 ‘‘(C) A State may use funds it retains 

2 under subparagraph (A) without regard to—

3 ‘‘(i) the prohibition on commingling of 

4 funds in section 612(a)(18)(B); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the prohibition on supplanting 

6 other funds in section 612(a)(18)(C). 

7 ‘‘(2) STATE ADMINISTRATION.—

8 ‘‘(A) For the purpose of administering this 

9 part, including section 619 (including the co10 ordination of activities under this part with, 

11 and providing technical assistance to, other pro12 grams that provide services to children with dis13 abilities)—

14 ‘‘(i) each State may use not more than 

15 20 percent of the maximum amount it may 

16 retain under paragraph (1)(A) for any fis17 cal year or $500,000 (adjusted by the cumu18 lative rate of inflation since fiscal year 

19 1998, as measured by the percentage in20 crease, if any, in the Consumer Price Index 

21 For All Urban Consumers, published by the 

22 Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Depart23 ment of Labor), whichever is greater; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) each outlying area may use up to 

25 5 percent of the amount it receives under 
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1 this section for any fiscal year or $35,000 

2 (adjusted by the cumulative rate of inflation 

3 since fiscal year 1998, as measured by the 

4 percentage increase, if any, in the Con5 sumer Price Index For All Urban Con6 sumers, published by the Bureau of Labor 

7 Statistics of the Department of Labor), 

8 whichever is greater. 

9 ‘‘(B) Funds described in subparagraph (A) 

10 may also be used for the administration of part 

11 C of this Act, if the State educational agency is 

12 the lead agency for the State under that part.

13 ‘‘(3) HIGH COST SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RE14 LATED SERVICES.—Each State may use not more 

15 than 4 percent of the maximum amount it may re16 tain under paragraph (1)(A) for any fiscal year to es17 tablish and implement cost or risk sharing funds, 

18 consortia, or cooperatives to assist local educational 

19 agencies in providing high cost special education and 

20 related services. 

21 ‘‘(4) OTHER STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—Each 

22 State shall use any funds it retains under paragraph 

23 (1) and does not use under paragraph (2) or (3) for 

24 any of the following: 
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1 ‘‘(A) Support and direct services, including 

2 technical assistance and personnel development 

3 and training. 

4 ‘‘(B) Administrative costs of monitoring 

5 and complaint investigation. 

6 ‘‘(C) To establish and implement the medi7 ation and voluntary binding arbitration proc8 esses required by sections 612(a)(17) and 615(e), 

9 including providing for the costs of mediators, 

10 arbitrators, and support personnel. 

11 ‘‘(D) To assist local educational agencies in 

12 meeting personnel shortages. 

13 ‘‘(E) Activities at the State and local levels 

14 to meet the performance goals established by the 

15 State under section 612(a)(15) and to support 

16 implementation of the State plan under subpart 

17 1 of part D if the State receives funds under that 

18 subpart. 

19 ‘‘(F) To support paperwork reduction ac20 tivities, including expanding the appropriate use 

21 of technology in the IEP process under this part. 

22 ‘‘(G) To develop and maintain a com23 prehensive, coordinated, prereferral educational 

24 support system for students in kindergarten 

25 through grade 12 (with a particular emphasis on 
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1 students in kindergarten through grade 3) who 

2 are not enrolled in special education but who 

3 need additional academic and behavioral sup4 port to succeed in a general education environ5 ment. 

6 ‘‘(H) To support capacity building activi7 ties and improve the delivery of services by local 

8 educational agencies to improve results for chil9 dren with disabilities. 

10 ‘‘(I) For subgrants to local educational 

11 agencies for the purposes described in paragraph 

12 (5)(A). 

13 ‘‘(5)(A) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL

14 AGENCIES FOR ACCOUNTABILITY.—In any fiscal year 

15 in which the percentage increase in the State’s alloca16 tion under this section exceeds the rate of inflation (as 

17 measured by the percentage increase, if any, from the 

18 preceding fiscal year in the Consumer Price Index 

19 For All Urban Consumers, published by the Bureau 

20 of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor), each 

21 State shall reserve, from its allocation under this sec22 tion, the amount described in subparagraph (B) to 

23 make subgrants to local educational agencies, unless 

24 that amount is less than $100,000, to provide tech25 nical assistance and direct services to local edu-
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1 cational agencies identified as being in need of im2 provement under section 1116 of the Elementary and 

3 Secondary Education Act of 1965 on the basis, in 

4 whole or in part, of the assessment results of the 

5 disaggregated subgroup of students with disabilities, 

6 including providing professional development to spe7 cial and regular education teachers, based on scientif8 ically based research to improve educational instruc9 tion. 

10 ‘‘(B) MAXIMUM SUBGRANT.—For each fiscal 

11 year, the amount referred to in subparagraph (A) 

12 is—

13 ‘‘(i) the maximum amount the State was al14 lowed to retain under paragraph (1)(A) for the 

15 prior fiscal year, or for fiscal year 1998, 25 per16 cent of the State’s allocation for fiscal year 1997 

17 under this section; multiplied by 

18 ‘‘(ii) the difference between the percentage 

19 increase in the State’s allocation under this sec20 tion and the rate of inflation, as measured by 

21 the percentage increase, if any, from the pre22 ceding fiscal year in the Consumer Price Index 

23 For All Urban Consumers, published by the Bu24 reau of Labor Statistics of the Department of 

25 Labor. 
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1 ‘‘(6) REPORT ON USE OF FUNDS.—As part of the 

2 information required to be submitted to the Secretary 

3 under section 612, each State shall annually de4 scribe—

5 ‘‘(A) how amounts retained under para6 graph (1) will be used to meet the requirements 

7 of this part; 

8 ‘‘(B) how those amounts will be allocated 

9 among the activities described in this subsection 

10 to meet State priorities based on input from 

11 local educational agencies; and 

12 ‘‘(C) the percentage of those amounts, if 

13 any, that will be distributed to local educational 

14 agencies by formula. 

15 ‘‘(f) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN16 CIES.—

17 ‘‘(1) SUBGRANTS REQUIRED.—Each State that 

18 receives a grant under this section for any fiscal year 

19 shall distribute any funds it does not retain under 

20 subsection (e) to local educational agencies, including 

21 public charter schools that operate as local edu22 cational agencies, in the State that have established 

23 their eligibility under section 613, for use in accord24 ance with this part. 
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1 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE FOR ALLOCATIONS TO LOCAL

2 EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—For each fiscal year for 

3 which funds are allocated to States under subsection 

4 (e), each State shall allocate funds under paragraph 

5 (1) as follows: 

6 ‘‘(A) BASE PAYMENTS.—The State shall 

7 first award each agency described in paragraph 

8 (1) the amount that agency would have received 

9 under this section for fiscal year 1999, if the 

10 State had distributed 75 percent of its grant for 

11 that year under section 611(d), as then in effect. 

12 ‘‘(B) ALLOCATION OF REMAINING FUNDS.—

13 After making allocations under subparagraph 

14 (A), the State shall—

15 ‘‘(i) allocate 85 percent of any remain16 ing funds to those agencies on the basis of 

17 the relative numbers of children enrolled in 

18 public and private elementary and sec19 ondary schools within the agency’s jurisdic20 tion; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) allocate 15 percent of those re22 maining funds to those agencies in accord23 ance with their relative numbers of children 

24 living in poverty, as determined by the 

25 State educational agency. 
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1 ‘‘(3) REALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—If a State edu2 cational agency determines that a local educational 

3 agency is adequately providing a free appropriate 

4 public education to all children with disabilities re5 siding in the area served by that agency with State 

6 and local funds, the State educational agency may re7 allocate any portion of the funds under this part that 

8 are not needed by that local agency to provide a free 

9 appropriate public education to other local edu10 cational agencies in the State that are not adequately 

11 providing special education and related services to all 

12 children with disabilities residing in the areas they 

13 serve. 

14 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this section—

15 ‘‘(1) the term ‘average per-pupil expenditure in 

16 public elementary and secondary schools in the 

17 United States’ means—

18 ‘‘(A) without regard to the source of 

19 funds—

20 ‘‘(i) the aggregate current expenditures, 

21 during the second fiscal year preceding the 

22 fiscal year for which the determination is 

23 made (or, if satisfactory data for that year 

24 are not available, during the most recent 

25 preceding fiscal year for which satisfactory 
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1 data are available) of all local educational 

2 agencies in the 50 States and the District of 

3 Columbia); plus 

4 ‘‘(ii) any direct expenditures by the 

5 State for the operation of those agencies; di6 vided by 

7 ‘‘(B) the aggregate number of children in 

8 average daily attendance to whom those agencies 

9 provided free public education during that pre10 ceding year; and 

11 ‘‘(2) the term ‘State’ means each of the 50 States, 

12 the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of 

13 Puerto Rico. 

14 ‘‘(h) USE OF AMOUNTS BY SECRETARY OF THE INTE15 RIOR.—

16 ‘‘(1) PROVISION OF AMOUNTS FOR ASSIST17 ANCE.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Edu19 cation shall provide amounts to the Secretary of 

20 the Interior to meet the need for assistance for 

21 the education of children with disabilities on res22 ervations aged 5 to 21, inclusive, enrolled in ele23 mentary and secondary schools for Indian chil24 dren operated or funded by the Secretary of the 

25 Interior. The amount of such payment for any 
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1 fiscal year shall be equal to 80 percent of the 

2 amount allotted under subsection (c) for that fis3 cal year. Of the amount described in the pre4 ceding sentence—

5 ‘‘(i) 80 percent shall be allocated to 

6 such schools by July 1 of that fiscal year; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) 20 percent shall be allocated to 

9 such schools by September 30 of that fiscal 

10 year. 

11 ‘‘(B) CALCULATION OF NUMBER OF CHIL12 DREN.—In the case of Indian students aged 3 to 

13 5, inclusive, who are enrolled in programs affili14 ated with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (hereafter 

15 in this subsection referred to as ‘BIA’) schools 

16 and that are required by the States in which 

17 such schools are located to attain or maintain 

18 State accreditation, and which schools have such 

19 accreditation prior to the date of enactment of 

20 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

21 Amendments of 1991, the school shall be allowed 

22 to count those children for the purpose of dis23 tribution of the funds provided under this para24 graph to the Secretary of the Interior. The Sec25 retary of the Interior shall be responsible for 
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1 meeting all of the requirements of this part for 

2 these children, in accordance with paragraph 

3 (2). 

4 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—With re5 spect to all other children aged 3 to 21, inclusive, 

6 on reservations, the State educational agency 

7 shall be responsible for ensuring that all of the 

8 requirements of this part are implemented. 

9 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—The Sec10 retary of Education may provide the Secretary of the 

11 Interior amounts under paragraph (1) for a fiscal 

12 year only if the Secretary of the Interior submits to 

13 the Secretary of Education information that—

14 ‘‘(A) demonstrates that the Department of 

15 the Interior meets the appropriate requirements, 

16 as determined by the Secretary of Education, of 

17 sections 612 (including monitoring and evalua18 tion activities) and 613; 

19 ‘‘(B) includes a description of how the Sec20 retary of the Interior will coordinate the provi21 sion of services under this part with local edu22 cational agencies, tribes and tribal organiza23 tions, and other private and Federal service pro24 viders; 
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1 ‘‘(C) includes an assurance that there are 

2 public hearings, adequate notice of such hear3 ings, and an opportunity for comment afforded 

4 to members of tribes, tribal governing bodies, and 

5 affected local school boards before the adoption of 

6 the policies, programs, and procedures described 

7 in subparagraph (A); 

8 ‘‘(D) includes an assurance that the Sec9 retary of the Interior will provide such informa10 tion as the Secretary of Education may require 

11 to comply with section 618; 

12 ‘‘(E) includes an assurance that the Sec13 retary of the Interior and the Secretary of 

14 Health and Human Services have entered into a 

15 memorandum of agreement, to be provided to the 

16 Secretary of Education, for the coordination of 

17 services, resources, and personnel between their 

18 respective Federal, State, and local offices and 

19 with State and local educational agencies and 

20 other entities to facilitate the provision of serv21 ices to Indian children with disabilities residing 

22 on or near reservations (such agreement shall 

23 provide for the apportionment of responsibilities 

24 and costs including, but not limited to, child 

25 find, evaluation, diagnosis, remediation or thera-
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1 peutic measures, and (where appropriate) equip2 ment and medical or personal supplies as needed 

3 for a child to remain in school or a program); 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(F) includes an assurance that the Depart6 ment of the Interior will cooperate with the De7 partment of Education in its exercise of moni8 toring, enforcement, and oversight of this appli9 cation, and any agreements entered into between 

10 the Secretary of the Interior and other entities 

11 under this part, and will fulfill its duties under 

12 this part. 

13 Section 616(a) shall apply to the information de14 scribed in this paragraph. 

15 ‘‘(3) PAYMENTS FOR EDUCATION AND SERVICES

16 FOR INDIAN CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES AGED 3

17 THROUGH 5.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—With funds appro19 priated under subsection (i), the Secretary of 

20 Education shall make payments to the Secretary 

21 of the Interior to be distributed to tribes or tribal 

22 organizations (as defined under section 4 of the 

23 Indian Self-Determination and Education As24 sistance Act) or consortia of the above to provide 

25 for the coordination of assistance for special edu-
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1 cation and related services for children with dis2 abilities aged 3 through 5 on reservations served 

3 by elementary and secondary schools for Indian 

4 children operated or funded by the Department 

5 of the Interior. The amount of such payments 

6 under subparagraph (B) for any fiscal year shall 

7 be equal to 20 percent of the amount allotted 

8 under subsection (c). 

9 ‘‘(B) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—The Sec10 retary of the Interior shall distribute the total 

11 amount of the payment under subparagraph (A) 

12 by allocating to each tribe or tribal organization 

13 an amount based on the number of children with 

14 disabilities ages 3 through 5 residing on reserva15 tions as reported annually, divided by the total 

16 of those children served by all tribes or tribal or17 ganizations. 

18 ‘‘(C) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—To re19 ceive a payment under this paragraph, the tribe 

20 or tribal organization shall submit such figures 

21 to the Secretary of the Interior as required to de22 termine the amounts to be allocated under sub23 paragraph (B). This information shall be com24 piled and submitted to the Secretary of Edu25 cation. 
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1 ‘‘(D) USE OF FUNDS.—The funds received 

2 by a tribe or tribal organization shall be used to 

3 assist in child find, screening, and other proce4 dures for the early identification of children aged 

5 3 through 5, parent training, and the provision 

6 of direct services. These activities may be carried 

7 out directly or through contracts or cooperative 

8 agreements with the BIA, local educational agen9 cies, and other public or private nonprofit orga10 nizations. The tribe or tribal organization is en11 couraged to involve Indian parents in the devel12 opment and implementation of these activities. 

13 The above entities shall, as appropriate, make re14 ferrals to local, State, or Federal entities for the 

15 provision of services or further diagnosis. 

16 ‘‘(E) ANNUAL REPORT.—To be eligible to re17 ceive a grant pursuant to subparagraph (A), the 

18 tribe or tribal organization shall provide to the 

19 Secretary of the Interior an annual report of ac20 tivities undertaken under this paragraph, in21 cluding the number of contracts and cooperative 

22 agreements entered into, the number of children 

23 contacted and receiving services for each year, 

24 and the estimated number of children needing 

25 services during the year following the one in 
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1 which the report is made. The Secretary of the 

2 Interior shall include a summary of this infor3 mation on an annual basis in the report to the 

4 Secretary of Education required under this sub5 section. The Secretary of Education may require 

6 any additional information from the Secretary 

7 of the Interior. 

8 ‘‘(F) PROHIBITIONS.—None of the funds al9 located under this paragraph may be used by the 

10 Secretary of the Interior for administrative pur11 poses, including child count and the provision of 

12 technical assistance. 

13 ‘‘(4) PLAN FOR COORDINATION OF SERVICES.—

14 The Secretary of the Interior shall develop and imple15 ment a plan for the coordination of services for all 

16 Indian children with disabilities residing on reserva17 tions covered under this Act. Such plan shall provide 

18 for the coordination of services benefiting these chil19 dren from whatever source, including tribes, the In20 dian Health Service, other BIA divisions, and other 

21 Federal agencies. In developing the plan, the Sec22 retary of the Interior shall consult with all interested 

23 and involved parties. It shall be based on the needs 

24 of the children and the system best suited for meeting 

25 those needs, and may involve the establishment of co-
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1 operative agreements between the BIA, other Federal 

2 agencies, and other entities. The plan shall also be 

3 distributed upon request to States, State and local 

4 educational agencies, and other agencies providing 

5 services to infants, toddlers, and children with dis6 abilities, to tribes, and to other interested parties. 

7 ‘‘(5) ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY BOARD.—To 

8 meet the requirements of section 612(a)(22), the Sec9 retary of the Interior shall establish, under the BIA, 

10 an advisory board composed of individuals involved 

11 in or concerned with the education and provision of 

12 services to Indian infants, toddlers, children, and 

13 youth with disabilities, including Indians with dis14 abilities, Indian parents or guardians of such chil15 dren, teachers, service providers, State and local edu16 cational officials, representatives of tribes or tribal or17 ganizations, representatives from State Interagency 

18 Coordinating Councils under section 641 in States 

19 having reservations, and other members representing 

20 the various divisions and entities of the BIA. The 

21 chairperson shall be selected by the Secretary of the 

22 Interior. The advisory board shall—

23 ‘‘(A) assist in the coordination of services 

24 within the BIA and with other local, State, and 

25 Federal agencies in the provision of education 
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1 for infants, toddlers, and children with disabil2 ities; 

3 ‘‘(B) advise and assist the Secretary of the 

4 Interior in the performance of the Secretary’s re5 sponsibilities described in this subsection; 

6 ‘‘(C) develop and recommend policies con7 cerning effective inter- and intra-agency collabo8 ration, including modifications to regulations, 

9 and the elimination of barriers to inter- and 

10 intra-agency programs and activities; 

11 ‘‘(D) provide assistance and disseminate in12 formation on best practices, effective program co13 ordination strategies, and recommendations for 

14 improved educational programming for Indian 

15 infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(E) provide assistance in the preparation 

18 of information required under paragraph (2)(D). 

19 ‘‘(6) ANNUAL REPORTS.—

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The advisory board es21 tablished under paragraph (5) shall prepare and 

22 submit to the Secretary of the Interior and to the 

23 Congress an annual report containing a descrip24 tion of the activities of the advisory board for the 

25 preceding year. 
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1 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of the 

2 Interior shall make available to the Secretary of 

3 Education the report described in subparagraph 

4 (A). 

5 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the 

6 purpose of carrying out this part, other than section 619, 

7 there are authorized to be appropriated—

8 ‘‘(1) $11,074,398,000 for fiscal year 2004; 

9 ‘‘(2) $13,374,398,000 for fiscal year 2005; 

10 ‘‘(3) $15,746,302,000 for fiscal year 2006; 

11 ‘‘(4) $17,918,205,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

12 ‘‘(5) $20,090,109,000 for fiscal year 2008; 

13 ‘‘(6) $22,262,307,000 for fiscal year 2009; 

14 ‘‘(7) $25,198,603,000 for fiscal year 2010; and 

15 ‘‘(8) such sums as may be necessary for fiscal 

16 year 2011 and each subsequent fiscal year.’’. 

17 SEC. 202. STATE ELIGIBILITY. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Section 612(a) of the Individ19 uals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)) 

20 is amended in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by strik21 ing ‘‘demonstrates to the satisfaction of’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘reasonably demonstrates to’’. 

23 (2) Paragraphs (1) through (11) of section 612(a) of 

24 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

25 1412(a)(1)–(11)) are amended to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(1) FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION.—

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A free appropriate pub3 lic education is available to all children with 

4 disabilities residing in the State between the ages 

5 of 3 and 21, inclusive, including children with 

6 disabilities who have been suspended or expelled 

7 from school. 

8 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The obligation to make 

9 a free appropriate public education available to 

10 all children with disabilities does not apply with 

11 respect to children—

12 ‘‘(i) aged 3 through 5 and 18 through 

13 21 in a State to the extent that its applica14 tion to those children would be inconsistent 

15 with State law or practice, or the order of 

16 any court, respecting the provision of public 

17 education to children in those age ranges; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(ii) aged 18 through 21 to the extent 

20 that State law does not require that special 

21 education and related services under this 

22 part be provided to children with disabil23 ities who, in the educational placement 

24 prior to their incarceration in an adult cor25 rectional facility—
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1 ‘‘(I) were not actually identified 

2 as being a child with a disability 

3 under section 602(3) of this Act; or 

4 ‘‘(II) did not have an individual5 ized education program under this 

6 part. 

7 ‘‘(2) FULL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY GOAL.—

8 The State has established a goal of providing full edu9 cational opportunity to all children with disabilities 

10 and a detailed timetable for accomplishing that goal. 

11 ‘‘(3) CHILD FIND.—

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—All children with dis13 abilities residing in the State, including children 

14 with disabilities attending private schools, re15 gardless of the severity of their disabilities, and 

16 who are in need of special education and related 

17 services, are identified, located, and evaluated 

18 and a practical method is developed and imple19 mented to determine which children with disabil20 ities are currently receiving needed special edu21 cation and related services. 

22 ‘‘(B) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

23 requires that children be classified by their dis24 ability so long as each child who has a disability 

25 listed in section 602 and who, by reason of that 
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1 disability, needs special education and related 

2 services is regarded as a child with a disability 

3 under this part. 

4 ‘‘(4) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM.—

5 An individualized education program, or an individ6 ualized family service plan that meets the require7 ments of section 636(d), is developed, reviewed, and 

8 revised for each child with a disability in accordance 

9 with section 614(d). 

10 ‘‘(5) LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum ex12 tent appropriate, children with disabilities, in13 cluding children in public or private institutions 

14 or other care facilities, are educated with chil15 dren who are not disabled, and special classes, 

16 separate schooling, or other removal of children 

17 with disabilities from the regular educational en18 vironment occurs only when the nature or sever19 ity of the disability of a child is such that edu20 cation in regular classes with the use of supple21 mentary aids and services cannot be achieved 

22 satisfactorily. 

23 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If the State uses a 

25 funding mechanism by which the State dis-
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1 tributes State funds on the basis of the type 

2 of setting in which a child is served, the 

3 funding mechanism does not result in place4 ments that violate the requirements of sub5 paragraph (A). 

6 ‘‘(ii) ASSURANCE.—If the State does 

7 not have policies and procedures to ensure 

8 compliance with clause (i), the State shall 

9 provide the Secretary an assurance that it 

10 will revise the funding mechanism as soon 

11 as feasible to ensure that such mechanism 

12 does not result in such placements. 

13 ‘‘(6) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Children with disabil15 ities and their parents are afforded the proce16 dural safeguards required by section 615. 

17 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL PROCEDURAL SAFE18 GUARDS.—Procedures to ensure that testing and 

19 evaluation materials and procedures utilized for 

20 the purposes of evaluation and placement of chil21 dren with disabilities for services under this Act 

22 will be selected and administered so as not to be 

23 racially or culturally discriminatory. Such ma24 terials or procedures shall be provided and ad25 ministered in the child’s native language or 
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1 mode of communication, unless it clearly is not 

2 feasible to do so, and no single procedure shall 

3 be the sole criterion for determining an appro4 priate educational program for a child. 

5 ‘‘(7) EVALUATION.—Children with disabilities 

6 are evaluated in accordance with subsections (a) 

7 through (c) of section 614. 

8 ‘‘(8) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Agencies in the State 

9 comply with section 617(d) (relating to the confiden10 tiality of records and information). 

11 ‘‘(9) TRANSITION FROM PART C TO PRESCHOOL

12 PROGRAMS.—Children participating in early inter13 vention programs assisted under part C, and who will 

14 participate in preschool programs assisted under this 

15 part, experience a smooth and effective transition to 

16 those preschool programs in a manner consistent with 

17 section 637(a)(8). By the third birthday of such a 

18 child, an individualized education program or, if con19 sistent with section 636(d), an individualized family 

20 service plan, has been developed and is being imple21 mented for the child. The local educational agency 

22 will participate in transition planning conferences 

23 arranged by the designated lead agency under section 

24 637(a)(8). 

25 ‘‘(10) CHILDREN IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS.—
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1 ‘‘(A) CHILDREN ENROLLED IN PRIVATE

2 SCHOOLS BY THEIR PARENTS.—

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—To the extent con4 sistent with the number and location of 

5 children with disabilities in the State who 

6 are enrolled by their parents in private ele7 mentary and secondary schools in the area 

8 served by such agency, provision is made 

9 for the participation of those children in the 

10 program assisted or carried out under this 

11 part by providing for such children special 

12 education and related services in accordance 

13 with the following requirements, unless the 

14 Secretary has arranged for services to those 

15 children under subsection (f): 

16 ‘‘(I) Amounts to be expended for 

17 the provision of those services (includ18 ing direct services to parentally-placed 

19 children) by a local educational agency 

20 shall be equal to a proportionate 

21 amount of Federal funds made avail22 able under this part. 

23 ‘‘(II) In calculating the propor24 tionate share of Federal funds, the local 

25 educational agency, after timely and 
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1 meaningful consultation with rep2 resentatives of children with disabil3 ities parentally-placed in private 

4 schools as described in clause (iii), 

5 shall conduct a thorough and complete 

6 child-find process to determine the 

7 number of parentally-placed children 

8 with disabilities attending private 

9 schools located in the district. 

10 ‘‘(III) Such services may be pro11 vided to children with disabilities on 

12 the premises of private, including reli13 gious, schools, to the extent consistent 

14 with law. 

15 ‘‘(IV) State and local funds may 

16 supplement and in no case shall sup17 plant the proportionate amount of 

18 Federal funds required to be expended 

19 under this paragraph. 

20 ‘‘(V) Each local educational agen21 cy maintains in its records and pro22 vides to the State educational agency 

23 the number of children evaluated under 

24 this paragraph, the number of children 

25 determined to be children with disabil-
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1 ities, and the number of children 

2 served under this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(ii) CHILD-FIND REQUIREMENT.—

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The require5 ments of paragraph (3) of this sub6 section (relating to child find) shall 

7 apply with respect to children with 

8 disabilities in the State who are en9 rolled in private, including religious, 

10 elementary and secondary schools. 

11 ‘‘(II) EQUITABLE PARTICIPA12 TION.—The child-find process must be 

13 designed to ensure the equitable par14 ticipation of parentally-placed private 

15 school children and an accurate count 

16 of such children. 

17 ‘‘(III) ACTIVITIES.—In carrying 

18 out this clause, the local educational 

19 agency, or where applicable, the State 

20 educational agency, shall undertake ac21 tivities similar to those activities un22 dertaken for its public school children. 

23 ‘‘(IV) COST.—The cost of carrying 

24 out this clause, including individual 

25 evaluations, may not be considered in 
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1 determining whether a local education 

2 agency has met its obligations under 

3 clause (i). 

4 ‘‘(V) COMPLETION PERIOD.—Such 

5 child-find process shall be completed in 

6 a time period comparable to that for 

7 other students attending public schools 

8 in the local educational agency. 

9 ‘‘(iii) CONSULTATION.—To ensure 

10 timely and meaningful consultation, a local 

11 educational agency, or where appropriate, a 

12 state educational agency, shall consult with 

13 representatives of children with disabilities 

14 parentally-placed in private schools during 

15 the design and development of special edu16 cation and related services for these children 

17 including—

18 ‘‘(I) the child-find process and 

19 how parentally-placed private school 

20 children suspected of having a dis21 ability can participate equitably, in22 cluding how parents, teachers, and pri23 vate school officials will be informed of 

24 the process; 
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1 ‘‘(II) the determination of the pro2 portionate share of Federal funds 

3 available to serve parentally-placed 

4 private school children with disabilities 

5 under this paragraph, including the 

6 determination of how those funds were 

7 calculated; 

8 ‘‘(III) the consultation process 

9 among the district, private school offi10 cials, and parents of parentally-placed 

11 private school children with disabilities 

12 including how such process will oper13 ate throughout the school year to en14 sure that parentally-placed children 

15 with disabilities identified through the 

16 child find process can meaningfully 

17 participate in special education and 

18 related services; and 

19 ‘‘(IV) how, where, and by whom 

20 special education and related services 

21 will be provided for parentally-placed 

22 private school children, including a 

23 discussion of alternate service delivery 

24 mechanisms, how such services will be 

25 apportioned if funds are insufficient to 
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1 serve all children, and how and when 

2 these decisions will be made. 

3 ‘‘(iv) COMPLIANCE.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—A private 

5 school official shall have the right to 

6 complain to the State educational 

7 agency that the local educational agen8 cy did not engage in consultation that 

9 was meaningful and timely, or did not 

10 give due consideration to the views of 

11 the private school official. 

12 ‘‘(II) PROCEDURE.—If the private 

13 school official wishes to complain, the 

14 official shall provide the basis of the 

15 noncompliance with this section by the 

16 local educational agency to the State 

17 educational agency, and the local edu18 cational agency shall forward the ap19 propriate documentation to the State 

20 educational agency. If the private 

21 school official is dissatisfied with the 

22 decision of the State educational agen23 cy, such official may complain to the 

24 Secretary by providing the basis of the 

25 noncompliance with this section by the 
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1 local educational agency to the Sec2 retary, and the State educational agen3 cy shall forward the appropriate docu4 mentation to the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘(v) PROVISION OF SERVICES.—

6 ‘‘(I) DIRECTLY OR THROUGH CON7 TRACTS.—An agency may provide spe8 cial education and related services di9 rectly or through contracts with public 

10 and private agencies, organizations, 

11 and institutions. 

12 ‘‘(II) SECULAR, NEUTRAL, NON13 IDEOLOGICAL.—Special education and 

14 related services, including materials 

15 and equipment, shall be secular, neu16 tral, and nonideological. 

17 ‘‘(vi) PUBLIC CONTROL OF FUNDS.—

18 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The control of 

19 funds used to provide special education 

20 and related services under this section, 

21 and title to materials, equipment, and 

22 property purchased with those funds, 

23 shall be in a public agency for the uses 

24 and purposes provided in this Act, and 
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1 a public agency shall administer the 

2 funds and property. 

3 ‘‘(II) PROVISION OF SERVICES.—

4 The provision of services under this Act 

5 shall be provided—

6 ‘‘(aa) by employees of a pub7 lic agency; or 

8 ‘‘(bb) through contract by the 

9 public agency with an individual, 

10 association, agency, organization, 

11 or other entity. 

12 ‘‘(B) CHILDREN PLACED IN, OR REFERRED

13 TO, PRIVATE SCHOOLS BY PUBLIC AGENCIES.—

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Children with dis15 abilities in private schools and facilities are 

16 provided special education and related serv17 ices, in accordance with an individualized 

18 education program, at no cost to their par19 ents, if such children are placed in, or re20 ferred to, such schools or facilities by the 

21 State or appropriate local educational agen22 cy as the means of carrying out the require23 ments of this part or any other applicable 

24 law requiring the provision of special edu-
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1 cation and related services to all children 

2 with disabilities within such State. 

3 ‘‘(ii) STANDARDS.—In all cases de4 scribed in clause (i), the State educational 

5 agency shall determine whether such schools 

6 and facilities meet standards that apply to 

7 State and local educational agencies and 

8 that children so served have all the rights 

9 they would have if served by such agencies. 

10 ‘‘(C) PAYMENT FOR EDUCATION OF CHIL11 DREN ENROLLED IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS WITHOUT

12 CONSENT OF OR REFERRAL BY THE PUBLIC

13 AGENCY.—

14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara15 graph (A), this part does not require a local 

16 educational agency to pay for the cost of 

17 education, including special education and 

18 related services, of a child with a disability 

19 at a private school or facility if that agency 

20 made a free appropriate public education 

21 available to the child and the parents elect22 ed to place the child in such private school 

23 or facility. 

24 ‘‘(ii) REIMBURSEMENT FOR PRIVATE

25 SCHOOL PLACEMENT.—If the parents of a 
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1 child with a disability, who previously re2 ceived special education and related services 

3 under the authority of a public agency, en4 roll the child in a private elementary or sec5 ondary school without the consent of or re6 ferral by the public agency, a court or a 

7 hearing officer may require the agency to 

8 reimburse the parents for the cost of that en9 rollment if the court or hearing officer finds 

10 that the agency had not made a free appro11 priate public education available to the 

12 child in a timely manner prior to that en13 rollment. 

14 ‘‘(iii) LIMITATION ON REIMBURSE15 MENT.—The cost of reimbursement described 

16 in clause (ii) may be reduced or denied—

17 ‘‘(I) if—

18 ‘‘(aa) at the most recent IEP 

19 meeting that the parents attended 

20 prior to removal of the child from 

21 the public school, the parents did 

22 not inform the IEP Team that 

23 they were rejecting the placement 

24 proposed by the public agency to 

25 provide a free appropriate public 
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1 education to their child, including 

2 stating their concerns and their 

3 intent to enroll their child in a 

4 private school at public expense; 

5 or 

6 ‘‘(bb) 10 business days (in7 cluding any holidays that occur 

8 on a business day) prior to the re9 moval of the child from the public 

10 school, the parents did not give 

11 written notice to the public agen12 cy of the information described in 

13 division (aa); 

14 ‘‘(II) if, prior to the parents’ re15 moval of the child from the public 

16 school, the public agency informed the 

17 parents, through the notice require18 ments described in section 615(b)(7), of 

19 its intent to evaluate the child (includ20 ing a statement of the purpose of the 

21 evaluation that was appropriate and 

22 reasonable), but the parents did not 

23 make the child available for such eval24 uation; or 
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1 ‘‘(III) upon a judicial finding of 

2 unreasonableness with respect to ac3 tions taken by the parents. 

4 ‘‘(iv) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding 

5 the notice requirement in clause (iii)(I), the 

6 cost of reimbursement—

7 ‘‘(I) shall not be reduced or denied 

8 for failure to provide such notice if—

9 ‘‘(aa) the school prevented the 

10 parent from providing such no11 tice; 

12 ‘‘(bb) the parents had not re13 ceived notice, pursuant to section 

14 615, of the notice requirement in 

15 clause (iii)(I); or 

16 ‘‘(cc) compliance with clause 

17 (iii)(I) would likely result in 

18 physical harm to the child; and 

19 ‘‘(II) may, in the discretion of a 

20 court or a hearing officer, not be re21 duced or denied for failure to provide 

22 such notice if—

23 ‘‘(aa) the parent is illiterate 

24 or cannot write in English; or 
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1 ‘‘(bb) compliance with clause 

2 (iii)(I) would likely result in seri3 ous emotional harm to the child. 

4 ‘‘(11) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY RESPON5 SIBLE FOR GENERAL SUPERVISION.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State educational 

7 agency is responsible for ensuring that—

8 ‘‘(i) the requirements of this part are 

9 met; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) all educational programs for chil11 dren with disabilities in the State, includ12 ing all such programs administered by any 

13 other State or local agency—

14 ‘‘(I) are under the general super15 vision of individuals in the State who 

16 are responsible for educational pro17 grams for children with disabilities; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(II) meet the educational stand20 ards of the State educational agency. 

21 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Subparagraph (A) shall 

22 not limit the responsibility of agencies in the 

23 State other than the State educational agency to 

24 provide, or pay for some or all of the costs of, a 
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1 free appropriate public education for any child 

2 with a disability in the State. 

3 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding sub4 paragraphs (A) and (B), the Governor (or an5 other individual pursuant to State law), con6 sistent with State law, may assign to any public 

7 agency in the State the responsibility of ensuring 

8 that the requirements of this part are met with 

9 respect to children with disabilities who are con10 victed as adults under State law and incarcer11 ated in adult prisons.’’. 

12 (3) Paragraphs (13) through (22) of section 612(a) of 

13 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

14 1412(a)(13)–(22)) are amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(13) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS RELATING

16 TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY ELIGIBILITY.—The 

17 State educational agency will not make a final deter18 mination that a local educational agency is not eligi19 ble for assistance under this part without first afford20 ing that agency reasonable notice and an opportunity 

21 for a hearing. 

22 ‘‘(14) PERSONNEL STANDARDS.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State educational 

24 agency has established and maintains standards 

25 to ensure that personnel necessary to carry out 
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1 this part are appropriately and adequately pre2 pared and trained. 

3 ‘‘(B) STANDARDS DESCRIBED.—Such stand4 ards shall—

5 ‘‘(i) ensure that special education 

6 teachers who teach in core academic subjects 

7 are highly qualified in those subjects; 

8 ‘‘(ii) be consistent with any State-ap9 proved or State-recognized certification, li10 censing, registration, or other comparable 

11 requirements that apply to the professional 

12 discipline in which those personnel are pro13 viding special education or related services 

14 in order to ensure that such individuals are 

15 qualified to provide such services; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) allow paraprofessionals and as17 sistants who are appropriately trained and 

18 supervised, in accordance with State law, 

19 regulations, or written policy, in meeting 

20 the requirements of this part to be used to 

21 assist in the provision of special education 

22 and related services to children with disabil23 ities under this part.

24 ‘‘(C) INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES FOR PROFES25 SIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—The State educational 
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1 agency encourages the development and use of re2 search-based innovative strategies, such as strate3 gies using technology, peer networks, and dis4 tance learning, to deliver intensive professional 

5 development programs for special and regular 

6 education teachers, administrators, principals, 

7 and related services personnel that—

8 ‘‘(i) improve educational results for 

9 students with disabilities; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) are both cost-effective and easily 

11 accessible. 

12 ‘‘(15) PERFORMANCE GOALS AND INDICATORS.—

13 The State—

14 ‘‘(A) has established goals for the perform15 ance of children with disabilities in the State 

16 that—

17 ‘‘(i) promote the purposes of this Act, 

18 as stated in section 601(d); 

19 ‘‘(ii) are the same as the State’s defini20 tion of adequate yearly progress, including 

21 the State’s objectives for progress by chil22 dren with disabilities, under section 

23 1111(b)(2)(C) of the Elementary and Sec24 ondary Education Act of 1965; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) address dropout rates, as well as 

2 such other factors as the State may deter3 mine; and 

4 ‘‘(iv) are consistent, to the extent ap5 propriate, with any other goals and stand6 ards for children established by the State; 

7 ‘‘(B) has established performance indicators 

8 the State will use to assess progress toward 

9 achieving those goals described in subparagraph 

10 (A), including measurable annual objectives for 

11 progress by children with disabilities under sec12 tion 1111(b)(2)(C) of the Elementary and Sec13 ondary Education Act of 1965; and 

14 ‘‘(C) will annually report to the Secretary 

15 and the public on the progress of the State, and 

16 of children with disabilities in the State, toward 

17 meeting the goals established under subpara18 graph (A), which may include elements of the re19 ports required under section 1111(h) of the Ele20 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

21 ‘‘(16) PARTICIPATION IN ASSESSMENTS.—

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—(i) All children with 

23 disabilities are included in all general State and 

24 district-wide assessment programs, including as25 sessments described under title I of the Elemen-
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1 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, with 

2 appropriate accommodations, where necessary 

3 and as indicated in their respective individual4 ized education programs. 

5 ‘‘(ii) The State (or, in the case of a district6 wide assessment, the local educational agency) 

7 has developed and implemented guidelines for the 

8 provision of accommodations described in clause 

9 (i). 

10 ‘‘(iii) The State (or, in the case of a dis11 trict-wide assessment the local educational agen12 cy)—

13 ‘‘(I) has developed and implemented 

14 guidelines for the participation of children 

15 with disabilities in alternate assessments for 

16 those children who cannot participate in 

17 regular assessments under clause (i); and 

18 ‘‘(II) conducts those alternate assess19 ments. 

20 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.—The State educational 

21 agency (or, in the case of a district-wide assess22 ment, the local educational agency) makes avail23 able to the public, and reports to the public with 

24 the same frequency and in the same detail as it 
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1 reports on the assessment of nondisabled chil2 dren, the following: 

3 ‘‘(i) The number of children with dis4 abilities participating in regular assess5 ments, and the number of those children 

6 who were provided accommodations in 

7 order to participate in those assessments. 

8 ‘‘(ii) The number of children with dis9 abilities participating in alternate assess10 ments. 

11 ‘‘(iii) The performance of children with 

12 disabilities on regular assessments and on 

13 alternate assessments (if the number of chil14 dren with disabilities participating in those 

15 assessments is sufficient to yield statis16 tically reliable information and reporting 

17 that information would not reveal person18 ally identifiable information about an indi19 vidual student), compared with the achieve20 ment of all children, including children 

21 with disabilities, on those assessments. 

22 ‘‘(17) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—The State has in 

23 effect systems of mediation and voluntary binding ar24 bitration pursuant to section 615(e). 
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1 ‘‘(18) SUPPLEMENTATION OF STATE, LOCAL, AND

2 OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—

3 ‘‘(A) EXPENDITURES.—Funds paid to a 

4 State under this part will be expended in accord5 ance with all the provisions of this part. 

6 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION AGAINST COMMIN7 GLING.—Funds paid to a State under this part 

8 will not be commingled with State funds. 

9 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITION AGAINST SUPPLANTATION

10 AND CONDITIONS FOR WAIVER BY SECRETARY.—

11 Except as provided in section 613, funds paid to 

12 a State under this part will be used to supple13 ment the level of Federal, State, and local funds 

14 (including funds that are not under the direct 

15 control of State or local educational agencies) ex16 pended for special education and related services 

17 provided to children with disabilities under this 

18 part and in no case to supplant such Federal, 

19 State, and local funds, except that, where the 

20 State provides clear and convincing evidence 

21 that all children with disabilities have available 

22 to them a free appropriate public education, the 

23 Secretary may waive, in whole or in part, the 

24 requirements of this subparagraph if the Sec-
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1 retary concurs with the evidence provided by the 

2 State. 

3 ‘‘(19) MAINTENANCE OF STATE FINANCIAL SUP4 PORT.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State does not re6 duce the amount of State financial support for 

7 special education and related services for chil8 dren with disabilities, or otherwise made avail9 able because of the excess costs of educating those 

10 children, below the amount of that support for 

11 the preceding fiscal year. 

12 ‘‘(B) REDUCTION OF FUNDS FOR FAILURE

13 TO MAINTAIN SUPPORT.—The Secretary shall re14 duce the allocation of funds under section 611 for 

15 any fiscal year following the fiscal year in which 

16 the State fails to comply with the requirement of 

17 subparagraph (A) by the same amount by which 

18 the State fails to meet the requirement. 

19 ‘‘(C) WAIVERS FOR EXCEPTIONAL OR UN20 CONTROLLABLE CIRCUMSTANCES.—The Secretary 

21 may waive the requirement of subparagraph (A) 

22 for a State, for one fiscal year at a time, if the 

23 Secretary determines that—

24 ‘‘(i) granting a waiver would be equi25 table due to exceptional or uncontrollable 
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1 circumstances such as a natural disaster or 

2 a precipitous and unforeseen decline in the 

3 financial resources of the State; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the State meets the standard in 

5 paragraph (18)(C) of this section for a 

6 waiver of the requirement to supplement, 

7 and not to supplant, funds received under 

8 this part. 

9 ‘‘(D) SUBSEQUENT YEARS.—If, for any 

10 year, a State fails to meet the requirement of 

11 subparagraph (A), including any year for which 

12 the State is granted a waiver under subpara13 graph (C), the financial support required of the 

14 State in future years under subparagraph (A) 

15 shall be the amount that would have been re16 quired in the absence of that failure and not the 

17 reduced level of the State’s support. 

18 ‘‘(20) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—Prior to the 

19 adoption of any policies and procedures needed to 

20 comply with this section (including any amendments 

21 to such policies and procedures), the State ensures 

22 that there are public hearings, adequate notice of the 

23 hearings, and an opportunity for comment available 

24 to the general public, including individuals with dis25 abilities and parents of children with disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘(21) STATE ADVISORY PANEL.—

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State has estab3 lished and maintains an advisory panel for the 

4 purpose of providing policy guidance with re5 spect to special education and related services for 

6 children with disabilities in the State. 

7 ‘‘(B) MEMBERSHIP.—Such advisory panel 

8 shall consist of members appointed by the Gov9 ernor, or any other official authorized under 

10 State law to make such appointments, that is 

11 representative of the State population and that 

12 is composed of individuals involved in, or con13 cerned with, the education of children with dis14 abilities, including—

15 ‘‘(i) parents of children with disabil16 ities (ages birth through 26); 

17 ‘‘(ii) individuals with disabilities; 

18 ‘‘(iii) teachers; 

19 ‘‘(iv) representatives of institutions of 

20 higher education that prepare special edu21 cation and related services personnel; 

22 ‘‘(v) State and local education officials; 

23 ‘‘(vi) administrators of programs for 

24 children with disabilities; 
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1 ‘‘(vii) representatives of other State 

2 agencies involved in the financing or deliv3 ery of related services to children with dis4 abilities; 

5 ‘‘(viii) representatives of private 

6 schools and public charter schools; 

7 ‘‘(ix) at least one representative of a 

8 vocational, community, or business organi9 zation concerned with the provision of tran10 sition services to children with disabilities; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(x) representatives from the State ju13 venile and adult corrections agencies. 

14 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE.—A majority of the 

15 members of the panel shall be individuals with 

16 disabilities or parents of children with disabil17 ities ages birth through 26. 

18 ‘‘(D) DUTIES.—The advisory panel shall—

19 ‘‘(i) advise the State educational agen20 cy of unmet needs within the State in the 

21 education of children with disabilities; 

22 ‘‘(ii) comment publicly on any rules or 

23 regulations proposed by the State regarding 

24 the education of children with disabilities; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) advise the State educational 

2 agency in developing evaluations and re3 porting on data to the Secretary under sec4 tion 618; 

5 ‘‘(iv) advise the State educational 

6 agency in developing corrective action plans 

7 to address findings identified in Federal 

8 monitoring reports under this part; and 

9 ‘‘(v) advise the State educational agen10 cy in developing and implementing policies 

11 relating to the coordination of services for 

12 children with disabilities. 

13 ‘‘(22) SUSPENSION AND EXPULSION RATES.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State educational 

15 agency examines data, including data 

16 disaggregated by race and ethnicity, to determine 

17 if significant discrepancies are occurring in the 

18 rate of long-term suspensions and expulsions of 

19 children with disabilities—

20 ‘‘(i) among local educational agencies 

21 in the State; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) compared to such rates for non23 disabled children within such agencies. 

24 ‘‘(B) REVIEW AND REVISION OF POLICIES.—

25 If such discrepancies are occurring, the State 
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1 educational agency reviews and, if appropriate, 

2 revises (or requires the affected State or local 

3 educational agency to revise) its policies, proce4 dures, and practices relating to the development 

5 and implementation of IEPs, the use of positive 

6 behavioral interventions and supports, and pro7 cedural safeguards, to ensure that such policies, 

8 procedures, and practices comply with this Act.’’. 

9 (4) Section 612(a) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

10 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1412(a)(13)–(22)) is amended by 

11 adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(23) INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State adopts the 

14 national instructional materials accessibility 

15 standard for the purposes of providing instruc16 tional materials to blind persons or other persons 

17 with print disabilities in a timely manner after 

18 the publication of the standard by the Secretary 

19 in the Federal Register.

20 ‘‘(B) PURCHASE REQUIREMENT.—Not later 

21 than 2 years after the date of the enactment of 

22 the Improving Education Results for Children 

23 With Disabilities Act of 2003, the State edu24 cational agency, when purchasing instructional 

25 materials for use in public elementary and sec-
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1 ondary schools within the State, requires the 

2 publisher of the instructional materials, as a 

3 part of any purchase agreement that is made, re4 newed, or revised, to prepare and supply elec5 tronic files containing the contents of the in6 structional materials using the national instruc7 tional materials accessibility standard. 

8 ‘‘(C) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this 

9 paragraph, the term ‘instructional materials’ 

10 means printed textbooks and related core mate11 rials that are written and published primarily 

12 for use in elementary school and secondary 

13 school instruction and are required by a State 

14 educational agency or local educational agency 

15 for use by pupils in the classroom. 

16 ‘‘(24) OVERIDENTIFICATION AND

17 DISPROPORTIONALITY.—The State has in effect, con18 sistent with the purposes of this Act and with section 

19 618, policies and procedures designed to prevent the 

20 overidentification or disproportionate representation 

21 by race and ethnicity of children as children with dis22 abilities, including the identification of children as 

23 children with disabilities in accordance with a par24 ticular impairment described in section 602(3). 
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1 ‘‘(25) PROHIBITION ON PSYCHOTROPIC MEDICA2 TION.—The State educational agency develops and 

3 implements policies and procedures prohibiting school 

4 personnel from requiring a child to obtain a prescrip5 tion for substances covered by section 202(c) of the 

6 Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812(c)) as a 

7 condition of attending school or receiving services.’’. 

8 (b) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY AS PROVIDER OF

9 FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION OR DIRECT SERV10 ICES.—Section 612(b) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

11 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1412(b)) is amended to read as 

12 follows: 

13 ‘‘(b) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY AS PROVIDER OF

14 FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION OR DIRECT SERV15 ICES.—If the State educational agency provides free appro16 priate public education to children with disabilities, or pro17 vides direct services to such children, such agency—

18 ‘‘(1) shall comply with any additional require19 ments of section 613(a), as if such agency were a local 

20 educational agency; and 

21 ‘‘(2) may use amounts that are otherwise avail22 able to such agency under this part to serve those chil23 dren without regard to section 613(a)(2)(A)(i) (relat24 ing to excess costs).’’. 
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1 (c) EXCEPTION FOR PRIOR STATE PLANS.—Section 

2 612(c) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

3 (20 U.S.C. 1412(c)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR PRIOR STATE PLANS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a State has on file with 

6 the Secretary policies and procedures that dem7 onstrate that such State meets any requirement of 

8 subsection (a), including any policies and procedures 

9 filed under this part as in effect before the effective 

10 date of the Improving Education Results for Children 

11 With Disabilities Act of 2003, the Secretary shall con12 sider such State to have met such requirement for 

13 purposes of receiving a grant under this part. 

14 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATIONS MADE BY STATE.—Subject 

15 to paragraph (3), an application submitted by a 

16 State in accordance with this section shall remain in 

17 effect until the State submits to the Secretary such 

18 modifications as the State deems necessary. This sec19 tion shall apply to a modification to an application 

20 to the same extent and in the same manner as this 

21 section applies to the original plan. 

22 ‘‘(3) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY THE SEC23 RETARY.—If, after the effective date of the Improving 

24 Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act 

25 of 2003, the provisions of this Act are amended (or 
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1 the regulations developed to carry out this Act are 

2 amended), or there is a new interpretation of this Act 

3 by a Federal court or a State’s highest court, or there 

4 is an official finding of noncompliance with Federal 

5 law or regulations, the Secretary may require a State 

6 to modify its application only to the extent necessary 

7 to ensure the State’s compliance with this part.’’. 

8 (d) APPROVAL BY THE SECRETARY.—Section 612(d) 

9 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 

10 U.S.C. 1412(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(d) APPROVAL BY THE SECRETARY.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary determines 

13 that a State is eligible to receive a grant under this 

14 part, the Secretary shall notify the State of that deter15 mination. 

16 ‘‘(2) NOTICE AND HEARING.—The Secretary shall 

17 not make a final determination that a State is not 

18 eligible to receive a grant under this part until after 

19 providing the State—

20 ‘‘(A) with reasonable notice; and 

21 ‘‘(B) with an opportunity for a hearing.’’. 

22 (e) ASSISTANCE UNDER OTHER FEDERAL PRO23 GRAMS.—Section 612(e) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

24 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1412(e)) is amended to read as 

25 follows: 
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1 ‘‘(e) ASSISTANCE UNDER OTHER FEDERAL PRO2 GRAMS.—Nothing in this title permits a State to reduce 

3 medical and other assistance available, or to alter eligi4 bility, under titles V and XIX of the Social Security Act 

5 with respect to the provision of a free appropriate public 

6 education for children with disabilities in the State.’’. 

7 SEC. 203. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY ELIGIBILITY. 

8 Section 613 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu9 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1413) is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 613. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY ELIGIBILITY. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency is eli12 gible for assistance under this part for a fiscal year if such 

13 agency reasonably demonstrates to the State educational 

14 agency that it meets each of the following conditions: 

15 ‘‘(1) CONSISTENCY WITH STATE POLICIES.—The 

16 local educational agency, in providing for the edu17 cation of children with disabilities within its jurisdic18 tion, has in effect policies, procedures, and programs 

19 that are consistent with the State policies and proce20 dures established under section 612. 

21 ‘‘(2) USE OF AMOUNTS.—

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Amounts provided to 

23 the local educational agency under this part 

24 shall be expended in accordance with the appli25 cable provisions of this part and—
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1 ‘‘(i) shall be used only to pay the excess 

2 costs of providing special education and re3 lated services to children with disabilities; 

4 ‘‘(ii) shall be used to supplement State, 

5 local, and other Federal funds and not to 

6 supplant such funds; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) shall not be used, except as pro8 vided in subparagraphs (B) and (C), to re9 duce the level of expenditures for the edu10 cation of children with disabilities made by 

11 the local educational agency from local 

12 funds below the level of those expenditures 

13 for the preceding fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding the re15 striction in subparagraph (A)(iii), a local edu16 cational agency may reduce the level of expendi17 tures where such reduction is attributable to—

18 ‘‘(i) the voluntary departure, by retire19 ment or otherwise, or departure for just 

20 cause, of special education personnel; 

21 ‘‘(ii) a decrease in the enrollment of 

22 children with disabilities; 

23 ‘‘(iii) the termination of the obligation 

24 of the agency, consistent with this part, to 

25 provide a program of special education to a 
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1 particular child with a disability that is an 

2 exceptionally costly program, as determined 

3 by the State educational agency, because the 

4 child—

5 ‘‘(I) has left the jurisdiction of the 

6 agency; 

7 ‘‘(II) has reached the age at which 

8 the obligation of the agency to provide 

9 a free appropriate public education to 

10 the child has terminated; or 

11 ‘‘(III) no longer needs such pro12 gram of special education; or 

13 ‘‘(iv) the termination of costly expendi14 tures for long-term purchases, such as the 

15 acquisition of equipment or the construction 

16 of school facilities. 

17 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT OF FEDERAL FUNDS IN

18 CERTAIN FISCAL YEARS.—

19 ‘‘(i) Notwithstanding clauses (ii) and 

20 (iii) of subparagraph (A), for any fiscal 

21 year for which amounts appropriated to 

22 carry out section 611 exceeds 

23 $4,100,000,000, a local educational agency 

24 may treat as local funds, for the purpose of 

25 such clauses, up to 20 percent of the amount 
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1 of funds it receives under this part that ex2 ceeds the amount it received under this part 

3 for the previous fiscal year. 

4 ‘‘(ii) If a local educational agency 

5 chooses to use the authority under clause (i), 

6 then the agency shall use those local funds 

7 to provide additional funding for programs 

8 under the Elementary and Secondary Edu9 cation Act of 1965, including, but not lim10 ited to, programs that address student 

11 achievement, comprehensive school reform, 

12 literacy, teacher quality and professional 

13 development, school safety, before- and after14 school learning opportunities. 

15 ‘‘(iii) Notwithstanding clause (i), if a 

16 State educational agency determines that a 

17 local educational agency is unable to estab18 lish and maintain programs of free appro19 priate public education that meet the re20 quirements of subsection (a), the State edu21 cational agency shall prohibit the local edu22 cational agency from treating funds re23 ceived under this part as local funds under 

24 clause (i) for that fiscal year, but only if it 
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1 is authorized to do so by the State constitu2 tion or a State statute. 

3 ‘‘(D) SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS UNDER TITLE

4 I OF THE ESEA.—Notwithstanding subparagraph 

5 (A) or any other provision of this part, a local 

6 educational agency may use funds received under 

7 this part for any fiscal year to carry out a 

8 schoolwide program under section 1114 of the 

9 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

10 1965, except that the amount so used in any 

11 such program shall not exceed—

12 ‘‘(i) the number of children with dis13 abilities participating in the schoolwide 

14 program; multiplied by 

15 ‘‘(ii)(I) the amount received by the 

16 local educational agency under this part for 

17 that fiscal year; divided by 

18 ‘‘(II) the number of children with dis19 abilities in the jurisdiction of that agency. 

20 ‘‘(3) PERSONNEL DEVELOPMENT.—The local edu21 cational agency shall ensure that all personnel nec22 essary to carry out this part are appropriately and 

23 adequately prepared, consistent with the requirements 

24 of section 612 of this Act and section 1119 of the Ele25 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 
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1 ‘‘(4) PERMISSIVE USE OF FUNDS.—Notwith2 standing paragraph (2)(A) or section 612(a)(18)(B) 

3 (relating to commingled funds), funds provided to the 

4 local educational agency under this part may be used 

5 for the following activities: 

6 ‘‘(A) SERVICES AND AIDS THAT ALSO BEN7 EFIT NONDISABLED CHILDREN.—For the costs of 

8 special education and related services and sup9 plementary aids and services provided in a reg10 ular class or other education-related setting to a 

11 child with a disability in accordance with the 

12 individualized education program of the child, 

13 even if one or more nondisabled children benefit 

14 from such services. 

15 ‘‘(B) PREREFERRAL SERVICES.—To develop 

16 and implement a system of comprehensive co17 ordinated prereferral education support services 

18 in accordance with subsection (f). 

19 ‘‘(C) HIGH COST EDUCATION AND RELATED

20 SERVICES.—To establish and implement cost or 

21 risk sharing funds, consortia, or cooperatives for 

22 the agency itself, or for local educational agen23 cies working in consortium of which the local 

24 educational agency is a part, to pay for high 

25 cost special education and related services. 
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1 ‘‘(D) CASE MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRA2 TION.—To purchase appropriate technology for 

3 record keeping, data collection, and related case 

4 management activities of teachers and related 

5 services personnel who are providing services de6 scribed in the individualized education program 

7 of children with disabilities necessary to the im8 plementation of those case management activi9 ties. 

10 ‘‘(E) SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL SERV11 ICES FOR CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES IN

12 SCHOOLS DESIGNATED FOR IMPROVEMENT.—For 

13 the reasonable additional expenses (as deter14 mined by the local educational agency) of any 

15 necessary accommodations to allow children with 

16 disabilities who are being educated in a school 

17 identified for school improvement under section 

18 1116(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu19 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316(b)) to be pro20 vided supplemental educational services under 

21 section 1116(e) of such Act on an equitable basis. 

22 ‘‘(5) TREATMENT OF CHARTER SCHOOLS AND

23 THEIR STUDENTS.—In carrying out this part with re24 spect to charter schools that are public schools of the 
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1 local educational agency, the local educational agen2 cy—

3 ‘‘(A) serves children with disabilities at4 tending those schools in the same manner as it 

5 serves children with disabilities in its other 

6 schools, including providing supplemental and 

7 related services on site at the charter school when 

8 the local educational agency has a policy or 

9 practice of providing those services on site to its 

10 other schools; and 

11 ‘‘(B) provides funds under this part to those 

12 schools on the same basis as it provides those 

13 funds to its other public schools (including, at 

14 the option of such agency, proportional distribu15 tion based on relative enrollment of children 

16 with disabilities at such charter schools), and at 

17 the same time as such agency distributes other 

18 Federal funds to those schools, consistent with the 

19 State’s charter law.

20 ‘‘(6) PURCHASE OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATE21 RIALS.—Not later than 2 years after the date of the 

22 enactment of the Improving Education Results for 

23 Children With Disabilities Act of 2003, the local edu24 cational agency, when purchasing instructional mate25 rials for use in public elementary and secondary 
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1 schools within the local educational agency, requires 

2 the publisher of the instructional materials, as a part 

3 of any purchase agreement that is made, renewed, or 

4 revised, to prepare and supply electronic files con5 taining the contents of the instructional materials 

6 using the national instructional materials accessi7 bility standard described in section 612(a)(23). 

8 ‘‘(7) INFORMATION FOR STATE EDUCATIONAL

9 AGENCY.—The local educational agency shall provide 

10 the State educational agency with information nec11 essary to enable the State educational agency to carry 

12 out its duties under this part, including, with respect 

13 to paragraphs (15) and (16) of section 612(a), infor14 mation relating to the performance of children with 

15 disabilities participating in programs carried out 

16 under this part. 

17 ‘‘(8) PUBLIC INFORMATION.—The local edu18 cational agency shall make available to parents of 

19 children with disabilities and to the general public all 

20 documents relating to the eligibility of such agency 

21 under this part.

22 ‘‘(9) RECORDS REGARDING MIGRATORY CHIL23 DREN WITH DISABILITIES.—The local educational 

24 agency shall cooperate in the Secretary’s efforts under 

25 section 1308 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
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1 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6398) to ensure the 

2 linkage of records pertaining to migratory children 

3 with a disability for the purpose of electronically ex4 changing, among the States, health and educational 

5 information regarding such children. 

6 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR PRIOR LOCAL PLANS.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a local educational agency 

8 or State agency has on file with the State educational 

9 agency policies and procedures that demonstrate that 

10 such local educational agency, or such State agency, 

11 as the case may be, meets any requirement of sub12 section (a), including any policies and procedures 

13 filed under this part as in effect before the effective 

14 date of the Improving Education Results for Children 

15 With Disabilities Act of 2003, the State educational 

16 agency shall consider such local educational agency or 

17 State agency, as the case may be, to have met such 

18 requirement for purposes of receiving assistance under 

19 this part. 

20 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION MADE BY LOCAL EDU21 CATIONAL AGENCY.—Subject to paragraph (3), an ap22 plication submitted by a local educational agency in 

23 accordance with this section shall remain in effect 

24 until it submits to the State educational agency such 
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1 modifications as the local educational agency deems 

2 necessary. 

3 ‘‘(3) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY STATE EDU4 CATIONAL AGENCY.—If, after the date of the enact5 ment of the Improving Education Results for Chil6 dren With Disabilities Act of 2003, the provisions of 

7 this Act are amended (or the regulations developed to 

8 carry out this Act are amended), or there is a new 

9 interpretation of this Act by Federal or State courts, 

10 or there is an official finding of noncompliance with 

11 Federal or State law or regulations, the State edu12 cational agency may require a local educational agen13 cy to modify its application only to the extent nec14 essary to ensure the local educational agency’s com15 pliance with this part or State law. 

16 ‘‘(c) NOTIFICATION OF LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY

17 OR STATE AGENCY IN CASE OF INELIGIBILITY.—If the 

18 State educational agency determines that a local edu19 cational agency or State agency is not eligible under this 

20 section, the State educational agency shall notify the local 

21 educational agency or State agency, as the case may be, 

22 of that determination and shall provide such local edu23 cational agency or State agency with reasonable notice and 

24 an opportunity for a hearing. 

25 ‘‘(d) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY COMPLIANCE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the State educational 

2 agency, after reasonable notice and an opportunity 

3 for a hearing, finds that a local educational agency 

4 or State agency that has been determined to be eligi5 ble under this section is failing to comply with any 

6 requirement described in subsection (a), the State 

7 educational agency shall reduce or shall not provide 

8 any further payments to the local educational agency 

9 or State agency until the State educational agency is 

10 satisfied that the local educational agency or State 

11 agency, as the case may be, is complying with that 

12 requirement. 

13 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—Any State 

14 agency or local educational agency in receipt of a no15 tice described in paragraph (1) shall, by means of 

16 public notice, take such measures as may be necessary 

17 to bring the pendency of an action pursuant to this 

18 subsection to the attention of the public within the ju19 risdiction of such agency. 

20 ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATION.—In carrying out its re21 sponsibilities under paragraph (1), the State edu22 cational agency shall consider any decision made in 

23 a hearing held under section 615 that is adverse to 

24 the local educational agency or State agency involved 

25 in that decision. 
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1 ‘‘(e) JOINT ESTABLISHMENT OF ELIGIBILITY.—

2 ‘‘(1) JOINT ESTABLISHMENT.—

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State educational 

4 agency may require a local educational agency 

5 to establish its eligibility jointly with another 

6 local educational agency if the State educational 

7 agency determines that the local educational 

8 agency would be ineligible under this section be9 cause the local educational agency would not be 

10 able to establish and maintain programs of suffi11 cient size and scope to effectively meet the needs 

12 of children with disabilities. 

13 ‘‘(B) CHARTER SCHOOL EXCEPTION.—A 

14 State educational agency may not require a 

15 charter school that is a local educational agency 

16 to jointly establish its eligibility under subpara17 graph (A) unless it is explicitly permitted to do 

18 so under the State’s charter school statute. 

19 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.—If a State edu20 cational agency requires the joint establishment of eli21 gibility under paragraph (1), the total amount of 

22 funds made available to the affected local educational 

23 agencies shall be equal to the sum of the payments 

24 that each such local educational agency would have 
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1 received under section 611(f) if such agencies were eli2 gible for such payments. 

3 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—Local educational agen4 cies that establish joint eligibility under this sub5 section shall—

6 ‘‘(A) adopt policies and procedures that are 

7 consistent with the State’s policies and proce8 dures under section 612(a); and 

9 ‘‘(B) be jointly responsible for implementing 

10 programs that receive assistance under this part. 

11 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATIONAL SERVICE

12 AGENCIES.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an educational serv14 ice agency is required by State law to carry out 

15 programs under this part, the joint responsibil16 ities given to local educational agencies under 

17 this subsection shall—

18 ‘‘(i) not apply to the administration 

19 and disbursement of any payments received 

20 by that educational service agency; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) be carried out only by that edu22 cational service agency. 

23 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—Not24 withstanding any other provision of this sub25 section, an educational service agency shall pro-
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1 vide for the education of children with disabil2 ities in the least restrictive environment, as re3 quired by section 612(a)(5). 

4 ‘‘(f) PREREFERRAL SERVICES.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency 

6 may use not more than 15 percent of the amount such 

7 agency receives under this part for any fiscal year, in 

8 combination with other amounts (which may include 

9 amounts other than education funds), to develop and 

10 implement comprehensive coordinated prereferral edu11 cational support services for students in kindergarten 

12 through grade 12 (with a particular emphasis on stu13 dents in grades kindergarten through 3) who have not 

14 been identified as needing special education or related 

15 services but who need additional academic and behav16 ioral support to succeed in a general education envi17 ronment. 

18 ‘‘(2) ACTIVITIES.—In implementing comprehen19 sive coordinated prereferral educational services under 

20 this subsection, a local educational agency may carry 

21 out the following activities: 

22 ‘‘(A) Professional development (which may 

23 be provided by entities other than local edu24 cational agencies) for teachers to enable them to 

25 deliver scientifically based academic and behav-
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1 ioral interventions, including scientifically based 

2 literacy instruction. 

3 ‘‘(B) Providing educational evaluations, 

4 services, and supports, including scientifically 

5 based literacy instruction and speech therapy. 

6 ‘‘(C) Providing behavioral evaluations and 

7 services and supports, including positive behav8 ioral interventions and supports. 

9 ‘‘(3) EXCLUSION.—Nothing in this subsection 

10 shall be construed to either limit or create a right to 

11 a free appropriate public education under this part. 

12 ‘‘(4) REPORTING.—Each local educational agen13 cy that develops and maintains comprehensive coordi14 nated prereferral educational support services under 

15 this subsection shall annually report to the State edu16 cational agency on—

17 ‘‘(A) the number of students served under 

18 this subsection; and 

19 ‘‘(B) the number of students served under 

20 this subsection who subsequently receive special 

21 education and related services under this Act 

22 during the preceding 2-year period. 

23 ‘‘(5) COORDINATION WITH THE ELEMENTARY

24 AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Comprehensive coordi2 nated prereferral educational support services 

3 provided under this subsection may be aligned 

4 with activities funded by, and carried out under, 

5 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

6 1965, such as the Reading First program under 

7 subpart 1 of part B of title I of such Act, the 

8 Early Reading First program under subpart 2 of 

9 part B of title I of such Act, reading and math 

10 supports under part A of title I of such Act, and 

11 behavior intervention supports, that improve re12 sults for children with disabilities. 

13 ‘‘(B) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—Funds 

14 used under this section shall be used to supple15 ment, and not supplant, funds made available 

16 under the Elementary and Secondary Education 

17 Act of 1965. 

18 ‘‘(g) DIRECT SERVICES BY THE STATE EDUCATIONAL

19 AGENCY.—

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency 

21 shall use the payments that would otherwise have been 

22 available to a local educational agency or to a State 

23 agency to provide special education and related serv24 ices directly to children with disabilities residing in 

25 the area served by that local agency, or for whom that 
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1 State agency is responsible, if the State educational 

2 agency determines that the local education agency or 

3 State agency, as the case may be—

4 ‘‘(A) has not provided the information need5 ed to establish the eligibility of such agency 

6 under this section; 

7 ‘‘(B) is unable to establish and maintain 

8 programs of free appropriate public education 

9 that meet the requirements of subsection (a); 

10 ‘‘(C) is unable or unwilling to be consoli11 dated with one or more local educational agen12 cies in order to establish and maintain such pro13 grams; or 

14 ‘‘(D) has one or more children with disabil15 ities who can best be served by a regional or 

16 State program or service-delivery system de17 signed to meet the needs of such children. 

18 ‘‘(2) MANNER AND LOCATION OF EDUCATION AND

19 SERVICES.—The State educational agency may pro20 vide special education and related services under 

21 paragraph (1) in such manner and at such locations 

22 (including regional or State centers) as the State 

23 agency considers appropriate. Such education and 

24 services shall be provided in accordance with this 

25 part. 
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1 ‘‘(h) STATE AGENCY ELIGIBILITY.—Any State agency 

2 that desires to receive a subgrant for any fiscal year under 

3 section 611(f) shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the 

4 State educational agency that—

5 ‘‘(1) all children with disabilities who are par6 ticipating in programs and projects funded under this 

7 part receive a free appropriate public education, and 

8 that those children and their parents are provided all 

9 the rights and procedural safeguards described in this 

10 part; and 

11 ‘‘(2) the agency meets such other conditions of 

12 this section as the Secretary determines to be appro13 priate. 

14 ‘‘(i) DISCIPLINARY INFORMATION.—The State may re15 quire that a local educational agency include in the records 

16 of a child with a disability a statement of any current or 

17 previous disciplinary action that has been taken against the 

18 child and transmit such statement to the same extent that 

19 such disciplinary information is included in, and trans20 mitted with, the student records of nondisabled children. 

21 The statement may include a description of any behavior 

22 engaged in by the child that required disciplinary action, 

23 a description of the disciplinary action taken, and any 

24 other information that is relevant to the safety of the child 

25 and other individuals involved with the child. If the State 
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1 adopts such a policy, and the child transfers from one school 

2 to another, the transmission of any of the child’s records 

3 must include both the child’s current individualized edu4 cation program and any such statement of current or pre5 vious disciplinary action that has been taken against the 

6 child.’’. 

7 SEC. 204. EVALUATIONS, ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATIONS, 

8 INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS, 

9 AND EDUCATIONAL PLACEMENTS. 

10 Section 614 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu11 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1414) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 614. EVALUATIONS, ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATIONS, 

13 INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS, 

14 AND EDUCATIONAL PLACEMENTS. 

15 ‘‘(a) EVALUATIONS, PARENTAL CONSENT, AND RE16 EVALUATIONS.—

17 ‘‘(1) INITIAL EVALUATIONS.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State educational 

19 agency, other State agency, or local educational 

20 agency shall conduct a full and individual ini21 tial evaluation, in accordance with this para22 graph and subsection (b), before the initial pro23 vision of special education and related services to 

24 a child with a disability under this part. 
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1 ‘‘(B) REQUEST FOR INITIAL EVALUATION.—

2 Consistent with subparagraph (D), either a par3 ent of a child, a State educational agency, other 

4 State agency as appropriate, or local educational 

5 agency may initiate a request for an initial 

6 evaluation to determine if the child is a child 

7 with a disability. 

8 ‘‘(C) PROCEDURES.—Such initial evalua9 tion shall consist of procedures—

10 ‘‘(i) to determine whether a child is a 

11 child with a disability (as defined in sec12 tion 602(3)); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) to determine the educational 

14 needs of such child. 

15 ‘‘(D) PARENTAL CONSENT.—

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—

17 ‘‘(I) CONSENT FOR INITIAL EVAL18 UATION.—The agency proposing to 

19 conduct an initial evaluation to deter20 mine if the child qualifies as a child 

21 with a disability as defined in section 

22 602(3)(A) or 602(3)(B) shall obtain in23 formed consent from the parent of such 

24 child before conducting the evaluation. 

25 Parental consent for evaluation shall 
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1 not be construed as consent for place2 ment for receipt of special education 

3 and related services. 

4 ‘‘(II) CONSENT FOR SERVICES.—

5 An agency that is responsible for mak6 ing a free appropriate public education 

7 available to a child with a disability 

8 under this part shall seek to obtain in9 formed consent from the parent of such 

10 child before providing special edu11 cation and related services to the child. 

12 ‘‘(ii) ABSENCE OF CONSENT.—

13 ‘‘(I) FOR INITIAL EVALUATION.—

14 If the parent of such child does not 

15 provide consent for an initial evalua16 tion under clause (i)(I), or the parent 

17 fails to respond to a request to provide 

18 the consent, the local educational agen19 cy may pursue the initial evaluation of 

20 the child through the procedures de21 scribed in section 615, except to the ex22 tent inconsistent with State law relat23 ing to such parental consent. 

24 ‘‘(II) FOR SERVICES.—If the par25 ent of such child does not provide con-
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1 sent for services under clause (i)(II), or 

2 the parent fails to respond to a request 

3 to provide the consent, the local edu4 cational agency shall not provide spe5 cial education and related services to 

6 the child through the procedures de7 scribed in section 615. 

8 ‘‘(III) EFFECT ON AGENCY OBLI9 GATIONS.—In any case for which there 

10 is an absence of consent for an initial 

11 evaluation under subclause (I), or for 

12 which there is an absence of consent for 

13 services under subclause (II)—

14 ‘‘(aa) the local educational 

15 agency shall not be required to 

16 convene an IEP meeting or de17 velop an IEP under this section 

18 for the child; and 

19 ‘‘(bb) the local educational 

20 agency shall not be considered to 

21 be in violation of any requirement 

22 under this part (including the re23 quirement to make available a 

24 free appropriate public education 

25 to the child) with respect to the 
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1 lack of an initial evaluation of the 

2 child, an IEP meeting with re3 spect to the child, or the develop4 ment of an IEP under this section 

5 for the child.

6 ‘‘(E) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The screen7 ing of a student by a teacher or specialist to de8 termine appropriate instructional strategies for 

9 curriculum implementation shall not be consid10 ered to be an evaluation for eligibility for special 

11 education and related services. 

12 ‘‘(2) REEVALUATIONS.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A local educational 

14 agency shall ensure that a reevaluation of each 

15 child with a disability is conducted in accord16 ance with subsections (b) and (c)—

17 ‘‘(i) if the local educational agency de18 termines that the educational needs, includ19 ing improved academic achievement, of the 

20 child warrant a reevaluation; or 

21 ‘‘(ii) if the child’s parent or teacher re22 quests a reevaluation. 

23 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—A reevaluation con24 ducted under subparagraph (A) shall occur—
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1 ‘‘(i) no more than once a year, unless 

2 the parent and the local educational agency 

3 agree otherwise; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) at least once every three years, 

5 unless the parent and the local educational 

6 agency agree that a reevaluation is unneces7 sary. 

8 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION PROCEDURES.—

9 ‘‘(1) NOTICE.—The local educational agency 

10 shall provide notice to the parent of a child with a 

11 disability, in accordance with subsections (b)(3), 

12 (b)(4), and (c) of section 615, that describes any eval13 uation procedures such agency proposes to conduct. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONDUCT OF EVALUATION.—In conducting 

15 the evaluation, the local educational agency shall—

16 ‘‘(A) use multiple up-to-date measures and 

17 assessments to gather relevant functional, devel18 opmental, and academic information, including 

19 information provided by the parent, to assist in 

20 determining—

21 ‘‘(i) whether the child is a child with 

22 a disability; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the content of the child’s individ24 ualized education program, including infor25 mation related to enabling the child to be 
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1 involved in and progress in the general edu2 cation curriculum or, for preschool children, 

3 to participate in appropriate activities; 

4 ‘‘(B) not use any single measure or assess5 ment as the sole criterion for determining wheth6 er a child is a child with a disability or deter7 mining an appropriate educational program for 

8 the child; and 

9 ‘‘(C) use technically sound instruments that 

10 may assess the relative contribution of cognitive 

11 and behavioral factors, in addition to physical 

12 or developmental factors. 

13 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—Each local 

14 educational agency shall ensure that—

15 ‘‘(A) assessments and other evaluation 

16 measures used to assess a child under this sec17 tion—

18 ‘‘(i) are selected and administered so 

19 as not to be discriminatory on a racial or 

20 cultural basis; 

21 ‘‘(ii) are provided and administered, to 

22 the extent practicable, in the language and 

23 form most likely to yield accurate academic 

24 and developmental data; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) are used for the purposes for 

2 which the assessments or measures are valid 

3 and reliable; 

4 ‘‘(iv) are administered by trained and 

5 knowledgeable personnel; and 

6 ‘‘(v) are administered in accordance 

7 with any instructions provided by the pro8 ducer of such tests; 

9 ‘‘(B) the child is assessed in all areas of sus10 pected disability; and 

11 ‘‘(C) assessment tools and strategies that 

12 provide relevant information that directly assists 

13 persons in determining the educational needs of 

14 the child are provided. 

15 ‘‘(4) DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND EDU16 CATIONAL NEED.—Upon completion of the adminis17 tration of assessments and other evaluation meas18 ures—

19 ‘‘(A) the determination of whether the child 

20 is a child with a disability as defined in section 

21 602(3) and the educational needs of the child 

22 shall be made by a team of qualified profes23 sionals and the parent of the child in accordance 

24 with paragraph (5); and 
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1 ‘‘(B) a copy of the evaluation report and the 

2 documentation of determination of eligibility 

3 will be given to the parent. 

4 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR ELIGIBILITY DETER5 MINATION.—In making a determination of eligibility 

6 under paragraph (4)(A), a child shall not be deter7 mined to be a child with a disability if the deter8 minant factor for such determination is—

9 ‘‘(A) lack of scientifically based instruction 

10 practices and programs that contain the essen11 tial components of reading instruction (as that 

12 term is defined in section 1208(3) of the Elemen13 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965); 

14 ‘‘(B) lack of instruction in math; or 

15 ‘‘(C) limited English proficiency. 

16 ‘‘(6) SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITIES.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec18 tion 607 of this Act, when determining whether 

19 a child has a specific learning disability as de20 fined under this Act, the local educational agen21 cy shall not be required to take into consider22 ation whether the child has a severe discrepancy 

23 between achievement and intellectual ability in 

24 oral expression, listening comprehension, written 

25 expression, basic reading skill, reading com-
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1 prehension, mathematical calculation, or mathe2 matical reasoning. 

3 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—In deter4 mining whether a child has a specific learning 

5 disability, a local educational agency may use a 

6 process which determines if a child responds to 

7 scientific, research-based intervention. 

8 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR EVALUATION

9 AND REEVALUATIONS.—

10 ‘‘(1) REVIEW OF EXISTING EVALUATION DATA.—

11 As part of an initial evaluation (if appropriate) and 

12 as part of any reevaluation under this section, the 

13 IEP Team described in subsection (d)(1)(B) and other 

14 qualified professionals, as appropriate, shall—

15 ‘‘(A) review existing evaluation data on the 

16 child, including evaluations and information 

17 provided by the parents of the child, current 

18 classroom-based local or State assessments, and 

19 classroom-based observations, and teacher and 

20 related services providers observations; and 

21 ‘‘(B) on the basis of that review, and input 

22 from the child’s parents, identify what addi23 tional data, if any, are needed to determine—

24 ‘‘(i) whether the child is a child with 

25 a disability as defined in section 602(3), 
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1 and the educational needs of the child, or, 

2 in case of a reevaluation of a child, whether 

3 the child continues to have such a disability 

4 and such educational needs; 

5 ‘‘(ii) the present levels of academic 

6 achievement and related developmental 

7 needs of the child; 

8 ‘‘(iii) whether the child needs special 

9 education and related services, or in the 

10 case of a reevaluation of a child, whether 

11 the child continues to need special education 

12 and related services; and 

13 ‘‘(iv) whether any additions or modi14 fications to the special education and re15 lated services are needed to enable the child 

16 to meet the measurable annual goals set out 

17 in the individualized education program of 

18 the child and to participate, as appropriate, 

19 in the general education curriculum. 

20 ‘‘(2) SOURCE OF DATA.—The local educational 

21 agency shall administer such assessments and other 

22 evaluation measures as may be needed to produce the 

23 data identified by the IEP Team under paragraph 

24 (1)(B). 
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1 ‘‘(3) PARENTAL CONSENT.—Each local edu2 cational agency shall obtain informed parental con3 sent, in accordance with subsection (a)(1)(D), prior to 

4 conducting any reevaluation of a child with a dis5 ability, except that such informed parental consent 

6 need not be obtained if the local educational agency 

7 can demonstrate that it had taken reasonable meas8 ures to obtain such consent and the child’s parent has 

9 failed to respond. 

10 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS IF ADDITIONAL DATA ARE

11 NOT NEEDED.—If the IEP Team and other qualified 

12 professionals, as appropriate, determine that no addi13 tional data are needed to determine whether the child 

14 continues to be a child with a disability and to deter15 mine the child’s educational needs, the local edu16 cational agency—

17 ‘‘(A) shall notify the child’s parents of—

18 ‘‘(i) that determination and the rea19 sons for it; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) the right of such parents to re21 quest an assessment to determine whether 

22 the child continues to be a child with a dis23 ability and to determine the child’s edu24 cational needs; and 
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1 ‘‘(B) shall not be required to conduct such 

2 an assessment unless requested to by the child’s 

3 parents. 

4 ‘‘(5) EVALUATIONS BEFORE CHANGE IN ELIGI5 BILITY.—A local educational agency shall evaluate a 

6 child with a disability in accordance with this section 

7 prior to graduation, and before determining that the 

8 child is no longer a child with a disability, only in 

9 instances where the IEP Team is not in agreement re10 garding the change in eligibility. 

11 ‘‘(d) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS.—

12 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this title: 

13 ‘‘(A) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PRO14 GRAM.—

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘individ16 ualized education program’ or ‘IEP’ means 

17 a written statement for each child with a 

18 disability that is developed, reviewed, and 

19 revised in accordance with this section and 

20 that includes—

21 ‘‘(I) a statement of the child’s 

22 present levels of academic achievement, 

23 including—

24 ‘‘(aa) how the child’s dis25 ability affects the child’s involve-
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1 ment and progress in the general 

2 education curriculum; 

3 ‘‘(bb) for preschool children, 

4 as appropriate, how the disability 

5 affects the child’s participation in 

6 appropriate activities; and 

7 ‘‘(cc) until the beginning of 

8 the 2005–2006 school year, a de9 scription of benchmarks or short10 term objectives, except in the case 

11 of children with disabilities who 

12 take alternate assessments aligned 

13 to alternate achievement stand14 ards, a description of benchmarks 

15 or short-term objectives shall con16 tinue to be included; 

17 ‘‘(II) a statement of measurable 

18 annual goals designed to—

19 ‘‘(aa) meet the child’s needs 

20 that result from the child’s dis21 ability to enable the child to be 

22 involved in and make progress in 

23 the general education curriculum; 

24 and 
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1 ‘‘(bb) meet the child’s other 

2 educational needs that result from 

3 the child’s disability; 

4 ‘‘(III) a statement of the special 

5 education and related services and sup6 plementary aids and services, based on 

7 peer-reviewed research to the extent 

8 practicable, to be provided to the child, 

9 or on behalf of the child, and a state10 ment of the program modifications or 

11 supports for school personnel that will 

12 be provided for the child—

13 ‘‘(aa) to advance appro14 priately toward attaining the an15 nual goals; 

16 ‘‘(bb) to be involved in and 

17 make progress in the general edu18 cation curriculum in accordance 

19 with subclause (I) and to partici20 pate in extracurricular and other 

21 nonacademic activities; and 

22 ‘‘(cc) to be educated and par23 ticipate with other children with 

24 disabilities and nondisabled chil-
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1 dren in the activities described in 

2 this paragraph; 

3 ‘‘(IV) an explanation of the ex4 tent, if any, to which the child will not 

5 participate with nondisabled children 

6 in the regular class and in the activi7 ties described in subclause (III)(cc); 

8 ‘‘(V)(aa) a statement of any indi9 vidual appropriate accommodations in 

10 the administration of State or district11 wide assessments of student achieve12 ment that are necessary to measure the 

13 academic achievement of the child con14 sistent with section 612(a)(16)(A)(ii); 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(bb) if the IEP Team determines 

17 that the child will not participate in a 

18 particular State or districtwide assess19 ment of student achievement (or part 

20 of such an assessment), a statement 

21 of—

22 ‘‘(AA) why that assessment is 

23 not appropriate for the child; and 
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1 ‘‘(BB) how the child will be 

2 assessed consistent with 

3 612(a)(16)(A); 

4 ‘‘(VI) the projected date for the be5 ginning of the services and modifica6 tions described in subclause (III), and 

7 the anticipated frequency, location, 

8 and duration of those services and 

9 modifications; 

10 ‘‘(VII)(aa) beginning at age 14, 

11 and updated annually, a statement of 

12 the transition service needs of the child 

13 under the applicable components of the 

14 child’s IEP that focuses on the child’s 

15 courses of study (such as participation 

16 in advanced-placement courses or a vo17 cational education program); 

18 ‘‘(bb) beginning at age 16 (or 

19 younger, if determined appropriate by 

20 the IEP Team), a statement of needed 

21 transition services for the child, includ22 ing, when appropriate, a statement of 

23 the interagency responsibilities or any 

24 needed linkages; and 
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1 ‘‘(cc) beginning at least 1 year be2 fore the child reaches the age of major3 ity under State law, a statement that 

4 the child has been informed of his or 

5 her rights under this title, if any, that 

6 will transfer to the child on reaching 

7 the age of majority under section 

8 615(l); and 

9 ‘‘(VIII) a statement of—

10 ‘‘(aa) how the child’s 

11 progress toward the annual goals 

12 described in subclause (II) will be 

13 measured; and 

14 ‘‘(bb) how the child’s parents 

15 will be regularly informed (by 

16 such means as periodic report 

17 cards), at least as often as parents 

18 are informed of their nondisabled 

19 children’s progress, of the suffi20 ciency of their child’s progress to21 ward the annual goals described 

22 in subclause (II). 

23 ‘‘(ii) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Noth24 ing in this subparagraph shall be construed 

25 to require—
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1 ‘‘(I) that additional information 

2 be included in a child’s IEP beyond 

3 what is required in this subsection; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(II) the IEP Team to include in6 formation under one component of a 

7 child’s IEP that is already contained 

8 under another component of such IEP. 

9 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM

10 TEAM.—The term ‘individualized education pro11 gram team’ or ‘IEP Team’ means a group of in12 dividuals composed of—

13 ‘‘(i) the parents of a child with a dis14 ability; 

15 ‘‘(ii) a regular education teacher of 

16 such child, but such teacher shall not be re17 quired to attend a meeting or part of a 

18 meeting of the IEP Team involving issues 

19 not related to the child’s participation in 

20 the regular education environment, nor 

21 shall multiple regular education teachers, if 

22 the child has more than one regular edu23 cation teacher, be required to attend a meet24 ing, or part of a meeting, of the IEP team; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) at least 1 special education 

2 teacher, or where appropriate, at least 1 

3 special education provider of such child; 

4 ‘‘(iv) a representative of the local edu5 cational agency who—

6 ‘‘(I) is qualified to provide, or su7 pervise the provision of, specially de8 signed instruction to meet the unique 

9 needs of children with disabilities; 

10 ‘‘(II) is knowledgeable about the 

11 general education curriculum; and 

12 ‘‘(III) is knowledgeable about the 

13 availability of resources of the local 

14 educational agency; 

15 ‘‘(v) an individual who can interpret 

16 the instructional implications of evaluation 

17 results, who may be a member of the team 

18 described in clauses (ii) through (vi); 

19 ‘‘(vi) at the discretion of the parent or 

20 the agency, other individuals who have 

21 knowledge or special expertise regarding the 

22 child, including related services personnel as 

23 appropriate; and 

24 ‘‘(vii) whenever appropriate, the child 

25 with a disability. 
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1 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT THAT PROGRAM BE IN EF2 FECT.—

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—At the beginning of 

4 each school year, each local educational agency, 

5 State educational agency, or other State agency, 

6 as the case may be, shall have in effect, for each 

7 child with a disability in its jurisdiction, an in8 dividualized education program, as defined in 

9 paragraph (1)(A). 

10 ‘‘(B) PROGRAM FOR CHILD AGED 3

11 THROUGH 5.—In the case of a child with a dis12 ability aged 3 through 5 (or, at the discretion of 

13 the State educational agency, a 2 year-old child 

14 with a disability who will turn age 3 during the 

15 school year), the IEP Team shall consider the in16 dividualized family service plan that contains 

17 the material described in section 636, and that 

18 is developed in accordance with this section, and 

19 the individualized family service plan may serve 

20 as the IEP of the child if using that plan as the 

21 IEP is—

22 ‘‘(i) consistent with State policy; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) agreed to by the agency and the 

24 child’s parents. 

25 ‘‘(3) DEVELOPMENT OF IEP.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In developing each 

2 child’s IEP, the IEP Team, subject to subpara3 graph (C), shall consider—

4 ‘‘(i) the results of the initial evaluation 

5 or most recent evaluation of the child; 

6 ‘‘(ii) the academic and developmental 

7 needs of the child; 

8 ‘‘(iii) the strengths of the child; and 

9 ‘‘(iv) the concerns of the parents for en10 hancing the education of their child. 

11 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION OF SPECIAL FAC12 TORS.—The IEP Team shall—

13 ‘‘(i) in the case of a child whose behav14 ior impedes his or her learning or that of 

15 others, consider the use of positive behav16 ioral interventions and supports, and other 

17 strategies, to address that behavior; 

18 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a child with limited 

19 English proficiency, consider the language 

20 needs of the child as such needs relate to the 

21 child’s IEP; 

22 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a child who is 

23 blind or visually impaired, provide for in24 struction in Braille and the use of Braille 

25 unless the IEP Team determines, after an 
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1 evaluation of the child’s reading and writ2 ing skills, needs, and appropriate reading 

3 and writing media (including an evalua4 tion of the child’s future needs for instruc5 tion in Braille or the use of Braille), that 

6 instruction in Braille or the use of Braille 

7 is not appropriate for the child; 

8 ‘‘(iv) consider the communication 

9 needs of the child, and in the case of a child 

10 who is deaf or hard of hearing, consider the 

11 child’s language and communication needs, 

12 opportunities for direct communications 

13 with peers and professional personnel in the 

14 child’s language and communication mode, 

15 academic level, and full range of needs, in16 cluding opportunities for direct instruction 

17 in the child’s language and communication 

18 mode; and 

19 ‘‘(v) consider whether the child needs 

20 assistive technology devices and services. 

21 ‘‘(C) REQUIREMENT WITH RESPECT TO

22 REGULAR EDUCATION TEACHER.—The regular 

23 education teacher of the child, if a member of the 

24 IEP Team pursuant to paragraph (1)(B)(ii), 

25 shall, to the extent appropriate, participate in 
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1 the development of the IEP of the child, includ2 ing the determination of appropriate positive be3 havioral interventions and supports, and other 

4 strategies and the determination of supple5 mentary aids and services, program modifica6 tions, and support for school personnel consistent 

7 with paragraph (1)(A)(i)(III). 

8 ‘‘(D) IEP TEAM ATTENDANCE.—The parent 

9 of a child with a disability and the local edu10 cational agency may jointly excuse any member 

11 of the IEP Team from attending all or part of 

12 an IEP meeting if they agree that the member’s 

13 attendance is not necessary. The IEP Team shall 

14 obtain the member’s input prior to an IEP meet15 ing from which the member is excused. 

16 ‘‘(E) AGREEMENT ON MEETING.—In mak17 ing changes to a child’s IEP after the annual 

18 IEP meeting, the parent of a child with a dis19 ability and the local educational agency may 

20 agree not to reconvene the IEP team and instead 

21 develop a written document to amend or modify 

22 the child’s current IEP. 

23 ‘‘(F) CONSOLIDATION OF IEP TEAM MEET24 INGS.—To the extent possible, the local edu-
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1 cational agency shall encourage the consolidation 

2 of IEP Team meetings for a child. 

3 ‘‘(G) AMENDMENTS.—Changes to the IEP 

4 may be made either by the entire IEP Team or, 

5 as provided in subparagraph (E), by amending 

6 the IEP rather than by redrafting the entire 

7 IEP. 

8 ‘‘(4) REVIEW AND REVISION OF IEP.—

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The local educational 

10 agency shall ensure that, subject to subparagraph 

11 (B), the IEP Team—

12 ‘‘(i) reviews the child’s IEP periodi13 cally, but not less than annually, to deter14 mine whether the annual goals for the child 

15 are being achieved; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) revises the IEP as appropriate to 

17 address—

18 ‘‘(I) any lack of expected progress 

19 toward the annual goals and in the 

20 general education curriculum, where 

21 appropriate; 

22 ‘‘(II) the results of any reevalua23 tion conducted under this section; 
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1 ‘‘(III) information about the child 

2 provided to, or by, the parents, as de3 scribed in subsection (c)(1)(B); 

4 ‘‘(IV) the child’s anticipated 

5 needs; or 

6 ‘‘(V) other matters. 

7 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT WITH RESPECT TO

8 REGULAR EDUCATION TEACHER.—The regular 

9 education teacher of the child, if a member of the 

10 IEP Team, shall, consistent with this section, 

11 participate in the review and revision of the IEP 

12 of the child. 

13 ‘‘(5) MULTI-YEAR IEP.—

14 ‘‘(A) DEVELOPMENT.—The local educational 

15 agency may offer to the parent of a child with 

16 a disability the option of developing a com17 prehensive multi-year IEP, not to exceed 3 years, 

18 that is designed to cover the natural transition 

19 points for the child. With the consent of the par20 ent, the IEP Team shall develop an IEP, as de21 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (3), that is de22 signed to serve the child for the appropriate 

23 multi-year period, which includes a statement 

24 of—
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1 ‘‘(i) measurable goals pursuant to 

2 paragraph (1)(A)(i)(II), coinciding with 

3 natural transition points for the child, that 

4 will enable the child to be involved in and 

5 make progress in the general education cur6 riculum and that will meet the child’s other 

7 needs that result from the child’s disability; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(ii) measurable annual goals for de10 termining progress toward meeting the goals 

11 described in clause (i). 

12 ‘‘(B) REVIEW AND REVISION OF MULTI-YEAR

13 IEP.—

14 ‘‘(i) REQUIREMENT.—The IEP Team 

15 shall conduct a review under paragraph (4) 

16 of the child’s multi-year IEP at each of the 

17 child’s natural transition points. 

18 ‘‘(ii) STREAMLINED ANNUAL REVIEW

19 PROCESS.—In years other than a child’s 

20 natural transition points, the local edu21 cational agency shall ensure that the IEP 

22 Team—

23 ‘‘(I) provides an annual review of 

24 the child’s IEP to determine the child’s 

25 current levels of progress and deter-
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1 mine whether the annual goals for the 

2 child are being achieved; and 

3 ‘‘(II) amends the IEP, as appro4 priate, to enable the child to continue 

5 to meet the measurable goals set out in 

6 the IEP. 

7 ‘‘(iii) COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW PROC8 ESS.—If the IEP Team determines, on the 

9 basis of the review under clause (i), that the 

10 child is not making sufficient progress to11 ward the goals described in subparagraph 

12 (A), the local educational agency shall en13 sure that the IEP Team reviews the IEP 

14 under paragraph (4), within 30 calendar 

15 days. 

16 ‘‘(iv) PARENTAL PREFERENCE.—At the 

17 request of the parent, the IEP Team shall 

18 conduct a review under paragraph (4) of 

19 the child’s multi-year IEP rather than a 

20 streamlined annual review under clause 

21 (ii). 

22 ‘‘(C) DEFINITION.—As used in this para23 graph, the term ‘natural transition points’ 

24 means those periods that are close in time to the 

25 transition of a child with a disability from pre-
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1 school to elementary grades, from elementary 

2 grades to middle or junior high school grades, 

3 from middle or junior high school grades to high 

4 school grades, and from high school grades to 

5 post-secondary activities, but in no case longer 

6 than 3 years. 

7 ‘‘(6) FAILURE TO MEET TRANSITION OBJEC8 TIVES.—If a participating agency, other than the 

9 local educational agency, fails to provide the transi10 tion services described in the IEP in accordance with 

11 paragraph (1)(A)(i)(VII), the local educational agen12 cy shall reconvene the IEP Team to identify alter13 native strategies to meet the transition objectives for 

14 the child set out in that program. 

15 ‘‘(7) CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES IN ADULT

16 PRISONS.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The following require18 ments do not apply to children with disabilities 

19 who are convicted as adults under State law and 

20 incarcerated in adult prisons: 

21 ‘‘(i) The requirements contained in sec22 tion 612(a)(16) and paragraph (1)(A)(i)(V) 

23 of this subsection (relating to participation 

24 of children with disabilities in general as25 sessments). 
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1 ‘‘(ii) The requirements of items (aa) 

2 and (bb) of paragraph (1)(A)(i)(VII) of this 

3 subsection (relating to transition planning 

4 and transition services), do not apply with 

5 respect to such children whose eligibility 

6 under this part will end, because of their 

7 age, before they will be released from prison. 

8 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—If a 

9 child with a disability is convicted as an adult 

10 under State law and incarcerated in an adult 

11 prison, the child’s IEP Team may modify the 

12 child’s IEP or placement notwithstanding the re13 quirements of sections 612(a)(5)(A) and 

14 614(d)(1)(A) if the State has demonstrated a 

15 bona fide security or compelling penological in16 terest that cannot otherwise be accommodated. 

17 ‘‘(e) EDUCATIONAL PLACEMENTS.—Each local edu18 cational agency or State educational agency shall ensure 

19 that the parents of each child with a disability are members 

20 of any group that makes decisions on the educational place21 ment of their child. 

22 ‘‘(f) ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF MEETING PARTICIPA23 TION.—When conducting IEP team meetings and place24 ment meetings pursuant to this section and 615, the parent 

25 of a child with a disability and a local educational agency 
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1 may agree to use alternative means of meeting participa2 tion, such as video conferences and conference calls.’’. 

3 SEC. 205. PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCEDURES.—Section 

5 615(a) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

6 (20 U.S.C. 1415(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCEDURES.—Any State 

8 educational agency, State agency, or local educational 

9 agency that receives assistance under this part shall estab10 lish and maintain procedures in accordance with this sec11 tion to ensure that children with disabilities and their par12 ents are guaranteed procedural safeguards with respect to 

13 the provision of free appropriate public education by such 

14 agencies.’’. 

15 (b) TYPES OF PROCEDURES.—Section 615(b) of the In16 dividuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

17 1415(b)) is amended to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(b) TYPES OF PROCEDURES.—The procedures re19 quired by this section shall include—

20 ‘‘(1) an opportunity for the parents of a child 

21 with a disability to examine all records relating to 

22 such child and to participate in meetings with respect 

23 to the identification, evaluation, and educational 

24 placement of the child, and the provision of a free ap25 propriate public education to such child, and to ob-
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1 tain as appropriate an independent educational eval2 uation of the child; 

3 ‘‘(2) procedures to protect the rights of the child 

4 whenever the parents of the child are not known, the 

5 agency cannot, after reasonable efforts, locate the par6 ents, or the child is a ward of the State, including the 

7 assignment of an individual (who shall not be an em8 ployee of the State educational agency, the local edu9 cational agency, or any other agency that is involved 

10 in the education or care of the child) to act as a sur11 rogate for the parents; 

12 ‘‘(3) written prior notice to the parents of the 

13 child whenever such agency—

14 ‘‘(A) proposes to initiate or change; or 

15 ‘‘(B) refuses to initiate or change; 

16 the identification, evaluation, or educational place17 ment of the child, in accordance with subsection (c), 

18 or the provision of a free appropriate public edu19 cation to the child; 

20 ‘‘(4) procedures designed to ensure that the notice 

21 required by paragraph (3) is in the native language 

22 of the parents, unless it clearly is not feasible to do 

23 so; 
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1 ‘‘(5) an opportunity for mediation and vol2 untary binding arbitration, in accordance with sub3 section (e); 

4 ‘‘(6) an opportunity to present complaints—

5 ‘‘(A) with respect to any matter relating to 

6 the identification, evaluation, or educational 

7 placement of the child, or the provision of a free 

8 appropriate public education to such child; and 

9 ‘‘(B) which set forth a violation that oc10 curred not more than one year before the com11 plaint is filed; 

12 ‘‘(7)(A) procedures that require the parent of a 

13 child with a disability, or the attorney representing 

14 the child, to provide notice (which shall remain con15 fidential)—

16 ‘‘(i) to the local educational agency or State 

17 educational agency (if the State educational 

18 agency is the direct provider of services pursuant 

19 to section 613(g)), in the complaint filed under 

20 paragraph (6); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) that shall include—

22 ‘‘(I) the name of the child, the address 

23 of the residence of the child (or, in the case 

24 of a homeless child or youth (within the 

25 meaning of section 725(2) of the McKinney-
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1 Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 11434a(2)), available contact information 

3 for the child), and the name of the school the 

4 child is attending; 

5 ‘‘(II) a description of the specific issues 

6 regarding the nature of the problem of the 

7 child relating to such proposed initiation or 

8 change, including facts relating to such 

9 problem; and 

10 ‘‘(III) a proposed resolution of the 

11 problem to the extent known and available 

12 to the parents at the time; 

13 ‘‘(B) a requirement that a parent of a child with 

14 a disability may not have a due process hearing until 

15 the parent, or the attorney representing the child, files 

16 a notice that meets the requirements of this para17 graph; and 

18 ‘‘(8) procedures that require the State edu19 cational agency to develop a model form to assist par20 ents in filing a complaint in accordance with para21 graph (7).’’. 

22 (c) CONTENT OF PRIOR WRITTEN NOTICE.—Section 

23 615(c) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

24 (20 U.S.C. 1415(c)) is amended to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(c) CONTENT OF PRIOR WRITTEN NOTICE.—The no2 tice required by subsection (b)(3) shall include—

3 ‘‘(1) a description of the action proposed or re4 fused by the agency; 

5 ‘‘(2) an explanation of why the agency proposes 

6 or refuses to take the action and a description of each 

7 evaluation procedure, test, record, or report the agen8 cy used as a basis for the proposed or refused action; 

9 ‘‘(3) a statement that the parents of a child with 

10 a disability have protection under the procedural 

11 safeguards of this part and, if this notice is not an 

12 initial referral for evaluation, the means by which a 

13 copy of a description of the procedural safeguards can 

14 be obtained; and 

15 ‘‘(4) sources for parents to contact to obtain as16 sistance in understanding the provisions of this 

17 part.’’. 

18 (d) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS NOTICE.—Section 

19 615(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

20 (20 U.S.C. 1415(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(d) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS NOTICE.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A copy of the procedural 

23 safeguards available to the parents of a child with a 

24 disability shall be given to the parents, at a min25 imum—
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1 ‘‘(A) upon initial referral or parental re2 quest for evaluation; 

3 ‘‘(B) annually, at the beginning of the 

4 school year; and 

5 ‘‘(C) upon written request by a parent. 

6 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The procedural safeguards no7 tice shall include a description of the procedural safe8 guards, written in the native language of the parents, 

9 unless it clearly is not feasible to do so, and written 

10 in an easily understandable manner, available under 

11 this section and under regulations promulgated by the 

12 Secretary relating to—

13 ‘‘(A) independent educational evaluation; 

14 ‘‘(B) prior written notice; 

15 ‘‘(C) parental consent; 

16 ‘‘(D) access to educational records; 

17 ‘‘(E) opportunity to present complaints; 

18 ‘‘(F) the child’s placement during pendency 

19 of due process proceedings; 

20 ‘‘(G) procedures for students who are subject 

21 to placement in an interim alternative edu22 cational setting; 

23 ‘‘(H) requirements for unilateral placement 

24 by parents of children in private schools at pub25 lic expense; 
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1 ‘‘(I) mediation, early dispute resolution, 

2 and voluntary binding arbitration; 

3 ‘‘(J) due process hearings, including re4 quirements for disclosure of evaluation results 

5 and recommendations; 

6 ‘‘(K) civil actions; and 

7 ‘‘(L) attorneys’ fees.’’. 

8 (e) MEDIATION AND VOLUNTARY BINDING ARBITRA9 TION.—Section 615(e) of the Individuals with Disabilities 

10 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415(e)) is amended to read as 

11 follows: 

12 ‘‘(e) MEDIATION AND VOLUNTARY BINDING ARBITRA13 TION.—

14 ‘‘(1) MEDIATION.—

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any State educational 

16 agency or local educational agency that receives 

17 assistance under this part shall ensure that pro18 cedures are established and implemented to allow 

19 parties to disputes involving any matter, includ20 ing matters arising prior to the filing of a com21 plaint pursuant to subsection (b)(6), to resolve 

22 such disputes through a mediation process. 

23 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Such procedures 

24 shall meet the following requirements: 
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1 ‘‘(i) The procedures shall ensure that 

2 the mediation process—

3 ‘‘(I) is voluntary on the part of 

4 the parties; 

5 ‘‘(II) is not used to deny or delay 

6 a parent’s right to a due process hear7 ing under subsection (f), or to deny 

8 any other rights afforded under this 

9 part; and 

10 ‘‘(III) is conducted by a qualified 

11 and impartial mediator who is trained 

12 in effective mediation techniques. 

13 ‘‘(ii) A local educational agency or a 

14 State agency may establish procedures to 

15 offer to parents who choose not to use the 

16 mediation process, an opportunity to meet, 

17 at a time and location convenient to the 

18 parents, with a disinterested party who is 

19 under contract with—

20 ‘‘(I) a parent training and infor21 mation center in the State established 

22 under section 672; or 

23 ‘‘(II) an appropriate alternative 

24 dispute resolution entity; 
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1 to encourage the use, and explain the bene2 fits, of the mediation process to the parents. 

3 ‘‘(iii) The State shall maintain a list 

4 of individuals who are qualified mediators 

5 and knowledgeable in laws and regulations 

6 relating to the provision of special edu7 cation and related services. 

8 ‘‘(iv) The State shall bear the cost of 

9 the mediation process, including the costs of 

10 meetings described in clause (ii). 

11 ‘‘(v) Each session in the mediation 

12 process shall be scheduled in a timely man13 ner and shall be held in a location that is 

14 convenient to the parties to the dispute. 

15 ‘‘(vi) An agreement reached by the par16 ties to the dispute in the mediation process 

17 shall be set forth in a written mediation 

18 agreement. 

19 ‘‘(vii) Discussions that occur during 

20 the mediation process shall be confidential 

21 and may not be used as evidence in any 

22 subsequent due process hearings or civil 

23 proceedings and the parties to the medi24 ation process may be required to sign a con-
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1 fidentiality pledge prior to the commence2 ment of such process. 

3 ‘‘(2) VOLUNTARY BINDING ARBITRATION.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State educational 

5 agency that receives assistance under this part 

6 shall ensure that procedures are established and 

7 implemented to allow parties to disputes involv8 ing any matter described in subsection (b)(6) to 

9 resolve such disputes through voluntary binding 

10 arbitration, which shall be available when a 

11 hearing is requested under subsection (f) or (j). 

12 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Such procedures 

13 shall meet the following requirements: 

14 ‘‘(i) The procedures shall ensure that 

15 the voluntary binding arbitration process—

16 ‘‘(I) is voluntarily and knowingly 

17 agreed to in writing by the parties; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(II) is conducted by a qualified 

20 and impartial arbitrator. 

21 ‘‘(ii) A local educational agency or a 

22 State agency shall ensure that parents who 

23 choose to use voluntary binding arbitration 

24 understand that the process is in lieu of a 

25 due process hearing under subsection (f) or 
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1 (j) and that the decision made by the arbi2 trator is final, unless there is fraud by a 

3 party or the arbitrator or misconduct on the 

4 part of the arbitrator. 

5 ‘‘(iii) The parties shall jointly agree to 

6 use an arbitrator from a list that the State 

7 shall maintain of individuals who are 

8 qualified arbitrators and knowledgeable in 

9 laws and regulations relating to the provi10 sion of special education and related serv11 ices. 

12 ‘‘(iv) The arbitration shall be con13 ducted according to State law on arbitra14 tion or, if there is no such applicable State 

15 law, in a manner consistent with the Re16 vised Uniform Arbitration Act. 

17 ‘‘(v) The voluntary binding arbitration 

18 shall be scheduled in a timely manner and 

19 shall be held in a location that is convenient 

20 to the parties to the dispute.’’. 

21 (f) IMPARTIAL DUE PROCESS HEARING.—Section 

22 615(f) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 

23 (20 U.S.C. 1415(f)) is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(f) IMPARTIAL DUE PROCESS HEARING.—

25 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—
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1 ‘‘(A) ACCESS TO HEARING.—Whenever a 

2 complaint has been received under subsection 

3 (b)(6) or (j) of this section, the parents or the 

4 local educational agency involved in such com5 plaint shall have an opportunity for an impar6 tial due process hearing, which shall be con7 ducted by the State educational agency. 

8 ‘‘(B) RESOLUTION SESSION.—

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the oppor10 tunity for an impartial due process hearing 

11 under subparagraph (A), the local edu12 cational agency shall convene a meeting 

13 with the parents—

14 ‘‘(I) within 15 days of receiving 

15 notice of the parents’ complaint; and 

16 ‘‘(II) where the parents of the 

17 child discuss their complaint, and the 

18 specific issues that form the basis of the 

19 complaint, and the local educational 

20 agency is provided the opportunity to 

21 resolve the complaint; 

22 unless the parents and the local educational 

23 agency agree in writing to waive such meet24 ing. 
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1 ‘‘(ii) DUE PROCESS HEARING.—If the 

2 local educational agency has not resolved 

3 the complaint to the satisfaction of the par4 ents within 30 days of the receipt of the 

5 complaint, the due process hearing shall 

6 occur in accordance with subparagraph (A). 

7 ‘‘(iii) DEFINITION OF MEETING.—A 

8 meeting conducted pursuant to clause (i) 

9 shall not be considered—

10 ‘‘(I) a meeting convened as a re11 sult of an administrative hearing or 

12 judicial action; or 

13 ‘‘(II) an administrative hearing 

14 or judicial action for purposes of sub15 section (h)(3). 

16 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE OF EVALUATIONS AND REC17 OMMENDATIONS.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—At least 5 business days 

19 prior to a hearing conducted pursuant to para20 graph (1), each party shall disclose to all other 

21 parties all evaluations completed by that date 

22 and recommendations based on the offering par23 ty’s evaluations that the party intends to use at 

24 the hearing. 
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1 ‘‘(B) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—A hearing of2 ficer may bar any party that fails to comply 

3 with subparagraph (A) from introducing the rel4 evant evaluation or recommendation at the hear5 ing without the consent of the other party. 

6 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON HEARING.—

7 ‘‘(A) HEARING OFFICER.—A hearing con8 ducted pursuant to paragraph (1)(A) may not be 

9 conducted by—

10 ‘‘(i) an employee of the State edu11 cational agency or the local educational 

12 agency involved in the education or care of 

13 the child; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) any person having a personal or 

15 professional interest that would conflict 

16 with his or her objectivity in the hearing. 

17 ‘‘(B) SUBJECT MATTER OF HEARING.—The 

18 parents of the child shall not be allowed to raise 

19 issues at the due process hearing that were not 

20 raised in the complaint or discussed during the 

21 meeting conducted pursuant to subparagraph 

22 (1)(B), unless the local educational agency agrees 

23 otherwise. 

24 ‘‘(C) DECISION OF HEARING OFFICER.—A 

25 decision made by a hearing officer must be based 
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1 on a determination of whether or not the child 

2 received a free appropriate public education.’’. 

3 (g) APPEAL.—Section 615 of the Individuals with Dis4 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) is amended by 

5 striking subsection (g). 

6 (h) SAFEGUARDS.—Section 615 of the Individuals 

7 with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) is amend8 ed—

9 (1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection 

10 (g); and 

11 (2) by amending subsection (g) (as redesignated) 

12 to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(g) SAFEGUARDS.—Any party to a hearing conducted 

14 pursuant to subsection (f) or (j) shall be accorded—

15 ‘‘(1) the right to be represented by counsel and 

16 by non-attorney advocates and to be accompanied and 

17 advised by individuals with special knowledge or 

18 training with respect to the problems of children with 

19 disabilities; 

20 ‘‘(2) the right to present evidence and confront, 

21 cross-examine, and compel the attendance of wit22 nesses; 

23 ‘‘(3) the right to a written, or, at the option of 

24 the parents, electronic verbatim record of such hear25 ing; and 
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1 ‘‘(4) the right to written, or, at the option of the 

2 parents, electronic findings of fact and decisions 

3 (which findings and decisions shall be made available 

4 to the public consistent with the requirements of sec5 tion 617(d)) (relating to the confidentiality of data, 

6 information, and records).’’. 

7 (i) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES.—Section 615 of 

8 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

9 1415) is amended—

10 (1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

11 (h); and 

12 (2) in subsection (h) (as redesignated)—

13 (A) in paragraph (1)—

14 (i) by striking ‘‘IN GENERAL.—’’ and 

15 all that follows through ‘‘A decision made 

16 in a hearing’’ and inserting ‘‘IN GEN17 ERAL.—A decision made in a hearing’’; 

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘(k)’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘(j)’’; 

20 (iii) by striking ‘‘subsection (g) and’’; 

21 and 

22 (iv) by striking subparagraph (B); 

23 (B) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ‘‘sub24 section (f) or (k) who does not have the right to 
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1 an appeal under subsection (g)’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘subsection (f) or (j)’’; and 

3 (C) in paragraph (3), by amending sub4 paragraph (C) to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF AT6 TORNEYS’ FEES.—

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Fees awarded 

8 under this paragraph shall be based on 

9 rates determined by the Governor of the 

10 State (or other appropriate State official) 

11 in which the action or proceeding arose for 

12 the kind and quality of services furnished. 

13 No bonus or multiplier may be used in cal14 culating the fees awarded under this sub15 section. 

16 ‘‘(ii) NOTICE.—The Governor of the 

17 State (or other appropriate State official) 

18 shall make available to the public on an an19 nual basis the rates described in clause 

20 (i).’’. 

21 (j) MAINTENANCE OF CURRENT EDUCATIONAL PLACE22 MENT.—Section 615 of the Individuals with Disabilities 

23 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) is amended—

24 (1) by redesignating subsection (j) as subsection 

25 (i); and 
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1 (2) by amending subsection (i) (as redesignated) 

2 to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘(i) MAINTENANCE OF CURRENT EDUCATIONAL

4 PLACEMENT.—Except as provided in subsection (j)(4), dur5 ing the pendency of any proceedings conducted pursuant 

6 to this section, unless the State or local educational agency 

7 and the parents otherwise agree, the child shall remain in 

8 the then-current educational placement of such child, or, if 

9 applying for initial admission to a public school, shall, 

10 with the consent of the parents, be placed in the public 

11 school program until all such proceedings have been com12 pleted.’’.

13 (k) PLACEMENT IN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL SET14 TING.—Section 615 of the Individuals with Disabilities 

15 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) is amended—

16 (1) by redesignating subsection (k) as subsection 

17 (j); and 

18 (2) by amending subsection (j) (as redesignated) 

19 to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(j) PLACEMENT IN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL SET21 TING.—

22 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF SCHOOL PERSONNEL.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—School personnel under 

24 this section may order a change in the placement 

25 of a child with a disability who violates a code 
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1 of student conduct policy to an appropriate in2 terim alternative educational setting, another 

3 setting, or suspension, for not more than 10 

4 school days (to the extent such alternatives would 

5 be applied to children without disabilities). 

6 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—Subject to 

7 subparagraph (C), and notwithstanding any 

8 other provision of this Act, school personnel 

9 under this section may order a change in the 

10 placement of a child with a disability who vio11 lates a code of student conduct policy to an ap12 propriate interim alternative educational setting 

13 selected so as to enable the child to continue to 

14 participate in the general education curriculum, 

15 although in another setting, and to progress to16 ward meeting the goals set out in the child’s 

17 IEP, for not more than 45 school days (to the ex18 tent such alternative and such duration would be 

19 applied to children without disabilities, and 

20 which may include consideration of unique cir21 cumstances on a case-by-case basis), except that 

22 the change in placement may last beyond 45 

23 school days if required by State law or regula24 tion for the violation in question, to ensure the 

25 safety and appropriate educational atmosphere 
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1 in the schools under the jurisdiction of the local 

2 educational agency. 

3 ‘‘(C) SERVICES.—A child with a disability 

4 who is removed from the child’s current place5 ment under subparagraph (B) shall—

6 ‘‘(i) continue to receive educational 

7 services selected so as to enable the child to 

8 continue to participate in the general edu9 cation curriculum, although in another set10 ting, and to progress toward meeting the 

11 goals set out in the child’s IEP; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) continue to receive behavioral 

13 intervention services designed to address the 

14 behavior violation so that it does not recur. 

15 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF SETTING.—The alter16 native educational setting described in paragraph 

17 (1)(B) shall be determined by the IEP Team. 

18 ‘‘(3) PARENT APPEAL.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the parent of a child 

20 with a disability disagrees with any decision re21 garding placement or punishment under this sec22 tion, the parent may request a hearing. 

23 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY OF HEARING OFFICER.—If 

24 a parent of a child with a disability disagrees 

25 with a decision regarding placement of the child 
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1 or punishment of the child under this section, in2 cluding duration of the punishment, the hearing 

3 officer may determine whether the decision re4 garding such action was appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(4) PLACEMENT DURING APPEALS.—When a 

6 parent requests a hearing regarding a disciplinary 

7 action described in paragraph (1)(B) to challenge the 

8 interim alternative educational setting or the viola9 tion of the code of student conduct policy, the child 

10 shall remain in the interim alternative educational 

11 setting pending the decision of the hearing officer or 

12 until the expiration of the time period provided for 

13 in paragraph (1)(B), whichever occurs first, unless 

14 the parent and the State or local educational agency 

15 agree otherwise. 

16 ‘‘(5) PROTECTIONS FOR CHILDREN NOT YET ELI17 GIBLE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELATED SERV18 ICES.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A child who has not 

20 been determined to be eligible for special edu21 cation and related services under this part and 

22 who has engaged in behavior that violates a code 

23 of student conduct policy, may assert any of the 

24 protections provided for in this part if the local 

25 educational agency had knowledge (as deter-
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1 mined in accordance with this paragraph) that 

2 the child was a child with a disability before the 

3 behavior that precipitated the disciplinary ac4 tion occurred. 

5 ‘‘(B) BASIS OF KNOWLEDGE.—A local edu6 cational agency shall be deemed to have knowl7 edge that a child is a child with a disability if, 

8 before the behavior that precipitated the discipli9 nary action occurred—

10 ‘‘(i) the parent of the child has ex11 pressed concern in writing (unless the par12 ent is illiterate or has a disability that pre13 vents compliance with the requirements con14 tained in this clause) to personnel of the ap15 propriate educational agency that the child 

16 is in need of special education and related 

17 services; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the parent of the child has re19 quested an evaluation of the child pursuant 

20 to section 614; or 

21 ‘‘(iii) the teacher of the child, or other 

22 personnel of the local educational agency, 

23 has expressed concern in writing about the 

24 behavior or performance of the child to the 
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1 director of special education of such agency 

2 or to other personnel of the agency. 

3 ‘‘(C) CONDITIONS THAT APPLY IF NO BASIS

4 OF KNOWLEDGE.—

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If a local edu6 cational agency does not have knowledge 

7 that a child is a child with a disability (in 

8 accordance with subparagraph (B)) prior to 

9 taking disciplinary measures against the 

10 child, the child may be subjected to discipli11 nary measures applied to children without 

12 disabilities who engaged in comparable be13 haviors consistent with clause (ii). 

14 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATIONS.—If a request is 

15 made for an evaluation of a child during 

16 the time period in which the child is sub17 jected to disciplinary measures under para18 graph (1) or (2), the evaluation shall be 

19 conducted in an expedited manner. If the 

20 child is determined to be a child with a dis21 ability, taking into consideration informa22 tion from the evaluation conducted by the 

23 agency and information provided by the 

24 parents, the agency shall provide special 

25 education and related services in accordance 
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1 with this part, except that, pending the re2 sults of the evaluation, the child shall re3 main in the educational placement deter4 mined by school authorities. 

5 ‘‘(6) REFERRAL TO AND ACTION BY LAW EN6 FORCEMENT AND JUDICIAL AUTHORITIES.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this part 

8 shall be construed to prohibit an agency from re9 porting a crime committed by a child with a dis10 ability to appropriate authorities or to prevent 

11 State law enforcement and judicial authorities 

12 from exercising their responsibilities with regard 

13 to the application of Federal and State law to 

14 crimes committed by a child with a disability. 

15 ‘‘(B) TRANSMISSION OF RECORDS.—An 

16 agency reporting a crime committed by a child 

17 with a disability shall ensure that copies of the 

18 special education and disciplinary records of the 

19 child are transmitted for consideration by the 

20 appropriate authorities to whom it reports the 

21 crime.’’. 

22 (l) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 615 of the Indi23 viduals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) 

24 is amended by redesignating subsection (l) as subsection (k). 
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1 (m) TRANSFER OF PARENTAL RIGHTS AT AGE OF MA2 JORITY.—Section 615 of the Individuals with Disabilities 

3 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1415) is amended—

4 (1) by redesignating subsection (m) as subsection 

5 (l); and 

6 (2) by amending subsection (l) (as redesignated) 

7 to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(l) TRANSFER OF PARENTAL RIGHTS AT AGE OF MA9 JORITY.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives 

11 amounts from a grant under this part may provide 

12 that, when a child with a disability reaches the age 

13 of majority under State law (except for a child with 

14 a disability who has been determined to be incom15 petent under State law)—

16 ‘‘(A) the public agency shall provide any 

17 notice required by this section to both the indi18 vidual and the parents; 

19 ‘‘(B) all other rights accorded to parents 

20 under this part transfer to the child; 

21 ‘‘(C) the agency shall notify the individual 

22 and the parents of the transfer of rights; and 

23 ‘‘(D) all rights accorded to parents under 

24 this part transfer to children who are incarcer-
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1 ated in an adult or juvenile Federal, State, or 

2 local correctional institution. 

3 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—If, under State law, a 

4 child with a disability who has reached the age of 

5 majority under State law, who has not been deter6 mined to be incompetent, but who is determined not 

7 to have the ability to provide informed consent with 

8 respect to the educational program of the child, the 

9 State shall establish procedures for appointing the 

10 parent of the child, or if the parent is not available, 

11 another appropriate individual, to represent the edu12 cational interests of the child throughout the period of 

13 eligibility of the child under this part.’’. 

14 SEC. 206. MONITORING, ENFORCEMENT, WITHHOLDING, 

15 AND JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

16 Section 616 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu17 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1416) is amended—

18 (1) by amending the heading to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 616. MONITORING, ENFORCEMENT, WITHHOLDING, 

20 AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.’’; 

21 (2) by redesignating subsections (a) through (c) 

22 as subsections (e) through (g), respectively; and 

23 (3) by inserting before subsection (e) (as redesig24 nated) the following: 

25 ‘‘(a) FEDERAL MONITORING.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall monitor 

2 implementation of this Act. 

3 ‘‘(2) FOCUSED MONITORING.—The primary focus 

4 of Federal monitoring activities shall be to improve 

5 educational results for all children with disabilities, 

6 while ensuring compliance with program require7 ments, with a particular emphasis on those require8 ments that are most closely related to improving edu9 cational results for children with disabilities. 

10 ‘‘(b) INDICATORS.—

11 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED INDICATORS.—The Secretary 

12 shall examine relevant information and data related 

13 to States’ progress on improving educational results 

14 for children with disabilities by reviewing—

15 ‘‘(A) achievement results of children with 

16 disabilities on State or district assessments, in17 cluding children with disabilities taking State or 

18 district assessments with appropriate accom19 modations; 

20 ‘‘(B) achievement results of children with 

21 disabilities on State or district alternate assess22 ments; 

23 ‘‘(C) graduation rates of children with dis24 abilities and graduation rates of children with 
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1 disabilities as compared to graduation rates of 

2 nondisabled children; and 

3 ‘‘(D) dropout rates for children with dis4 abilities and dropout rates of children with dis5 abilities as compared to dropout rates of non6 disabled children. 

7 ‘‘(2) PERMISSIVE INDICATORS.—The Secretary 

8 also may establish other priorities for review of rel9 evant information and data, including data provided 

10 by States under section 618, and also including the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(A) PRIORITIES FOR THIS PART.—The 

13 Secretary may give priority to monitoring on 

14 the following areas under this part: 

15 ‘‘(i) Provision of educational services 

16 in the least restrictive environment, includ17 ing—

18 ‘‘(I) education of children with 

19 disabilities with nondisabled peers to 

20 the maximum extent appropriate; 

21 ‘‘(II) provision of appropriate 

22 special education and related services; 

23 ‘‘(III) access to the general cur24 riculum with appropriate accommoda25 tions; 
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1 ‘‘(IV) provision of appropriate 

2 services to students whose behavior im3 pedes learning; and 

4 ‘‘(V) participation and perform5 ance of children with disabilities on 

6 State and local assessments, including 

7 alternate assessments. 

8 ‘‘(ii) Secondary transition, including 

9 the extent to which youth exiting special 

10 education are prepared for post-secondary 

11 education, employment, and adult life, and 

12 are participants in appropriate transition 

13 planning while in school. 

14 ‘‘(iii) State exercise of general super15 visory authority, including effective moni16 toring and use of complaint resolution, me17 diation, and voluntary binding arbitration. 

18 ‘‘(B) PRIORITIES FOR PART C.—The Sec19 retary may give priority to monitoring on the 

20 following areas under part C: 

21 ‘‘(i) Child find and public awareness 

22 to support the identification, evaluation 

23 and assessment of all eligible infants and 

24 toddlers, including the provision of cul-
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1 turally relevant materials to inform and 

2 promote referral. 

3 ‘‘(ii) Provision of early intervention 

4 services in natural environments, evalua5 tion and assessment to identify child needs 

6 and family needs related to enhancing the 

7 development of the child, and provision of 

8 appropriate early intervention services in 

9 natural environments to meet the needs of 

10 individual children. 

11 ‘‘(iii) Effective early childhood transi12 tion to services under this part. 

13 ‘‘(iv) State exercise of general super14 visory authority, including—

15 ‘‘(I) effective monitoring and use 

16 of other mechanisms such as complaint 

17 resolution; 

18 ‘‘(II) implementation of medi19 ation and voluntary binding arbitra20 tion; and 

21 ‘‘(III) coordination of parent and 

22 child protections. 

23 ‘‘(3) DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS.—The 

24 Secretary shall review the data collection and anal25 ysis capacity of States to ensure that data and infor-
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1 mation is collected, analyzed, and accurately reported 

2 to the Secretary. The Secretary may provide technical 

3 assistance to improve the capacity of States to meet 

4 data requirements. 

5 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL PRIORITIES.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may develop 

7 additional priorities for monitoring the effective im8 plementation of this Act. 

9 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Secretary shall 

10 provide a public comment period of at least 30 days 

11 on any additional priority proposed under this part 

12 or part C. 

13 ‘‘(3) DATE OF ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary 

14 may not begin to enforce a new priority until one 

15 year from the date of publication of the priority in 

16 the Federal Register as a final rule. 

17 ‘‘(d) COMPLIANCE.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall review 

19 State data to determine whether the State is in com20 pliance with the provisions of this Act. 

21 ‘‘(2) LACK OF PROGRESS.—If after examining 

22 data, as provided in section (b) or (c), the Secretary 

23 determines that a State is not making satisfactory 

24 progress in improving educational results for children 
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1 with disabilities, the Secretary shall take one or more 

2 of the following actions: 

3 ‘‘(A) Advise the State of available sources of 

4 technical assistance that may help the State ad5 dress the lack of progress, which may include as6 sistance from the Office of Special Education 

7 Programs, other offices of the Department of 

8 Education, other Federal agencies, technical as9 sistance providers approved by the Secretary, 

10 and other federally funded nonprofit agencies. 

11 Such technical assistance may include—

12 ‘‘(i) the provision of advice by experts 

13 to address the areas of noncompliance, in14 cluding explicit plans for ensuring compli15 ance within a specified period of time; 

16 ‘‘(ii) assistance in identifying and im17 plementing professional development, in18 structional strategies, and methods of in19 struction that are based on scientifically 

20 based research; 

21 ‘‘(iii) designating and using distin22 guished superintendents, principals, special 

23 education administrators, regular education 

24 teachers, and special education teachers to 
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1 provide advice, technical assistance, and 

2 support; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) devising additional approaches to 

4 providing technical assistance, such as col5 laborating with institutions of higher edu6 cation, educational service agencies, na7 tional centers of technical assistance sup8 ported under part D, and private providers 

9 of scientifically based technical assistance. 

10 ‘‘(B) Direct the use of State level funds for 

11 technical assistance on the area or areas of un12 satisfactory performance. 

13 ‘‘(C) Each year withhold at least 20 but no 

14 more than 50 percent of the State’s funds under 

15 section 611(e), after providing the State the op16 portunity to show cause why the withholding 

17 should not occur, until the Secretary determines 

18 that sufficient progress has been made in im19 proving educational results for children with dis20 abilities. 

21 ‘‘(3) SUBSTANTIAL NON-COMPLIANCE.—

22 ‘‘(A) INITIAL DETERMINATION.—When the 

23 Secretary determines that a State is not in sub24 stantial compliance with any provision of this 
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1 part, the Secretary shall take one or more of the 

2 following actions: 

3 ‘‘(i) Request that the State prepare a 

4 corrective action plan or improvement plan 

5 if the Secretary determines that the State 

6 should be able to correct the problem within 

7 one year. 

8 ‘‘(ii) Identify the State as a high-risk 

9 grantee and impose special conditions on 

10 the State’s grant. 

11 ‘‘(iii) Require the State to enter into a 

12 compliance agreement under section 457 of 

13 the General Education Provisions Act, if the 

14 Secretary has reason to believe that the 

15 State cannot correct the problem within one 

16 year. 

17 ‘‘(iv) Recovery of funds under section 

18 452 of the General Education Provisions 

19 Act. 

20 ‘‘(v)(I) Withholding of payments under 

21 subsection (e). 

22 ‘‘(II) Pending the outcome of any hear23 ing to withhold payments under subsection 

24 (e), the Secretary may suspend payments to 

25 a recipient, suspend the authority of the re-
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1 cipient to obligate Federal funds, or both, 

2 after such recipient has been given reason3 able notice and an opportunity to show 

4 cause why future payments or authority to 

5 obligate Federal funds should not be sus6 pended. 

7 ‘‘(B) CONTINUED NON-COMPLIANCE.—

8 ‘‘(i) SECRETARIAL ACTION.—If the Sec9 retary has imposed special conditions on a 

10 grant under subparagraph (A)(ii) for sub11 stantially the same compliance problems for 

12 three consecutive years, and at the end of 

13 the third year the State has not dem14 onstrated that the violation has been cor15 rected to the satisfaction of the Secretary, 

16 the Secretary shall take such additional en17 forcement actions as the Secretary deter18 mines to be appropriate from among those 

19 actions specified in clauses (iii) through (v) 

20 of subparagraph (A). 

21 ‘‘(ii) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The 

22 Secretary shall report to Congress within 30 

23 days of taking enforcement action pursuant 

24 to this paragraph on the specific action 
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1 taken and the reasons why enforcement ac2 tion was taken.’’. 

3 SEC. 207. ADMINISTRATION. 

4 Section 617 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu5 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1417) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 617. ADMINISTRATION. 

7 ‘‘(a) RESPONSIBILITIES OF SECRETARY.—In carrying 

8 out this part, the Secretary shall—

9 ‘‘(1) cooperate with, and (directly or by grant or 

10 contract) furnish technical assistance necessary to, the 

11 State in matters relating to—

12 ‘‘(A) the education of children with disabil13 ities; and 

14 ‘‘(B) carrying out this part; and 

15 ‘‘(2) provide short-term training programs and 

16 institutes.

17 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION AGAINST FEDERAL MANDATES, DI18 RECTION, OR CONTROL.—Nothing in this Act may be con19 strued to authorize an officer or employee of the Federal 

20 Government to mandate, direct, or control a State, local 

21 educational agency, or school’s specific instructional con22 tent, curriculum, or program of instruction. 

23 ‘‘(c) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Secretary shall take ap24 propriate action, in accordance with section 444 of the Gen25 eral Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g), to ensure 
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1 the protection of the confidentiality of any personally iden2 tifiable data, information, and records collected or main3 tained by the Secretary and by State and local educational 

4 agencies pursuant to this part. 

5 ‘‘(d) PERSONNEL.—The Secretary is authorized to hire 

6 qualified personnel necessary to carry out the Secretary’s 

7 duties under subsection (a) and under sections 618 and 661 

8 without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States 

9 Code, relating to appointments in the competitive service 

10 and without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of 

11 chapter 53 of such title relating to classification and general 

12 schedule pay rates, except that no more than twenty such 

13 personnel shall be employed at any time. 

14 ‘‘(e) PILOT PROGRAM.—The Secretary is authorized to 

15 grant waivers of paperwork requirements under this part 

16 for a period of time not to exceed 4 years with respect to 

17 not more than 10 States based on proposals submitted by 

18 States for addressing reduction of paperwork and non-in19 structional time spent fulfilling statutory and regulatory 

20 requirements. 

21 ‘‘(f) REPORT.—The Secretary shall include in the an22 nual report to Congress under section 426 of the Depart23 ment of Education Organization Act information related 

24 to the effectiveness of waivers granted under subsection 

25 (e)—
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1 ‘‘(1) in reducing the paperwork burden on teach2 ers, administrators, and related services providers 

3 and non-instructional time spent by teachers in com4 plying with this part, including any specific rec5 ommendations for broader implementation; and 

6 ‘‘(2) in enhancing longer-term educational plan7 ning, improving positive outcomes for children with 

8 disabilities, promoting collaboration between IEP 

9 Team members, and ensuring satisfaction of family 

10 members, including any specific recommendations for 

11 broader implementation. 

12 ‘‘(g) MODEL FORMS.—Not later than the date on 

13 which the Secretary publishes final regulations to imple14 ment this part (as amended by the Improving Education 

15 Results for Children With Disabilities Act of 2003), the Sec16 retary shall publish and disseminate widely to States, local 

17 educational agencies, and parent training and information 

18 centers—

19 ‘‘(1) a model individualized education program 

20 form; 

21 ‘‘(2) a model form for the procedural safeguards 

22 notice described in section 615(d); and 

23 ‘‘(3) a model form for the prior written notice 

24 described in section 615(b)(3); 
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1 that would be consistent with the requirements of this part 

2 and be deemed to be sufficient to meet such requirements.’’. 

3 SEC. 208. PROGRAM INFORMATION. 

4 Section 618 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu5 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1418) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 618. PROGRAM INFORMATION. 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State and local educational 

8 agency that receives assistance under this part, and the Sec9 retary of the Interior, shall provide data each year to the 

10 Secretary—

11 ‘‘(1)(A) on—

12 ‘‘(i) the number and percentage of children 

13 with disabilities, by race, ethnicity, and dis14 ability category, who are receiving a free appro15 priate public education; 

16 ‘‘(ii) the number and percentage of children 

17 with disabilities, by race and ethnicity, who are 

18 receiving early intervention services; 

19 ‘‘(iii) the number and percentage of chil20 dren with disabilities, by race, ethnicity, and 

21 disability category, who are participating in reg22 ular education; 

23 ‘‘(iv) the number and percentage of children 

24 with disabilities, by race, ethnicity, and dis25 ability category, who are in separate classes, sep-
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1 arate schools or facilities, or public or private 

2 residential facilities; 

3 ‘‘(v) the number and percentage of children 

4 with disabilities, by race and ethnicity, and dis5 ability category who begin secondary school and 

6 graduate with a regular high school diploma, 

7 through the age of 21; 

8 ‘‘(vi) the number and percentage of children 

9 with disabilities, by race, ethnicity, and dis10 ability category, who, for each year of age from 

11 age 14 to 21, stopped receiving special education 

12 and related services because of program comple13 tion or other reasons and the reasons why those 

14 children stopped receiving special education and 

15 related services; 

16 ‘‘(vii) the number and percentage of chil17 dren with disabilities, by race and ethnicity, 

18 who, from birth through age 2, stopped receiving 

19 early intervention services because of program 

20 completion or for other reasons; 

21 ‘‘(viii)(I) the number and percentage of 

22 children with disabilities, by race, ethnicity, and 

23 disability category, who under subparagraph (A) 

24 or (B) of section 615(j)(1), are removed to an in25 terim alternative educational setting; 
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1 ‘‘(II) the acts or items precipitating those 

2 removals; 

3 ‘‘(III) the number of children with disabil4 ities, by race, ethnicity, and disability category, 

5 who are subject to long-term suspensions or ex6 pulsions; and 

7 ‘‘(IV) the incidence, duration, and type of 

8 disciplinary actions, by race and ethnicity, in9 cluding suspension and expulsions; 

10 ‘‘(ix) the number of complaints resolved 

11 through voluntary binding arbitration; and 

12 ‘‘(x) the number of mediations held and the 

13 number of settlement agreements reached through 

14 mediation; 

15 ‘‘(B) on the number and percentage of infants 

16 and toddlers, by race and ethnicity, who are at risk 

17 of having substantial developmental delays (as de18 fined in section 632), and who are receiving early 

19 intervention services under part C; and 

20 ‘‘(C) on the number of children served with funds 

21 under section 613(f); and 

22 ‘‘(2) on any other information that may be re23 quired by the Secretary. 
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1 ‘‘(b) SAMPLING.—The Secretary may permit States 

2 and the Secretary of the Interior to obtain the data de3 scribed in subsection (a) through sampling. 

4 ‘‘(c) DISPROPORTIONALITY.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State that receives as6 sistance under this part, and the Secretary of the In7 terior, shall provide for the collection and examina8 tion of data to determine if significant 

9 disproportionality based on race and ethnicity is oc10 curring in the State and the local educational agen11 cies of the State with respect to—

12 ‘‘(A) the identification of children as chil13 dren with disabilities, including the identifica14 tion of children as children with disabilities in 

15 accordance with a particular impairment de16 scribed in section 602(3); 

17 ‘‘(B) the placement in particular edu18 cational settings of such children; and 

19 ‘‘(C) the incidence, duration, and type of 

20 disciplinary actions, including suspensions and 

21 expulsions. 

22 ‘‘(2) REVIEW AND REVISION OF POLICIES, PRAC23 TICES, AND PROCEDURES.—In the case of a deter24 mination of significant disproportionality with re25 spect to the identification of children as children with 
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1 disabilities, or the placement in particular edu2 cational settings of such children, in accordance with 

3 paragraph (1), the State or the Secretary of the Inte4 rior, as the case may be—

5 ‘‘(A) shall provide for the review and, if ap6 propriate, revision of the policies, procedures, 

7 and practices used in such identification or 

8 placement to ensure that such policies, proce9 dures, and practices comply with the require10 ments of this Act; 

11 ‘‘(B) shall require any local educational 

12 agency identified under paragraph (1) to reserve 

13 the maximum amount of funds under section 

14 613(f) to provide comprehensive coordinated 

15 prereferral support services to serve children in 

16 the local educational agency, particularly chil17 dren in those groups that were significantly 

18 overidentified under paragraph (1); and 

19 ‘‘(C) shall require the local educational 

20 agency to publicly report on the revision of poli21 cies, practices, and procedures described under 

22 subparagraph (A).’’. 

23 SEC. 209. PRESCHOOL GRANTS. 

24 Section 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu25 cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1419) is amended to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 619. PRESCHOOL GRANTS. 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide grants 

3 under this section to assist States to provide special edu4 cation and related services, in accordance with this part—

5 ‘‘(1) to children with disabilities aged 3 through 

6 5, inclusive; and 

7 ‘‘(2) at the State’s discretion, to 2-year-old chil8 dren with disabilities who will turn 3 during the 

9 school year. 

10 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—A State shall be eligible for a grant 

11 under this section if such State—

12 ‘‘(1) is eligible under section 612 to receive a 

13 grant under this part; and 

14 ‘‘(2) makes a free appropriate public education 

15 available to all children with disabilities, aged 3 

16 through 5, residing in the State. 

17 ‘‘(c) ALLOCATIONS TO STATES.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall allocate 

19 funds among the States in accordance with para20 graph (2) or (3), as appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(2) INCREASE IN FUNDS.—If the amount avail22 able for allocations to States under paragraph (1) is 

23 equal to or greater than the amount allocated to the 

24 States under this section for the preceding fiscal year, 

25 those allocations shall be calculated as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(A)(i) Except as provided in subparagraph 

2 (B), the Secretary shall—

3 ‘‘(I) allocate to each State the amount 

4 it received for fiscal year 1997; 

5 ‘‘(II) allocate 85 percent of any re6 maining funds to States on the basis of 

7 their relative populations of children aged 3 

8 through 5; and 

9 ‘‘(III) allocate 15 percent of those re10 maining funds to States on the basis of 

11 their relative populations of all children 

12 aged 3 through 5 who are living in poverty. 

13 ‘‘(ii) For the purpose of making grants 

14 under this paragraph, the Secretary shall use the 

15 most recent population data, including data on 

16 children living in poverty, that are available and 

17 satisfactory to the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), 

19 allocations under this paragraph shall be subject 

20 to the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) No State’s allocation shall be less 

22 than its allocation for the preceding fiscal 

23 year. 

24 ‘‘(ii) No State’s allocation shall be less 

25 than the greatest of—
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1 ‘‘(I) the sum of—

2 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

3 for fiscal year 1997; and 

4 ‘‘(bb) one third of one percent 

5 of the amount by which the 

6 amount appropriated under sub7 section (j) exceeds the amount ap8 propriated under this section for 

9 fiscal year 1997; 

10 ‘‘(II) the sum of—

11 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

12 for the preceding fiscal year; and 

13 ‘‘(bb) that amount multiplied 

14 by the percentage by which the in15 crease in the funds appropriated 

16 from the preceding fiscal year ex17 ceeds 1.5 percent; or 

18 ‘‘(III) the sum of—

19 ‘‘(aa) the amount it received 

20 for the preceding fiscal year; and 

21 ‘‘(bb) that amount multiplied 

22 by 90 percent of the percentage 

23 increase in the amount appro24 priated from the preceding fiscal 

25 year. 
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1 ‘‘(iii) Notwithstanding clause (ii), no 

2 State’s allocation under this paragraph 

3 shall exceed the sum of—

4 ‘‘(I) the amount it received for the 

5 preceding fiscal year; and 

6 ‘‘(II) that amount multiplied by 

7 the sum of 1.5 percent and the percent8 age increase in the amount appro9 priated. 

10 ‘‘(C) If the amount available for allocations 

11 under this paragraph is insufficient to pay those 

12 allocations in full, those allocations shall be rat13 ably reduced, subject to subparagraph (B)(i). 

14 ‘‘(3) DECREASE IN FUNDS.—If the amount avail15 able for allocations to States under paragraph (1) is 

16 less than the amount allocated to the States under 

17 this section for the preceding fiscal year, those alloca18 tions shall be calculated as follows: 

19 ‘‘(A) If the amount available for allocations 

20 is greater than the amount allocated to the 

21 States for fiscal year 1997, each State shall be 

22 allocated the sum of—

23 ‘‘(i) the amount it received for fiscal 

24 year 1997; and 
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1 ‘‘(ii) an amount that bears the same 

2 relation to any remaining funds as the in3 crease the State received for the preceding 

4 fiscal year over fiscal year 1997 bears to the 

5 total of all such increases for all States. 

6 ‘‘(B) If the amount available for allocations 

7 is equal to or less than the amount allocated to 

8 the States for fiscal year 1997, each State shall 

9 be allocated the amount it received for that year, 

10 ratably reduced, if necessary. 

11 ‘‘(d) RESERVATION FOR STATE ACTIVITIES.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State may retain not 

13 more than the amount described in paragraph (2) for 

14 administration and other State-level activities in ac15 cordance with subsections (e) and (f). 

16 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT DESCRIBED.—For each fiscal year, 

17 the Secretary shall determine and report to the State 

18 educational agency an amount that is 25 percent of 

19 the amount the State received under this section for 

20 fiscal year 1997, cumulatively adjusted by the Sec21 retary for each succeeding fiscal year by the lesser 

22 of—

23 ‘‘(A) the percentage increase, if any, from 

24 the preceding fiscal year in the State’s allocation 

25 under this section; or 
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1 ‘‘(B) the percentage increase, if any, from 

2 the preceding fiscal year in the Consumer Price 

3 Index For All Urban Consumers published by the 

4 Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of 

5 Labor. 

6 ‘‘(e) STATE ADMINISTRATION.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of admin8 istering this section (including the coordination of ac9 tivities under this part with, and providing technical 

10 assistance to, other programs that provide services to 

11 children with disabilities) a State may use not more 

12 than 20 percent of the maximum amount it may re13 tain under subsection (d) for any fiscal year. 

14 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION OF PART C.—Funds de15 scribed in paragraph (1) may also be used for the ad16 ministration of part C of this Act, if the State edu17 cational agency is the lead agency for the State under 

18 that part. 

19 ‘‘(f) OTHER STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—Each State 

20 shall use any funds it retains under subsection (d) and does 

21 not use for administration under subsection (e)—

22 ‘‘(1) for support services (including establishing 

23 and implementing the mediation and voluntary bind24 ing arbitration process required by section 615(e)), 

25 which may benefit children with disabilities younger 
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1 than 3 or older than 5 as long as those services also 

2 benefit children with disabilities aged 3 through 5; 

3 ‘‘(2) for direct services for children eligible for 

4 services under this section; 

5 ‘‘(3) for activities at the State and local levels to 

6 meet the performance goals established by the State 

7 under section 612(a)(16) and to support implementa8 tion of the State plan under subpart 1 of part D if 

9 the State receives funds under that subpart; or 

10 ‘‘(4) to supplement other funds used to develop 

11 and implement a Statewide coordinated services sys12 tem designed to improve results for children and fam13 ilies, including children with disabilities and their 

14 families, but not to exceed one percent of the amount 

15 received by the State under this section for a fiscal 

16 year. 

17 ‘‘(g) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN18 CIES.—

19 ‘‘(1) SUBGRANTS REQUIRED.—Each State that 

20 receives a grant under this section for any fiscal year 

21 shall distribute all of the grant funds that it does not 

22 reserve under subsection (d) to local educational agen23 cies in the State that have established their eligibility 

24 under section 613, as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(A) BASE PAYMENTS.—The State shall 

2 first award each agency described in paragraph 

3 (1) the amount that agency would have received 

4 under this section for fiscal year 1997 if the 

5 State had distributed 75 percent of its grant for 

6 that year under section 619(c)(3), as then in ef7 fect. 

8 ‘‘(B) ALLOCATION OF REMAINING FUNDS.—

9 After making allocations under subparagraph 

10 (A), the State shall—

11 ‘‘(i) allocate 85 percent of any remain12 ing funds to those agencies on the basis of 

13 the relative numbers of children enrolled in 

14 public and private elementary and sec15 ondary schools within the agency’s jurisdic16 tion; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) allocate 15 percent of those re18 maining funds to those agencies in accord19 ance with their relative numbers of children 

20 living in poverty, as determined by the 

21 State educational agency. 

22 ‘‘(2) REALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—If a State edu23 cational agency determines that a local educational 

24 agency is adequately providing a free appropriate 

25 public education to all children with disabilities aged 
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1 3 through 5 residing in the area served by that agen2 cy with State and local funds, the State educational 

3 agency may reallocate any portion of the funds under 

4 this section that are not needed by that local agency 

5 to provide a free appropriate public education to 

6 other local educational agencies in the State that are 

7 not adequately providing special education and re8 lated services to all children with disabilities aged 3 

9 through 5 residing in the areas they serve. 

10 ‘‘(h) PART C INAPPLICABLE.—Part C of this Act does 

11 not apply to any child with a disability receiving a free 

12 appropriate public education, in accordance with this part, 

13 with funds received under this section. 

14 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION.—For the purpose of this section, the 

15 term ‘State’ means each of the 50 States, the District of 

16 Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 

17 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the 

18 purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized 

19 to be appropriated to the Secretary $500,000,000 for fiscal 

20 year 2004 and such sums as may be necessary for each sub21 sequent fiscal year.’’. 
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1 TITLE III—INFANTS AND 

2 TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES 

3 SEC. 301. SECTIONS 631 THROUGH 638 OF THE INDIVIDUALS 

4 WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. 

5 Sections 631 through 638 of the Individuals with Dis6 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431–1438) are amend7 ed to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 631. FINDINGS AND POLICY. 

9 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that there is an 

10 urgent and substantial need—

11 ‘‘(1) to enhance the development of infants and 

12 toddlers with disabilities and to minimize their po13 tential for developmental delay; 

14 ‘‘(2) to reduce the educational costs to our soci15 ety, including our Nation’s schools, by minimizing 

16 the need for special education and related services 

17 after infants and toddlers with disabilities reach 

18 school age; 

19 ‘‘(3) to minimize the likelihood of institutional20 ization of individuals with disabilities and maximize 

21 the potential for their independently living in society; 

22 ‘‘(4) to enhance the capacity of families to meet 

23 the special needs of their infants and toddlers with 

24 disabilities; and 
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1 ‘‘(5) to enhance the capacity of State and local 

2 agencies and service providers to identify, evaluate, 

3 and meet the needs of historically underrepresented 

4 populations, particularly minority, low-income, 

5 inner-city, and rural populations. 

6 ‘‘(b) POLICY.—It is the policy of the United States to 

7 provide financial assistance to States—

8 ‘‘(1) to develop and implement a statewide, com9 prehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, inter10 agency system that provides early intervention serv11 ices for infants and toddlers with disabilities and 

12 their families; 

13 ‘‘(2) to facilitate the coordination of payment for 

14 early intervention services from Federal, State, local, 

15 and private sources (including public and private in16 surance coverage); 

17 ‘‘(3) to enhance their capacity to provide quality 

18 early intervention services and expand and improve 

19 existing early intervention services being provided to 

20 infants and toddlers with disabilities and their fami21 lies; and 

22 ‘‘(4) to encourage States to expand opportunities 

23 for children under 3 years of age who would be at risk 

24 of having substantial developmental delay if they did 

25 not receive early intervention services. 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 632. DEFINITIONS. 

2 ‘‘As used in this part: 

3 ‘‘(1) AT-RISK INFANT OR TODDLER.—The term 

4 ‘at-risk infant or toddler’ means an individual under 

5 3 years of age who would be at risk of experiencing 

6 a substantial developmental delay if early interven7 tion services were not provided to the individual. 

8 ‘‘(2) COUNCIL.—The term ‘council’ means a 

9 State interagency coordinating council established 

10 under section 641. 

11 ‘‘(3) DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY.—The term ‘devel12 opmental delay’, when used with respect to an indi13 vidual residing in a State, has the meaning given 

14 such term by the State under section 635(a)(1). 

15 ‘‘(4) EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES.—The term 

16 ‘early intervention services’ means developmental 

17 services that—

18 ‘‘(A) are provided under public supervision; 

19 ‘‘(B) are provided at no cost except where 

20 Federal or State law provides for a system of 

21 payments by families, including a schedule of 

22 sliding fees; 

23 ‘‘(C) are designed to address family-identi24 fied priorities and concerns that are determined 

25 by individualized family service plan team to re-
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1 late to enhancing the child’s development in any 

2 one or more of the following areas—

3 ‘‘(i) physical development; 

4 ‘‘(ii) cognitive development; 

5 ‘‘(iii) communication development; 

6 ‘‘(iv) social or emotional development; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(v) adaptive development; 

9 ‘‘(D) meet the standards of the State in 

10 which they are provided, including the require11 ments of this part; 

12 ‘‘(E) include—

13 ‘‘(i) family training, family therapy, 

14 counseling, and home visits; 

15 ‘‘(ii) special instruction; 

16 ‘‘(iii) speech-language pathology and 

17 audiology services; 

18 ‘‘(iv) occupational therapy; 

19 ‘‘(v) physical therapy; 

20 ‘‘(vi) psychological services; 

21 ‘‘(vii) service coordination services; 

22 ‘‘(viii) medical services only for diag23 nostic or evaluation purposes; 

24 ‘‘(ix) early identification, screening, 

25 and assessment services; 
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1 ‘‘(x) health services necessary to enable 

2 the infant or toddler to benefit from the 

3 other early intervention services; 

4 ‘‘(xi) social work services; 

5 ‘‘(xii) vision services; 

6 ‘‘(xiii) assistive technology devices and 

7 assistive technology services; and 

8 ‘‘(xiv) transportation and related costs 

9 that are necessary to enable an infant or 

10 toddler and the infant’s or toddler ’s family 

11 to receive another service described in this 

12 paragraph; 

13 ‘‘(F) are provided by qualified personnel, 

14 including—

15 ‘‘(i) special educators; 

16 ‘‘(ii) speech-language pathologists and 

17 audiologists; 

18 ‘‘(iii) occupational therapists; 

19 ‘‘(iv) physical therapists; 

20 ‘‘(v) psychologists; 

21 ‘‘(vi) social workers; 

22 ‘‘(vii) nurses; 

23 ‘‘(viii) registered dietitians; 

24 ‘‘(ix) family therapists; 
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1 ‘‘(x) vision specialists, including oph2 thalmologists and optometrists; 

3 ‘‘(xi) orientation and mobility special4 ists; and 

5 ‘‘(xii) pediatricians and other physi6 cians; 

7 ‘‘(G) to the maximum extent appropriate, 

8 are provided in natural environments, including 

9 the home, and community settings in which chil10 dren without disabilities participate; and 

11 ‘‘(H) are provided in conformity with an 

12 individualized family service plan adopted in 

13 accordance with section 636. 

14 ‘‘(5) INFANT OR TODDLER WITH A DISABILITY.—

15 The term ‘infant or toddler with a disability ’—

16 ‘‘(A) means an individual under 3 years of 

17 age who needs early intervention services because 

18 the individual—

19 ‘‘(i) is experiencing developmental 

20 delays, as measured by appropriate diag21 nostic instruments and procedures in one or 

22 more of the areas of cognitive development, 

23 physical development, communication devel24 opment, social or emotional development, 

25 and adaptive development; or 
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1 ‘‘(ii) has a diagnosed physical or men2 tal condition which has a high probability 

3 of resulting in developmental delay; 

4 ‘‘(B) may also include, at a State’s discre5 tion, at-risk infants and toddlers; and

6 ‘‘(C) may also include, at a State’s discre7 tion, a child aged 3 through 5, who previously 

8 received services under this part and who is eli9 gible for services under section 619, if—

10 ‘‘(i) services provided to this age group 

11 under this part include an educational com12 ponent that promotes school readiness and 

13 incorporates scientifically based pre-lit14 eracy, language, and numeracy skills; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) parents are provided a written 

16 notification of their rights and responsibil17 ities in determining whether their child will 

18 continue to receive services under this part 

19 or participate in preschool programs as20 sisted under section 619. 

21 ‘‘SEC. 633. GENERAL AUTHORITY. 

22 ‘‘The Secretary shall, in accordance with this part, 

23 make grants to States (from their allotments under section 

24 643) to assist each State to maintain and implement a 

25 statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, 
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1 interagency system to provide early intervention services for 

2 infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 634. ELIGIBILITY. 

4 ‘‘In order to be eligible for a grant under section 633, 

5 a State shall provide assurances to the Secretary that the 

6 State—

7 ‘‘(1) has adopted a policy that appropriate early 

8 intervention services are available to all infants and 

9 toddlers with disabilities in the State and their fami10 lies, including Indian infants and toddlers with dis11 abilities and their families residing on a reservation 

12 geographically located in the State; and 

13 ‘‘(2) has in effect a statewide system that meets 

14 the requirements of section 635. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 635. REQUIREMENTS FOR STATEWIDE SYSTEM. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A statewide system described in 

17 section 633 shall include, at a minimum, the following com18 ponents: 

19 ‘‘(1) A definition of the term ‘developmental 

20 delay’ that will be used by the State in carrying out 

21 programs under this part. 

22 ‘‘(2) A State policy that is in effect and that en23 sures that appropriate early intervention services 

24 based on scientifically based research are available to 

25 all infants and toddlers with disabilities and their 
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1 families, including Indian infants and toddlers and 

2 their families residing on a reservation geographically 

3 located in the State. 

4 ‘‘(3) A timely, comprehensive, multidisciplinary 

5 evaluation of the functioning of each infant or toddler 

6 with a disability in the State, and a family-directed 

7 identification of the needs of each family of such an 

8 infant or toddler, to appropriately assist in the devel9 opment of the infant or toddler. 

10 ‘‘(4) For each infant or toddler with a disability 

11 in the State, an individualized family service plan in 

12 accordance with section 636, including service coordi13 nation services in accordance with such service plan. 

14 ‘‘(5) A comprehensive child find system, con15 sistent with part B, including a system for making 

16 referrals to service providers that includes timelines 

17 and provides for participation by primary referral 

18 sources. 

19 ‘‘(6) A public awareness program focusing on 

20 early identification of infants and toddlers with dis21 abilities, including the preparation and dissemina22 tion by the lead agency designated or established 

23 under paragraph (10) to all primary referral sources, 

24 especially hospitals and physicians, of information to 

25 be given to parents, especially to inform parents with 
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1 premature infants, or infants with other physical risk 

2 factors associated with learning or developmental 

3 complications, on the availability of early interven4 tion services under this part and of services under 

5 section 619 of this Act, and procedures for assisting 

6 such sources in disseminating such information to 

7 parents of infants and toddlers. 

8 ‘‘(7) A central directory that includes informa9 tion on early intervention services, resources, and ex10 perts available in the State and research and dem11 onstration projects being conducted in the State. 

12 ‘‘(8) A comprehensive system of personnel devel13 opment, including the training of paraprofessionals 

14 and the training of primary referral sources respect15 ing the basic components of early intervention serv16 ices available in the State that—

17 ‘‘(A) shall include—

18 ‘‘(i) implementing innovative strategies 

19 and activities for the recruitment and reten20 tion of early education service providers; 

21 ‘‘(ii) promoting the preparation of 

22 early intervention providers who are fully 

23 and appropriately qualified to provide 

24 early intervention services under this part; 

25 and 
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1 ‘‘(iii) training personnel to coordinate 

2 transition services for infants and toddlers 

3 served under this part from a program pro4 viding early intervention services under this 

5 part and under part B (other than section 

6 619), to a preschool program receiving 

7 funds under section 619, or another appro8 priate program; and 

9 ‘‘(B) may include—

10 ‘‘(i) training personnel to work in 

11 rural and inner-city areas; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) training personnel in the emo13 tional and social development of young chil14 dren. 

15 ‘‘(9) Subject to subsection (b), policies and proce16 dures relating to the establishment and maintenance 

17 of standards to ensure that personnel necessary to 

18 carry out this part are appropriately and adequately 

19 prepared and trained, including the establishment 

20 and maintenance of standards that are consistent 

21 with any State-approved or recognized certification, 

22 licensing, registration, or other comparable require23 ments that apply to the area in which such personnel 

24 are providing early intervention services. 
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1 ‘‘(10) A single line of responsibility in a lead 

2 agency designated or established by the Governor for 

3 carrying out—

4 ‘‘(A) the general administration and super5 vision of programs and activities receiving as6 sistance under section 633, and the monitoring 

7 of programs and activities used by the State to 

8 carry out this part, whether or not such pro9 grams or activities are receiving assistance made 

10 available under section 633, to ensure that the 

11 State complies with this part; 

12 ‘‘(B) the identification and coordination of 

13 all available resources within the State from 

14 Federal, State, local, and private sources; 

15 ‘‘(C) the assignment of financial responsi16 bility in accordance with section 637(a)(2) to the 

17 appropriate agencies; 

18 ‘‘(D) the development of procedures to en19 sure that services are provided to infants and 

20 toddlers with disabilities and their families 

21 under this part in a timely manner pending the 

22 resolution of any disputes among public agencies 

23 or service providers; 

24 ‘‘(E) the resolution of intra- and inter25 agency disputes; and 
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1 ‘‘(F) the entry into formal interagency 

2 agreements that define the financial responsi3 bility of each agency for paying for early inter4 vention services (consistent with State law) and 

5 procedures for resolving disputes and that in6 clude all additional components necessary to en7 sure meaningful cooperation and coordination. 

8 ‘‘(11) A policy pertaining to the contracting or 

9 making of other arrangements with service providers 

10 to provide early intervention services in the State, 

11 consistent with the provisions of this part, including 

12 the contents of the application used and the condi13 tions of the contract or other arrangements. 

14 ‘‘(12) A procedure for securing timely reimburse15 ments of funds used under this part in accordance 

16 with section 640(a). 

17 ‘‘(13) Procedural safeguards with respect to pro18 grams under this part, as required by section 639. 

19 ‘‘(14) A system for compiling data requested by 

20 the Secretary under section 618 that relates to this 

21 part. 

22 ‘‘(15) A State interagency coordinating council 

23 that meets the requirements of section 641. 

24 ‘‘(16) Policies and procedures to ensure that, 

25 consistent with section 636(d)(5)—
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1 ‘‘(A) to the maximum extent appropriate, 

2 early intervention services are provided in nat3 ural environments; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the provision of early intervention 

5 services for any infant or toddler occurs in a set6 ting other than a natural environment only 

7 when early intervention cannot be achieved satis8 factorily for the infant or toddler in a natural 

9 environment. 

10 ‘‘(b) POLICY.—In implementing subsection (a)(9), a 

11 State may adopt a policy that includes making ongoing 

12 good-faith efforts to recruit and hire appropriately and ade13 quately trained personnel to provide early intervention 

14 services to infants and toddlers with disabilities, including, 

15 in a geographic area of the State where there is a shortage 

16 of such personnel, the most qualified individuals available 

17 who are making satisfactory progress toward completing 

18 applicable course work necessary to meet the standards de19 scribed in subsection (a)(9), consistent with State law with20 in 3 years.

21 ‘‘(c) TREATMENT OF CHILDREN AGED 3 THROUGH

22 5.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a State includes children 

24 described in section 632(5)(C) in the system described 

25 in section 633, the State shall be considered to have 
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1 fulfilled any obligation under part B with respect to 

2 the provision of a free appropriate public education 

3 to those children during the period in which they are 

4 receiving services under this part. 

5 ‘‘(2) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in paragraph (1) 

6 shall be construed to alter or diminish the rights and 

7 protections afforded under this part to children de8 scribed in such paragraph. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 636. INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN. 

10 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENT AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT.—A 

11 statewide system described in section 633 shall provide, at 

12 a minimum, for each infant or toddler with a disability, 

13 and the infant’s or toddler’s family, to receive—

14 ‘‘(1) a multidisciplinary assessment of the 

15 unique strengths and needs of the infant or toddler 

16 and the identification of services appropriate to meet 

17 such needs; 

18 ‘‘(2) a family-directed assessment of the re19 sources, priorities, and concerns of the family and the 

20 identification of the supports and services necessary 

21 to enhance the family ’s capacity to meet the develop22 mental needs of the infant or toddler; and 

23 ‘‘(3) a written individualized family service plan 

24 developed by a multidisciplinary team, including the 

25 parents, as required by subsection (e), including a de-
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1 scription of the appropriate transition services for the 

2 child’s entrance in school. 

3 ‘‘(b) PERIODIC REVIEW.—The individualized family 

4 service plan shall be evaluated once a year and the family 

5 shall be provided a review of the plan at 6-month intervals 

6 (or more often where appropriate based on infant or toddler 

7 and family needs). 

8 ‘‘(c) PROMPTNESS AFTER ASSESSMENT.—The individ9 ualized family service plan shall be developed within a rea10 sonable time after the assessment required by subsection 

11 (a)(1) is completed. With the parents’ consent, early inter12 vention services may commence prior to the completion of 

13 the assessment. 

14 ‘‘(d) CONTENT OF PLAN.—The individualized family 

15 service plan shall be in writing and contain—

16 ‘‘(1) a statement of the infant’s or toddler ’s 

17 present levels of physical development, cognitive devel18 opment, communication development, social or emo19 tional development, and adaptive development, based 

20 on objective criteria; 

21 ‘‘(2) a statement of the family ’s resources, prior22 ities, and concerns relating to enhancing the develop23 ment of the family ’s infant or toddler with a dis24 ability; 
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1 ‘‘(3) a statement of the major goals expected to 

2 be achieved for the infant or toddler and the family, 

3 including pre-literacy and language skills, as develop4 mentally appropriate for the child, and the criteria, 

5 procedures, and timelines used to determine the degree 

6 to which progress toward achieving the goals is being 

7 made and whether modifications or revisions of the 

8 goals or services are necessary; 

9 ‘‘(4) a statement of specific early intervention 

10 services based on peer-reviewed research, to the extent 

11 practicable, necessary to meet the unique needs of the 

12 infant or toddler and the family, including the fre13 quency, intensity, and method of delivering services; 

14 ‘‘(5) a statement of the natural environments in 

15 which early intervention services will appropriately 

16 be provided, including a justification of the extent, if 

17 any, to which the services will not be provided in a 

18 natural environment; 

19 ‘‘(6) the projected dates for initiation of services 

20 and the anticipated length, duration, and frequency 

21 of the services; 

22 ‘‘(7) the identification of the service coordinator 

23 from the profession most immediately relevant to the 

24 infant’s or toddler’s or family’s needs (or who is oth25 erwise qualified to carry out all applicable respon-
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1 sibilities under this part) who will be responsible for 

2 the implementation of the plan and coordination with 

3 other agencies and persons, including transition serv4 ices; and 

5 ‘‘(8) the steps to be taken to support the transi6 tion of the toddler with a disability to preschool or 

7 other appropriate services. 

8 ‘‘(e) PARENTAL CONSENT.—The contents of the indi9 vidualized family service plan shall be fully explained to 

10 the parents and informed written consent from the parents 

11 shall be obtained prior to the provision of early intervention 

12 services described in such plan. If the parents do not pro13 vide consent with respect to a particular early intervention 

14 service, then only the early intervention services to which 

15 consent is obtained shall be provided. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 637. STATE APPLICATION AND ASSURANCES. 

17 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION.—A State desiring to receive a 

18 grant under section 633 shall submit an application to the 

19 Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary 

20 may reasonably require. The application shall contain—

21 ‘‘(1) a designation of the lead agency in the 

22 State that will be responsible for the administration 

23 of funds provided under section 633; 
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1 ‘‘(2) a designation of an individual or entity re2 sponsible for assigning financial responsibility among 

3 appropriate agencies; 

4 ‘‘(3) information demonstrating eligibility of the 

5 State under section 634, including a description of 

6 services to be provided to infants and toddlers with 

7 disabilities and their families through the system; 

8 ‘‘(4) if the State provides services to at-risk in9 fants and toddlers through the statewide system, a de10 scription of such services; 

11 ‘‘(5) a description of the State policies and pro12 cedures requiring the referral of a child under the age 

13 3 who is involved in a substantiated case of child 

14 abuse or neglect consistent with section 635(a)(5) or 

15 who is born and identified with fetal alcohol effects, 

16 fetal alcohol syndrome, neonatal intoxication, or neo17 natal physical or neurological harm resulting from 

18 prenatal drug exposure; 

19 ‘‘(6) a description of the uses for which funds 

20 will be expended in accordance with this part; 

21 ‘‘(7) a description of the procedure used to en22 sure that resources are made available under this part 

23 for all geographic areas within the State; 

24 ‘‘(8) a description of State policies and proce25 dures that ensure that, prior to the adoption by the 
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1 State of any other policy or procedure necessary to 

2 meet the requirements of this part, there are public 

3 hearings, adequate notice of the hearings, and an op4 portunity for comment available to the general public, 

5 including individuals with disabilities and parents of 

6 infants and toddlers with disabilities; 

7 ‘‘(9) a description of the policies and procedures 

8 to be used—

9 ‘‘(A) to ensure a smooth transition for tod10 dlers receiving early intervention services under 

11 this part to preschool or other appropriate serv12 ices, including a description of how—

13 ‘‘(i) the families of such toddlers will 

14 be included in the transition plans required 

15 by subparagraph (C); and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the lead agency designated or es17 tablished under section 635(a)(10) will—

18 ‘‘(I) notify the local educational 

19 agency for the area in which such a 

20 child resides that the child will shortly 

21 reach the age of eligibility for preschool 

22 services under part B, as determined 

23 in accordance with State law; 

24 ‘‘(II) in the case of a child who 

25 may be eligible for such preschool serv-
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1 ices, with the approval of the family of 

2 the child, convene a conference among 

3 the lead agency, the family, and the 

4 local educational agency at least 90 

5 days (and at the discretion of all such 

6 parties, up to 6 months) before the 

7 child is eligible for the preschool serv8 ices, to discuss any such services that 

9 the child may receive; and 

10 ‘‘(III) in the case of a child who 

11 may not be eligible for such preschool 

12 services, with the approval of the fam13 ily, make reasonable efforts to convene 

14 a conference among the lead agency, 

15 the family, and providers of other ap16 propriate services for children who are 

17 not eligible for preschool services under 

18 part B, to discuss the appropriate serv19 ices that the child may receive; 

20 ‘‘(B) to review the child’s program options 

21 for the period from the child’s third birthday 

22 through the remainder of the school year; and 

23 ‘‘(C) to establish a transition plan; 
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1 ‘‘(10) a description of State efforts to promote 

2 collaboration between Early Head Start programs, 

3 child care, and services under part C of this Act; and 

4 ‘‘(11) such other information and assurances as 

5 the Secretary may reasonably require. 

6 ‘‘(b) ASSURANCES.—The application described in sub7 section (a)—

8 ‘‘(1) shall provide satisfactory assurance that 

9 Federal funds made available under section 643 to the 

10 State will be expended in accordance with this part; 

11 ‘‘(2) shall contain an assurance that the State 

12 will comply with the requirements of section 640; 

13 ‘‘(3) shall provide satisfactory assurance that the 

14 control of funds provided under section 643, and title 

15 to property derived from those funds, will be in a 

16 public agency for the uses and purposes provided in 

17 this part and that a public agency will administer 

18 such funds and property; 

19 ‘‘(4) shall provide for—

20 ‘‘(A) making such reports in such form and 

21 containing such information as the Secretary 

22 may require to carry out the Secretary’s func23 tions under this part; and 

24 ‘‘(B) keeping such records and affording 

25 such access to them as the Secretary may find 
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1 necessary to ensure the correctness and 

2 verification of those reports and proper disburse3 ment of Federal funds under this part; 

4 ‘‘(5) provide satisfactory assurance that Federal 

5 funds made available under section 643 to the 

6 State—

7 ‘‘(A) will not be commingled with State 

8 funds; and 

9 ‘‘(B) will be used so as to supplement the 

10 level of State and local funds expended for in11 fants and toddlers with disabilities and their 

12 families and in no case to supplant those State 

13 and local funds; 

14 ‘‘(6) shall provide satisfactory assurance that 

15 such fiscal control and fund accounting procedures 

16 will be adopted as may be necessary to ensure proper 

17 disbursement of, and accounting for, Federal funds 

18 paid under section 643 to the State; 

19 ‘‘(7) shall provide satisfactory assurance that 

20 policies and procedures have been adopted to ensure 

21 meaningful involvement of underserved groups, in22 cluding minority, low-income, and rural families, in 

23 the planning and implementation of all the require24 ments of this part; and 
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1 ‘‘(8) shall contain such other information and 

2 assurances as the Secretary may reasonably require 

3 by regulation. 

4 ‘‘(c) STANDARD FOR DISAPPROVAL OF APPLICATION.—

5 The Secretary may not disapprove such an application un6 less the Secretary determines, after notice and opportunity 

7 for a hearing, that the application fails to comply with the 

8 requirements of this section. 

9 ‘‘(d) SUBSEQUENT STATE APPLICATION.—If a State 

10 has on file with the Secretary a policy, procedure, or assur11 ance that demonstrates that the State meets a requirement 

12 of this section, including any policy or procedure filed 

13 under this part (as in effect before the date of the enactment 

14 of the Improving Education Results for Children With Dis15 abilities Act of 2003), the Secretary shall consider the State 

16 to have met the requirement for purposes of receiving a 

17 grant under this part. 

18 ‘‘(e) MODIFICATION OF APPLICATION.—An application 

19 submitted by a State in accordance with this section shall 

20 remain in effect until the State submits to the Secretary 

21 such modifications as the State determines necessary. This 

22 section shall apply to a modification of an application to 

23 the same extent and in the same manner as this section 

24 applies to the original application. 
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1 ‘‘(f) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY THE SEC2 RETARY.—The Secretary may require a State to modify its 

3 application under this section, but only to the extent nec4 essary to ensure the State’s compliance with this part, if—

5 ‘‘(1) an amendment is made to this Act, or a 

6 Federal regulation issued under this Act; 

7 ‘‘(2) a new interpretation of this Act is made by 

8 a Federal court or the State’s highest court; or 

9 ‘‘(3) an official finding of noncompliance with 

10 Federal law or regulations is made with respect to the 

11 State. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 638. USES OF FUNDS. 

13 ‘‘In addition to using funds provided under section 

14 633 to maintain and implement the statewide system re15 quired by such section, a State may use such funds—

16 ‘‘(1) for direct early intervention services for in17 fants and toddlers with disabilities, and their fami18 lies, under this part that are not otherwise funded 

19 through other public or private sources; 

20 ‘‘(2) to expand and improve on services for in21 fants and toddlers and their families under this part 

22 that are otherwise available; 

23 ‘‘(3) to provide a free appropriate public edu24 cation, in accordance with part B, to children with 
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1 disabilities from their third birthday to the beginning 

2 of the following school year; and 

3 ‘‘(4) in any State that does not provide services 

4 for at-risk infants and toddlers under section 

5 637(a)(4), to strengthen the statewide system by initi6 ating, expanding, or improving collaborative efforts 

7 related to at-risk infants and toddlers, including es8 tablishing linkages with appropriate public or private 

9 community-based organizations, services, and per10 sonnel for the purposes of—

11 ‘‘(A) identifying and evaluating at-risk in12 fants and toddlers; 

13 ‘‘(B) making referrals of the infants and 

14 toddlers identified and evaluated under subpara15 graph (A); and 

16 ‘‘(C) conducting periodic followup on each 

17 such referral to determine if the status of the in18 fant or toddler involved has changed with respect 

19 to the eligibility of the infant or toddler for serv20 ices under this part.’’. 

21 SEC. 302. SECTIONS 641 THROUGH 645 OF THE INDIVIDUALS 

22 WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. 

23 Sections 641 through 645 of the Individuals with Dis24 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1441–1445) are amend25 ed to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 641. STATE INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COUNCIL. 

2 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State that desires to re4 ceive financial assistance under this part shall estab5 lish a State interagency coordinating council. 

6 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—The council shall be ap7 pointed by the Governor. In making appointments to 

8 the council, the Governor shall ensure that the mem9 bership of the council reasonably represents the popu10 lation of the State. 

11 ‘‘(3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Governor shall des12 ignate a member of the council to serve as the chair13 person of the council, or shall require the council to 

14 so designate such a member. Any member of the coun15 cil who is a representative of the lead agency des16 ignated under section 635(a)(10) may not serve as the 

17 chairperson of the council. 

18 ‘‘(b) COMPOSITION.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The council shall be com20 posed as follows: 

21 ‘‘(A) PARENTS.—At least 20 percent of the 

22 members shall be parents of infants or toddlers 

23 with disabilities or children with disabilities 

24 aged 12 or younger, with knowledge of, or experi25 ence with, programs for infants and toddlers 

26 with disabilities. At least one such member shall 
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1 be a parent of an infant or toddler with a dis2 ability or a child with a disability aged 6 or 

3 younger. 

4 ‘‘(B) SERVICE PROVIDERS.—At least 20 

5 percent of the members shall be public or private 

6 providers of early intervention services. 

7 ‘‘(C) STATE LEGISLATURE.—At least one 

8 member shall be from the State legislature. 

9 ‘‘(D) PERSONNEL PREPARATION.—At least 

10 one member shall be involved in personnel prepa11 ration. 

12 ‘‘(E) AGENCY FOR EARLY INTERVENTION

13 SERVICES.—At least one member shall be from 

14 each of the State agencies involved in the provi15 sion of, or payment for, early intervention serv16 ices to infants and toddlers with disabilities and 

17 their families and shall have sufficient authority 

18 to engage in policy planning and implementa19 tion on behalf of such agencies. 

20 ‘‘(F) AGENCY FOR PRESCHOOL SERVICES.—

21 At least one member shall be from the State edu22 cational agency responsible for preschool services 

23 to children with disabilities and shall have suffi24 cient authority to engage in policy planning and 

25 implementation on behalf of such agency. 
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1 ‘‘(G) AGENCY FOR HEALTH INSURANCE.—At 

2 least one member shall be from the agency re3 sponsible for the State governance of health in4 surance. 

5 ‘‘(H) HEAD START AGENCY.—At least one 

6 representative from a Head Start agency or pro7 gram in the State. 

8 ‘‘(I) CHILD CARE AGENCY.—At least one 

9 representative from a State agency responsible 

10 for child care.

11 ‘‘(J) MENTAL HEALTH AGENCY.—At least 

12 one representative from the State agency respon13 sible for children’s mental health. 

14 ‘‘(K) CHILD WELFARE AGENCY.—At least 

15 one representative from the State agency respon16 sible for child protective services. 

17 ‘‘(L) OFFICE OF THE COORDINATOR FOR

18 THE EDUCATION OF HOMELESS CHILDREN AND

19 YOUTH.—At least one representative designated 

20 by the Office of the Coordinator. 

21 ‘‘(2) OTHER MEMBERS.—The council may in22 clude other members selected by the Governor, includ23 ing a representative from the Bureau of Indian Af24 fairs, or where there is no BIA-operated or BIA-fund-
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1 ed school, from the Indian Health Service or the tribe 

2 or tribal council. 

3 ‘‘(c) MEETINGS.—The council shall meet at least quar4 terly and in such places as it deems necessary. The meetings 

5 shall be publicly announced, and, to the extent appropriate, 

6 open and accessible to the general public. 

7 ‘‘(d) MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY.—Subject to the ap8 proval of the Governor, the council may prepare and ap9 prove a budget using funds under this part to conduct hear10 ings and forums, to reimburse members of the council for 

11 reasonable and necessary expenses for attending council 

12 meetings and performing council duties (including child 

13 care for parent representatives), to pay compensation to a 

14 member of the council if the member is not employed or 

15 must forfeit wages from other employment when performing 

16 official council business, to hire staff, and to obtain the serv17 ices of such professional, technical, and clerical personnel 

18 as may be necessary to carry out its functions under this 

19 part. 

20 ‘‘(e) FUNCTIONS OF COUNCIL.—

21 ‘‘(1) DUTIES.—The council shall—

22 ‘‘(A) advise and assist the lead agency des23 ignated or established under section 635(a)(10) 

24 in the performance of the responsibilities set 

25 forth in such section, particularly the identifica-
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1 tion of the sources of fiscal and other support for 

2 services for early intervention programs, assign3 ment of financial responsibility to the appro4 priate agency, and the promotion of the inter5 agency agreements; 

6 ‘‘(B) advise and assist the lead agency in 

7 the preparation of applications and amendments 

8 thereto; 

9 ‘‘(C) advise and assist the State educational 

10 agency regarding the transition of toddlers with 

11 disabilities to preschool and other appropriate 

12 services; and 

13 ‘‘(D) prepare and submit an annual report 

14 to the Governor and to the Secretary on the sta15 tus of early intervention programs for infants 

16 and toddlers with disabilities and their families 

17 operated within the State. 

18 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITY.—The council may 

19 advise and assist the lead agency and the State edu20 cational agency regarding the provision of appro21 priate services for children from birth through age 5. 

22 The council may advise appropriate agencies in the 

23 State with respect to the integration of services for in24 fants and toddlers with disabilities and at-risk in25 fants and toddlers and their families, regardless of 
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1 whether at-risk infants and toddlers are eligible for 

2 early intervention services in the State. 

3 ‘‘(f) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—No member of the coun4 cil shall cast a vote on any matter that would provide direct 

5 financial benefit to that member or otherwise give the ap6 pearance of a conflict of interest under State law. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 642. FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION. 

8 ‘‘Sections 616, 617, and 618 shall, to the extent not 

9 inconsistent with this part, apply to the program author10 ized by this part, except that—

11 ‘‘(1) any reference in such sections to a State 

12 educational agency shall be considered to be a ref13 erence to a State’s lead agency established or des14 ignated under section 635(a)(10); 

15 ‘‘(2) any reference in such sections to a local 

16 educational agency, educational service agency, or a 

17 State agency shall be considered to be a reference to 

18 an early intervention service provider under this 

19 part; and 

20 ‘‘(3) any reference to the education of children 

21 with disabilities or the education of all children with 

22 disabilities shall be considered to be a reference to the 

23 provision of appropriate early intervention services to 

24 infants and toddlers with disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘SEC. 643. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS. 

2 ‘‘(a) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR OUTLYING

3 AREAS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the sums appropriated 

5 to carry out this part for any fiscal year, the Sec6 retary may reserve up to one percent for payments to 

7 Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the 

8 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in 

9 accordance with their respective needs. 

10 ‘‘(2) CONSOLIDATION OF FUNDS.—The provisions 

11 of Public Law 95–134, permitting the consolidation of 

12 grants to the outlying areas, shall not apply to funds 

13 those areas receive under this part. 

14 ‘‘(b) PAYMENTS TO INDIANS.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, subject 

16 to this subsection, make payments to the Secretary of 

17 the Interior to be distributed to tribes, tribal organi18 zations (as defined under section 4 of the Indian Self19 Determination and Education Assistance Act), or 

20 consortia of the above entities for the coordination of 

21 assistance in the provision of early intervention serv22 ices by the States to infants and toddlers with disabil23 ities and their families on reservations served by ele24 mentary and secondary schools for Indian children 

25 operated or funded by the Department of the Interior. 

26 The amount of such payment for any fiscal year shall 
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1 be 1.25 percent of the aggregate of the amount avail2 able to all States under this part for such fiscal year. 

3 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION.—For each fiscal year, the Sec4 retary of the Interior shall distribute the entire pay5 ment received under paragraph (1) by providing to 

6 each tribe, tribal organization, or consortium an 

7 amount based on the number of infants and toddlers 

8 residing on the reservation, as determined annually, 

9 divided by the total number of such children served by 

10 all tribes, tribal organizations, or consortia. 

11 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION.—To receive a payment 

12 under this subsection, the tribe, tribal organization, 

13 or consortium shall submit such information to the 

14 Secretary of the Interior as is needed to determine the 

15 amounts to be distributed under paragraph (2). 

16 ‘‘(4) USE OF FUNDS.—The funds received by a 

17 tribe, tribal organization, or consortium shall be used 

18 to assist States in child find, screening, and other 

19 procedures for the early identification of Indian chil20 dren under 3 years of age and for parent training. 

21 Such funds may also be used to provide early inter22 vention services in accordance with this part. Such 

23 activities may be carried out directly or through con24 tracts or cooperative agreements with the BIA, local 

25 educational agencies, and other public or private non-
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1 profit organizations. The tribe, tribal organization, or 

2 consortium is encouraged to involve Indian parents 

3 in the development and implementation of these ac4 tivities. The above entities shall, as appropriate, make 

5 referrals to local, State, or Federal entities for the 

6 provision of services or further diagnosis. 

7 ‘‘(5) REPORTS.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

8 under paragraph (2), a tribe, tribal organization, or 

9 consortium shall make an annual report to the Sec10 retary of the Interior of activities undertaken under 

11 this subsection, including the number of contracts and 

12 cooperative agreements entered into, the number of 

13 children contacted and receiving services for each 

14 year, and the estimated number of children needing 

15 services during the year following the year in which 

16 the report is made. The Secretary of the Interior shall 

17 include a summary of this information on an annual 

18 basis to the Secretary of Education along with such 

19 other information as required under section 

20 611(h)(3)(E). The Secretary of Education may re21 quire any additional information from the Secretary 

22 of the Interior. 

23 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITED USES OF FUNDS.—None of the 

24 funds under this subsection may be used by the Sec25 retary of the Interior for administrative purposes, in-
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1 cluding child count, and the provision of technical as2 sistance. 

3 ‘‘(c) STATE ALLOTMENTS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para5 graphs (2) and (3) from the funds remaining for each 

6 fiscal year after the reservation and payments under 

7 subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary shall first allot 

8 to each State an amount that bears the same ratio to 

9 the amount of such remainder as the number of in10 fants and toddlers in the State bears to the number 

11 of infants and toddlers in all States. 

12 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM ALLOTMENTS.—Except as pro13 vided in paragraph (3) no State shall receive an 

14 amount under this section for any fiscal year that is 

15 less than the greater of—

16 ‘‘(A) one-half of one percent of the remain17 ing amount described in paragraph (1); or 

18 ‘‘(B) $500,000. 

19 ‘‘(3) RATABLE REDUCTION.—

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the sums made avail21 able under this part for any fiscal year are in22 sufficient to pay the full amounts that all States 

23 are eligible to receive under this subsection for 

24 such year, the Secretary shall ratably reduce the 

25 allotments to such States for such year. 
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1 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—If additional 

2 funds become available for making payments 

3 under this subsection for a fiscal year, allotments 

4 that were reduced under subparagraph (A) shall 

5 be increased on the same basis they were reduced. 

6 ‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this sub7 section—

8 ‘‘(A) the terms ‘infants’ and ‘toddlers’ mean 

9 children under 3 years of age; and 

10 ‘‘(B) the term ‘State’ means each of the 50 

11 States, the District of Columbia, and the Com12 monwealth of Puerto Rico. 

13 ‘‘(d) REALLOTMENT OF FUNDS.—If a State elects not 

14 to receive its allotment under subsection (c), the Secretary 

15 shall reallot, among the remaining States, amounts from 

16 such State in accordance with such subsection. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 644. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 ‘‘For the purpose of carrying out this part, there are 

19 authorized to be appropriated $447,000,000 for fiscal year 

20 2004 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

21 fiscal years 2005 through 2009.’’. 
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1 TITLE IV—NATIONAL ACTIVITIES 

2 TO IMPROVE EDUCATION OF 

3 CHILDREN WITH DISABIL4 ITIES 

5 SEC. 401. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE EDUCATION 

6 OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES. 

7 Part D of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

8 Act (20 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘PART D—NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE 

10 EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES 

11 ‘‘SEC. 651. FINDINGS. 

12 ‘‘The Congress finds the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) The Federal Government has an ongoing ob14 ligation to support activities that contribute to posi15 tive results for children with disabilities, enabling 

16 them to lead productive and independent adult lives. 

17 ‘‘(2) Systemic change benefiting all students, in18 cluding children with disabilities, requires the in19 volvement of States, local educational agencies, par20 ents, individuals with disabilities and their families, 

21 teachers and other service providers, and other inter22 ested individuals and organizations, to develop and 

23 implement comprehensive strategies that improve edu24 cational results for children with disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘(3) State educational agencies, in partnership 

2 with local educational agencies, parents of children 

3 with disabilities, and other individuals and organiza4 tions, are in the best position to improve education 

5 for children with disabilities and to address their spe6 cial needs. 

7 ‘‘(4) An effective educational system serving stu8 dents with disabilities should—

9 ‘‘(A) maintain high academic standards 

10 and clear achievement goals for children, con11 sistent with the standards and expectations for 

12 all students in the educational system, and pro13 vide for appropriate and effective strategies and 

14 methods to ensure that all children with disabil15 ities have the opportunity to achieve those stand16 ards and goals; 

17 ‘‘(B) clearly define, in objective, measurable 

18 terms, the school and post-school results that 

19 children with disabilities are expected to achieve; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(C) promote transition services, as de22 scribed in section 602(31), and coordinate State 

23 and local education, social, health, mental 

24 health, and other services, to address the full 

25 range of student needs, particularly the needs of 
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1 children with disabilities who need significant 

2 levels of support to participate and learn in 

3 school and the community. 

4 ‘‘(5) The availability of an adequate number of 

5 qualified personnel is critical in order to serve effec6 tively children with disabilities, fill leadership posi7 tions in administrative and direct-service capacities, 

8 provide teacher training, and conduct high-quality re9 search to improve special education. 

10 ‘‘(6) High-quality, comprehensive professional 

11 development programs are essential to ensure that the 

12 persons responsible for the education or transition of 

13 children with disabilities possess the skills and knowl14 edge necessary to address the educational and related 

15 needs of those children. 

16 ‘‘(7) Models of professional development should 

17 be scientifically based and reflect successful practices, 

18 including strategies for recruiting, preparing, and re19 taining personnel. 

20 ‘‘(8) Continued support is essential for the devel21 opment and maintenance of a coordinated and high22 quality program of research to inform successful 

23 teaching practices and model curricula for educating 

24 children with disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘(9) A comprehensive research agenda should be 

2 established and pursued to promote the highest qual3 ity and rigor in research on special education and re4 lated services, and to address the full range of issues 

5 facing children with disabilities, parents of children 

6 with disabilities, school personnel, and others. 

7 ‘‘(10) Technical assistance, support, and dissemi8 nation activities are necessary to ensure that parts B 

9 and C are fully implemented and achieve quality 

10 early intervention, educational, and transitional re11 sults for children with disabilities and their families. 

12 ‘‘(11) Parents, teachers, administrators, and re13 lated services personnel need technical assistance and 

14 information in a timely, coordinated, and accessible 

15 manner in order to improve early intervention, edu16 cational, and transitional services and results at the 

17 State and local levels for children with disabilities 

18 and their families. 

19 ‘‘(12) Parent training and information activities 

20 assist parents of a child with a disability in dealing 

21 with the multiple pressures of parenting such a child 

22 and are of particular importance in—

23 ‘‘(A) creating and preserving constructive 

24 relationships between parents of children with 

25 disabilities and schools by facilitating open com-
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1 munication between such parents and schools, 

2 encouraging dispute resolution at the earliest 

3 point in time possible, and discouraging the es4 calation of an adversarial process between such 

5 parents and schools; 

6 ‘‘(B) ensuring the involvement of such par7 ents in planning and decision-making with re8 spect to early intervention, educational, and 

9 transitional services; 

10 ‘‘(C) achieving high-quality early interven11 tion, educational, and transitional results for 

12 children with disabilities; 

13 ‘‘(D) providing such parents information on 

14 their rights, protections, and responsibilities 

15 under this Act to ensure improved early inter16 vention, educational, and transitional results for 

17 children with disabilities; 

18 ‘‘(E) assisting such parents in the develop19 ment of skills to participate effectively in the 

20 education and development of their children and 

21 in the transitions described in section 602(31); 

22 ‘‘(F) supporting the roles of such parents as 

23 participants within partnerships seeking to im24 prove early intervention, educational, and tran-
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1 sitional services and results for children with 

2 disabilities and their families; and 

3 ‘‘(G) supporting those parents who may 

4 have limited access to services and supports due 

5 to economic, cultural, or linguistic barriers. 

6 ‘‘(13) Support is needed to improve technological 

7 resources and integrate technology into the lives of 

8 children with disabilities, parents of children with 

9 disabilities, school personnel, and others through cur10 ricula, services, and assistive technologies. 

11 ‘‘Subpart 1—State Professional Development Grants 

12 ‘‘SEC. 652. PURPOSE. 

13 ‘‘The purpose of this subpart is to assist State edu14 cational agencies in reforming and improving their systems 

15 for professional development in early intervention, edu16 cational, and related and transition services in order to im17 prove results for children with disabilities. 

18 ‘‘SEC. 653. ELIGIBILITY AND COLLABORATIVE PROCESS. 

19 ‘‘(a) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A State educational 

20 agency may apply for a grant under this subpart for a pe21 riod of not less than 1 year and not more than 5 years. 

22 ‘‘(b) PARTNERS.—

23 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED PARTNERS.—In order to be con24 sidered for a grant under this subpart, a State edu25 cational agency shall enter into a partnership agree-
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1 ment with local educational agencies, at least one in2 stitution of higher education in the State, and other 

3 State agencies involved in, or concerned with, the 

4 education of children with disabilities. 

5 ‘‘(2) OPTIONAL PARTNERS.—In addition, a State 

6 educational agency may enter into a partnership 

7 agreement with any of the following: 

8 ‘‘(A) The Governor. 

9 ‘‘(B) Parents of children with disabilities 

10 ages birth through 26. 

11 ‘‘(C) Parents of nondisabled children ages 

12 birth through 26. 

13 ‘‘(D) Individuals with disabilities. 

14 ‘‘(E) Organizations representing individ15 uals with disabilities and their parents, such as 

16 parent training and information centers. 

17 ‘‘(F) Community-based and other nonprofit 

18 organizations involved in the education and em19 ployment of individuals with disabilities. 

20 ‘‘(G) The lead State agency for part C. 

21 ‘‘(H) General and special education teach22 ers, related services personnel, and early inter23 vention personnel. 

24 ‘‘(I) The State advisory panel established 

25 under part C. 
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1 ‘‘(J) The State interagency coordinating 

2 council established under part C. 

3 ‘‘(K) Institutions of higher education within 

4 the State. 

5 ‘‘(L) Individuals knowledgeable about voca6 tional education. 

7 ‘‘(M) The State agency for higher education. 

8 ‘‘(N) The State vocational rehabilitation 

9 agency. 

10 ‘‘(O) Public agencies with jurisdiction in 

11 the areas of health, mental health, social services, 

12 and juvenile justice. 

13 ‘‘(P) Other providers of professional devel14 opment that work with students with disabilities. 

15 ‘‘(Q) Other individuals. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 654. APPLICATIONS. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

18 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION.—A State educational agency 

19 that desires to receive a grant under this subpart 

20 shall submit to the Secretary an application at such 

21 time, in such manner, and including such informa22 tion as the Secretary may require. 

23 ‘‘(2) STATE PLAN.—The application shall in24 clude a plan that addresses the State and local needs 

25 for the professional development of administrators, 
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1 principals, teachers, related services personnel, and 

2 individuals who provide direct supplementary aids 

3 and services to children with disabilities, and that—

4 ‘‘(A) is integrated, to the maximum extent 

5 possible, with State plans under the Elementary 

6 and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the Reha7 bilitation Act of 1973, and the Higher Education 

8 Act of 1965, as appropriate; and 

9 ‘‘(B) is designed to enable the State to meet 

10 the requirements of section 612(a)(15) of this 

11 Act. 

12 ‘‘(b) ELEMENTS OF STATE PLAN.—Each State plan 

13 shall—

14 ‘‘(1) describe a partnership agreement that—

15 ‘‘(A) specifies—

16 ‘‘(i) the nature and extent of the part17 nership among the State educational agen18 cy, local educational agencies, and other 

19 State agencies involved in, or concerned 

20 with, the education of children with disabil21 ities, and the respective roles of each mem22 ber of the partnership; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) how such agencies will work in 

24 partnership with other persons and organi25 zations involved in, and concerned with, the 
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1 education of children with disabilities, in2 cluding the respective roles of each of these 

3 persons and organizations; and 

4 ‘‘(B) is in effect for the period of the grant; 

5 ‘‘(2) describe how grant funds, including part B 

6 funds retained for use at the State level under sections 

7 611(e) and 619(d), and other Federal funds will be 

8 used to support activities conducted under this sub9 part; 

10 ‘‘(3) describe the strategies the State will use to 

11 implement the plan to improve results for children 

12 with disabilities, including—

13 ‘‘(A) how the State will align its profes14 sional development plan with the plans sub15 mitted by the State under sections 1111 and 

16 2112 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu17 cation Act of 1965; 

18 ‘‘(B) how the State will provide technical 

19 assistance to local educational agencies and 

20 schools to improve the quality of professional de21 velopment available to meet the needs of per22 sonnel that serve children with disabilities; and 

23 ‘‘(C) how the State will assess, on a regular 

24 basis, the extent to which the strategies imple25 mented under this subpart have been effective in 
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1 meeting the achievement goals and indicators in 

2 section 612(a)(16); 

3 ‘‘(4) describe, as appropriate, how the strategies 

4 described in paragraph (3) will be coordinated with 

5 public and private sector resources; and 

6 ‘‘(5) include an assurance that the State will use 

7 funds received under this subpart to carry out each 

8 of the activities specified in the plan. 

9 ‘‘(c) COMPETITIVE AWARDS.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

11 grants under this subpart on a competitive basis. 

12 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—The Secretary may give pri13 ority to applications on the basis of need. 

14 ‘‘(d) PEER REVIEW.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall evaluate 

16 applications under this subpart using a panel of ex17 perts who are qualified by virtue of their training, ex18 pertise, or experience. 

19 ‘‘(2) COMPOSITION OF PANEL.—A majority of a 

20 panel described in paragraph (1) shall be composed of 

21 individuals who are not employees of the Federal 

22 Government. 

23 ‘‘(3) PAYMENT OF FEES AND EXPENSES OF CER24 TAIN MEMBERS.—The Secretary may use available 

25 funds appropriated to carry out this subpart to pay 
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1 the expenses and fees of panel members who are not 

2 employees of the Federal Government. 

3 ‘‘(e) REPORTING PROCEDURES.—Each State edu4 cational agency that receives a grant under this subpart 

5 shall submit annual performance reports to the Secretary. 

6 The reports shall—

7 ‘‘(1) describe the progress of the State in imple8 menting its plan; 

9 ‘‘(2) analyze the effectiveness of the State’s ac10 tivities under this subpart and of the State’s strate11 gies for meeting its goals under section 612(a)(16); 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(3) identify any changes in such strategies 

14 needed to improve its performance. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 655. USE OF FUNDS. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

17 ‘‘(1) ACTIVITIES.—A State educational agency 

18 that receives a grant under this subpart shall use the 

19 grant funds, subject to subsection (b), for the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(A) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.—

22 ‘‘(i) Carrying out programs that sup23 port the professional development of early 

24 intervention personnel, related services per25 sonnel, and both special education and reg-
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1 ular education teachers of children with dis2 abilities, such as programs that—

3 ‘‘(I) provide teacher mentoring, 

4 team teaching, reduced class schedules, 

5 and intensive professional development; 

6 ‘‘(II) use standards or assessments 

7 for guiding beginning teachers that are 

8 consistent with challenging State stu9 dent academic achievement standards 

10 and with the definition of professional 

11 development in section 9101 of the Ele12 mentary and Secondary Education Act 

13 of 1965; 

14 ‘‘(III) promote collaborative and 

15 consultive models of providing special 

16 education ad related services; and 

17 ‘‘(IV) increase understanding as 

18 to the most appropriate placements 

19 and services for all students to reduce 

20 significant racial and ethnic 

21 disproportionality in eligibility, place22 ment, and disciplinary actions. 

23 ‘‘(ii) Encouraging and supporting the 

24 training of special education and regular 

25 education teachers and administrators to ef-
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1 fectively integrate technology into curricula 

2 and instruction, including training to im3 prove the ability to collect, manage, and 

4 analyze data to improve teaching, decision5 making, school improvement efforts, and ac6 countability. 

7 ‘‘(iii) Providing professional develop8 ment activities that improve the knowledge 

9 of special education and regular education 

10 teachers concerning—

11 ‘‘(I) the academic and develop12 mental needs of students with disabil13 ities; and 

14 ‘‘(II) effective instructional strate15 gies, methods, and skills, use of chal16 lenging State academic content stand17 ards and student academic achieve18 ment standards, and use of State as19 sessments, to improve teaching prac20 tices and student academic achieve21 ment. 

22 ‘‘(iv) Providing professional develop23 ment activities that—

24 ‘‘(I) improve the knowledge of spe25 cial education and regular education 
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1 teachers and principals and, in appro2 priate cases, related services personnel 

3 and paraprofessionals, concerning ef4 fective instructional practices; 

5 ‘‘(II) provide training in how to 

6 teach and address the needs of students 

7 with different learning styles; 

8 ‘‘(III) involve collaborative groups 

9 of teachers and administrators; 

10 ‘‘(IV) provide training in methods 

11 of—

12 ‘‘(aa) positive behavior inter13 ventions and supports to improve 

14 student behavior in the classroom; 

15 ‘‘(bb) scientifically based 

16 reading instruction, including 

17 early literacy instruction; and 

18 ‘‘(cc) early and appropriate 

19 interventions to identify and help 

20 students with disabilities; 

21 ‘‘(V) provide training to enable 

22 special education and regular edu23 cation teachers, related services per24 sonnel, and principals to involve par25 ents in their child’s education, espe-
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1 cially parents of low-income and lim2 ited English proficient children with 

3 disabilities; or 

4 ‘‘(VI) train administrators and 

5 other relevant school personnel in con6 ducting facilitated individualized edu7 cation program meetings. 

8 ‘‘(v) Developing and implementing ini9 tiatives to promote retention of highly 

10 qualified special education teachers, includ11 ing programs that provide—

12 ‘‘(I) teacher mentoring from exem13 plary special education teachers, prin14 cipals, or superintendents; 

15 ‘‘(II) induction and support for 

16 special education teachers during their 

17 first 3 years of employment as teach18 ers; or 

19 ‘‘(III) incentives, including finan20 cial incentives, to retain special edu21 cation teachers who have a record of 

22 success in helping students with dis23 abilities improve their academic 

24 achievement. 
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1 ‘‘(vi) Carrying out programs and ac2 tivities that are designed to improve the 

3 quality of the teacher force that serves chil4 dren with disabilities, such as—

5 ‘‘(I) innovative professional devel6 opment programs (which may be pro7 vided through partnerships including 

8 institutions of higher education), in9 cluding programs that train teachers 

10 and principals to integrate technology 

11 into curricula and instruction to im12 prove teaching, learning, and tech13 nology literacy, are consistent with the 

14 requirements of section 9101 of the Ele15 mentary and Secondary Education Act 

16 of 1965, and are coordinated with ac17 tivities carried out under this part; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(II) development and use of 

20 proven, cost-effective strategies for the 

21 implementation of professional develop22 ment activities, such as through the use 

23 of technology and distance learning. 

24 ‘‘(B) STATE ACTIVITIES.—
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1 ‘‘(i) Reforming special education and 

2 regular education teacher certification (in3 cluding recertification) or licensing require4 ments to ensure that—

5 ‘‘(I) special education and regular 

6 education teachers have the training 

7 and information necessary, including 

8 an understanding of the latest scientif9 ically valid education research and its 

10 applicability, to address the wide vari11 ety of needs of children with disabil12 ities across disability categories; 

13 ‘‘(II) special education and reg14 ular education teachers have the nec15 essary subject matter knowledge and 

16 teaching skills in the academic subjects 

17 that the teachers teach; 

18 ‘‘(III) special education and reg19 ular education teacher certification 

20 (including recertification) or licensing 

21 requirements are aligned with chal22 lenging State academic content stand23 ards; and 

24 ‘‘(IV) special education and reg25 ular education teachers have the subject 
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1 matter knowledge and teaching skills, 

2 including technology literacy, nec3 essary to help students meet chal4 lenging State student academic 

5 achievement standards. 

6 ‘‘(ii) Carrying out programs that es7 tablish, expand, or improve alternative 

8 routes for State certification of special edu9 cation teachers for individuals who dem10 onstrate the potential to become highly effec11 tive special education teachers, such as indi12 viduals with a baccalaureate or master’s de13 gree (including mid-career professionals 

14 from other occupations), paraprofessionals, 

15 former military personnel, and recent col16 lege or university graduates with records of 

17 academic distinction. 

18 ‘‘(iii) Carrying out teacher advance19 ment initiatives for special education teach20 ers that promote professional growth and 

21 emphasize multiple career paths (such as 

22 paths to becoming a career teacher, mentor 

23 teacher, or exemplary teacher) and pay dif24 ferentiation. 
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1 ‘‘(iv) Developing and implementing 

2 mechanisms to assist local educational 

3 agencies and schools in effectively recruiting 

4 and retaining highly qualified special edu5 cation teachers. 

6 ‘‘(v) Reforming tenure systems, imple7 menting teacher testing for subject matter 

8 knowledge, and implementing teacher test9 ing for State certification or licensing, con10 sistent with title II of the Higher Education 

11 Act of 1965. 

12 ‘‘(vi) Developing and implementing 

13 mechanisms to assist schools in effectively 

14 recruiting and retaining highly qualified 

15 special education teachers. 

16 ‘‘(vii) Funding projects to promote rec17 iprocity of teacher certification or licensing 

18 between or among States for special edu19 cation teachers, except that no reciprocity 

20 agreement developed under this clause or de21 veloped using funds provided under this 

22 subpart may lead to the weakening of any 

23 State teaching certification or licensing re24 quirement. 
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1 ‘‘(viii) Developing or assisting local 

2 educational agencies to serve children with 

3 disabilities through the development and use 

4 of proven, innovative strategies to deliver 

5 intensive professional development programs 

6 that are both cost-effective and easily acces7 sible, such as strategies that involve delivery 

8 through the use of technology, peer networks, 

9 and distance learning. 

10 ‘‘(ix) Developing, or assisting local 

11 educational agencies in developing, merit12 based performance systems, and strategies 

13 that provide differential and bonus pay for 

14 special education teachers. 

15 ‘‘(x) Supporting activities that ensure 

16 that teachers are able to use challenging 

17 State academic content standards and stu18 dent academic achievement standards, and 

19 State assessments, to improve instructional 

20 practices and improve the academic 

21 achievement of children with disabilities. 

22 ‘‘(xi) Coordinating with, and expand23 ing, centers established under section 

24 2113(c)(18) of the Elementary and Sec-
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1 ondary Education Act of 1965 to benefit 

2 special education teachers. 

3 ‘‘(2) CONTRACTS AND SUBGRANTS.—Each such 

4 State educational agency—

5 ‘‘(A) shall, consistent with its partnership 

6 agreement under section 654(b)(1), award con7 tracts or subgrants to local educational agencies, 

8 institutions of higher education, and parent 

9 training and information centers, as appro10 priate, to carry out its State plan under this 

11 subpart; and 

12 ‘‘(B) may award contracts and subgrants to 

13 other public and private entities, including the 

14 lead agency under part C, to carry out such 

15 plan. 

16 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOP17 MENT.—A State educational agency that receives a grant 

18 under this subpart shall use—

19 ‘‘(1) not less than 90 percent of the funds it re20 ceives under the grant for any fiscal year for activi21 ties under subsection (a)(1)(A); and 

22 ‘‘(2) not more than 10 percent of the funds it re23 ceives under the grant for any fiscal year for activi24 ties under subsection (a)(1)(B). 
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1 ‘‘(c) GRANTS TO OUTLYING AREAS.—Public Law 95–

2 134, permitting the consolidation of grants to the outlying 

3 areas, shall not apply to funds received under this subpart. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 656. STATE GRANT AMOUNTS. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make a grant 

6 to each State educational agency whose application the Sec7 retary has selected for funding under this subpart in an 

8 amount for each fiscal year that is—

9 ‘‘(1) not less than $500,000, nor more than 

10 $2,000,000, in the case of the 50 States, the District 

11 of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(2) not less than $80,000, in the case of an out14 lying area. 

15 ‘‘(b) FACTORS.—The Secretary shall set the amount of 

16 each grant under subsection (a) after considering—

17 ‘‘(1) the amount of funds available for making 

18 the grants; 

19 ‘‘(2) the relative population of the State or out20 lying area; and 

21 ‘‘(3) the types of activities proposed by the State 

22 or outlying area, including—

23 ‘‘(A) the alignment of proposed activities 

24 with paragraphs (14) and (15) of section 612(a); 
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1 ‘‘(B) the alignment of proposed activities 

2 with the plans submitted under sections 1111 

3 and 2112 of the Elementary and Secondary 

4 Education Act of 1965; and 

5 ‘‘(C) the use, as appropriate, of scientif6 ically based research. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 657. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

8 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

9 this subpart $44,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such sums 

10 as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2005 

11 through 2009. 

12 ‘‘Subpart 2—Scientifically Based Research; Technical 

13 Assistance; Model Demonstration Projects; Dis14 semination of Information; and Personnel Prepa15 ration Programs 

16 ‘‘SEC. 661. PURPOSE. 

17 ‘‘The purpose of this subpart is to provide Federal 

18 funding for scientifically based research, technical assist19 ance, model demonstration projects, information dissemina20 tion, and personnel preparation programs to improve early 

21 intervention, educational, and transitional results for chil22 dren with disabilities. 

23 ‘‘SEC. 662. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS. 

24 ‘‘(a) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop 

2 and implement a comprehensive plan for activities 

3 carried out under this subpart (other than section 

4 663) in order to enhance the provision of educational, 

5 related, transitional, and early intervention services 

6 to children with disabilities under parts B and C. 

7 The plan shall include mechanisms to address edu8 cational, related services, transitional, and early 

9 intervention needs identified by State educational 

10 agencies in applications submitted under subpart 1. 

11 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Secretary shall 

12 provide a public comment period of at least 30 days 

13 on the plan. 

14 ‘‘(3) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—In imple15 menting the plan, the Secretary shall, to the extent 

16 appropriate, ensure that funds are awarded to recipi17 ents under this subpart to carry out activities that 

18 benefit, directly or indirectly, children with disabil19 ities of all ages. 

20 ‘‘(4) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary 

21 shall annually report to the Congress on the Sec22 retary’s activities under this subsection, including an 

23 initial report not later than the date that is 12 

24 months after the date of the enactment of Improving 
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1 Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act 

2 of 2003. 

3 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided 

5 in this subpart, the following entities are eligible to 

6 apply for a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement 

7 under this subpart: 

8 ‘‘(A) A State educational agency. 

9 ‘‘(B) A local educational agency. 

10 ‘‘(C) A public charter school that is a local 

11 educational agency under State law. 

12 ‘‘(D) An institution of higher education. 

13 ‘‘(E) Any other public agency. 

14 ‘‘(F) A private nonprofit organization. 

15 ‘‘(G) An outlying area. 

16 ‘‘(H) An Indian tribe or a tribal organiza17 tion (as defined under section 4 of the Indian 

18 Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

19 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b)). 

20 ‘‘(I) A for-profit organization if the Sec21 retary finds it appropriate given the specific 

22 purpose of the competition. 

23 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—The Secretary may limit 

24 the entities eligible for an award of a grant, contract, 
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1 or cooperative agreement to one or more categories of 

2 eligible entities described in paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL POPULATIONS.—

4 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION REQUIREMENT.—In making 

5 an award of a grant, contract, or cooperative agree6 ment under this subpart, the Secretary shall, as ap7 propriate, require an applicant to demonstrate how 

8 the applicant will address the needs of children with 

9 disabilities from minority backgrounds. 

10 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED OUTREACH AND TECHNICAL AS11 SISTANCE.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 

12 this Act, the Secretary shall reserve at least two per13 cent of the total amount of funds appropriated to 

14 carry out this subpart for either or both of the fol15 lowing activities: 

16 ‘‘(A) Providing outreach and technical as17 sistance to historically black colleges and univer18 sities, and to institutions of higher education 

19 with minority enrollments of at least 25 percent, 

20 to promote the participation of such colleges, 

21 universities, and institutions in activities under 

22 this subpart. 

23 ‘‘(B) Enabling historically black colleges 

24 and universities, and the institutions described 

25 in subparagraph (A), to assist other colleges, 
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1 universities, institutions, and agencies in im2 proving educational and transitional results for 

3 children with disabilities, if such grant appli4 cants meet the criteria established by the Sec5 retary under this subpart. 

6 ‘‘(d) PRIORITIES.—The Secretary, in making an 

7 award of a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under 

8 this subpart, may, without regard to the rulemaking proce9 dures under section 553 of title 5, United States Code, limit 

10 competitions to, or otherwise give priority to—

11 ‘‘(1) projects that address one or more—

12 ‘‘(A) age ranges; 

13 ‘‘(B) disabilities; 

14 ‘‘(C) school grades; 

15 ‘‘(D) types of educational placements or 

16 early intervention environments; 

17 ‘‘(E) types of services; 

18 ‘‘(F) content areas, such as reading; or 

19 ‘‘(G) effective strategies for helping children 

20 with disabilities learn appropriate behavior in 

21 the school and other community-based edu22 cational settings; 

23 ‘‘(2) projects that address the needs of children 

24 based on the severity or incidence of their disability; 

25 ‘‘(3) projects that address the needs of—
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1 ‘‘(A) low-achieving students; 

2 ‘‘(B) underserved populations; 

3 ‘‘(C) children from low-income families; 

4 ‘‘(D) children with limited English pro5 ficiency; 

6 ‘‘(E) unserved and underserved areas; 

7 ‘‘(F) rural or urban areas; 

8 ‘‘(G) children whose behavior interferes with 

9 their learning and socialization; 

10 ‘‘(H) children with intractable reading dif11 ficulties; and 

12 ‘‘(I) children in public charter schools; 

13 ‘‘(4) projects to reduce inappropriate identifica14 tion of children as children with disabilities, particu15 larly among minority children; and 

16 ‘‘(5) any activity that is expressly authorized in 

17 this subpart or subpart 3. 

18 ‘‘(e) APPLICANT AND RECIPIENT RESPONSIBILITIES.—

19 ‘‘(1) DEVELOPMENT AND ASSESSMENT OF

20 PROJECTS.—The Secretary shall require that an ap21 plicant for, and a recipient of, a grant, contract, or 

22 cooperative agreement for a project under this sub23 part—

24 ‘‘(A) involve individuals with disabilities, 

25 or parents of individuals with disabilities ages 
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1 birth through 26, in planning, implementing, 

2 and evaluating the project; and 

3 ‘‘(B) where appropriate, determine whether 

4 the project has any potential for replication and 

5 adoption by other entities. 

6 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Sec7 retary may require a recipient of a grant, contract, 

8 or cooperative agreement for a project under this sub9 part—

10 ‘‘(A) to share in the cost of the project; 

11 ‘‘(B) to prepare the research and evaluation 

12 findings and products from the project in for13 mats that are useful for specific audiences, in14 cluding parents, administrators, teachers, early 

15 intervention personnel, related services personnel, 

16 and individuals with disabilities; 

17 ‘‘(C) to disseminate such findings and prod18 ucts; and 

19 ‘‘(D) to collaborate with other such recipi20 ents in carrying out subparagraphs (B) and (C). 

21 ‘‘(f) APPLICATION MANAGEMENT.—

22 ‘‘(1) STANDING PANEL.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es24 tablish and use a standing panel of experts who 

25 are qualified, by virtue of their training, exper-
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1 tise, or experience, to evaluate applications 

2 under this subpart (other than section 663) that, 

3 individually, request more than $75,000 per year 

4 in Federal financial assistance. 

5 ‘‘(B) MEMBERSHIP.—The standing panel 

6 shall include, at a minimum—

7 ‘‘(i) individuals who are representa8 tives of institutions of higher education that 

9 plan, develop, and carry out high-quality 

10 programs of personnel preparation; 

11 ‘‘(ii) individuals who design and carry 

12 out scientifically-based research targeted to 

13 the improvement of special education pro14 grams and services; 

15 ‘‘(iii) individuals who have recognized 

16 experience and knowledge necessary to inte17 grate and apply scientifically-based research 

18 findings to improve educational and transi19 tional results for children with disabilities; 

20 ‘‘(iv) individuals who administer pro21 grams at the State or local level in which 

22 children with disabilities participate; 

23 ‘‘(v) individuals who prepare parents 

24 of children with disabilities to participate 
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1 in making decisions about the education of 

2 their children; 

3 ‘‘(vi) individuals who establish policies 

4 that affect the delivery of services to chil5 dren with disabilities; 

6 ‘‘(vii) individuals who are parents of 

7 children with disabilities ages birth through 

8 26 who are benefiting, or have benefited, 

9 from coordinated research, personnel prepa10 ration, and technical assistance; and 

11 ‘‘(viii) individuals with disabilities. 

12 ‘‘(C) TERM.—No individual shall serve on 

13 the standing panel for more than 3 consecutive 

14 years. 

15 ‘‘(2) PEER-REVIEW PANELS FOR PARTICULAR

16 COMPETITIONS.—

17 ‘‘(A) COMPOSITION.—The Secretary shall 

18 ensure that each subpanel selected from the 

19 standing panel that reviews applications under 

20 this subpart (other than section 663) includes—

21 ‘‘(i) individuals with knowledge and 

22 expertise on the issues addressed by the ac23 tivities authorized by the subpart; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) to the extent practicable, parents 

25 of children with disabilities ages birth 
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1 through 26, individuals with disabilities, 

2 and persons from diverse backgrounds. 

3 ‘‘(B) FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT LIMITATION.—

4 A majority of the individuals on each subpanel 

5 that reviews an application under this subpart 

6 (other than section 663) shall be individuals who 

7 are not employees of the Federal Government. 

8 ‘‘(3) USE OF DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FOR ADMIN9 ISTRATIVE PURPOSES.—

10 ‘‘(A) EXPENSES AND FEES OF NON-FED11 ERAL PANEL MEMBERS.—The Secretary may use 

12 funds available under this subpart to pay the ex13 penses and fees of the panel members who are not 

14 officers or employees of the Federal Government. 

15 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Sec16 retary may use not more than 1 percent of the 

17 funds appropriated to carry out this subpart to 

18 pay non-Federal entities for administrative sup19 port related to management of applications sub20 mitted under this subpart. 

21 ‘‘(g) PROGRAM EVALUATION.—The Secretary may use 

22 funds appropriated to carry out this subpart to evaluate 

23 activities carried out under the subpart. 

24 ‘‘(h) MINIMUM FUNDING REQUIRED.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), the 

2 Secretary shall ensure that, for each fiscal year, at 

3 least the following amounts are provided under this 

4 subpart to address the following needs: 

5 ‘‘(A) $12,832,000 to address the edu6 cational, related services, transitional, and early 

7 intervention needs of children with deaf-blind8 ness. 

9 ‘‘(B) $4,000,000 to address the postsec10 ondary, vocational, technical, continuing, and 

11 adult education needs of individuals with deaf12 ness. 

13 ‘‘(C) $4,000,000 to address the educational, 

14 related services, and transitional needs of chil15 dren with an emotional disturbance and those 

16 who are at risk of developing an emotional dis17 turbance. 

18 ‘‘(2) RATABLE REDUCTION.—If the total amount 

19 appropriated to carry out this subpart for any fiscal 

20 year is less than $130,000,000, the amounts listed in 

21 paragraph (1) shall be ratably reduced. 

22 ‘‘(i) ELIGIBILITY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—Effec23 tive for fiscal years for which the Secretary may make 

24 grants under section 619(b), no State or local educational 

25 agency or educational service agency or other public insti-
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1 tution or agency may receive a grant under this subpart 

2 which relates exclusively to programs, projects, and activi3 ties pertaining to children aged 3 through 5, inclusive, un4 less the State is eligible to receive a grant under section 

5 619(b).

6 ‘‘SEC. 663. RESEARCH TO IMPROVE RESULTS FOR CHIL7 DREN WITH DISABILITIES. 

8 ‘‘(a) NATIONAL CENTER FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION RE9 SEARCH.—

10 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There is established, in 

12 the Institute of Education Sciences established 

13 under section 111 of the Education Sciences Re14 form Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–279; 116 

15 Stat. 1944) (hereinafter in this section referred 

16 to as ‘the Institute’), the National Center for 

17 Special Education Research. 

18 ‘‘(B) COMMISSIONER.—The National Center 

19 for Special Education Research shall be headed 

20 by a Commissioner for Special Education Re21 search (hereinafter in this section referred to as 

22 ‘the Commissioner’). The Commissioner shall be 

23 appointed by the Director of the Institute (here24 inafter in this section referred to as ‘the Direc25 tor’) in accordance with section 117 of the Edu-
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1 cation Sciences Reform Act of 2002. The Com2 missioner shall have substantial knowledge of the 

3 Center’s activities, including a high level of ex4 pertise in the fields of research and research 

5 management. 

6 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY OF EDUCATION SCIENCE RE7 FORM ACT OF 2002.—Parts A and E of the Education 

8 Sciences Reform Act of 2002, as well as the standards 

9 for peer review of applications and for the conduct 

10 and evaluation of research under sections 133(a) and 

11 134 of such Act, shall apply to the Secretary, the Di12 rector, and the Commissioner in carrying out this sec13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(b) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—The Director shall make 

15 competitive grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative 

16 agreements with, eligible entities to expand the fundamental 

17 knowledge and understanding of the education of infants, 

18 toddlers, and children with disabilities in order to improve 

19 educational results for such individuals, in accordance with 

20 the priorities determined under this section. 

21 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Activities that may 

22 be carried out under this section include research activi23 ties—
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1 ‘‘(1) to improve services provided under this Act 

2 in order to improve academic achievement for chil3 dren with disabilities; 

4 ‘‘(2) to investigate scientifically based edu5 cational practices that support learning and improve 

6 academic achievement and progress for all students 

7 with disabilities; 

8 ‘‘(3) to examine the special needs of preschool9 aged children and infants and toddlers with disabil10 ities, including factors that may result in develop11 mental delays; 

12 ‘‘(4) to investigate scientifically based related 

13 services and interventions that promote participation 

14 and progress in the general education curriculum; 

15 ‘‘(5) to improve the alignment, compatibility, 

16 and development of valid and reliable assessment 

17 methods for assessing adequate yearly progress, as de18 scribed under section 1111(b)(2)(B) of the Elementary 

19 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

20 6311(b)(2)(B)); 

21 ‘‘(6) to improve the alignment, compatibility, 

22 and development of valid and reliable alternate as23 sessment methods for assessing adequate yearly 

24 progress, as described under such section 

25 1111(b)(2)(B); 
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1 ‘‘(7) to examine State content standards and al2 ternate assessments for students with a significant 

3 cognitive impairment in terms of academic achieve4 ment, individualized instructional need, appropriate 

5 educational settings, and improved post-school results; 

6 ‘‘(8) to examine the educational and develop7 mental needs of children with high-incidence and low8 incidence disabilities; 

9 ‘‘(9) to examine the extent to which overidenti10 fication and underidentification of children with dis11 abilities occurs, and the causes thereof; 

12 ‘‘(10) to improve reading and literacy skills for 

13 children with disabilities; 

14 ‘‘(11) to examine and improve secondary and 

15 postsecondary education and transitional needs of 

16 children with disabilities; 

17 ‘‘(12) to examine methods of early intervention 

18 for children with disabilities who need significant lev19 els of support; 

20 ‘‘(13) to examine universal design concepts in 

21 the development of assessments, curricula, and in22 structional methods as a method to improve edu23 cational results for children with disabilities; 

24 ‘‘(14) to improve the professional preparation for 

25 personnel who provide educational and related serv-
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1 ices to children with disabilities, including children 

2 with low-incidence disabilities, to increase academic 

3 achievement of children with disabilities; 

4 ‘‘(15) to examine the excess costs of educating a 

5 child with a disability and expenses associated with 

6 high-cost special education and related services; and

7 ‘‘(16) to examine the special needs of limited 

8 English proficient children with disabilities. 

9 ‘‘(d) PLAN.—The National Center for Special Edu10 cation Research shall propose to the Director a research 

11 plan, with the advice of the Assistant Secretary for Special 

12 Education and Rehabilitative Services, that—

13 ‘‘(1) is consistent with the priorities and mission 

14 of the Institute of Educational Sciences and the mis15 sion of the Special Education Research Center and 

16 includes the activities described in paragraph (3); 

17 ‘‘(2) shall be carried out pursuant to subsection 

18 (c) and, as appropriate, be updated and modified; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(3) carries out specific, long-term research ac21 tivities that are consistent with the priorities and 

22 mission of the Institute of Educational Sciences, and 

23 are approved by the Director. 

24 ‘‘(e) IMPLEMENTATION.—The National Center for Spe25 cial Education Research shall implement the plan proposed 
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1 under subsection (d) to carry out scientifically valid re2 search that—

3 ‘‘(1) is consistent with the purposes of this Act; 

4 ‘‘(2) reflects an appropriate balance across all 

5 age ranges of children with disabilities; 

6 ‘‘(3) provides for research that is objective and 

7 that uses measurable indicators to assess its progress 

8 and results; 

9 ‘‘(4) includes both basic research and applied re10 search, which shall include research conducted 

11 through field-initiated studies and which may include 

12 ongoing research initiatives; 

13 ‘‘(5) ensures that the research conducted under 

14 this section is relevant to special education practice 

15 and policy; 

16 ‘‘(6) synthesize and disseminate, through the Na17 tional Center for Education Evaluation and Regional 

18 Assistance as well as activities authorized under this 

19 part, the findings and results of education research 

20 conducted or supported by the National Center for 

21 Special Education Research; and 

22 ‘‘(7) assist the Director in the preparation of a 

23 biennial report, as a described in section 119 of the 

24 Education Sciences Reform Act of 2003. 
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1 ‘‘(f) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible entity that wishes to 

2 receive a grant, or enter into a contract or cooperative 

3 agreement, under this section shall submit an application 

4 to the Commissioner at such time, in such manner, and 

5 containing such information as the Commissioner may rea6 sonably require. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 664. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, DEMONSTRATION 

8 PROJECTS, DISSEMINATION OF INFORMA9 TION, AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SCIENTIF10 ICALLY BASED RESEARCH. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make competi12 tive grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agree13 ments with, eligible entities including regional resource cen14 ters and clearinghouses to provide technical assistance, sup15 port model demonstration projects, disseminate useful infor16 mation, and implement activities that are supported by sci17 entifically based research. 

18 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—Funds received under 

19 this section shall be used to support activities to improve 

20 services provided under this Act, including the practices of 

21 professionals and others involved in providing such services 

22 to children with disabilities, that promote academic 

23 achievement and improve results for children with disabil24 ities through—
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1 ‘‘(1) implementing effective strategies for ad2 dressing inappropriate behavior of students with dis3 abilities in schools, including strategies to prevent 

4 children with emotional and behavioral problems 

5 from developing emotional disturbances that require 

6 the provision of special education and related services; 

7 ‘‘(2) improving the alignment, compatibility, 

8 and development of valid and reliable assessments 

9 and alternate assessments for assessing adequate year10 ly progress, as described under section 1111(b)(2)(B) 

11 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

12 1965; 

13 ‘‘(3) providing training for both regular edu14 cation teachers and special education teachers to ad15 dress the needs of students with different learning 

16 styles; 

17 ‘‘(4) identifying innovative, effective, and effi18 cient curricula designs, instructional approaches, and 

19 strategies, and identifying positive academic and so20 cial learning opportunities, that—

21 ‘‘(A) provide effective transitions between 

22 educational settings or from school to post school 

23 settings; and 

24 ‘‘(B) improve educational and transitional 

25 results at all levels of the educational system in 
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1 which the activities are carried out and, in par2 ticular, that improve the progress of children 

3 with disabilities, as measured by assessments 

4 within the general education curriculum in5 volved; and 

6 ‘‘(5) demonstrating and applying scientifically 

7 based findings to facilitate systemic changes, related 

8 to the provision of services to children with disabil9 ities, in policy, procedure, practice, and the training 

10 and use of personnel. 

11 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Activities that may 

12 be carried out under this section include activities to im13 prove services provided under this Act, including the prac14 tices of professionals and others involved in providing such 

15 services to children with disabilities, that promote academic 

16 achievement and improve results for children with disabil17 ities through—

18 ‘‘(1) applying and testing research findings in 

19 typical service settings to determine the usefulness, ef20 fectiveness, and general applicability of such research 

21 findings in such areas as improving instructional 

22 methods, curricula, and tools, such as textbooks and 

23 media; 

24 ‘‘(2) supporting and promoting the coordination 

25 of early intervention and educational services for chil-
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1 dren with disabilities with services provided by 

2 health, rehabilitation, and social service agencies; 

3 ‘‘(3) promoting improved alignment and com4 patibility of general and special education reforms 

5 concerned with curricular and instructional reform, 

6 and evaluation of such reforms; 

7 ‘‘(4) enabling professionals, parents of children 

8 with disabilities, and other persons to learn about, 

9 and implement, the findings of scientifically based re10 search, and successful practices developed in model 

11 demonstration projects, relating to the provision of 

12 services to children with disabilities; 

13 ‘‘(5) conducting outreach, and disseminating in14 formation, relating to successful approaches to over15 coming systemic barriers to the effective and efficient 

16 delivery of early intervention, educational, and tran17 sitional services to personnel who provide services to 

18 children with disabilities; 

19 ‘‘(6) assisting States and local educational agen20 cies with the process of planning systemic changes 

21 that will promote improved early intervention, edu22 cational, and transitional results for children with 

23 disabilities; 

24 ‘‘(7) promoting change through a multistate or 

25 regional framework that benefits States, local edu-
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1 cational agencies, and other participants in partner2 ships that are in the process of achieving systemic3 change outcomes; 

4 ‘‘(8) focusing on the needs and issues that are 

5 specific to a population of children with disabilities, 

6 such as the provision of single-State and multi-State 

7 technical assistance and in-service training—

8 ‘‘(A) to schools and agencies serving deaf9 blind children and their families; 

10 ‘‘(B) to programs and agencies serving other 

11 groups of children with low-incidence disabilities 

12 and their families; 

13 ‘‘(C) addressing the postsecondary education 

14 needs of individuals who are deaf or hard-of15 hearing; and 

16 ‘‘(D) to schools and personnel providing 

17 special education and related services for chil18 dren with autism spectrum disorders; 

19 ‘‘(9) demonstrating models of personnel prepara20 tion to ensure appropriate placements and services for 

21 all students and reduce disproportionality in eligi22 bility, placement, and disciplinary actions for minor23 ity and limited English proficient children; and 
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1 ‘‘(10) disseminating information on how to re2 duce racial and ethnic disproportionalities identified 

3 under section 618. 

4 ‘‘(d) BALANCE AMONG ACTIVITIES AND AGE

5 RANGES.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall 

6 ensure that there is an appropriate balance across all age 

7 ranges of children with disabilities. 

8 ‘‘(e) LINKING STATES TO INFORMATION SOURCES.—

9 In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall support 

10 projects that link States to technical assistance resources, 

11 including special education and general education re12 sources, and shall make research and related products avail13 able through libraries, electronic networks, parent training 

14 projects, and other information sources, including through 

15 the activities of the National Center for Evaluation and Re16 gional Assistance established under the Education Sciences 

17 Reform Act. 

18 ‘‘(f) APPLICATIONS.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that wish20 es to receive a grant, or enter into a contract or coop21 erative agreement, under this section shall submit an 

22 application to the Secretary at such time, in such 

23 manner, and containing such information as the Sec24 retary may require. 
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1 ‘‘(2) STANDARDS.—To the maximum extent fea2 sible, each applicant shall demonstrate that the 

3 project described in its application is supported by 

4 scientifically valid research that has been carried out 

5 in accordance with the standards for the conduct and 

6 evaluation of all relevant research and development 

7 established by the National Center for Education Re8 search. 

9 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—As appropriate, the Secretary 

10 shall give priority to applications that propose to 

11 serve teachers and school personnel directly in the 

12 school environment. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 665. PERSONNEL PREPARATION PROGRAMS TO IM14 PROVE SERVICES AND RESULTS FOR CHIL15 DREN WITH DISABILITIES. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, on a competi17 tive basis, make grants to, or enter into contracts or cooper18 ative agreements with, eligible entities—

19 ‘‘(1) to help address State-identified needs for 

20 qualified personnel in special education, related serv21 ices, early intervention, and regular education, to 

22 work with children with disabilities; 

23 ‘‘(2) to ensure that those personnel have the nec24 essary skills and knowledge, derived from practices 
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1 that have been determined, through scientifically valid 

2 research, to be successful in serving those children; 

3 ‘‘(3) to encourage increased focus on academics 

4 and core content areas in special education personnel 

5 preparation programs; 

6 ‘‘(4) to ensure that regular education teachers 

7 have the necessary skills and knowledge to provide in8 struction to students with disabilities in the regular 

9 education classroom;

10 ‘‘(5) to provide high-quality professional develop11 ment for principals, superintendents, and other ad12 ministrators, including training in—

13 ‘‘(A) instructional leadership; 

14 ‘‘(B) behavioral supports in the school and 

15 classroom; 

16 ‘‘(C) paperwork reduction; 

17 ‘‘(D) promoting improved collaboration be18 tween special education and general education 

19 teachers; 

20 ‘‘(E) assessment and accountability; 

21 ‘‘(F) ensuring effective learning environ22 ments; and 

23 ‘‘(G) fostering positive relationships with 

24 parents; and 
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1 ‘‘(6) to ensure that all special education teachers 

2 teaching in core academic subjects are highly quali3 fied. 

4 ‘‘(b) PERSONNEL PREPARATION; AUTHORIZED ACTIVI5 TIES.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section, 

7 the Secretary shall support activities, including ac8 tivities for high-incidence and low-incidence disabil9 ities, consistent with the objectives described in sub10 section (a). 

11 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Activities that 

12 may be carried out under this subsection include the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(A) Promoting activities undertaken by in15 stitutions of higher education, local educational 

16 agencies, and other local entities—

17 ‘‘(i) to improve and reform their exist18 ing programs, and to support effective exist19 ing programs, to prepare teachers and re20 lated services personnel—

21 ‘‘(I) to meet the diverse needs of 

22 children with disabilities for early 

23 intervention, educational, and transi24 tional services; and 
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1 ‘‘(II) to work collaboratively in 

2 regular classroom settings; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) to incorporate best practices and 

4 scientifically based research about pre5 paring personnel—

6 ‘‘(I) so they will have the knowl7 edge and skills to improve educational 

8 results for children with disabilities; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(II) so they can implement effec11 tive teaching strategies and interven12 tions to ensure appropriate identifica13 tion, and to prevent the 

14 misidentification or overidentification, 

15 of children as having a disability, espe16 cially minority and limited English 

17 proficient children. 

18 ‘‘(B) Developing, evaluating, and dissemi19 nating innovative models for the recruitment, in20 duction, retention, and assessment of highly 

21 qualified teachers to reduce shortages in per22 sonnel. 

23 ‘‘(C) Developing and improving programs 

24 for paraprofessionals to assist in the provision of 

25 special education, related services, and early 
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1 intervention services, including interdisciplinary 

2 training to enable them to improve early inter3 vention, educational, and transitional results for 

4 children with disabilities. 

5 ‘‘(D) Demonstrating models for the prepara6 tion of, and interdisciplinary training of, early 

7 intervention, special education, and general edu8 cation personnel, to enable the personnel to ac9 quire the collaboration skills necessary to work 

10 within teams to improve results for children with 

11 disabilities, particularly within the general edu12 cation curriculum. 

13 ‘‘(E) Promoting the transferability, across 

14 State and local jurisdictions, of licensure and 

15 certification of teachers and administrators 

16 working with such children. 

17 ‘‘(F) Developing and disseminating models 

18 that prepare teachers with strategies, including 

19 behavioral interventions, for addressing the con20 duct of children with disabilities that impedes 

21 their learning and that of others in the class22 room. 

23 ‘‘(G) Developing and improving programs 

24 to enhance the ability of general education teach25 ers, principals, school administrators, and school 
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1 board members to improve results for children 

2 with disabilities. 

3 ‘‘(H) Supporting institutions of higher edu4 cation with minority enrollments of at least 25 

5 percent for the purpose of preparing personnel to 

6 work with children with disabilities. 

7 ‘‘(I) Developing and improving programs to 

8 train special education teachers with an exper9 tise in autism spectrum disorders. 

10 ‘‘(c) LOW-INCIDENCE DISABILITIES; AUTHORIZED AC11 TIVITIES.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section, 

13 the Secretary shall support activities, consistent with 

14 the objectives described in subsection (a), that benefit 

15 children with low-incidence disabilities. 

16 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Activities that 

17 may be carried out under this subsection include ac18 tivities such as the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) Preparing persons who—

20 ‘‘(i) have prior training in educational 

21 and other related service fields; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) are studying to obtain degrees, 

23 certificates, or licensure that will enable 

24 them to assist children with low-incidence 

25 disabilities to achieve the objectives set out 
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1 in their individualized education programs 

2 described in section 614(d), or to assist in3 fants and toddlers with low incidence dis4 abilities to achieve the outcomes described 

5 in their individualized family service plans 

6 described in section 636. 

7 ‘‘(B) Providing personnel from various dis8 ciplines with interdisciplinary training that will 

9 contribute to improvement in early intervention, 

10 educational, and transitional results for children 

11 with low-incidence disabilities. 

12 ‘‘(C) Preparing personnel in the innovative 

13 uses and application of technology to enhance 

14 learning by children with low-incidence disabil15 ities through early intervention, educational, and 

16 transitional services. 

17 ‘‘(D) Preparing personnel who provide serv18 ices to visually impaired or blind children to 

19 teach and use Braille in the provision of services 

20 to such children. 

21 ‘‘(E) Preparing personnel who provide serv22 ices to deaf and hard-of-hearing children by pro23 viding direct language and communication ac24 cess to the general education curriculum through 
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1 spoken or signed languages, or other modes of 

2 communication. 

3 ‘‘(F) Preparing personnel to be qualified 

4 educational interpreters, to assist children with 

5 low-incidence disabilities, particularly deaf and 

6 hard-of-hearing children in school and school-re7 lated activities and deaf and hard-of-hearing in8 fants and toddlers and preschool children in 

9 early intervention and preschool programs. 

10 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the 

11 term ‘low-incidence disability’ means—

12 ‘‘(A) a visual or hearing impairment, or si13 multaneous visual and hearing impairments; 

14 ‘‘(B) a significant cognitive impairment; or 

15 ‘‘(C) any impairment for which a small 

16 number of personnel with highly specialized 

17 skills and knowledge are needed in order for chil18 dren with that impairment to receive early 

19 intervention services or a free appropriate public 

20 education. 

21 ‘‘(4) SELECTION OF RECIPIENTS.—In selecting 

22 recipients under this subsection, the Secretary may 

23 give preference to applications that propose to pre24 pare personnel in more than one low-incidence dis25 ability, such as deafness and blindness. 
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1 ‘‘(5) PREPARATION IN USE OF BRAILLE.—The 

2 Secretary shall ensure that all recipients of assistance 

3 under this subsection who will use that assistance to 

4 prepare personnel to provide services to visually im5 paired or blind children that can appropriately be 

6 provided in Braille will prepare those individuals to 

7 provide those services in Braille. 

8 ‘‘(d) LEADERSHIP PREPARATION; AUTHORIZED AC9 TIVITIES.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section, 

11 the Secretary shall support leadership preparation ac12 tivities that are consistent with the objectives de13 scribed in subsection (a). 

14 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Activities that 

15 may be carried out under this subsection include ac16 tivities such as the following: 

17 ‘‘(A) Preparing personnel at the graduate, 

18 doctoral, and postdoctoral levels of training to 

19 administer, enhance, or provide services to im20 prove results for children with disabilities. 

21 ‘‘(B) Providing interdisciplinary training 

22 for various types of leadership personnel, includ23 ing teacher preparation faculty, related services 

24 faculty, administrators, researchers, supervisors, 

25 principals, and other persons whose work affects 
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1 early intervention, educational, and transitional 

2 services for children with disabilities. 

3 ‘‘(e) APPLICATIONS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any eligible entity that 

5 wishes to receive a grant, or enter into a contract or 

6 cooperative agreement, under this section shall submit 

7 an application to the Secretary at such time, in such 

8 manner, and containing such information as the Sec9 retary may require. 

10 ‘‘(2) IDENTIFIED STATE NEEDS.—

11 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT TO ADDRESS IDENTI12 FIED NEEDS.—Any application under subsection 

13 (b), (c), or (d) shall include information dem14 onstrating to the satisfaction of the Secretary 

15 that the activities described in the application 

16 will address needs identified by the State or 

17 States the applicant proposes to serve. 

18 ‘‘(B) COOPERATION WITH STATE EDU19 CATIONAL AGENCIES.—Any applicant that is not 

20 a local educational agency or a State edu21 cational agency shall include information dem22 onstrating to the satisfaction of the Secretary 

23 that the applicant and one or more State edu24 cational agencies or local educational agencies 
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1 will cooperate in carrying out and monitoring 

2 the project. 

3 ‘‘(3) ACCEPTANCE BY STATES OF PERSONNEL

4 PREPARATION REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary may 

5 require applicants to provide assurances from one or 

6 more States that such States—

7 ‘‘(A) intend to accept successful completion 

8 of the proposed personnel preparation program 

9 as meeting State personnel standards or other re10 quirements in State law or regulation for serving 

11 children with disabilities or serving infants and 

12 toddlers with disabilities; and 

13 ‘‘(B) need personnel in the area or areas in 

14 which the applicant proposes to provide prepara15 tion, as identified in the States’ comprehensive 

16 systems of personnel development under parts B 

17 and C. 

18 ‘‘(f) SELECTION OF RECIPIENTS.—

19 ‘‘(1) IMPACT OF PROJECT.—In selecting recipi20 ents under this section, the Secretary shall consider 

21 the impact of the project proposed in the application 

22 in meeting the need for personnel identified by the 

23 States. 

24 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT ON APPLICANTS TO MEET

25 STATE AND PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS.—The Sec-
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1 retary shall make grants under this section only to el2 igible applicants that meet State and professionally 

3 recognized standards for the preparation of special 

4 education and related services personnel, if the pur5 pose of the project is to assist personnel in obtaining 

6 degrees. 

7 ‘‘(3) PREFERENCES.—In selecting recipients 

8 under this section, the Secretary may—

9 ‘‘(A) give preference to institutions of higher 

10 education that are educating regular education 

11 personnel to meet the needs of children with dis12 abilities in integrated settings and educating 

13 special education personnel to work in collabora14 tion with regular educators in integrated set15 tings; and 

16 ‘‘(B) give preference to institutions of higher 

17 education that are successfully recruiting and 

18 preparing individuals with disabilities and indi19 viduals from groups that are underrepresented in 

20 the profession for which they are preparing indi21 viduals. 

22 ‘‘(g) SERVICE OBLIGATION.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each application for funds 

24 under subsections (b) and (c) shall include an assur25 ance that the applicant will ensure that individuals 
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1 who receive a scholarship under the proposed project 

2 will subsequently provide special education and re3 lated services to children with disabilities for a period 

4 of 2 years for every year for which assistance was re5 ceived or repay all or part of the cost of that assist6 ance, in accordance with regulations issued by the 

7 Secretary. 

8 ‘‘(2) LEADERSHIP PREPARATION.—Each appli9 cation for funds under subsection (d) shall include an 

10 assurance that the applicant will ensure that individ11 uals who receive a scholarship under the proposed 

12 project will subsequently perform work related to their 

13 preparation for a period of 2 years for every year for 

14 which assistance was received or repay all or part of 

15 such costs, in accordance with regulations issued by 

16 the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(h) SCHOLARSHIPS.—The Secretary may include 

18 funds for scholarships, with necessary stipends and allow19 ances, in awards under subsections (b), (c), and (d). 

20 ‘‘SEC. 666. STUDIES AND EVALUATIONS. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

22 ‘‘(1) PROGRESS ASSESSMENT.—The Secretary 

23 shall, in accordance with the priorities determined 

24 under this section and in section 663, directly or 

25 through competitive grants, contracts, or cooperative 
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1 agreements, assess the progress in the implementation 

2 of this Act, including the effectiveness of State and 

3 local efforts to provide—

4 ‘‘(A) a free appropriate public education to 

5 children with disabilities; and 

6 ‘‘(B) early intervention services to infants 

7 and toddlers with disabilities and infants and 

8 toddlers who would be at risk of having substan9 tial developmental delays if early intervention 

10 services were not provided to them. 

11 ‘‘(2) DELEGATION.—Notwithstanding any other 

12 provision of law, the Secretary shall designate the Di13 rector of the Institute for Education Sciences to carry 

14 out this section. 

15 ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out 

16 this subsection, the Secretary may support objective 

17 studies, evaluations, and assessments, including stud18 ies that—

19 ‘‘(A) analyze issues identified in the re20 search agenda in section 663(d); 

21 ‘‘(B) meet the standards in section 663(c); 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(C) undertake one or more of the following: 

24 ‘‘(i) An analysis of the measurable im25 pact, outcomes, and results achieved by 
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1 State educational agencies and local edu2 cational agencies through their activities to 

3 reform policies, procedures, and practices 

4 designed to improve educational and transi5 tional services and results for children with 

6 disabilities. 

7 ‘‘(ii) An analysis of State and local 

8 needs for professional development, parent 

9 training, and other appropriate activities 

10 that can reduce the need for disciplinary 

11 actions involving children with disabilities. 

12 ‘‘(iii) An assessment of educational 

13 and transitional services and results for 

14 children with disabilities from minority 

15 backgrounds, including—

16 ‘‘(I) data on—

17 ‘‘(aa) the number of minority 

18 children who are referred for spe19 cial education evaluation; 

20 ‘‘(bb) the number of minority 

21 children who are receiving special 

22 education and related services and 

23 their educational or other service 

24 placement; 
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1 ‘‘(cc) the number of minority 

2 children who graduated from sec3 ondary programs with a regular 

4 diploma in the standard number 

5 of years; and 

6 ‘‘(dd) the number of minority 

7 children who drop out of the edu8 cational system without a regular 

9 diploma; and 

10 ‘‘(II) the performance of children 

11 with disabilities from minority back12 grounds on State assessments and other 

13 performance indicators established for 

14 all students. 

15 ‘‘(iv) A measurement of educational 

16 and transitional services and results of chil17 dren with disabilities served under this Act, 

18 including longitudinal studies that—

19 ‘‘(I) examine educational and 

20 transitional services and results for 

21 children with disabilities who are 3 

22 through 17 years of age and are receiv23 ing special education and related serv24 ices under this Act, using a national, 
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1 representative sample of distinct age 

2 cohorts and disability categories; and 

3 ‘‘(II) examine educational results, 

4 transition services, postsecondary 

5 placement, and employment status of 

6 individuals with disabilities, 18 

7 through 21 years of age, who are re8 ceiving or have received special edu9 cation and related services under this 

10 Act. 

11 ‘‘(v) An identification and report on 

12 the placement of children with disabilities 

13 by disability category. 

14 ‘‘(b) NATIONAL ASSESSMENT.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

16 out a national assessment of activities carried out 

17 with Federal funds under this Act in order—

18 ‘‘(A) to determine the effectiveness of this 

19 Act in achieving its purposes; 

20 ‘‘(B) to provide timely information to the 

21 President, the Congress, the States, local edu22 cational agencies, and the public on how to im23 plement the Act more effectively; and 

24 ‘‘(C) to provide the President and the Con25 gress with information that will be useful in de-
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1 veloping legislation to achieve the purposes of 

2 this Act more effectively. 

3 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) PLAN.—Not later than 12 months after 

5 the date of enactment of the Improving Edu6 cation Results for Children With Disabilities Act 

7 of 2003, the Secretary shall publish in the Fed8 eral Register for public comment a comprehen9 sive plan for developing and conducting the na10 tional assessment. 

11 ‘‘(B) COMMENT PERIOD.—The Secretary 

12 shall provide a public comment period of at least 

13 30 days on such plan. 

14 ‘‘(3) SCOPE OF ASSESSMENT.—The national as15 sessment shall assess the—

16 ‘‘(A) implementation of programs assisted 

17 under this Act and the impact of such programs 

18 on addressing the developmental needs of, and 

19 improving the academic achievement of, children 

20 with disabilities to enable them to reach chal21 lenging developmental goals and challenging 

22 State academic content standards based on State 

23 academic assessments; 

24 ‘‘(B) types of programs and services that 

25 have demonstrated the greatest likelihood of help-
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1 ing students reach the challenging State aca2 demic content standards and developmental 

3 goals; 

4 ‘‘(C) implementation of the professional de5 velopment activities assisted under this Act and 

6 the impact on instruction, student academic 

7 achievement, and teacher qualifications to en8 hance the ability of special education teachers 

9 and regular education teachers to improve results 

10 for children with disabilities; and 

11 ‘‘(D) effectiveness of schools, local edu12 cational agencies, States, other recipients of as13 sistance under this Act, and the Secretary in 

14 achieving the purposes of this Act by—

15 ‘‘(i) improving the academic achieve16 ment of children with disabilities and their 

17 performance on regular statewide assess18 ments as compared to nondisabled children, 

19 and the performance of children with dis20 abilities on alternate assessments; 

21 ‘‘(ii) improving the participation of 

22 children with disabilities in the general 

23 education curriculum; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) improving the transitions of chil2 dren with disabilities at natural transition 

3 points; 

4 ‘‘(iv) placing and serving children with 

5 disabilities, including minority children, in 

6 the least restrictive environment appro7 priate; 

8 ‘‘(v) preventing children with disabil9 ities, especially children with emotional dis10 turbances and specific learning disabilities, 

11 from dropping out of school; 

12 ‘‘(vi) addressing the reading and lit13 eracy needs of children with disabilities; 

14 ‘‘(vii) reducing the overidentification of 

15 children, especially minority and limited 

16 English proficient children, as having a dis17 ability; 

18 ‘‘(viii) improving the participation of 

19 parents of children with disabilities in the 

20 education of their children; and 

21 ‘‘(ix) resolving disagreements between 

22 education personnel and parents through al23 ternate dispute resolution activities includ24 ing mediation and voluntary binding arbi25 tration. 
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1 ‘‘(4) INTERIM AND FINAL REPORTS.—The Sec2 retary shall submit to the President and the Con3 gress—

4 ‘‘(A) an interim report that summarizes the 

5 preliminary findings of the assessment not later 

6 than 30 months after the date of the enactment 

7 of the Improving Education Results for Children 

8 With Disabilities Act of 2003; and 

9 ‘‘(B) a final report of the findings of the as10 sessment not later than 5 years after the date of 

11 the enactment of such Act. 

12 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall provide 

13 an annual report to the Congress that—

14 ‘‘(1) summarizes the research conducted under 

15 section 663; 

16 ‘‘(2) analyzes and summarizes the data reported 

17 by the States and the Secretary of the Interior under 

18 section 618; 

19 ‘‘(3) summarizes the studies and evaluations con20 ducted under this section and the timeline for their 

21 completion; 

22 ‘‘(4) describes the extent and progress of the na23 tional assessment; and 
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1 ‘‘(5) describes the findings and determinations 

2 resulting from reviews of State implementation of this 

3 Act. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 667. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

6 sections 663, 664, and 666 $171,861,000 for fiscal year 

7 2004 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

8 fiscal years 2005 through 2009. There are authorized to be 

9 appropriated to carry out section 665 $90,000,000 for fiscal 

10 year 2004 and such sums as may be necessary for each of 

11 the fiscal years 2005 through 2009. 

12 ‘‘Subpart 3—Supports To Improve Results for 

13 Children With Disabilities 

14 ‘‘SEC. 671. PURPOSES. 

15 ‘‘The purposes of this subpart are to ensure that—

16 ‘‘(1) children with disabilities and their parents 

17 receive training and information on their rights, re18 sponsibilities, and protections under this Act, in order 

19 to develop the skills necessary to cooperatively and ef20 fectively participate in planning and decisionmaking 

21 relating to early intervention, educational, and tran22 sitional services; 

23 ‘‘(2) parents, teachers, administrators, early 

24 intervention personnel, related services personnel, and 

25 transition personnel receive coordinated and acces-
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1 sible technical assistance and information to assist 

2 them in improving early intervention, educational, 

3 and transitional services and results for children with 

4 disabilities and their families; and 

5 ‘‘(3) appropriate technology and media are re6 searched, developed, and demonstrated, to improve 

7 and implement early intervention, educational, and 

8 transitional services and results for children with dis9 abilities and their families. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 672. PARENT TRAINING AND INFORMATION CENTERS. 

11 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

12 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative 

13 agreements with, parent organizations to support parent 

14 training and information centers to carry out activities 

15 under this section. 

16 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—Each parent and com17 munity training and information center that receives as18 sistance under this section shall—

19 ‘‘(1) provide training and information that 

20 meets the needs of parents of children with disabilities 

21 living in the area served by the center, including un22 derserved parents and parents of children who may be 

23 inappropriately identified, to enable children with 

24 disabilities—
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1 ‘‘(A) to meet developmental and challenging 

2 academic achievement goals that have been estab3 lished for all children; and 

4 ‘‘(B) to be prepared to lead productive inde5 pendent adult lives to the maximum extent pos6 sible; 

7 ‘‘(2) ensure that the training and information 

8 provided meets the needs of low-income parents and 

9 parents of children with limited English proficiency; 

10 ‘‘(3) serve the parents of infants, toddlers, and 

11 children with the full range of disabilities; 

12 ‘‘(4) assist parents—

13 ‘‘(A) to better understand the nature of their 

14 children’s disabilities and their educational, de15 velopmental, and transitional needs; 

16 ‘‘(B) to communicate effectively and work 

17 collaboratively with personnel responsible for 

18 providing special education, early intervention, 

19 transition services, and related services; 

20 ‘‘(C) to participate in decisionmaking proc21 esses and the development of individualized edu22 cation programs under part B and individual23 ized family service plans under part C; 

24 ‘‘(D) to obtain appropriate information 

25 about the range, type and quality of options, 
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1 programs, services, and resources available to as2 sist children with disabilities and their families 

3 in school and at home; 

4 ‘‘(E) to understand the provisions of this 

5 Act for the education of, and the provision of 

6 early intervention services to, children with dis7 abilities; and 

8 ‘‘(F) to participate in activities at the 

9 school level which benefit their children; 

10 ‘‘(5) assist parents in resolving disputes in the 

11 most expeditious way possible, including encouraging 

12 the use, and explaining the benefits, of alternative 

13 methods of dispute resolution, such as the use of indi14 vidualized education program facilitators and medi15 ation and voluntary binding arbitration processes de16 scribed in section 615(e); 

17 ‘‘(6) assist parents to understand the availability 

18 of, and how to effectively use, procedural safeguards 

19 under this Act; 

20 ‘‘(7) network with appropriate clearinghouses, 

21 including organizations conducting national dissemi22 nation activities under subpart 2 and the Institute of 

23 Educational Sciences, and with other national, State, 

24 and local organizations and agencies, such as protec25 tion and advocacy agencies, that serve parents and 
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1 families of children with the full range of disabilities; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(8) annually report to the Secretary on—

4 ‘‘(A) the number and demographics of par5 ents to whom it provided information and train6 ing in the most recently concluded fiscal year; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(B) the effectiveness of strategies used to 

9 reach and serve parents, including underserved 

10 parents of children with disabilities. 

11 ‘‘(c) OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES.—A parent training and 

12 community and information center that receives assistance 

13 under this section may—

14 ‘‘(1) provide information to teachers and other 

15 professionals to assist them in improving results for 

16 children with disabilities; and 

17 ‘‘(2) assist students with disabilities to under18 stand their rights and responsibilities under section 

19 615(l) on reaching the age of majority. 

20 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each applica21 tion for assistance under this section shall identify with 

22 specificity the special efforts that the applicant will under23 take—

24 ‘‘(1) to ensure that the needs for training and in25 formation of underserved parents of children with dis-
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1 abilities in the area to be served are effectively met; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(2) to work with community-based organiza4 tions, including those that work with low-income par5 ents and parents of children with limited English 

6 proficiency. 

7 ‘‘(e) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make at 

9 least 1 award to a parent organization in each State, 

10 unless the Secretary does not receive an application 

11 from such an organization in each State of sufficient 

12 quality to warrant approval. 

13 ‘‘(2) SELECTION REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary 

14 shall select among applications submitted by parent 

15 organizations in a State in a manner that ensures the 

16 most effective assistance to parents, including parents 

17 in urban and rural areas, in the State. 

18 ‘‘(f) QUARTERLY REVIEW.—

19 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS.—

20 ‘‘(A) MEETINGS.—The board of directors or 

21 special governing committee of each organization 

22 that receives an award under this section shall 

23 meet at least once in each calendar quarter to re24 view the activities for which the award was 

25 made. 
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1 ‘‘(B) ADVISING BOARD.—Each special gov2 erning committee shall directly advise the orga3 nization’s governing board of its views and rec4 ommendations. 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTINUATION AWARD.—When an organi6 zation requests a continuation award under this sec7 tion, the board of directors or special governing com8 mittee shall submit to the Secretary a written review 

9 of the parent training and information program con10 ducted by the organization during the preceding fiscal 

11 year. 

12 ‘‘(g) DEFINITION OF PARENT ORGANIZATION.—As 

13 used in this section, the term ‘parent organization’ means 

14 a private nonprofit organization (other than an institution 

15 of higher education) that—

16 ‘‘(1) has a board of directors—

17 ‘‘(A) the majority of whom are parents of 

18 children with disabilities ages birth through 26; 

19 ‘‘(B) that includes—

20 ‘‘(i) individuals working in the fields 

21 of special education, related services, and 

22 early intervention; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) individuals with disabilities; and 

24 ‘‘(C) the parent and professional members of 

25 which are broadly representative of the popu-
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1 lation to be served, including low-income and 

2 limited English proficient parents of children 

3 with disabilities; or 

4 ‘‘(2) has—

5 ‘‘(A) a membership that represents the in6 terests of individuals with disabilities and has 

7 established a special governing committee that 

8 meets the requirements of paragraph (1); and 

9 ‘‘(B) a memorandum of understanding be10 tween the special governing committee and the 

11 board of directors of the organization that clearly 

12 outlines the relationship between the board and 

13 the committee and the decisionmaking respon14 sibilities and authority of each. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 673. COMMUNITY PARENT RESOURCE CENTERS. 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may make grants 

17 to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements 

18 with, local parent organizations to support parent training 

19 and information centers that will help ensure that under20 served parents of children with disabilities, including low21 income parents, parents of children with limited English 

22 proficiency, and parents with disabilities, have the training 

23 and information they need to enable them to participate 

24 effectively in helping their children with disabilities—
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1 ‘‘(1) to meet developmental goals and, to the 

2 maximum extent possible, those challenging standards 

3 that have been established for all children; and 

4 ‘‘(2) to be prepared to lead productive inde5 pendent adult lives, to the maximum extent possible. 

6 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—Each parent training 

7 and information center assisted under this section shall—

8 ‘‘(1) provide training and information that 

9 meets the training and information needs of parents 

10 of children with disabilities proposed to be served by 

11 the grant, contract, or cooperative agreement; 

12 ‘‘(2) carry out the activities required of parent 

13 training and information centers under paragraphs 

14 (2) through (7) of section 672(b); 

15 ‘‘(3) establish cooperative partnerships with the 

16 parent training and information centers funded 

17 under section 672; and 

18 ‘‘(4) be designed to meet the specific needs of 

19 families who experience significant isolation from 

20 available sources of information and support. 

21 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—As used is this section, the term 

22 ‘local parent organization’ means a parent organization, 

23 as defined in section 672(g), that either—

24 ‘‘(1) has a board of directors the majority of 

25 whom are from the community to be served; or 
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1 ‘‘(2) has—

2 ‘‘(A) as a part of its mission, serving the 

3 interests of individuals with disabilities from 

4 such community; and 

5 ‘‘(B) a special governing committee to ad6 minister the grant, contract, or cooperative 

7 agreement, a majority of the members of which 

8 are individuals from such community. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 674. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR PARENT TRAINING 

10 AND INFORMATION CENTERS. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may, directly or 

12 through awards to eligible entities (as defined in section 

13 662(b)), provide technical assistance for developing, assist14 ing, and coordinating parent training and information 

15 programs carried out by parent training and information 

16 centers receiving assistance under sections 672 and 673. 

17 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary may 

18 provide technical assistance to a parent training and infor19 mation center under this section in areas such as—

20 ‘‘(1) effective coordination of parent training ef21 forts; 

22 ‘‘(2) dissemination of scientifically based re23 search and information; 
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1 ‘‘(3) promotion of the use of technology, includ2 ing assistive technology devices and assistive tech3 nology services; 

4 ‘‘(4) reaching underserved populations, including 

5 parents of low-income and limited English proficient 

6 children with disabilities; 

7 ‘‘(5) including children with disabilities in gen8 eral education programs; 

9 ‘‘(6) facilitation of transitions from—

10 ‘‘(A) early intervention services to preschool; 

11 ‘‘(B) preschool to elementary school; 

12 ‘‘(C) elementary school to secondary school; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(D) secondary school to postsecondary en15 vironments; and 

16 ‘‘(7) promotion of alternative methods of dispute 

17 resolution, including mediation and voluntary bind18 ing arbitration. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 675. TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, DEMONSTRATION, 

20 AND UTILIZATION; AND MEDIA SERVICES. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall competitively 

22 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative 

23 agreements with, eligible entities (as defined in section 

24 662(b)) to support activities described in subsections (b) 

25 and (c). 
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1 ‘‘(b) TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, DEMONSTRATION, 

2 AND UTILIZATION.—

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section, 

4 the Secretary shall support activities to promote the 

5 development, demonstration, and utilization of tech6 nology. 

7 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The following 

8 activities may be carried out under this subsection: 

9 ‘‘(A) Conducting research on, and pro10 moting the demonstration and use of—

11 ‘‘(i) innovative and emerging tech12 nologies for children with disabilities; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) improved transfer of technology 

14 from research and development to practice. 

15 ‘‘(B) Supporting research, development, and 

16 dissemination of technology with universal-de17 sign features, so that the technology is accessible 

18 to individuals with disabilities without further 

19 modification or adaptation. 

20 ‘‘(C) Demonstrating the use of systems to 

21 provide parents and teachers with information 

22 and training concerning early diagnosis of, 

23 intervention for, and effective teaching strategies 

24 for, young children with reading disabilities. 
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1 ‘‘(D) Supporting the implementation of re2 search programs. 

3 ‘‘(E) Communicating information on avail4 able technology and the uses of such technology 

5 to assist children with disabilities. 

6 ‘‘(c) EDUCATIONAL MEDIA SERVICES; OPTIONAL AC7 TIVITIES.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary may 

8 support—

9 ‘‘(1) educational media activities that are de10 signed to be of educational value in the classroom set11 ting to children with disabilities; 

12 ‘‘(2) providing video description, open cap13 tioning, or closed captioning of television programs, 

14 videos, or other materials with an education-based 

15 content for use in the classroom setting when such 

16 services are not provided by the producer or dis17 tributor of such information, including programs and 

18 materials associated with new and emerging tech19 nologies such as CDs, DVDs, video streaming, and 

20 other forms of multimedia; 

21 ‘‘(3) distributing materials described in para22 graphs (1) and (2) through such mechanisms as a 

23 loan service; and 

24 ‘‘(4) providing free educational materials, in25 cluding textbooks, in accessible media for visually im-
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1 paired and print-disabled students in elementary, sec2 ondary, postsecondary, and graduate schools. 

3 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.—Any eligible entity (as defined 

4 in section 662(b)) that wishes to receive a grant, or enter 

5 into a contract or cooperative agreement, under this section 

6 shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 

7 in such manner, and containing such information as the 

8 Secretary may require. For purposes of subsection (c)(4), 

9 such entity shall—

10 ‘‘(1) be a national, nonprofit entity with a track 

11 record of meeting the needs of students with print dis12 abilities through services described in paragraph (4); 

13 ‘‘(2) have the capacity to produce, maintain, 

14 and distribute in a timely fashion, up-to-date text15 books in digital audio formats to qualified students; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(3) have a demonstrated ability to significantly 

18 leverage Federal funds through other public and pri19 vate contributions, as well as through the expansive 

20 use of volunteers. 

21 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 

22 authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 674 

23 $32,710,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such sums as may be 

24 necessary for each of the fiscal years 2005 through 2009. 

25 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out sec-
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1 tions 672 and 673 $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2004 and 

2 such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 

3 2005 through 2009.’’. 

4 SEC. 402. CONTINUATION OF FUNDING FOR COMMUNITY 

5 PARENT AND RESOURCE CENTERS. 

6 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Sec7 retary of Education is authorized to use amounts made 

8 available for a fiscal year to carry out subpart 3 of part 

9 D of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (as 

10 added by section 401) to continue to provide funding under 

11 grants made to, or contracts or cooperative agreements en12 tered into with, local parent organizations under section 

13 683 of such Act (as such section was in effect on October 

14 1, 2002). 

Union Calendar No. 44

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1350

[Report No. 108–77] 

A BILL

To reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities 

Education Act, and for other purposes. 

APRIL 29, 2003

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 

and ordered to be printed