Union Calendar No. 304

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3268

[Report No. 104–614]

A BILL

To amend the Individuals with Disabilities Eduments to that Act, and for other purposes. cation Act, to reauthorize and make improveJUNE 10, 1996Reported with an amendment, committed to the Commitordered to be printed tee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and
IB

Union Calendar No. 304

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3268

[Report No. 104–614]

To amend the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, to reauthorize

and make improvements to that Act, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 18, 1996

Mr. CUNNINGHAM introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities

JUNE 10, 1996

Additional sponsors: Mr. GUNDERSON, Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas, Mr.

RIGGS, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. WELDON of Florida, Mr. GREENWOOD, Mr.

BARRETT of Nebraska, Mr. BALLENGER, Mrs. MEYERS of Kansas, Mr.

GRAHAM, and Mr. KNOLLENBERG

JUNE 10, 1996

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 April 18, 1996]

A BILL

To amend the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,

to reauthorize and make improvements to that Act, and

for other purposes.
2

•HR 3268 RH

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 ‘‘IDEA Improvement Act

5 of 1996’’.

6 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE

7 INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABIL8 ITIES EDUCATION ACT

9 SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO THE INDIVIDUALS WITH DIS10 ABILITIES EDUCATION ACT.

11 Parts A through D of the Individuals with Disabilities

12 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) are amended to read

13 as follows:

14 ‘‘PART A—GENERAL PROVISIONS

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

16 PURPOSES.

17 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This title may be cited as the ‘In18 dividuals with Disabilities Education Act’.

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

20 this title 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. Requirements for prescribing regulations.

‘‘Sec. 606. Employment of individuals with disabilities.
3

•HR 3268 RH

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

DISABILITIES

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

‘‘Sec. 612. State requirements.

‘‘Sec. 613. Local educational agency requirements.

‘‘Sec. 614. Evaluations, reevaluations, individualized education programs,

and educational placements.

‘‘Sec. 615. Procedural safeguards.

‘‘Sec. 616. 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. Purpose of part.

‘‘Sec. 652. Eligibility for financial assistance.

‘‘SUBPART 1—GENERAL PROVISIONS AND NATIONAL RESEARCH AND

IMPROVEMENT ACTIVITIES

‘‘Sec. 661. Comprehensive plan.

‘‘Sec. 662. Priorities.

‘‘Sec. 663. Peer review.

‘‘Sec. 664. Eligible applicants.

‘‘Sec. 665. Applicant and recipient responsibilities.

‘‘Sec. 666. Indirect costs.

‘‘Sec. 667. Program evaluation.

‘‘Sec. 668. National assessment.

‘‘Sec. 669. Authorization of appropriations.

‘‘SUBPART 2—PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

‘‘Sec. 671. Purpose.

‘‘Sec. 672. Finding.

‘‘Sec. 673. National activities.

‘‘Sec. 674. Professional development for personnel serving low-incidence populations.
4

•HR 3268 RH

‘‘Sec. 675. Leadership personnel.

‘‘Sec. 676. Service obligation.

‘‘Sec. 677. Outreach.

‘‘SUBPART 3—STATE PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT GRANTS FOR CHILDREN WITH

DISABILITIES

‘‘Sec. 681. Purpose.

‘‘Sec. 682. Eligibility and collaborative process.

‘‘Sec. 683. State improvement plans.

‘‘Sec. 684. Use of funds.

‘‘Sec. 685. Minimum State allotments.

‘‘Sec. 686. Authorization of appropriations.

‘‘SUBPART 4—PARENT TRAINING

‘‘Sec. 691. Grants for parent training and information centers.

‘‘Sec. 692. Technical assistance for parent training and information centers.

‘‘Sec. 693. Authorization of appropriations.

1 ‘‘(c) FINDINGS.—The 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)—

13 ‘‘(A) the special educational needs of chil14 dren with disabilities were not being fully met;

15 ‘‘(B) more than one-half of the children

16 with disabilities in the United States did not re17 ceive appropriate educational services that would
5

•HR 3268 RH

1 enable such children to have full equality of op2 portunity;

3 ‘‘(C) 1,000,000 of the children with disabil4 ities in the United States were excluded entirely

5 from the public school system and did not go

6 through the educational process with their peers;

7 ‘‘(D) there were many children with disabil8 ities throughout the United States participating

9 in regular school programs whose disabilities

10 prevented such children from having a successful

11 educational experience because their disabilities

12 were undetected; and

13 ‘‘(E) because of the lack of adequate services

14 within the public school system, families were

15 often forced to find services outside the public

16 school system, often at great distance from their

17 residence and at their own expense.

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.
6

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(4) However, the implementation of this Act

2 has been impeded by low expectations, and an insuffi3 cient focus on applying replicable research on proven

4 methods of teaching and learning for children with

5 disabilities.

6 ‘‘(5) 20 years of research and experience has

7 demonstrated that the education of children with dis8 abilities can be made more effective by—

9 ‘‘(A) having high expectations for such chil10 dren and ensuring their access in the general

11 curriculum to the maximum extent possible;

12 ‘‘(B) ensuring that families of such children

13 have meaningful opportunities to participate in

14 the education of their children at school and at

15 home;

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

17 State, and Federal school improvement efforts in

18 order to ensure that such children benefit from

19 such efforts and that special education can be20 come a service for such children rather than a

21 place where they are sent;

22 ‘‘(D) providing appropriate special edu23 cation and related services and aids and sup24 ports in the regular classroom to such children,

25 whenever appropriate;
7

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(E) supporting high-quality, intensive pro2 fessional development for all personnel who work

3 with such children in order to ensure that they

4 have the skills and knowledge necessary to enable

5 them—

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

7 to the maximum extent possible, those chal8 lenging expectations that have been estab9 lished for all children; and

10 ‘‘(ii) to be prepared to lead productive,

11 independent, adult lives, to the maximum

12 extent possible;

13 ‘‘(F) providing incentives for whole-school

14 approaches and early intervention to reduce the

15 need to label children as disabled in order to ad16 dress their learning needs; and

17 ‘‘(G) focusing resources on teaching and

18 learning while reducing paperwork and require19 ments that do not assist in improving edu20 cational results.

21 ‘‘(6) While States and local educational agencies

22 are responsible for providing an education for all

23 children with disabilities, it is in the national inter24 est that the Federal Government have a role in assist25 ing State and local efforts to educate children with
8

•HR 3268 RH

1 disabilities in order to improve results for such chil2 dren and to ensure equal protection of the law.

3 ‘‘(7)(A) The Federal Government must be respon4 sive to the growing needs of an increasingly more di5 verse society. A more equitable allocation of resources

6 is essential for the Federal Government to meet its re7 sponsibility to provide an equal educational oppor8 tunity for all individuals.

9 ‘‘(B) America’s racial profile is rapidly chang10 ing. While the rate of increase for white Americans is

11 3.2 percent, the rate of increase for racial and ethnic

12 minorities is much higher: 38.6 percent for His13 panics, 14.6 percent for African-Americans, and 40.1

14 percent for Asians and other ethnic groups.

15 ‘‘(C) By the year 2000, this Nation will have

16 260,000,000 people, one of every three of whom will

17 be either African-American, Hispanic, or Asian18 American.

19 ‘‘(D) Taken together as a group, it is a more fre20 quent phenomenon for minorities to comprise the ma21 jority of public school students. Large city school pop22 ulations are overwhelmingly minority, e.g., Miami,

23 71 percent; Philadelphia, 73 percent; Baltimore, 80

24 percent.
9

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(E) Recruitment efforts within special edu2 cation at the level of preservice, continuing education,

3 and practice must focus on bringing larger numbers

4 of minorities into the profession in order to provide

5 appropriate practitioner knowledge, role models, and

6 sufficient manpower to address the clearly changing

7 demography of special education.

8 ‘‘(F) The limited English proficient population

9 is the fastest growing in our Nation, and the growth

10 is occurring in many parts of our Nation. In the Na11 tion’s 2 largest school districts, limited English stu12 dents make up almost half of all students initially en13 tering school at the kindergarten level. Studies have

14 documented apparent discrepancies in the levels of re15 ferral and placement of limited English proficient

16 children in special education. The Department of

17 Education has found that services provided to limited

18 English proficient students often do not respond pri19 marily to the pupil’s academic needs. These trends

20 pose special challenges for special education in the re21 ferral, assessment, and services for our Nation’s stu22 dents from non-English language backgrounds.

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

24 intensification of problems connected with mislabeling
10

•HR 3268 RH

1 and high dropout rates among minority children with

2 disabilities.

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

4 served in special education than would be expected

5 from the percentage of minority students in the gen6 eral school population.

7 ‘‘(C) Poor African-American children are 3.5

8 times more likely to be identified by their teacher as

9 mentally retarded than their white counterpart.

10 ‘‘(D) Although African-Americans represent 12

11 percent of elementary and secondary enrollments, they

12 constitute 28 percent of total enrollments in special

13 education.

14 ‘‘(E) The drop out rate is 68 percent higher for

15 minorities than for whites.

16 ‘‘(F) More than 50 percent of minority students

17 in large cities drop out of school.

18 ‘‘(9)(A) The opportunity for full participation in

19 awards for grants and contracts; boards of organiza20 tions receiving funds under this Act; and peer review

21 panels; and training of professionals in the area of

22 special education by minority individuals, organiza23 tions, and historically Black colleges and universities

24 is essential if we are to obtain greater success in the

25 education of minority children with disabilities.
11

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) In 1989, of the 661,000 college and univer2 sity professors, 4.6 percent were African-American

3 and 3.1 percent were Hispanic. Of the 3,600,000

4 teachers, prekindergarten through high school, 9.4 per5 cent were African-American and 3.9 percent were

6 Hispanic.

7 ‘‘(C) Students from minority groups comprise

8 more than 50 percent of K–12 public school enroll9 ment in seven States yet minority enrollment in

10 teacher training programs is less than 15 percent in

11 all but six States.

12 ‘‘(D) As the number of African-American and

13 Hispanic students in special education increases, the

14 number of minority teachers and related service per15 sonnel produced in our colleges and universities con16 tinues to decrease.

17 ‘‘(E) Ten years ago, 12.5 percent of the United

18 States teaching force in public elementary and sec19 ondary schools were members of a minority group.

20 Minorities comprised 21.3 percent of the national

21 population at that time and were clearly underrep22 resented then among employed teachers. Today, the el23 ementary and secondary teaching force is 3 to 5 per24 cent minority, while one-third of the students in pub25 lic schools are minority children.
12

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(F) As recently as 1984–85, Historically Black

2 Colleges and Universities supplied nearly half of the

3 African-American teachers in the Nation. However, in

4 1988, Historically Black Colleges and Universities re5 ceived only 2 percent of the discretionary funds for

6 special education and related services personnel train7 ing.

8 ‘‘(G) While African-American students constitute

9 28 percent of total enrollment in special education,

10 only 11.2 percent of individuals enrolled in preservice

11 training programs for special education are African12 American.

13 ‘‘(H) In 1986–87, of the degrees conferred in

14 education at the B.A., M.A., and Ph.D levels, only 6,

15 8, and 8 percent, respectively, were awarded to Afri16 can-American or Hispanic students.

17 ‘‘(10) Minorities and underserved persons are so18 cially disadvantaged because of the lack of opportuni19 ties in training and educational programs, under20 girded by the practices in the private sector that im21 pede their full participation in the mainstream of so22 ciety.

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

24 ‘‘(1) to ensure that all children with disabilities

25 have available to them a free appropriate public edu-
13

•HR 3268 RH

1 cation that emphasizes special education and related

2 services designed to meet their unique needs and pre3 pare them for employment and independent living;

4 ‘‘(2) to ensure that the rights of children with

5 disabilities and parents of such children are protected;

6 ‘‘(3) to assist States, localities, and Federal

7 agencies to provide for the education of all children

8 with disabilities; and

9 ‘‘(4) to assess, and ensure the effectiveness of, ef10 forts to educate children with disabilities.

11 ‘‘SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS.

12 ‘‘As used in this title:

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

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

15 equipment, or product system, whether acquired com16 mercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that

17 is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional

18 capabilities of a child with a disability.

19 ‘‘(2) ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY SERVICE.—The

20 term ‘assistive technology service’ means any service

21 that directly assists a child with a disability in the

22 selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive technology

23 device. Such term includes—
14

•HR 3268 RH

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

2 child, including a functional evaluation of the

3 child in the child’s customary environment;

4 ‘‘(B) purchasing, leasing, or otherwise pro5 viding for the acquisition of assistive technology

6 devices by such child;

7 ‘‘(C) selecting, designing, fitting, customiz8 ing, adapting, applying, maintaining, repairing,

9 or replacing of assistive technology devices;

10 ‘‘(D) coordinating and using other thera11 pies, interventions, or services with assistive

12 technology devices, such as those associated with

13 existing education and rehabilitation plans and

14 programs;

15 ‘‘(E) training or technical assistance for

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

17 such child; and

18 ‘‘(F) training or technical assistance for

19 professionals (including individuals providing

20 education and rehabilitation services), employ21 ers, or other individuals who provide services to,

22 employ, or are otherwise substantially involved

23 in the major life functions of such child.

24 ‘‘(3) CHILD WITH A DISABILITY.—
15

•HR 3268 RH

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

2 disability’ means a child—

3 ‘‘(i) with mental retardation, hearing

4 impairments (including deafness), speech or

5 language impairments, visual impairments

6 (including blindness), serious emotional dis7 turbance, orthopedic impairments, autism,

8 traumatic brain injury, other health im9 pairments, or specific learning disabilities;

10 and

11 ‘‘(ii) who, by reason thereof, needs spe12 cial education and related services.

13 ‘‘(B) CHILD AGED 3 TO 9.—The term ‘child

14 with a disability’ for a child aged 3 to 9, inclu15 sive, may, at the discretion of the State and the

16 local educational agency, include a child—

17 ‘‘(i) experiencing developmental delays,

18 as defined by the State and as measured by

19 appropriate diagnostic instruments and

20 procedures, in one or more of the following

21 areas: physical development, cognitive devel22 opment, communication development, social

23 or emotional development, or adaptive de24 velopment; and
16

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) who, by reason thereof, needs spe2 cial education and related services.

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

4 ‘educational service agency’—

5 ‘‘(A) means a regional public multiservice

6 agency—

7 ‘‘(i) authorized by State law to de8 velop, manage, and provide services or pro9 grams to local educational agencies; and

10 ‘‘(ii) recognized as an administrative

11 agency for purposes of the provision of spe12 cial education and related services provided

13 within public elementary and secondary

14 schools of the State; and

15 ‘‘(B) includes any other public institution

16 or agency having administrative control and di17 rection over a public elementary or secondary

18 school.

19 ‘‘(5) ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘elemen20 tary school’ means a day or residential school which

21 provides elementary education, as determined under

22 State law, policy, or procedure.

23 ‘‘(6) EQUIPMENT.—The term ‘equipment’ in24 cludes—
17

•HR 3268 RH

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

2 equipment and any necessary enclosures or

3 structures to house such machinery, utilities, or

4 equipment; and

5 ‘‘(B) all other items necessary for the func6 tioning of a particular facility as a facility for

7 the provision of educational services, including

8 items such as instructional equipment and nec9 essary furniture, printed, published, and audio10 visual instructional materials, telecommuni11 cations, sensory, and other technological aids

12 and devices, and books, periodicals, documents,

13 and other related materials.

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

15 means those costs which are in excess of the average

16 annual per student expenditure in a local educational

17 agency during the preceding school year for an ele18 mentary or secondary school student, as may be ap19 propriate, and which shall be computed after deduct20 ing—

21 ‘‘(A) amounts received—

22 ‘‘(i) under part B of this title;

23 ‘‘(ii) under part A of title I of the Ele24 mentary and Secondary Education Act of

25 1965; or
18

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(iii) under part A of title VII of such

2 Act; and

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

4 programs that would qualify for assistance under

5 any such part.

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

7 The term ‘free appropriate public education’ means

8 special education and related services that—

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

10 under public supervision and direction, and

11 without charge;

12 ‘‘(B) meet the standards of the State edu13 cational agency;

14 ‘‘(C) include an appropriate preschool, ele15 mentary, or secondary school education in the

16 State involved; and

17 ‘‘(D) are provided in conformity with the

18 individualized education program required

19 under section 614(d).

20 ‘‘(9) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ means an indi21 vidual who is a member of an Indian tribe.

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

23 means any Federal or State Indian tribe, band,

24 rancheria, pueblo, colony, or community, including

25 any Alaskan native village or regional village cor-
19

•HR 3268 RH

1 poration (as defined in or established under the Alas2 ka Native Claims Settlement Act).

3 ‘‘(11) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM.—

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

5 means a written statement for each child with a dis6 ability that is developed, reviewed, and revised in ac7 cordance with section 614(d) and that includes—

8 ‘‘(A) a statement of the child’s present levels

9 of educational performance, including—

10 ‘‘(i) how the child’s disability affects

11 the child’s involvement and progress in the

12 general curriculum; or

13 ‘‘(ii) for preschool children, as appro14 priate, how the disability affects the child’s

15 participation in appropriate activities;

16 ‘‘(B) a statement of measurable annual

17 goals, including benchmarks or short-term objec18 tives, related to—

19 ‘‘(i) meeting the child’s needs that re20 sult from the child’s disability to enable the

21 child to be involved in and progress in the

22 general curriculum; and

23 ‘‘(ii) meeting each of the child’s other

24 educational needs that result from the

25 child’s disability;
20

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(C) a statement of how the classroom was

2 adapted before the student was referred for iden3 tification as a child with a disability;

4 ‘‘(D) a justification of the extent, if any, to

5 which the child will not be educated with non6 disabled children;

7 ‘‘(E) a statement of the special education

8 and related services and supplementary aids and

9 services to be provided to the child, or on behalf

10 of the child, and any program modifications or

11 support for school personnel necessary for the

12 child—

13 ‘‘(i) to progress toward the attainment

14 of the annual goals described in subpara15 graph (B); and

16 ‘‘(ii) to be involved and progress in the

17 general curriculum in accordance with sub18 paragraph (A) and to participate in extra19 curricular and other nonacademic activi20 ties;

21 ‘‘(F)(i) a statement of any individual modi22 fications in the administration of State or dis23 trictwide assessments of student achievement that

24 are needed in order for the child to participate

25 in such assessment; and
21

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) if the individualized education pro2 gram team determines that the child will not

3 participate in a particular State or districtwide

4 assessment of student achievement (or part of

5 such an assessment), a statement of—

6 ‘‘(I) why that assessment is not appro7 priate for the child; and

8 ‘‘(II) how the child will be assessed;

9 ‘‘(G) the projected date for the beginning of

10 the services and modifications described in sub11 paragraph (E), and the anticipated frequency,

12 location, and duration of those services and

13 modifications;

14 ‘‘(H)(i) beginning at age 14, and updated

15 annually, a statement of the transition service

16 needs of the child under the applicable compo17 nents of the child’s IEP that focuses on the

18 child’s courses of study (such as participation in

19 advanced-placement courses or a vocational edu20 cation or school-to-work program);

21 ‘‘(ii) beginning at age 16 (or younger, if de22 termined appropriate by the IEP Team), a state23 ment of needed transition services for the child,

24 including, when appropriate, a statement of the
22

•HR 3268 RH

1 interagency responsibilities or any needed link2 ages; and

3 ‘‘(iii) beginning at least one year before the

4 child reaches the age of majority under State

5 law, a statement that the child has been in6 formed of his or her rights under this title, if

7 any, that will transfer to the child on reaching

8 the age of majority under section 615(m); and

9 ‘‘(I) a statement of—

10 ‘‘(i) how the child’s progress toward the

11 annual goals described in subparagraph (B)

12 will be measured; and

13 ‘‘(ii) how the child’s parents will be

14 regularly informed (by such means as peri15 odic report cards), at least as often as par16 ents are informed of their nondisabled chil17 dren’s progress, of—

18 ‘‘(I) their child’s progress toward

19 the annual goals described in subpara20 graph (B); and

21 ‘‘(II) the extent to which that

22 progress is sufficient to enable the child

23 to achieve the objectives by the end of

24 the year.
23

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(12) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM

2 TEAM.—The term ‘individualized education program

3 team’ or ‘IEP Team’ means a group of individuals

4 composed of—

5 ‘‘(A) the parents of a child with a disabil6 ity;

7 ‘‘(B) at least one regular education teacher

8 of such child (if the child is, or may be, partici9 pating in the regular education environment);

10 ‘‘(C) at least one special education teacher,

11 or where appropriate, at least one special edu12 cation provider of such child;

13 ‘‘(D) a representative of the local edu14 cational agency who—

15 ‘‘(i) is qualified to provide, or super16 vise the provision of, specially designed in17 struction to meet the unique needs of chil18 dren with disabilities;

19 ‘‘(ii) is knowledgeable about the general

20 curriculum; and

21 ‘‘(iii) is knowledgeable about the avail22 ability of resources of the local educational

23 agency;

24 ‘‘(E) whenever appropriate, the child with a

25 disability; and
24

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(F) at the discretion of the parent or the

2 agency, other individuals who have special ex3 pertise or knowledge regarding the abilities and

4 disability or disabilities of the child, including,

5 as appropriate, related services personnel who

6 are or who will be working with the child.

7 ‘‘(13) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—

8 The term ‘institution of higher education’—

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

10 section 1201(a) of the Higher Education Act of

11 1965; and

12 ‘‘(B) also includes any community college

13 receiving funding from the Secretary of the Inte14 rior under the Tribally Controlled Community

15 College Assistance Act of 1978.

16 ‘‘(14) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term

17 ‘local educational agency’ means—

18 ‘‘(A) a public board of education or other

19 public authority legally constituted within a

20 State for either administrative control or direc21 tion of, or to perform a service function for, pub22 lic elementary or secondary schools in a city,

23 county, township, school district, or other politi24 cal subdivision of a State, or for a combination

25 of school districts or counties as are recognized
25

•HR 3268 RH

1 in a State as an administrative agency for its

2 public elementary or secondary schools;

3 ‘‘(B) any other public institution or agency

4 having administrative control and direction of a

5 public elementary or secondary school; or

6 ‘‘(C) an educational service agency.

7 ‘‘(15) NATIVE LANGUAGE.—The term ‘native lan8 guage’, when used with reference to an individual of

9 limited English proficiency, means the language nor10 mally used by the individual, or in the case of a

11 child, the language normally used by the parents of

12 the child, and includes American Sign Language.

13 ‘‘(16) NONPROFIT.—The term ‘nonprofit’ as ap14 plied to a school, agency, organization, or institution

15 means a school, agency, organization, or institution

16 owned and operated by one or more nonprofit cor17 porations or associations no part of the net earnings

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

19 of any private shareholder or individual.

20 ‘‘(17) PARENT.—The term ‘parent’ includes a

21 legal guardian or surrogate parent.

22 ‘‘(18) PARENT ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘par23 ent organization’ means a private nonprofit organiza24 tion (but not including an institution of higher edu25 cation) that—
26

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) has a board of directors—

2 ‘‘(i) the majority of whom are parents

3 of children with disabilities;

4 ‘‘(ii) that includes—

5 ‘‘(I) individuals working in the

6 fields of special education, related serv7 ices, and early intervention; and

8 ‘‘(II) individuals with disabilities;

9 and

10 ‘‘(iii) the parent and professional

11 members of which are broadly representa12 tive of the population to be served; or

13 ‘‘(B)(i) represents the interests of individ14 uals with disabilities and has established a spe15 cial governing committee which meets the re16 quirements of subparagraph (A); and

17 ‘‘(ii) has a memorandum of understanding

18 between the special governing committee and the

19 board of directors of the organization which

20 clearly outlines the relationship between the

21 board and the committee and the decisionmaking

22 responsibilities and authority of each.

23 ‘‘(19) PARENT TRAINING AND INFORMATION CEN24 TER.—The term ‘parent training and information

25 center’ means a center that—
27

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) provides training and information

2 that meets the training and information needs of

3 parents of children with disabilities living in the

4 area served by the center; and

5 ‘‘(B) assists parents—

6 ‘‘(i) to better understand the nature of

7 their children’s disabilities and their edu8 cational and developmental needs;

9 ‘‘(ii) to communicate effectively with

10 personnel responsible for providing special

11 education, early intervention, and related

12 services;

13 ‘‘(iii) to participate in decisionmaking

14 processes and the development of the IEP;

15 ‘‘(iv) to obtain appropriate informa16 tion about the range of options, programs,

17 services, and resources available to assist

18 children with disabilities and their families;

19 ‘‘(v) to understand the programs under

20 this title for the education of, and the provi21 sion of early intervention services to, chil22 dren with disabilities; and

23 ‘‘(vi) to participate in school reform

24 activities.
28

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(20) RELATED SERVICES.—The term ‘related

2 services’ means transportation, and such developmen3 tal, corrective, and other supportive services (includ4 ing speech-language pathology and audiology services,

5 psychological services, physical and occupational ther6 apy, recreation, including therapeutic recreation, so7 cial work services, counseling services, including reha8 bilitation counseling, orientation and mobility serv9 ices, and medical services, except that such medical

10 services shall be for diagnostic and evaluation pur11 poses only) as may be required to assist a child with

12 a disability to benefit from special education, and in13 cludes the early identification and assessment of dis14 abling conditions in children.

15 ‘‘(21) SECONDARY SCHOOL.—The term ‘second16 ary school’ means a day or residential school which

17 provides secondary education, as determined under

18 State law, policy, or procedure, except that it does not

19 include any education provided beyond grade 12.

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

21 the Secretary of Education.

22 ‘‘(23) 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—
29

•HR 3268 RH

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 ‘‘(24) 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 ‘‘(25) 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 territories.
30

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(26) 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 ‘‘(27) 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)(4).

16 ‘‘(28) TERRITORY.—The term ‘territory’ means

17 American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern

18 Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.

19 ‘‘(29) TRANSITION SERVICES.—The term ‘transi20 tion services’ means a coordinated set of activities for

21 a child with a disability that—

22 ‘‘(A) are designed within an outcome-ori23 ented process, which promotes movement from

24 school to post-school activities, including post25 secondary education, vocational training, inte-
31

•HR 3268 RH

1 grated employment (including supported employ2 ment), continuing and adult education, adult

3 services, independent living, or community par4 ticipation;

5 ‘‘(B) are based upon the individual child’s

6 needs, taking into account the child’s preferences

7 and interests; and

8 ‘‘(C) include instruction, related services,

9 community experiences, the development of em10 ployment and other post-school adult living ob11 jectives, and, when appropriate, acquisition of

12 daily living skills and functional vocational

13 evaluation.

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

15 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There shall be, within the Of16 fice of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services in the

17 Department of Education, an Office of Special Education

18 Programs which shall be the principal agency in such De19 partment for administering and carrying out this title and

20 other programs and activities concerning the education and

21 training of children with disabilities.

22 ‘‘(b) DIRECTOR.—The Office established under sub23 section (a) shall be headed by a Director who shall be se24 lected by the Secretary and shall report directly to the As-
32

•HR 3268 RH

1 sistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative

2 Services.

3 ‘‘(c) VOLUNTARY AND UNCOMPENSATED SERVICES.—

4 Notwithstanding section 1342 of title 31, United States

5 Code, the Secretary is authorized to accept voluntary and

6 uncompensated services in furtherance of the purposes of

7 this title.

8 ‘‘SEC. 604. ABROGATION OF STATE SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY.

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State shall not be immune

10 under the eleventh amendment to the Constitution of the

11 United States from suit in Federal court for a violation

12 of this title.

13 ‘‘(b) REMEDIES.—In a suit against a State for a viola14 tion of this title, remedies (including remedies both at law

15 and in equity) are available for such a violation to the same

16 extent as such remedies are available for such a violation

17 in the suit against any public entity other than a State.

18 ‘‘(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The provisions of subsections

19 (a) and (b) apply with respect to violations that occur in

20 whole or part after the date of the enactment of the Edu21 cation of the Handicapped Act Amendments of 1990.

22 ‘‘SEC. 605. REQUIREMENTS FOR PRESCRIBING REGULA23 TIONS.

24 ‘‘(a) PUBLIC-COMMENT PERIOD.—The Secretary shall

25 provide a public-comment period of at least 90 days on any
33

•HR 3268 RH

1 regulation proposed under part B or part C of this title

2 on which an opportunity for public comment is otherwise

3 required by law.

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

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

6 regulation prescribed pursuant to this title which would

7 procedurally or substantively lessen the protections pro8 vided to children with disabilities under this title, as em9 bodied in regulations in effect on July 20, 1983 (particu10 larly as such protections relate to parental consent to initial

11 evaluation or initial placement in special education, least

12 restrictive environment, related services, timeliness, attend13 ance of evaluation personnel at individualized education

14 program meetings, or qualifications of personnel), except to

15 the extent that such regulation reflects the clear and un16 equivocal intent of the Congress in legislation.

17 ‘‘(c) CORRESPONDENCE FROM DEPARTMENT OF EDU18 CATION DESCRIBING INTERPRETATIONS OF THIS PART.—

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

20 quarterly basis, publish in the Federal Register, and

21 widely disseminate to interested entities through var22 ious additional forms of communication, a list of cor23 respondence from the Department of Education re24 ceived by individuals during the previous quarter

25 that describes the interpretations of the Department of
34

•HR 3268 RH

1 Education of this Act or the regulations implemented

2 pursuant to this Act.

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

4 of correspondence published in a list under paragraph

5 (1), the Secretary shall identify the topic addressed by

6 the correspondence and shall include such other sum7 mary information as the Secretary determines to be

8 appropriate.

9 ‘‘(3) RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF CORRESPOND10 ENCE.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

12 subparagraph (B), an item of correspondence

13 published and disseminated under paragraph (1)

14 may not be used in the following:

15 ‘‘(i) An administrative or due process

16 action commenced under section 615.

17 ‘‘(ii) A compliance review or other ac18 tion relating to a State educational agency

19 conducted by the Department of Education.

20 ‘‘(iii) A compliance review or other ac21 tion relating to a local educational agency

22 or other agency conducted by a State edu23 cational agency.

24 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—A restriction on the use

25 of an item of correspondence under subpara-
35

•HR 3268 RH

1 graph (A) shall not apply if the item of cor2 respondence—

3 ‘‘(i) is directly related to the particular

4 fact situation, practice, or policy at issue

5 under clause (i) or (iii) of subparagraph

6 (A);

7 ‘‘(ii)(I) was originally directed to one

8 of the parties to the action under subpara9 graph (A)(i); or

10 ‘‘(II) was originally directed to the

11 particular local educational agency or other

12 agency under subparagraph (A)(iii); or

13 ‘‘(iii) was originally directed to the

14 particular State educational agency under

15 subparagraph (A)(ii).

16 ‘‘SEC. 606. EMPLOYMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABIL17 ITIES.

18 ‘‘The Secretary shall assure that each recipient of as19 sistance under this Act shall make positive efforts to employ

20 and advance in employment qualified individuals with dis21 abilities in programs assisted under this Act.
36

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘PART B—ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATION OF ALL

2 CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

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

4 AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

5 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of Education

6 shall provide grants to States and provide amounts to the

7 Secretary of the Interior for the purpose of providing spe8 cial education and related services to children with disabil9 ities in accordance with this part.

10 ‘‘(b) ALLOTMENT AMONG STATES.—

11 ‘‘(1) RESERVATION FOR THE TERRITORIES.—

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amount appro13 priated pursuant to subsection (e) to carry out

14 this part for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall

15 allot not more than one percent among the terri16 tories in accordance with this paragraph.

17 ‘‘(B) BASIS FOR ALLOTMENT.—The Sec18 retary shall allot to each territory an amount

19 that bears the same proportion to the amount

20 appropriated pursuant to subsection (e) for a fis21 cal year as the number of individuals aged 3 to

22 21, inclusive, residing in such territory bears to

23 the aggregate number of such individuals resid24 ing in all such territories.

25 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITION ON CONSOLIDATION OF

26 GRANTS.—The provisions of section 501 of Public
37

•HR 3268 RH

1 Law 95–134 (48 U.S.C. 1469a; relating to the

2 consolidation of one or more grants provided to

3 certain territories) shall not apply with respect

4 to amounts provided to a territory under a grant

5 under this part.

6 ‘‘(2) SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR.—Of the

7 amount appropriated pursuant to subsection (e) to

8 carry out this part for a fiscal year, the Secretary

9 shall provide to the Secretary of the Interior an

10 amount equal to 1.226 percent to carry out subsection

11 (d) (relating to special education and related services

12 for Indian children with disabilities).

13 ‘‘(3) STATES.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After determining the

15 amount to be allotted to the territories under

16 paragraph (1) and the amount to be provided to

17 the Secretary of the Interior under paragraph

18 (2) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall allot the

19 remaining amount to the remaining States in

20 accordance with this paragraph.

21 ‘‘(B) BASIS FOR ALLOTMENT.—Except as

22 provided in subparagraph (D), the Secretary

23 shall allot to each State an amount equal to the

24 sum of the following amounts:

25 ‘‘(i) The amount equal to—
38

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(I) 85 percent of the remaining

2 amount described in subparagraph (A);

3 multiplied by

4 ‘‘(II) the child population percent5 age of the State (as determined under

6 subparagraph (C)(i)).

7 ‘‘(ii) The amount equal to—

8 ‘‘(I) 15 percent of the remaining

9 amount described in subparagraph (A);

10 multiplied by

11 ‘‘(II) the child poverty percentage

12 of the State (as determined under sub13 paragraph (C)(ii)).

14 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF CHILD POPU15 LATION PERCENTAGE AND CHILD POVERTY PER16 CENTAGE.—

17 ‘‘(i) CHILD POPULATION PERCENT18 AGE.—The child population percentage

19 shall be determined by comparing—

20 ‘‘(I) the number of children aged 3

21 to 21, inclusive, in the State who are

22 of the same age as children with dis23 abilities for whom the State ensures the

24 availability of a free appropriate pub25 lic education; to
39

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) the number of such children

2 in all States.

3 ‘‘(ii) CHILD POVERTY PERCENTAGE.—

4 The child poverty percentage shall be deter5 mined by comparing—

6 ‘‘(I) the number of children aged 3

7 to 21, inclusive, in the State living in

8 poverty who are of the same age as

9 children with disabilities for whom the

10 State ensures the availability of a free

11 appropriate public education; to

12 ‘‘(II) the number of such children

13 in all States.

14 ‘‘(D) TRANSITION FORMULA.—For each of

15 the fiscal years 1997 through 2005, the Secretary

16 shall allot the remaining amount to the remain17 ing States in accordance with the following:

18 ‘‘(i) FISCAL YEAR 1997.—For fiscal

19 year 1997, the Secretary shall allot to each

20 remaining State the sum of—

21 ‘‘(I) 10 percent multiplied by the

22 amount determined for such State

23 under subparagraph (B); and
40

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) 90 percent multiplied by the

2 amount determined for such State

3 under subparagraph (E).

4 ‘‘(ii) FISCAL YEAR 1998.—For fiscal

5 year 1998, the Secretary shall allot to each

6 remaining State the sum of—

7 ‘‘(I) 20 percent multiplied by the

8 amount determined for such State

9 under subparagraph (B); and

10 ‘‘(II) 80 percent multiplied by the

11 amount determined for such State

12 under subparagraph (E).

13 ‘‘(iii) FISCAL YEAR 1999.—For fiscal

14 year 1999, the Secretary shall allot to each

15 remaining State the sum of—

16 ‘‘(I) 30 percent multiplied by the

17 amount determined for such State

18 under subparagraph (B); and

19 ‘‘(II) 70 percent multiplied by the

20 amount determined for such State

21 under subparagraph (E).

22 ‘‘(iv) FISCAL YEAR 2000.—For fiscal

23 year 2000, the Secretary shall allot to each

24 remaining State the sum of—
41

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(I) 40 percent multiplied by the

2 amount determined for such State

3 under subparagraph (B); and

4 ‘‘(II) 60 percent multiplied by the

5 amount determined for such State

6 under subparagraph (E).

7 ‘‘(v) FISCAL YEAR 2001.—For fiscal

8 year 2001, the Secretary shall allot to each

9 remaining State the sum of—

10 ‘‘(I) 50 percent multiplied by the

11 amount determined for such State

12 under subparagraph (B); and

13 ‘‘(II) 50 percent multiplied by the

14 amount determined for such State

15 under subparagraph (E).

16 ‘‘(vi) FISCAL YEAR 2002.—For fiscal

17 year 2002, the Secretary shall allot to each

18 remaining State the sum of—

19 ‘‘(I) 60 percent multiplied by the

20 amount determined for such State

21 under subparagraph (B); and

22 ‘‘(II) 40 percent multiplied by the

23 amount determined for such State

24 under subparagraph (E).
42

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(vii) FISCAL YEAR 2003.—For fiscal

2 year 2003, the Secretary shall allot to each

3 remaining State the sum of—

4 ‘‘(I) 70 percent multiplied by the

5 amount determined for such State

6 under subparagraph (B); and

7 ‘‘(II) 30 percent multiplied by the

8 amount determined for such State

9 under subparagraph (E).

10 ‘‘(viii) FISCAL YEAR 2004.—For fiscal

11 year 2004, the Secretary shall allot to each

12 remaining State the sum of—

13 ‘‘(I) 80 percent multiplied by the

14 amount determined for such State

15 under subparagraph (B); and

16 ‘‘(II) 20 percent multiplied by the

17 amount determined for such State

18 under subparagraph (E).

19 ‘‘(ix) FISCAL YEAR 2005.—For fiscal

20 year 2005, the Secretary shall allot to each

21 remaining State the sum of—

22 ‘‘(I) 90 percent multiplied by the

23 amount determined for such State

24 under subparagraph (B); and
43

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) 10 percent multiplied by the

2 amount determined for such State

3 under subparagraph (E).

4 ‘‘(E) BASE AMOUNT FOR 1996.—

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause

6 (ii), the amount determined under this sub7 paragraph for a State is the amount that

8 bears the same proportion to the remaining

9 amount (described in subparagraph (A)) for

10 the fiscal year under subparagraph (D) as

11 the amount received by the State under this

12 section for fiscal year 1996 bears to the ag13 gregate of the amounts received by the re14 maining States (described in subparagraph

15 (A)) under this section for fiscal year 1996.

16 ‘‘(ii) REDUCTION IN AMOUNT.—If the

17 State received an amount under this section

18 for fiscal year 1996 on the basis of children

19 aged 3 to 5, inclusive, in such State, but the

20 State does not make a free appropriate pub21 lic education available to all children with

22 disabilities aged 3 to 5, inclusive, in the

23 State at the time a determination is made

24 under subparagraph (C), the Secretary shall

25 reduce, on a proportional basis, the amount
44

•HR 3268 RH

1 under clause (i) for purposes of allotting

2 amounts under such subparagraph.

3 ‘‘(F) MINIMUM ALLOTMENT.—For fiscal

4 year 1997 and each subsequent fiscal year, the

5 amount allotted to each remaining State (de6 scribed in subparagraph (A)) shall not be less

7 than an amount equal to one-third of one percent

8 of the remaining amount (described in subpara9 graph (A)) for the fiscal year.

10 ‘‘(G) MAXIMUM ALLOTMENT.—

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For fiscal year

12 1997 and each subsequent fiscal year, the

13 amount allotted to each remaining State

14 (described in subparagraph (A)) under this

15 paragraph shall not be more than an

16 amount equal to

17 ‘‘(I) the sum of—

18 ‘‘(aa) the number of children

19 with disabilities in the State, aged

20 6 through 21, who are receiving

21 special education and related

22 services, as determined under

23 clause (ii); and

24 ‘‘(bb) if the State is eligible

25 for a grant under section 619, the
45

•HR 3268 RH

1 number of such children in the

2 State, aged 3 through 5; multi3 plied by

4 ‘‘(II) 40 percent of the average

5 per-pupil expenditure in public ele6 mentary and secondary schools in the

7 United States.

8 ‘‘(ii) DETERMINATION OF NUMBER OF

9 CHILDREN.—The number of children with

10 disabilities receiving special education and

11 related services in any fiscal year shall be

12 equal to the number of such children receiv13 ing special education and related services

14 on December 1 of the fiscal year preceding

15 the fiscal year for which the determination

16 is made.

17 ‘‘(iii) AVERAGE PER PUPIL EXPENDI18 TURE.—For purposes of clause (i)(II), the

19 term ‘average per pupil expenditure’, in the

20 United States, means the aggregate current

21 expenditures, during the second fiscal year

22 preceding the fiscal year for which the com23 putation is made (or, if satisfactory data

24 for such year are not available at the time

25 of computation, then during the most recent
46

•HR 3268 RH

1 preceding fiscal year for which satisfactory

2 data are available) of all local educational

3 agencies in the United States (which, for

4 purposes of this subparagraph, means the

5 fifty States and the District of Columbia),

6 as the case may be, plus any direct expendi7 tures by the State for operation of such

8 agencies (without regard to the source of

9 funds from which either of such expendi10 tures are made), divided by the aggregate

11 number of children in average daily attend12 ance to whom such agencies provided free

13 public education during such preceding

14 year.

15 ‘‘(4) SPECIAL RULE WITH RESPECT TO PUERTO

16 RICO.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any

18 other provision of this subsection, the amount al19 lotted to Puerto Rico for a fiscal year shall bear

20 the same or lower proportion to the remaining

21 amount (described in paragraph (3)(A)) as the

22 amount received by Puerto Rico under this sec23 tion for fiscal year 1996 bears to the aggregate

24 of the amounts received by the remaining States
47

•HR 3268 RH

1 (as described in paragraph (3)(A)) under this

2 section for fiscal year 1996.

3 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT IN AMOUNTS TO REMAIN4 ING STATES.—If the amount allotted to Puerto

5 Rico for a fiscal year is determined under sub6 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall reallot to the

7 remaining States (as described in paragraph

8 (3)(A)), on a proportional basis, any amount not

9 otherwise allotted to Puerto Rico.

10 ‘‘(5) USE OF MOST RECENT POPULATION DATA.—

11 For the purpose of providing grants under this part,

12 the Secretary shall use the most recent population

13 data and data on children aged 3 to 21, inclusive, liv14 ing in poverty that are available and satisfactory to

15 the Secretary.

16 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS BY STATE.—

17 ‘‘(1) RESERVATION FOR STATE ACTIVITIES.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara19 graph (D), a State may reserve not more than

20 25 percent of the amount allotted to the State

21 under paragraph (1) or (3) of subsection (b) for

22 a fiscal year for administration and other State23 level activities in accordance with subparagraphs

24 (B) and (C).

25 ‘‘(B) STATE ADMINISTRATION.—
48

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of

2 administering programs under this part,

3 including the coordination of activities

4 under this part with, and providing tech5 nical assistance to, other programs that pro6 vide services to children with disabilities—

7 ‘‘(I) each territory may use up to

8 3 percent of the amount allotted to the

9 territory for a fiscal year, or $35,000,

10 whichever is greater; and

11 ‘‘(II) each remaining State may

12 use up to 3 percent of the amount al13 lotted to the State for a fiscal year, or

14 $450,000, whichever is greater.

15 ‘‘(ii) USE OF AMOUNTS FOR ADMINIS16 TRATION OF PART C.—If the State edu17 cational agency is the lead agency for the

18 State under part C, amounts described in

19 clause (i) may also be used for the adminis20 tration of part C.

21 ‘‘(C) OTHER STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—A

22 State shall use any amounts reserved under sub23 paragraph (A) for a fiscal year that are not used

24 for administration under subparagraph (B) for

25 such fiscal year—
49

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) for support and direct services, in2 cluding technical assistance and personnel

3 development and training;

4 ‘‘(ii) for administrative costs of mon5 itoring and complaint investigation, but

6 only to the extent that such costs exceed the

7 costs incurred for those activities during fis8 cal year 1985;

9 ‘‘(iii) to establish and implement the

10 mediation process required by section

11 615(d), including providing for the costs of

12 mediators and support personnel;

13 ‘‘(iv) to assist local educational agen14 cies in meeting personnel shortages;

15 ‘‘(v) to develop a State improvement

16 plan under part D;

17 ‘‘(vi) for activities at the State and

18 local levels to meet the performance goals es19 tablished by the State under section

20 612(a)(14) and to support implementation

21 of the State improvement plan under part

22 D if the State receives funds under that

23 part; or

24 ‘‘(vii) to supplement other amounts

25 used to develop and implement a Statewide
50

•HR 3268 RH

1 coordinated services system designed to im2 prove results for children and families, in3 cluding children with disabilities and their

4 families, but not to exceed one percent of the

5 amount received by the State under this sec6 tion (such system shall be coordinated with

7 and, to the extent appropriate, build on the

8 system of coordinated services developed by

9 the State under part C).

10 ‘‘(D) REPORT ON USE OF AMOUNTS.—The

11 State shall, as part of the information required

12 to be submitted under section 612, submit a de13 scription of—

14 ‘‘(i) how amounts reserved under sub15 paragraph (A) will be used to meet the re16 quirements of this part;

17 ‘‘(ii) how such amounts will be allo18 cated among the activities described in sub19 paragraphs (B) and (C) to meet State pri20 orities based on input from local edu21 cational agencies; and

22 ‘‘(iii) what percentage of such

23 amounts, if any, will be distributed to local

24 educational agencies by formula.
51

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN2 CIES AND CERTAIN STATE AGENCIES.—

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State shall provide

4 at least 75 percent of the amount received under

5 a grant for a fiscal year to local educational

6 agencies in the State that have established their

7 eligibility under section 613, and to State agen8 cies that received funds under section 614A(a)

9 (as such section was in effect on the day before

10 the date of the enactment of the IDEA Improve11 ment Act of 1996) for fiscal year 1996 and have

12 established their eligibility under section 613, for

13 use in accordance with this part.

14 ‘‘(B) METHODS OF DISTRIBUTION.—A State

15 may provide amounts under subparagraph (A)

16 to local educational agencies and State agencies

17 described under such subparagraph on the basis

18 of—

19 ‘‘(i) school-age population;

20 ‘‘(ii) school enrollment;

21 ‘‘(iii) numbers of children with disabil22 ities receiving a free appropriate public

23 education;

24 ‘‘(iv) allocations for previous fiscal

25 years;
52

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(v) any two or more of the factors de2 scribed in clauses (i) through (iv); or

3 ‘‘(vi) poverty, in combination with one

4 or more of the factors described in clauses

5 (i) through (iv).

6 ‘‘(C) FORMER CHAPTER 1 STATE AGEN7 CIES.—

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—To the extent nec9 essary for each of the fiscal years 1997,

10 1998, and 1999, the State shall use amounts

11 that are available under paragraph (1)(A)

12 to ensure that each State agency that re13 ceived amounts in fiscal year 1994 under

14 subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1 of title I

15 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu16 cation Act of 1965 (as such subpart was in

17 effect on the day before the date of the enact18 ment of the Improving America’s Schools

19 Act of 1994) receives, from the combination

20 of funds under paragraph (1)(A) and funds

21 provided under subparagraph (A), an

22 amount equal to—

23 ‘‘(I) the number of children with

24 disabilities, aged 6 to 21, inclusive, to

25 whom the agency was providing spe-
53

•HR 3268 RH

1 cial education and related services on

2 December 1 of the fiscal year for which

3 the funds were appropriated, subject to

4 the methods of distribution under sub5 paragraph (B); multiplied by

6 ‘‘(II) the per-child amount pro7 vided under such subpart for fiscal

8 year 1994.

9 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL USE OF AMOUNTS.—

10 The State may use amounts described in

11 clause (i) to ensure that each local edu12 cational agency that received fiscal year

13 1994 funds under that subpart for children

14 who had transferred from a State-operated

15 or State-supported school or program as16 sisted under that subpart receives, from the

17 combination of funds available under para18 graph (1)(A) and funds provided under sub19 paragraph (A), an amount for each such

20 child, aged 3 to 21, inclusive, to whom the

21 agency was providing special education and

22 related services on December 1 of the fiscal

23 year for which the funds were appropriated,

24 equal to the per-child amount the agency re-
54

•HR 3268 RH

1 ceived under that subpart for fiscal year

2 1994.

3 ‘‘(iii) DETERMINATION OF NUMBER OF

4 CHILDREN.—The number of children count5 ed under clause (i)(I) shall not exceed the

6 number of children aged 3 to 21, inclusive,

7 for whom the agency received amounts in

8 fiscal year 1994 under subpart 2 of part D

9 of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and

10 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as such

11 subpart was in effect on the day before the

12 date of the enactment of the Improving

13 America’s Schools Act of 1994).

14 ‘‘(D) REALLOCATION OF AMOUNTS.—If a

15 State educational agency determines that a local

16 educational agency is adequately providing a

17 free appropriate public education to all children

18 with disabilities residing in the area served by

19 that agency with State and local funds, the State

20 educational agency may reallocate any portion

21 of amounts received under a grant under this

22 part that are not needed by that local agency to

23 other local educational agencies in the State that

24 are not adequately providing special education
55

•HR 3268 RH

1 and related services to all children with disabil2 ities residing in the areas they serve.

3 ‘‘(d) USE OF AMOUNTS BY SECRETARY OF THE INTE4 RIOR.—

5 ‘‘(1) PROVISION OF AMOUNTS FOR ASSIST6 ANCE.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Edu8 cation shall provide amounts to the Secretary of

9 the Interior to meet the need for assistance for

10 the education of children with disabilities on res11 ervations aged 5 to 21, inclusive, enrolled in ele12 mentary and secondary schools for Indian chil13 dren operated or funded by the Secretary of the

14 Interior. The amount of such payment for any

15 fiscal year shall be equal to 80 percent of the

16 amount allotted under subsection (b)(2) for that

17 fiscal year.

18 ‘‘(B) CALCULATION OF NUMBER OF CHIL19 DREN.—In the case of Indian students ages 3 to

20 5, inclusive, who are enrolled in programs affili21 ated with Bureau of Indian Affairs (hereafter in

22 this subsection referred to as ‘BIA’) schools and

23 that are required by the States in which such

24 schools are located to attain or maintain State

25 accreditation, and which schools have such ac-
56

•HR 3268 RH

1 creditation prior to the date of enactment of the

2 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

3 Amendments of 1991, the school shall be allowed

4 to count those children for the purpose of dis5 tribution of the funds provided under this para6 graph to the Secretary of the Interior. The Sec7 retary of the Interior shall be responsible for

8 meeting all of the requirements of this part for

9 these children, in accordance with paragraph

10 (2).

11 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—With re12 spect to all other children aged 3 to 21, inclusive,

13 on reservations, the State educational agency

14 shall be responsible for ensuring that all of the

15 requirements of this part are implemented.

16 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—The Sec17 retary of Education may provide the Secretary of the

18 Interior amounts under paragraph (1) for a fiscal

19 year only if the Secretary of the Interior submits to

20 the Secretary of Education information that—

21 ‘‘(A) demonstrates that the Department of

22 the Interior meets the appropriate requirements,

23 as determined by the Secretary of Education, of

24 sections 612 (including monitoring and evalua25 tion activities) and 613;
57

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) includes a description of how the Sec2 retary of the Interior will coordinate the provi3 sion of services under this part with local edu4 cational agencies, tribes and tribal organiza5 tions, and other private and Federal service pro6 viders;

7 ‘‘(C) includes an assurance that there are

8 public hearings, adequate notice of such hear9 ings, and an opportunity for comment afforded

10 to members of tribes, tribal governing bodies, and

11 affected local school boards before the adoption of

12 the policies, programs, and procedures described

13 in subparagraph (A);

14 ‘‘(D) includes an assurance that the Sec15 retary of the Interior will provide such informa16 tion as the Secretary of Education may require

17 to comply with section 618;

18 ‘‘(E) includes an assurance that the Sec19 retary of the Interior and the Secretary of

20 Health and Human Services have entered into a

21 memorandum of agreement, to be provided to the

22 Secretary of Education, for the coordination of

23 services, resources, and personnel between their

24 respective Federal, State, and local offices and

25 with State and local educational agencies and
58

•HR 3268 RH

1 other entities to facilitate the provision of serv2 ices to Indian children with disabilities residing

3 on or near reservations (such agreement shall

4 provide for the apportionment of responsibilities

5 and costs including, but not limited to, child

6 find, evaluation, diagnosis, remediation or thera7 peutic measures, and (where appropriate) equip8 ment and medical or personal supplies as needed

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

10 and

11 ‘‘(F) includes an assurance that the Depart12 ment of the Interior will cooperate with the De13 partment of Education in its exercise of monitor14 ing and oversight of this application, and any

15 agreements entered into between the Secretary of

16 the Interior and other entities under this part,

17 and will fulfill its duties under this part.

18 Section 616(a) shall apply to the information de19 scribed in this paragraph.

20 ‘‘(3) PAYMENTS FOR EDUCATION AND SERVICES

21 FOR INDIAN CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES AGED 3 TO

22 5.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—With funds appro24 priated under subsection (e), the Secretary of

25 Education shall make payments to the Secretary
59

•HR 3268 RH

1 of the Interior to be distributed to tribes or tribal

2 organizations (as defined under section 4 of the

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education As4 sistance Act) or consortia of the above to provide

5 for the coordination of assistance for special edu6 cation and related services for children with dis7 abilities aged 3 to 5, inclusive, on reservations

8 served by elementary and secondary schools for

9 Indian children operated or funded by the De10 partment of the Interior. The amount of such

11 payments under subparagraph (B) for any fiscal

12 year shall be equal to 20 percent of the amount

13 allotted under subsection (b)(2).

14 ‘‘(B) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—The Sec15 retary of the Interior shall distribute the total

16 amount of the payment under subparagraph (A)

17 by allocating to each tribe or tribal organization

18 an amount based on the number of children with

19 disabilities, ages 3 to 5, inclusive, residing on

20 reservations as reported annually divided by the

21 total of such children served by all tribes or trib22 al organizations.

23 ‘‘(C) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—To re24 ceive a payment under this paragraph, the tribe

25 or tribal organization shall submit such figures
60

•HR 3268 RH

1 to the Secretary of the Interior as required to de2 termine the amounts to be allocated under sub3 paragraph (B). This information shall be com4 piled and submitted to the Secretary of Edu5 cation.

6 ‘‘(D) USE OF FUNDS.—The funds received

7 by a tribe or tribal organization shall be used to

8 assist in child find, screening, and other proce9 dures for the early identification of children aged

10 3 to 5, inclusive, parent training, and the provi11 sion of direct services. These activities may be

12 carried out directly or through contracts or coop13 erative agreements with the BIA, local edu14 cational agencies, and other public or private

15 nonprofit organizations. The tribe or tribal orga16 nization is encouraged to involve Indian parents

17 in the development and implementation of these

18 activities. The above entities shall, as appro19 priate, make referrals to local, State, or Federal

20 entities for the provision of services or further di21 agnosis.

22 ‘‘(E) BIENNIAL REPORT.—To be eligible to

23 receive a grant pursuant to subparagraph (A),

24 the tribe or tribal organization shall provide to

25 the Secretary of the Interior a biennial report of
61

•HR 3268 RH

1 activities undertaken under this paragraph, in2 cluding the number of contracts and cooperative

3 agreements entered into, the number of children

4 contacted and receiving services for each year

5 and the estimated number of children needing

6 services during the 2 years following the one in

7 which the report is made. The Secretary of the

8 Interior shall include a summary of this infor9 mation on a biennial basis in the report to the

10 Secretary of Education required under this sub11 section. The Secretary of Education may require

12 any additional information from the Secretary

13 of the Interior.

14 ‘‘(F) PROHIBITIONS.—None of the funds al15 located under this paragraph may be used by the

16 Secretary of the Interior for administrative pur17 poses, including child count and the provision of

18 technical assistance.

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

20 The Secretary of the Interior shall develop and imple21 ment a plan for the coordination of services for all

22 Indian children with disabilities residing on reserva23 tions covered under this Act. Such plan shall provide

24 for the coordination of services benefiting these chil25 dren from whatever source, including tribes, the In-
62

•HR 3268 RH

1 dian Health Service, other BIA divisions, and other

2 Federal agencies. In developing such a plan, the Sec3 retary of the Interior shall consult with all interested

4 and involved parties. It shall be based upon the needs

5 of the children and the system best suited for meeting

6 those needs, and may involve the establishment of co7 operative agreements between the BIA, other Federal

8 agencies, and other entities. Such plan shall also be

9 distributed upon request to States, State and local

10 educational agencies, and other agencies providing

11 services to infants, toddlers, children, and youth with

12 disabilities, to tribes, and to other interested parties.

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

14 meet the requirements of section 612(a)(18), the Sec15 retary of the Interior shall establish, not later than 6

16 months after the date of the enactment of the IDEA

17 Improvement Act of 1996, under the Bureau of In18 dian Affairs (BIA), an advisory board composed of

19 individuals involved in or concerned with the edu20 cation and provision of services to Indian infants,

21 toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities, includ22 ing Indians with disabilities, Indian parents or

23 guardians of such children, teachers, service providers,

24 State and local educational officials, representatives

25 of tribes or tribal organizations, representatives from
63

•HR 3268 RH

1 State Interagency Coordinating Councils in States

2 having reservations, and other members representing

3 the various divisions and entities of the BIA. The

4 chairperson shall be selected by the Secretary of the

5 Interior. The advisory board shall—

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

7 within BIA and with other local, State, and

8 Federal agencies in the provision of education

9 for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with

10 disabilities;

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

12 Interior in the performance of the Secretary’s re13 sponsibilities described in this subsection;

14 ‘‘(C) develop and recommend policies con15 cerning effective inter- and intra-agency collabo16 ration, including modifications to regulations,

17 and the elimination of barriers to inter- and

18 intra-agency programs and activities;

19 ‘‘(D) provide assistance and disseminate in20 formation on best practices, effective program co21 ordination strategies, and recommendations for

22 improved educational programming for Indian

23 infants, toddlers, children, and youth with dis24 abilities; and
64

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(E) provide assistance in the preparation

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

3 ‘‘(6) ANNUAL REPORTS.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The advisory board es5 tablished under paragraph (5) shall prepare and

6 submit to the Secretary of the Interior and to the

7 Congress an annual report containing a descrip8 tion of the activities of the advisory board for the

9 preceding year.

10 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of the

11 Interior shall make available to the Secretary of

12 Education the report described in subparagraph

13 (A).

14 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the

15 purpose of carrying out this part (except for section 619;

16 relating to preschool grants), there are authorized to be ap17 propriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary.

18 ‘‘SEC. 612. STATE REQUIREMENTS.

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State shall be eligible to receive

20 a grant under this part for a fiscal year if, except as pro21 vided in subsection (c), the State submits to the Secretary

22 information that demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Sec23 retary that the State has in effect policies and procedures

24 to ensure that it meets each of the following requirements:

25 ‘‘(1) FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION.—
65

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A free appropriate pub2 lic education is available to all children with

3 disabilities residing in the State between the ages

4 of 3 and 21, inclusive.

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

6 not apply with respect to children with disabil7 ities aged 3 to 5 and children with disabilities

8 aged 18 to 21 to the extent that such application

9 to those children would be inconsistent with

10 State law or practice, or the order of any court,

11 relating to the provision of public education to

12 children in such age ranges.

13 ‘‘(2) CHILD FIND.—All children with disabilities

14 residing in the State, including children with disabil15 ities attending private schools, regardless of the sever16 ity of such disabilities, and who are in need of special

17 education and related services, are identified, located,

18 and evaluated and that a practical method is devel19 oped and implemented to determine which children

20 with disabilities are currently receiving needed spe21 cial education and related services.

22 ‘‘(3) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM.—

23 An individualized education program, or an individ24 ualized family service plan that meets the require25 ments of section 636(d), is developed, reviewed, and
66

•HR 3268 RH

1 revised for each child with a disability in accordance

2 with section 614(d).

3 ‘‘(4) LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum ex5 tent appropriate—

6 ‘‘(i) children with disabilities, includ7 ing children in public or private institu8 tions or other care facilities, are educated

9 with children who are not disabled; and

10 ‘‘(ii) special classes, separate schooling,

11 or other removal of children with disabil12 ities from the regular educational environ13 ment occurs only when the nature or sever14 ity of the disability of a child means that

15 education in regular classes with the use of

16 supplementary aids and services cannot be

17 achieved satisfactorily.

18 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The State’s method

20 of distributing funds shall not result in

21 placements that violate the requirements of

22 subparagraph (A).

23 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—If the State does

24 not have policies and procedures to ensure

25 compliance with clause (i), the State shall
67

•HR 3268 RH

1 provide the Secretary an assurance that it

2 will revise the funding mechanism as soon

3 as feasible to ensure that such mechanism

4 does not result in such placements.

5 ‘‘(5) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Children with disabil7 ities and their parents are afforded the proce8 dural safeguards required by section 615.

9 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL PROCEDURAL SAFE10 GUARDS.—Procedures to assure that testing and

11 evaluation materials and procedures utilized for

12 the purposes of evaluation and placement of chil13 dren with disabilities will be selected and admin14 istered so as not to be racially or culturally dis15 criminatory. Such materials or procedures shall

16 be provided and administered in the child’s na17 tive language or mode of communication, unless

18 it clearly is not feasible to do so, and no single

19 procedure shall be the sole criterion for determin20 ing an appropriate educational program for a

21 child.

22 ‘‘(6) EVALUATION.—Children with disabilities

23 are evaluated in accordance with subsections (a)

24 through (c) of section 614.
68

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(7) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Agencies in the State

2 comply with section 617(c) (relating to the confiden3 tiality of records and information).

4 ‘‘(8) TRANSITION FROM PART C TO PRESCHOOL

5 PROGRAMS.—Children participating in early-inter6 vention programs assisted under part C, and who will

7 participate in preschool programs assisted under this

8 part, experience a smooth transition to those preschool

9 programs in a manner consistent with section

10 637(a)(7). By the third birthday of such a child, an

11 individualized education program or, if consistent

12 with sections 614(d)(1)(B) and 636(d), an individual13 ized family service plan, has been developed and is

14 being implemented for the child. The local educational

15 agency will participate in transition planning con16 ferences by the designated lead agency under section

17 637(a)(7).

18 ‘‘(9) CHILDREN IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To the extent consistent

20 with the number and location of children with

21 disabilities in the State who are enrolled in pri22 vate elementary and secondary schools, provision

23 is made for the participation of such children in

24 the program assisted or carried out under this

25 part by providing for such children special edu-
69

•HR 3268 RH

1 cation and related services, except if the Sec2 retary has arranged for services to such children

3 under subsection (f).

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

5 TO, PRIVATE SCHOOLS BY PUBLIC AGENCIES.—

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Children with dis7 abilities in private schools and facilities are

8 provided special education and related serv9 ices, in accordance with an individualized

10 education program, at no cost to their par11 ents, if they are placed in, or referred to,

12 such schools or facilities by the State or a

13 local educational agency in order to comply

14 with this part or with any other provision

15 of law requiring the provision of special

16 education and related services to all chil17 dren with disabilities in the State.

18 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In

19 all cases described in clause (i)—

20 ‘‘(I) children with disabilities are

21 placed in, or referred to, only those

22 private schools and facilities that the

23 State educational agency determines

24 meet standards that apply to State

25 and local educational agencies; and
70

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) children served in such pri2 vate schools or facilities retain access

3 to a free appropriate public education

4 in accordance with this part.

5 ‘‘(C) PAYMENT FOR EDUCATION OF CHIL6 DREN PLACED IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS WITHOUT

7 CONSENT OF OR REFERRAL BY THE PUBLIC

8 AGENCY.—

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If the parents of a

10 child with a disability that had previously

11 received special education and related serv12 ices under the authority of a public agency

13 have enrolled their child in a private ele14 mentary or secondary school without the

15 consent of or referral by the public agency,

16 as a result of mediation described in section

17 615(d), or as a result of a decision rendered

18 under the procedural safeguards of section

19 615, the public agency may be required to

20 reimburse the parents for the cost of the en21 rollment, except that the cost of the reim22 bursement may be reduced or denied—

23 ‘‘(I) if, at least 10 school days

24 prior to the removal of the child from

25 the public school, the parents did not
71

•HR 3268 RH

1 give a written statement of their con2 cerns to the public agency and notice

3 that they intend to place their child in

4 a private school at public expense;

5 ‘‘(II) if, prior to the removal of

6 the child from the public school, the

7 parents did not make the child avail8 able for an initial assessment and eval9 uation by the local educational agency

10 prior to enrollment in the private

11 school; or

12 ‘‘(III) at the discretion of the

13 judge.

14 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding

15 the notice requirement in clause (i)(I), the

16 cost of the reimbursement may not be re17 duced or denied for failure to provide such

18 notice if—

19 ‘‘(I) the parent is illiterate or

20 cannot write in English;

21 ‘‘(II) compliance with clause

22 (i)(I) would likely result in physical or

23 serious emotional harm to the child;

24 ‘‘(III) the school prevented the

25 parent from providing such notice; or
72

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(IV) the parent had not received

2 notice, pursuant to section 615(d), of

3 the notice requirement in clause (i)(I).

4 ‘‘(10) 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
73

•HR 3268 RH

1 free appropriate public education for any child

2 with a disability in the State.

3 ‘‘(11) OBLIGATIONS RELATED TO AND METHODS

4 OF ENSURING SERVICES.—

5 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHING RESPONSIBILITY FOR

6 SERVICES.—The Chief Executive Officer or des7 ignee of the officer shall ensure that an inter8 agency agreement or other mechanism for inter9 agency coordination is in effect between each

10 public agency described in subparagraph (B)

11 and the appropriate educational agency within

12 the State, in order to ensure that all services de13 scribed in subparagraph (B)(i) that are needed

14 to ensure a free appropriate public education are

15 provided, including the provision of such services

16 during the pendency of any dispute under clause

17 (iii). Such agreement or mechanism shall include

18 the following:

19 ‘‘(i) AGENCY FINANCIAL RESPONSIBIL20 ITY.—An identification of, or a method for

21 defining, the financial responsibility of each

22 agency for providing services described in

23 subparagraph (B)(i) to ensure a free appro24 priate public education to children with

25 disabilities provided that the financial re-
74

•HR 3268 RH

1 sponsibility of each public agency described

2 in subparagraph (B), including the State

3 Medicaid agency and other public insurers

4 of children with disabilities, shall precede

5 the financial responsibility of the local edu6 cation agency (or the State agency respon7 sible for developing the child’s IEP).

8 ‘‘(ii) CONDITIONS AND TERMS OF RE9 IMBURSEMENT.—The conditions, terms, and

10 procedures under which a local educational

11 agency shall be reimbursed by other agen12 cies.

13 ‘‘(iii) INTERAGENCY DISPUTES.—Pro14 cedures for resolving interagency disputes

15 (including procedures under which local

16 education agencies may initiate proceed17 ings) under the agreement or other mecha18 nism to secure reimbursement from other

19 agencies or otherwise implement the provi20 sions of the agreement or mechanism.

21 ‘‘(iv) COORDINATION OF SERVICES

22 PROCEDURES.—Policies and procedures for

23 agencies to determine and identify the

24 interagency coordination responsibilities of

25 each agency to promote the coordination
75

•HR 3268 RH

1 and timely and appropriate delivery of

2 services described in subparagraph (B)(i).

3 ‘‘(B) OBLIGATION OF PUBLIC AGENCY.—

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If any public agen5 cy other than an educational agency is oth6 erwise obligated under Federal or State law,

7 or assigned responsibility under State pol8 icy or pursuant to subparagraph (A), to

9 provide or pay for any services that are

10 considered special education or related serv11 ices (such as, but not limited to, services de12 scribed in sections 602(1) relating to

13 assistive technology devices, 602(2) relating

14 to assistive technology services, 602(20) re15 lating to related services, 602(27) related to

16 supplementary aids and services, and

17 602(29) relating to transition services) that

18 are necessary for ensuring a free appro19 priate public education to children with

20 disabilities within the State, such public

21 agency shall fulfill that obligation or re22 sponsibility, either directly or through con23 tract or other arrangement.

24 ‘‘(ii) REIMBURSEMENT FOR SERVICES

25 BY PUBLIC AGENCY.—If a public agency
76

•HR 3268 RH

1 other than an educational agency fails to

2 provide or pay for the special education and

3 related services described in clause (i), the

4 local educational agency (or State agency

5 responsibility for developing the child’s

6 IEP) shall provide or pay for such services

7 to the child. Such local education agency or

8 State agency may then claim reimburse9 ment for the services from the public agency

10 that failed to provide or pay for such serv11 ices and such public agency shall reimburse

12 the local education agency or State agency

13 pursuant to the terms of the interagency

14 agreement described in subparagraph (A)(i)

15 according to the procedures established in

16 such agreement pursuant to subparagraph

17 (A)(ii).

18 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE.—The requirements of

19 subparagraph (A) may be met through—

20 ‘‘(i) State statute or regulation;

21 ‘‘(ii) signed agreements between respec22 tive agency officials that clearly identify the

23 responsibilities of each agency relating to

24 the provision of services; or
77

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(iii) other appropriate methods as de2 termined by the Chief Executive Officer or

3 designee of the officer.

4 ‘‘(12) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS RELATING

5 TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY ELIGIBILITY.—The

6 State educational agency will not make a final deter7 mination that a local educational agency is not eligi8 ble for assistance under this part without first afford9 ing that agency reasonable notice and an opportunity

10 for a hearing.

11 ‘‘(13) COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEM OF PERSONNEL

12 DEVELOPMENT.—The State has established and imple13 mented, consistent with the purposes of this title and

14 section 635(a)(7), a comprehensive system of person15 nel development that is designed to ensure an ade16 quate supply of qualified special education and relat17 ed services personnel necessary to carry out this part,

18 including—

19 ‘‘(A) a statewide, coordinated personnel-de20 velopment plan that meets the personnel develop21 ment requirements of a State improvement plan

22 under section 683; or

23 ‘‘(B) a personnel-development plan, devel24 oped in consultation with parents of children

25 with disabilities, State and local educational
78

•HR 3268 RH

1 agencies, institutions of higher education, and

2 professional associations that—

3 ‘‘(i) addresses current and projected

4 needs for special education and related serv5 ices personnel throughout the State;

6 ‘‘(ii) addresses the need for the pre7 service and in-service preparation of per8 sonnel throughout the State, including regu9 lar education personnel, to provide edu10 cational services to children with disabil11 ities;

12 ‘‘(iii) includes a system or procedures

13 for recruiting, preparing, and retaining

14 qualified personnel, including personnel

15 with disabilities and personnel from groups

16 that are underrepresented in the field of

17 special education and related services; and

18 ‘‘(iv) is integrated, to the maximum

19 extent possible, with other professional de20 velopment plans and activities.

21 ‘‘(14) PERSONNEL STANDARDS.—

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

23 agency has established and maintains standards

24 to ensure that personnel necessary to carry out
79

•HR 3268 RH

1 this part are appropriately and adequately pre2 pared and trained.

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

5 ‘‘(i) be consistent with any State-ap6 proved or State-recognized certification, li7 censing, registration, or other comparable

8 requirements that apply to the professional

9 discipline in which those personnel are pro10 viding special education or related services;

11 ‘‘(ii) to the extent the standards de12 scribed in subparagraph (A) are not based

13 on the highest requirements in the State ap14 plicable to a specific profession or dis15 cipline, the State is taking steps to require

16 retraining or hiring of personnel that meet

17 appropriate professional requirements in

18 the State; and

19 ‘‘(iii) allow paraprofessionals and as20 sistants who are appropriately trained and

21 supervised, in accordance with State law,

22 regulations, or written policy, in meeting

23 the requirements of this part to be used to

24 assist in the provision of special education
80

•HR 3268 RH

1 and related services to children with disabil2 ities under this part.

3 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—If the State determines

4 that, within a geographic area of the State there

5 is a shortage of an appropriate number and type

6 of personnel to provide the special education and

7 related services to children with disabilities with8 in such area, and the appropriate public agency

9 has taken steps to recruit and hire such person10 nel, the State may, subject to public comment

11 and review, temporarily suspend the standards

12 of subparagraph (B)—

13 ‘‘(i) consistent with State law, for the

14 purpose of recruiting and hiring for such

15 shortage areas the most qualified available

16 individuals who are making progress in ap17 plicable coursework; and

18 ‘‘(ii) for a period not to exceed 3 years.

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

20 The State—

21 ‘‘(A) has established goals for the perform22 ance of children with disabilities in the State

23 that—

24 ‘‘(i) will promote the purposes of this

25 title, as stated in section 601(d); and
81

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) are consistent, to the maximum

2 extent appropriate, with other goals and

3 standards established by the State;

4 ‘‘(B) has established performance indicators

5 the State will use to assess progress toward

6 achieving those goals that, at a minimum, ad7 dress the performance of children with disabil8 ities on assessments, drop-out rates, and gradua9 tion rates;

10 ‘‘(C) will, every two years, report to the

11 Secretary and the public on the progress of the

12 State, and of children with disabilities in the

13 State, toward meeting the goals established under

14 subparagraph (A); and

15 ‘‘(D) based on its assessment of that

16 progress, will revise its State improvement plan

17 under part D as may be needed to improve its

18 performance, if the State receives assistance

19 under such part.

20 ‘‘(16) PARTICIPATION IN ASSESSMENTS.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Children with disabil22 ities are included in general State and district23 wide assessment programs, with appropriate ac24 commodations, where necessary. As appropriate,

25 the State or local educational agency—
82

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) develops guidelines for the partici2 pation of children with disabilities in alter3 nate assessments for those children who can4 not participate in State and district-wide

5 assessment programs; and

6 ‘‘(ii) develops and, beginning not later

7 than July 1, 1999, conducts those alternate

8 assessments.

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

10 agency makes available to the public, and reports

11 to the public with the same frequency and in the

12 same detail as it reports on the assessment of

13 nondisabled children, the following:

14 ‘‘(i) The number of children with dis15 abilities participating in regular assess16 ments.

17 ‘‘(ii) The number of those children par18 ticipating in alternate assessments.

19 ‘‘(iii) The performance of those chil20 dren on regular assessments (beginning not

21 later than July 1, 1997) and on alternate

22 assessments (not later than July 1, 1999), if

23 doing so would be statistically sound and

24 would not result in the disclosure of per-
83

•HR 3268 RH

1 formance results identifiable to individual

2 children.

3 ‘‘(17) SUPPLEMENTATION OF STATE, LOCAL, AND

4 OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State ensures that

6 amounts provided under a grant to the State

7 under this part, except as provided in subpara8 graph (B), will be used to supplement State,

9 local, and other Federal funds (including funds

10 not under the direct control of State or local edu11 cational agencies) expended for special education

12 and related services, and not to supplant those

13 funds.

14 ‘‘(B) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive,

15 in whole or in part, the requirements of subpara16 graph (A) if the Secretary determines that the

17 State has provided clear evidence that all chil18 dren with disabilities in the State have available

19 a free appropriate public education or that, such

20 a waiver would allow the State to improve the

21 delivery of special education and related services

22 to children with disabilities in the State.

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

24 adoption of any policies and procedures needed to

25 comply with this section (including any amendments
84

•HR 3268 RH

1 to such policies and procedures), the State ensures

2 that there are public hearings, adequate notice of the

3 hearings, and an opportunity for comment available

4 to the general public, including individuals with dis5 abilities and parents of children with disabilities.

6 ‘‘(19) STATE ADVISORY PANEL.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State has estab8 lished and maintains an advisory panel for the

9 purpose of providing policy guidance with re10 spect to special education and related services for

11 children with disabilities in the State.

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

13 shall consist of members appointed by the Gov14 ernor, or any other official authorized under

15 State law to make such appointments, that is

16 representative of the State population and that

17 is composed of individuals involved in, or con18 cerned with, the education of children with dis19 abilities, including—

20 ‘‘(i) parents of children with disabil21 ities;

22 ‘‘(ii) individuals with disabilities;

23 ‘‘(iii) teachers;
85

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(iv) representatives of institutions of

2 higher education that prepare special edu3 cation and related services personnel;

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

5 ‘‘(vi) administrators of programs for

6 children with disabilities;

7 ‘‘(vii) representatives of other State

8 agencies involved in the financing or deliv9 ery of related services to children with dis10 abilities;

11 ‘‘(viii) at least one representative of a

12 vocational, community, or business organi13 zation concerned with the provision of tran14 sition services to children with disabilities;

15 and

16 ‘‘(ix) representatives from the State ju17 venile and adult corrections agencies.

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

19 members of the panel shall be individuals with

20 disabilities or parents of children with disabil21 ities.

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

23 ‘‘(i) advise the State educational agen24 cy of unmet needs within the State in the

25 education of children with disabilities;
86

•HR 3268 RH

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

2 regulations proposed by the State regard3 ing—

4 ‘‘(I) the education of children with

5 disabilities; and

6 ‘‘(II) the procedures for distribu7 tion of amounts received by the State

8 under a grant under this part;

9 ‘‘(iii) advise the State educational

10 agency in developing evaluations and re11 porting on data to the Secretary under sec12 tion 618;

13 ‘‘(iv) advise the State educational

14 agency in developing corrective action plans

15 to address findings identified in Federal

16 monitoring reports under this part; and

17 ‘‘(v) advise the State educational agen18 cy in developing and implementing policies

19 relating to the coordination of services for

20 children with disabilities.

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

22 FREE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC EDUCATION OR DIRECT SERV23 ICES.—If the State educational agency provides free appro24 priate public education to children with disabilities, or pro25 vides direct services to such children, such agency—
87

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) shall comply with any additional require2 ments of section 613(a), as if such agency were a local

3 educational agency; and

4 ‘‘(2) may use amounts that are otherwise avail5 able to such agency under this part to serve those chil6 dren without regard to section 613(a)(2)(A)(i) (relat7 ing to excess costs).

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

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

10 the Secretary policies and procedures that dem11 onstrate that such State meets any requirement of

12 subsection (a), including any policies and procedures

13 filed under this part as in effect before the date of the

14 enactment of the IDEA Improvement Act of 1996, the

15 Secretary shall consider such State to have met such

16 requirement for purposes of receiving a grant under

17 this part.

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

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

20 State in accordance with this section shall remain in

21 effect until the State submits to the Secretary such

22 modifications as the State deems necessary. This sec23 tion shall apply to a modification to an application

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

25 section applies to the original plan.
88

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY THE SEC2 RETARY.—The Secretary may require a State to

3 amend its application at any time as a result of the

4 Secretary’s compliance reviews under parts B and C.

5 The Secretary shall reduce or shall not provide any

6 further payments to the State educational agency

7 until the Secretary is satisfied that the State edu8 cational agency is complying with that requirement.

9 ‘‘(d) APPROVAL BY THE SECRETARY.—

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

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

12 part, the Secretary shall notify the State of that deter13 mination.

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

15 not make a final determination that a State is not

16 eligible to receive a grant under this part until after

17 providing the State—

18 ‘‘(A) with reasonable notice; and

19 ‘‘(B) with an opportunity for a hearing.

20 ‘‘(e) ASSISTANCE UNDER OTHER FEDERAL PRO21 GRAMS.—Nothing in this title permits a State to reduce

22 medical and other assistance available, or to alter eligi23 bility, under titles V and XIX of the Social Security Act

24 with respect to the provision of a free appropriate public

25 education for children with disabilities within the State.
89

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(f) BY-PASS FOR CHILDREN IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS.—

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If, on the date of enactment

3 of the Education of the Handicapped Act Amend4 ments of 1983, a State educational agency is prohib5 ited by law from providing for the participation in

6 special programs of children with disabilities enrolled

7 in private elementary and secondary schools as re8 quired by subsection (a)(9), the Secretary shall, not9 withstanding such provision of law, arrange for the

10 provision of services to such children through arrange11 ments which shall be subject to the requirements of

12 such subsection.

13 ‘‘(2) PAYMENTS.—

14 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNTS.—If the

15 Secretary arranges for services pursuant to this

16 subsection, the Secretary, after consultation with

17 the appropriate public and private school offi18 cials, shall pay to the provider of such services

19 for a fiscal year an amount per child that does

20 not exceed the amount determined by dividing—

21 ‘‘(i) the total amount received by the

22 State under this part for such fiscal year;

23 by

24 ‘‘(ii) the number of children with dis25 abilities served in the prior year, as re-
90

•HR 3268 RH

1 ported to the Secretary by the State under

2 section 618.

3 ‘‘(B) WITHHOLDING OF CERTAIN

4 AMOUNTS.—Pending final resolution of any in5 vestigation or complaint that could result in a

6 determination under this subsection, the Sec7 retary may withhold from the allocation of the

8 affected State educational agency the amount the

9 Secretary estimates would be necessary to pay

10 the cost of services described in subparagraph

11 (A).

12 ‘‘(C) PERIOD OF PAYMENTS.—The period

13 under which payments are made under subpara14 graph (A) shall continue until the Secretary de15 termines that there will no longer be any failure

16 or inability on the part of the State educational

17 agency to meet the requirements of subsection

18 (a)(9).

19 ‘‘(3) NOTICE AND HEARING.—

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not

21 take any final action under this subsection until

22 the State educational agency affected by such ac23 tion has had an opportunity, for at least 45 days

24 after receiving written notice thereof, to submit

25 written objections and to appear before the Sec-
91

•HR 3268 RH

1 retary or the Secretary’s designee to show cause

2 why such action should not be taken.

3 ‘‘(B) REVIEW OF ACTION.—If a State edu4 cational agency is dissatisfied with the Sec5 retary’s final action after a proceeding under

6 subparagraph (A), such agency may, not later

7 than 60 days after notice of such action, file with

8 the United States court of appeals for the circuit

9 in which such State is located a petition for re10 view of that action. A copy of the petition shall

11 be forthwith transmitted by the clerk of the court

12 to the Secretary. The Secretary thereupon shall

13 file in the court the record of the proceedings on

14 which the Secretary based the Secretary’s action,

15 as provided in section 2112 of title 28, United

16 States Code.

17 ‘‘(C) REVIEW OF FINDINGS OF FACT.—The

18 findings of fact by the Secretary, if supported by

19 substantial evidence, shall be conclusive, but the

20 court, for good cause shown, may remand the

21 case to the Secretary to take further evidence,

22 and the Secretary may thereupon make new or

23 modified findings of fact and may modify the

24 Secretary’s previous action, and shall file in the

25 court the record of the further proceedings. Such
92

•HR 3268 RH

1 new or modified findings of fact shall likewise be

2 conclusive if supported by substantial evidence.

3 ‘‘(D) JURISDICTION OF COURT OF APPEALS;

4 REVIEW BY UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT.—

5 Upon the filing of a petition under subpara6 graph (B), the United States court of appeals

7 shall have jurisdiction to affirm the action of the

8 Secretary or to set it aside, in whole or in part.

9 The judgment of the court shall be subject to re10 view by the Supreme Court of the United States

11 upon certiorari or certification as provided in

12 section 1254 of title 28, United States Code.

13 ‘‘SEC. 613. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY REQUIREMENTS.

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency shall

15 be eligible for assistance under this part for any fiscal year

16 if, except as provided in subsection (b), such agency submits

17 to the State educational agency information that dem18 onstrates to the satisfaction of the State educational agency

19 the following:

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

21 local educational agency, in providing for the edu22 cation of children with disabilities within its jurisdic23 tion, has in effect policies, procedures, and programs

24 that are consistent with the State policies and proce25 dures established under section 612.
93

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) USE OF AMOUNTS.—

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

3 the local educational agency under this part—

4 ‘‘(i) shall be used only to pay the excess

5 costs of providing special education and re6 lated services to children with disabilities;

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

8 local, and other Federal funds and not to

9 supplant such funds;

10 ‘‘(iii) except as provided in subpara11 graph (B), may not be used to reduce the

12 level of expenditures for the education of

13 children with disabilities made by the local

14 educational agency from State or local

15 funds below the level of those expenditures

16 for the preceding fiscal year;

17 ‘‘(iv) may be used, notwithstanding

18 clause (i) or any other provision of this

19 part, for the costs of special education and

20 related services provided in a regular class

21 or other education related setting to a child

22 with a disability in accordance with the

23 child’s individualized education program,

24 even if one or more nondisabled children

25 benefit from those services; and
94

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(v) may be used, in accordance with

2 subsection (f) and notwithstanding clause

3 (i) or any other provision of this part, to

4 develop and implement a coordinated serv5 ices system.

6 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding the re7 striction in subparagraph (A)(iii), a local edu8 cation agency may reduce the level of expendi9 tures where such reduction is attributable to—

10 ‘‘(i) the departure, by retirement or

11 otherwise, of special education personnel;

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

13 children with disabilities;

14 ‘‘(iii) the termination of the obligation

15 of the agency, consistent with this part, to

16 provide a program of special education to a

17 particular child with a disability that is an

18 exceptionally costly program, as determined

19 by the State educational agency, because the

20 child—

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

22 agency;

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

24 the obligation of the agency to provide
95

•HR 3268 RH

1 a free appropriate public education to

2 the child has terminated; or

3 ‘‘(III) no longer needs such pro4 gram of special education; or

5 ‘‘(iv) the termination of costly expendi6 tures for long-term purchases, such as the

7 acquisition of equipment or the construction

8 of school facilities.

9 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION FOR STATE EDUCATIONAL

10 AGENCY.—The local educational agency shall provide

11 the State educational agency with information nec12 essary to enable the State educational agency to carry

13 out its duties under this part, including, with respect

14 to paragraphs (14) and (15) of section 612(a), infor15 mation relating to the performance of children with

16 disabilities participating in programs carried out

17 under this part.

18 ‘‘(4) PUBLIC INFORMATION.—The local edu19 cational agency shall make available to parents of

20 children with disabilities and to the general public all

21 documents relating to the eligibility of such agency

22 under this part.

23 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR PRIOR LOCAL PLANS.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a local educational agency

25 or State agency has on file with the State educational
96

•HR 3268 RH

1 agency policies and procedures that demonstrate that

2 such local educational agency, or such State agency,

3 as the case may be, meets any requirement of sub4 section (a), including any policies and procedures

5 filed under this part as in effect before the date of

6 the enactment of IDEA Improvement Act of 1996, the

7 State educational agency shall consider such local

8 educational agency or State agency, as the case may

9 be, to have met such requirement for purposes of re10 ceiving assistance under this part.

11 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION MADE BY LOCAL EDU12 CATIONAL AGENCY.—Subject to paragraph (3), an ap13 plication submitted by a local educational agency in

14 accordance with this section shall remain in effect

15 until the such agency submits to the State educational

16 agency such modifications as the local educational

17 agency deems necessary.

18 ‘‘(3) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY STATE EDU19 CATIONAL AGENCY.—The State educational agency

20 may require a local educational agency to amend its

21 application at anytime as a result of the compliance

22 reviews of the State educational agency under parts

23 B and C. This paragraph shall apply to a modifica24 tion to an application to the same extent and in the
97

•HR 3268 RH

1 same manner as this section applies to the original

2 plan.

3 ‘‘(c) NOTIFICATION OF LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY

4 OR STATE AGENCY IN CASE OF INELIGIBILITY.—If the

5 State educational agency determines that a local edu6 cational agency or State agency is not eligible under this

7 section, the State educational agency shall notify such local

8 educational agency or State agency, as the case may be,

9 of that determination and shall provide such local edu10 cational agency or State agency with reasonable notice and

11 an opportunity for a hearing.

12 ‘‘(d) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY COMPLIANCE.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the State educational

14 agency, after reasonable notice and an opportunity

15 for a hearing, finds that a local educational agency

16 or State agency that has been determined to be eligi17 ble under this section is failing to comply with any

18 requirement described in subsection (a), the State

19 educational agency shall reduce or shall not provide

20 any further payments to the local educational agency

21 or State agency until the State educational agency is

22 satisfied that the local educational agency or State

23 agency, as the case may be, is complying with that

24 requirement.
98

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—Any State

2 educational agency, State agency, or local educational

3 agency in receipt of a notice pursuant to the notice

4 described in paragraph (1) shall, by means of public

5 notice, take such measures as may be necessary to

6 bring the pendency of an action pursuant to this sub7 section to the attention of the public within the juris8 diction of such agency.

9 ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATION.—In carrying out its re10 sponsibilities under paragraph (1), the State edu11 cational agency shall consider any decision made in

12 a hearing held under section 615 that is adverse to

13 the local educational agency or State agency involved

14 in that decision.

15 ‘‘(e) JOINT ESTABLISHMENT OF ELIGIBILITY.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency

17 may require a local educational agency to establish

18 its eligibility jointly with another local educational

19 agency if the State educational agency determines

20 that the local educational agency would be ineligible

21 under this section because the local educational agen22 cy would not be able to establish and maintain pro23 grams of sufficient size and scope to effectively meet

24 the needs of children with disabilities.
99

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.—If a State edu2 cational agency requires the joint establishment of eli3 gibility under paragraph (1), the total amount of

4 funds made available to the affected local educational

5 agencies shall be equal to the sum of the payments

6 that each such local educational agency would have

7 received under section 611(c) if such agencies were el8 igible for such payments.

9 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS.—Local educational agen10 cies that establish joint eligibility under this sub11 section shall—

12 ‘‘(A) adopt policies and procedures that are

13 consistent with the State’s policies and proce14 dures under section 612(a); and

15 ‘‘(B) be jointly responsible for implementing

16 programs that receive assistance under this part.

17 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATIONAL SERVICE

18 AGENCIES.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an educational serv20 ice agency is required by State law to carry out

21 programs under this part, the joint responsibil22 ities given to local educational agencies under

23 this subsection shall—
100

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) not apply to the administration

2 and disbursement of any payments received

3 by that educational service agency; and

4 ‘‘(ii) be carried out only by that edu5 cational service agency.

6 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—Not7 withstanding any other provision of this sub8 section, an educational service agency shall pro9 vide for the education of children with disabil10 ities in the least restrictive environment, as re11 quired by section 612(a)(4).

12 ‘‘(f) COORDINATED SERVICES SYSTEM.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A local educational agency

14 may not use more than 5 percent of the amount such

15 agency receives under this part for any fiscal year, in

16 combination with other amounts (which shall include

17 amounts other than education funds), to develop and

18 implement a coordinated services system designed to

19 improve results for children and families, including

20 children with disabilities and their families.

21 ‘‘(2) ACTIVITIES.—In implementing a coordi22 nated services system under this subsection, a local

23 educational agency may carry out activities which

24 include—
101

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) improving the effectiveness and effi2 ciency of service delivery, including developing

3 strategies that promote accountability for results;

4 ‘‘(B) service coordination and case manage5 ment that facilitates the linkage of individual6 ized education programs under this part and in7 dividualized family service plans under part C

8 with individualized service plans under multiple

9 Federal and State programs, such as title I of

10 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (vocational reha11 bilitation), title XIX of the Social Security Act

12 (Medicaid), and title XVI of the Social Security

13 Act (supplemental security income);

14 ‘‘(C) developing and implementing inter15 agency financing strategies for the provision of

16 education, health, mental health, and social serv17 ices, including transition services and related

18 services under this title; and

19 ‘‘(D) interagency personnel development for

20 individuals working on coordinated services.

21 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION WITH CERTAIN PROJECTS

22 UNDER ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

23 ACT OF 1965.—If a local educational agency is carry24 ing out a coordinated services project under title XI

25 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
102

•HR 3268 RH

1 1965 and a coordinated services project under this

2 part in the same schools, such agency shall use

3 amounts under this subsection in accordance with the

4 requirements of that title.

5 ‘‘(g) DIRECT SERVICES BY THE STATE EDUCATIONAL

6 AGENCY.—

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency

8 shall use the payments that would otherwise have been

9 available to a local educational agency or to a State

10 agency to provide special education and related serv11 ices directly to children with disabilities residing in

12 the area served by that local agency, or for whom that

13 State agency is responsible, if the State educational

14 agency determines that the local education agency or

15 State agency, as the case may be—

16 ‘‘(A) has not provided the information need17 ed to establish the eligibility of such agency

18 under this section;

19 ‘‘(B) is unable to establish and maintain

20 programs of free appropriate public education

21 that meet the requirements of subsection (a);

22 ‘‘(C) is unable or unwilling to be consoli23 dated with one or more local educational agen24 cies in order to establish and maintain such pro25 grams; or
103

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(D) has one or more children with disabil2 ities who can best be served by a regional or

3 State program or service delivery system de4 signed to meet the needs of such children.

5 ‘‘(2) MANNER AND LOCATION OF EDUCATION AND

6 SERVICES.—The State educational agency may pro7 vide special education and related services under

8 paragraph (1) in such manner and at such locations

9 (including regional or State centers) as the State

10 agency considers appropriate. Such education and

11 services shall be provided in accordance with this

12 part.

13 ‘‘(h) STATE AGENCY ELIGIBILITY.—Any State agency

14 that desires to receive a subgrant for any fiscal year under

15 section 611(c) shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the

16 State educational agency that—

17 ‘‘(1) all children with disabilities who are par18 ticipating in programs and projects funded under this

19 part receive a free appropriate public education, and

20 that those children and their parents are provided all

21 the rights and procedural safeguards described in this

22 part; and

23 ‘‘(2) the agency meets such other conditions of

24 this section as the Secretary determines to be appro25 priate.
104

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 614. EVALUATIONS, REEVALUATIONS, INDIVIDUAL2 IZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS, AND EDU3 CATIONAL PLACEMENTS.

4 ‘‘(a) EVALUATIONS AND REEVALUATIONS.—

5 ‘‘(1) INITIAL EVALUATIONS.—

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

7 agency, other State agency, or local educational

8 agency shall conduct an initial evaluation, in

9 accordance with this paragraph and subsection

10 (b), before the initial provision of special edu11 cation and related services to a child with a dis12 ability under this part.

13 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURES.—Such initial evalua14 tion shall consist of procedures—

15 ‘‘(i) to determine whether a child is a

16 child with a disability (as defined in sec17 tion 602(3)); and

18 ‘‘(ii) to determine the educational

19 needs of such child.

20 ‘‘(C) PARENTAL CONSENT.—

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The agency propos22 ing to conduct an initial evaluation to de23 termine if the child qualifies as a child with

24 a disability as defined in section 602(3)(A)

25 or 602(3)(B) shall obtain an informed con26 sent from the parent of such child before the
105

•HR 3268 RH

1 evaluation is conducted. Parental consent

2 for evaluation shall not be construed as con3 sent for placement for receipt of special edu4 cation and related services.

5 ‘‘(ii) REFUSAL.—If the parents of such

6 child refuse consent for the evaluation, the

7 agency may continue to pursue an evalua8 tion by utilizing the mediation and due

9 process procedures under section 615(e).

10 ‘‘(2) REEVALUATIONS.—A local educational

11 agency shall ensure that a reevaluation of each child

12 with a disability is conducted—

13 ‘‘(A) if conditions warrant a reevaluation

14 or if the child’s parent or teacher requests a re15 evaluation, but at least once every 3 years; and

16 ‘‘(B) in accordance with subsections (b) and

17 (c).

18 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION PROCEDURES.—

19 ‘‘(1) NOTICE.—The local educational agency

20 shall provide notice to the parents of a child with a

21 disability, in accordance with subsections (b)(3),

22 (b)(4), and (c) of section 615, that describes any eval23 uation procedures such agency proposes to conduct.

24 ‘‘(2) CONDUCT OF EVALUATION.—In conducting

25 the evaluation, the local educational agency shall—
106

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) use a variety of assessment tools and

2 strategies to gather relevant functional and de3 velopmental information, including information

4 provided by the parent, that may assist in deter5 mining whether the child is a child with a dis6 ability and the content of the child’s individual7 ized education program, including information

8 related to enabling the child to be involved in

9 and progress in the general curriculum or, for

10 preschool children, to participate in appropriate

11 activities;

12 ‘‘(B) not use any single procedure as the

13 sole criterion for determining whether a child is

14 a child with a disability or determining an ap15 propriate educational program for the child; and

16 ‘‘(C) use technically sound instruments that

17 may assess the relative contribution of cognitive

18 and behavioral factors, in addition to physical

19 or developmental factors.

20 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—Each local

21 educational agency shall ensure that—

22 ‘‘(A) tests and other evaluation materials

23 used to assess a child under this section—
107

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) are selected and administered so

2 as not to be discriminatory on a racial or

3 cultural basis; and

4 ‘‘(ii) are provided and administered in

5 the child’s native language or other mode of

6 communication, unless it is clearly not fea7 sible to do so; and

8 ‘‘(B) any standardized tests that are given

9 to the child—

10 ‘‘(i) have been validated for the specific

11 purpose for which they are used;

12 ‘‘(ii) are administered by qualified

13 personnel; and

14 ‘‘(iii) are administered in accordance

15 with any instructions provided by the pro16 ducer of such tests; and

17 ‘‘(C) the child is assessed in all areas of sus18 pected disability.

19 ‘‘(4) DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—Upon

20 completion of administration of tests and other eval21 uation materials—

22 ‘‘(A) the determination of whether the child

23 is a child with a disability as defined in section

24 602(3) or section 602(3)(B) will be made by a
108

•HR 3268 RH

1 team of qualified professionals and the parent of

2 the child in accordance with paragraph (5); and

3 ‘‘(B) a copy of the evaluation report and the

4 documentation of determination of eligibility

5 will be given to the parent.

6 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR ELIGIBILITY DETER7 MINATION.—In making a determination of eligibility

8 under paragraph (4)(A), a child shall not be deter9 mined to be a child with a disability based on any

10 of the following:

11 ‘‘(A) Lack of instruction, including instruc12 tion in reading or math.

13 ‘‘(B) Limited English proficiency.

14 ‘‘(C) Cultural or environmental factors.

15 ‘‘(D) Economic disadvantage.

16 ‘‘(c) REEVALUATION PROCEDURES.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As part of any reevaluation

18 to assess a child under this section, the individualized

19 education program team and other qualified profes20 sionals, as appropriate, shall—

21 ‘‘(A) review existing evaluation data on the

22 child, including current classroom-based assess23 ments and teacher and related services providers

24 observation; and
109

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) on the basis of that review and input

2 from the child’s parents, identify what addi3 tional data, if any, are needed to determine—

4 ‘‘(i) whether the child continues to have

5 a disability, as described in section

6 602(3)(A)(i) or section 602(3)(B);

7 ‘‘(ii) the child’s present levels of per8 formance and educational needs; and

9 ‘‘(iii)(I) whether the child continues to

10 need special education and related services;

11 and

12 ‘‘(II) if so, any additions or modifica13 tions to the special education and related

14 services to enable the child to meet the objec15 tives set out in the individualized education

16 program of the child and to participate, as

17 appropriate, in the general curriculum.

18 ‘‘(2) TESTS AND OTHER EVALUATION MATE19 RIALS.—The local educational agency shall admin20 ister such tests and other evaluation materials as may

21 be needed to produce the data identified by the IEP

22 Team under paragraph (1)(B).

23 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS IF ADDITIONAL DATA NOT

24 NEEDED.—If the IEP Team and other qualified pro25 fessionals, as appropriate, determines that no addi-
110

•HR 3268 RH

1 tional data are needed to determine whether the child

2 continues to be a child with a disability, the local

3 educational agency—

4 ‘‘(A) shall notify the child’s parents of—

5 ‘‘(i) that determination and the rea6 sons for it; and

7 ‘‘(ii) the right of such parents to re8 quest an assessment to determine whether

9 the child continues to be a child with a dis10 ability; and

11 ‘‘(B) shall not be required to conduct such

12 an assessment unless requested to by the child’s

13 parents.

14 ‘‘(d) INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAMS.—

15 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT THAT PROGRAM BE IN EF16 FECT.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—At the beginning of

18 each school year, each local educational agency,

19 or State educational agency, as the case may be,

20 shall have in effect, for each child with a disabil21 ity in its jurisdiction, an individualized edu22 cation program, as defined in section 602(11).

23 ‘‘(B) PROGRAM FOR CHILD AGED 3 TO 5.—

24 In the case of a child with a disability aged 3

25 to 5, inclusive, an individualized family service
111

•HR 3268 RH

1 plan that contains the material described in sec2 tion 636, and that is developed in accordance

3 with this section, may serve as the IEP of the

4 child if using that plan as the IEP is—

5 ‘‘(i) consistent with State policy; and

6 ‘‘(ii) agreed to by the agency and the

7 child’s parents.

8 ‘‘(2) DEVELOPMENT OF IEP.—

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An individualized edu10 cation program team shall develop the IEP de11 scribed in paragraph (1). In developing such

12 IEP, the IEP Team, subject to subparagraph

13 (B), shall—

14 ‘‘(i) consider the child’s strengths and

15 the parents’ concerns for enhancing their

16 child’s education;

17 ‘‘(ii) consider the results of the initial

18 evaluation or most recent reevaluation;

19 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a child whose be20 havior impedes his or her learning or that

21 of others, consider, when appropriate, strat22 egies, including positive behavior manage23 ment interventions and strategies to help

24 the child behave in an appropriate and re25 sponsible manner conducive to learning;
112

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a child with lim2 ited English proficiency, consider the lan3 guage needs of the child as such needs relate

4 to the child’s IEP;

5 ‘‘(v) in the case of a child who is blind

6 or visually impaired, provide for instruc7 tion in braille and the use of braille unless

8 all members of the IEP Team concur that,

9 after an evaluation of the child’s reading

10 and writing skills, needs, and appropriate

11 reading and writing media (including an

12 evaluation of the child’s future needs for in13 struction in braille or the use of braille), in14 struction in braille or the use of braille is

15 not appropriate for the child;

16 ‘‘(vi) consider the communication

17 needs of the child, and in the case of a child

18 who is deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, or com19 municatively disabled, consider the lan20 guage and communication needs of the

21 child; and

22 ‘‘(vii) consider whether the child re23 quires assistive technology services or de24 vices.
113

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT WITH RESPECT TO

2 REGULAR EDUCATION TEACHER.—The regular

3 education teacher of the child, as a member of

4 the IEP Team, shall, to the extent appropriate,

5 participate in the development of the IEP of the

6 child, including the determination of appro7 priate behavior-management techniques consist8 ent with subparagraph (A)(iii) of this para9 graph, and the determination of supplementary

10 aids and services, program modifications, and

11 support for school personnel consistent with sec12 tion 602(11)(E).

13 ‘‘(3) REVIEW AND REVISION OF IEP.—

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

15 agency shall ensure that, subject to subpara16 graphs (B) and (C), the IEP Team—

17 ‘‘(i) reviews each IEP at least once a

18 year to determine whether the annual objec19 tives for the child are being achieved; and

20 ‘‘(ii) revises the IEP to address—

21 ‘‘(I) any lack of expected progress

22 toward the annual objectives and in

23 the general curriculum, where appro24 priate;
114

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) the results of any reevalua2 tion conducted under this section;

3 ‘‘(III) information about the child

4 provided to, or by, the parents, as de5 scribed in section 602(11)(F)(ii); or

6 ‘‘(IV) the child’s anticipated needs

7 as otherwise appropriate.

8 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN CHILDREN WITH DISABIL9 ITIES.—

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a

11 child with a disability who has dem12 onstrated a pattern of behavior that signifi13 cantly impairs the education of the child, or

14 the education of the classmates of the child,

15 and the ability of the teacher of the child to

16 teach, if such teacher initiates or requests

17 an IEP meeting, then the appropriate au18 thority shall convene an IEP meeting to re19 view the child’s educational program, relat20 ed services, supplementary aids and serv21 ices, and placement.

22 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF IEP.—In carrying out

23 a review of the IEP of the child, the IEP

24 Team shall determine—
115

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(I) the appropriateness of the

2 current IEP of the child;

3 ‘‘(II) whether or not special edu4 cation and related services have been

5 appropriately provided to the child;

6 ‘‘(III) whether or not other sup7 plementary aids or services, including

8 teacher training, are needed to address

9 the behavior of the child; and

10 ‘‘(IV) subject to clauses (iii) and

11 (iv), whether or not the placement of

12 the child should be changed.

13 ‘‘(iii) DETERMINATION OF CHANGE IN

14 PLACEMENT.—Prior to proposing a change

15 in the placement of the child, the IEP Team

16 shall first consider and then document the

17 following:

18 ‘‘(I) The cumulative record over a

19 reasonable period of time describing

20 the frequent behaviors exhibited by the

21 child that significantly impairs the

22 education of the child, the education of

23 the classmates of the child, and the

24 ability of the teacher of the child to

25 teach.
116

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) Documentation of the efforts

2 made to address the behavior of the

3 child, the use of supplementary services

4 or strategies (including the use of be5 havior management plans) that have

6 been implemented over a reasonable pe7 riod of time and have failed to address

8 the behavior of the child in a manner

9 that would enable the child to remain

10 in the current educational placement of

11 the child without significantly impair12 ing the education of the child, the edu13 cation of the classmates of the child,

14 and the ability of the teacher of the

15 child to teach.

16 ‘‘(III) The training made avail17 able to the teacher or teachers of the

18 child.

19 ‘‘(iv) EXPEDITED DUE PROCESS HEAR20 ING.—If the IEP Team determines that a

21 change in placement of the child is appro22 priate, and the parents of the child disagree

23 with such determination, then either party

24 may request an expedited due process hear25 ing in accordance with section 615(f)(2).
117

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(C) REQUIREMENT WITH RESPECT TO

2 REGULAR EDUCATION TEACHER.—The regular

3 education teacher of the child, as a member of

4 the IEP Team, shall, to the extent appropriate,

5 participate in the review and revision of the IEP

6 of the child.

7 ‘‘(4) 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 section 602(11)(F)(ii), the local educational agency

12 shall reconvene the IEP Team to identify alternative

13 strategies to meet the transition objectives for the

14 child set out in that program.

15 ‘‘(5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

16 subsection shall be construed—

17 ‘‘(A) to decrease the amount of information

18 that a parent receives concerning the progress of

19 the child of such parent; or

20 ‘‘(B) to increase the amount of paperwork

21 for the teachers, related services personnel, and

22 administrators of such child.

23 ‘‘(e) EDUCATIONAL PLACEMENTS.—Each local edu24 cational agency or State educational agency shall ensure

25 that the parents of each child with a disability are members
118

•HR 3268 RH

1 of any group that makes decisions on the educational place2 ment of their child.

3 ‘‘SEC. 615. PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS.

4 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROCEDURES.—Any State

5 educational agency or local educational agency that receives

6 assistance under this part shall establish and maintain pro7 cedures in accordance with this section to assure that chil8 dren with disabilities and their parents are guaranteed pro9 cedural safeguards with respect to the provision of free ap10 propriate public education by such agencies.

11 ‘‘(b) TYPES OF PROCEDURES.—The procedures re12 quired by this section shall include—

13 ‘‘(1) an opportunity for the parents of a child

14 with a disability to examine all records relating to

15 such child and to participate in meetings with respect

16 to the identification, evaluation, and educational

17 placement of the child, and the provision of a free ap18 propriate public education to such child, and to ob19 tain an independent educational evaluation of the

20 child;

21 ‘‘(2) procedures to protect the rights of the child

22 whenever the parents of the child are not known, the

23 agency cannot, after reasonable efforts, locate the par24 ents, or the child is a ward of the State, including the

25 assignment of an individual (who shall not be an em-
119

•HR 3268 RH

1 ployee of the State educational agency, the local edu2 cational agency, or any other agency that is involved

3 in the education or care of the child) to act as a sur4 rogate for the parents;

5 ‘‘(3) written prior notice to the parents of the

6 child whenever such agency—

7 ‘‘(A) proposes to initiate or change; or

8 ‘‘(B) refuses to initiate or change;

9 the identification, evaluation, or educational place10 ment of the child, in accordance with subsection (c),

11 or the provision of a free appropriate public edu12 cation to the child;

13 ‘‘(4) procedures designed to assure that the notice

14 required by paragraph (3) is in the native language

15 of the parents, unless it clearly is not feasible to do

16 so;

17 ‘‘(5) an opportunity for mediation in accordance

18 with subsection (e);

19 ‘‘(6) an opportunity to present complaints with

20 respect to any matter relating to the identification,

21 evaluation, or educational placement of the child, or

22 the provision of a free appropriate public education

23 to such child;

24 ‘‘(7) procedures that require the parent of a child

25 with a disability, or the attorney representing the
120

•HR 3268 RH

1 child, to provide notice (which shall remain confiden2 tial)—

3 ‘‘(A) to the State educational agency or

4 local educational agency, as the case may be, in

5 the complaint filed under paragraph (6); and

6 ‘‘(B) that shall include—

7 ‘‘(i) the name of the child, the address

8 of the residence of the child, and the name

9 of the school at which the child is attending;

10 ‘‘(ii) a description of the nature of the

11 problem of the child relating to such pro12 posed initiation or change, including facts

13 relating to such problem; and

14 ‘‘(iii) the proposed resolution of the

15 problem; and

16 ‘‘(8) procedures that require the State edu17 cational agency to develop a model form to assist par18 ents in filing a complaint in accordance with para19 graph (7).

20 ‘‘(c) CONTENT OF PRIOR WRITTEN NOTICE.—The no21 tice required by subsection (b)(3) shall include—

22 ‘‘(1) a description of the action proposed or re23 fused by the agency;

24 ‘‘(2) an explanation of why the agency proposes

25 or refuses to take the action;
121

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) a description of any other options that the

2 agency considered and the reasons why those options

3 were rejected;

4 ‘‘(4) a description of each evaluation procedure,

5 test, record, or report the agency used as a basis for

6 the proposed or refused action;

7 ‘‘(5) a description of any other factors that are

8 relevant to the agency’s proposal or refusal; and

9 ‘‘(6) a statement that the parents of a child with

10 a disability have protection under the procedural

11 safeguards of this title 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.

15 ‘‘(d) PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS NOTICE.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A copy of the procedural

17 safeguards available to the parents of a child with a

18 disability shall be given to the parents, at a mini19 mum—

20 ‘‘(A) upon initial referral for evaluation;

21 ‘‘(B) upon each notification of an individ22 ualized education program meeting and upon re23 evaluation of the child; and

24 ‘‘(C) upon registration of a complaint

25 under subsection (b)(6).
122

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The procedural safeguards no2 tice shall include a full explanation of the procedural

3 safeguards written in the native language of the par4 ents, unless not feasible to do so, and written in an

5 easily understandable manner, available under this

6 section and under regulations promulgated by the

7 Secretary relating to—

8 ‘‘(A) independent educational evaluation;

9 ‘‘(B) prior written notice;

10 ‘‘(C) parental consent;

11 ‘‘(D) access to educational records;

12 ‘‘(E) opportunity to present complaints;

13 ‘‘(F) the child’s placement during pendency

14 of due process proceedings;

15 ‘‘(G) procedures for students who are subject

16 to placement in an interim alternative edu17 cational setting;

18 ‘‘(H) requirements for unilateral placement

19 by parents of children in private schools at pub20 lic expense;

21 ‘‘(I) mediation;

22 ‘‘(J) due process hearings, including re23 quirements for disclosure of evaluation results

24 and recommendations;
123

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(K) State-level appeals (if applicable in

2 that State);

3 ‘‘(L) civil actions; and

4 ‘‘(M) attorney’s fees.

5 ‘‘(e) MEDIATION.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any State educational agen7 cy or local educational agency that receives assistance

8 under this part shall ensure that procedures are estab9 lished and implemented to allow parties to disputes

10 involving the provision of free appropriate public

11 education to children with disabilities by any such

12 State educational agency or local educational agency

13 to resolve such disputes through a mediation process.

14 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—Such procedures shall

15 meet the following requirements:

16 ‘‘(A) The procedures shall ensure that the

17 mediation process—

18 ‘‘(i) is voluntary on the part of the

19 parents and may be terminated by either

20 party after a good faith effort has been

21 made by the party terminating the medi22 ation process; and

23 ‘‘(ii) is conducted by a qualified and

24 impartial mediator who is trained in effec25 tive mediation techniques.
124

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) The State shall maintain a list of in2 dividuals who are qualified mediators and

3 knowledgeable in laws and regulations relating

4 to the provision of special education and related

5 services.

6 ‘‘(C) The State shall bear the cost of the me7 diation process.

8 ‘‘(D) Each session in the mediation process

9 shall be scheduled in a timely manner and shall

10 be held in a location that is convenient to the

11 parties to the dispute.

12 ‘‘(E) An agreement reached by the parties

13 to the dispute in the mediation process shall be

14 set forth in a written mediation agreement.

15 ‘‘(F) Discussions that occur during the me16 diation process shall be confidential and may

17 not be used as evidence in any subsequent due

18 process hearings or civil proceedings, and the

19 parties to the mediation process may be required

20 to sign a confidentiality pledge prior to the com21 mencement of such process.

22 ‘‘(G) The State shall determine whether or

23 not attorneys may attend or otherwise partici24 pate in the mediation process after offering the

25 opportunity for parents and representatives of
125

•HR 3268 RH

1 school districts to participate in the mediation

2 process prior to any due process filing without

3 attorneys present.

4 ‘‘(f) IMPARTIAL DUE PROCESS HEARING.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever a complaint has

6 been received under section 614(d)(3)(B), or sub7 section (b)(6) or (k) of this section, the parents in8 volved in such complaint shall have an opportunity

9 for an impartial due process hearing which shall be

10 conducted by the State educational agency or by the

11 local educational agency, as determined by State law

12 or by the State educational agency.

13 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE OF EVALUATIONS AND REC14 OMMENDATIONS.—

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—At least 10 school days

16 prior to a hearing conducted pursuant to para17 graph (1), each party shall disclose to all other

18 parties all evaluations and recommendations

19 based on the offering party’s evaluations which

20 the party intends to use at the hearing.

21 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION.—Any party which fails

22 to meet the requirement of subparagraph (A)

23 shall be barred from introducing such evalua24 tions and recommendations at such hearing.
126

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON CONDUCT OF HEARING.—A

2 hearing conducted pursuant to paragraph (1) may

3 not be conducted by an employee of the State edu4 cational agency or the local educational agency in5 volved in the education or care of the child.

6 ‘‘(4) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT

7 TO HEARINGS FOR CERTAIN CHILDREN WITH DISABIL8 ITIES.—A hearing conducted pursuant to paragraph

9 (1) that is based upon a complaint received under

10 section 614(d)(3)(B) shall, in addition to the require11 ments contained in this subsection, comply with the

12 following additional requirements:

13 ‘‘(A) In determining whether or not the de14 cision by the IEP Team to change the placement

15 of the child is justified and appropriate, the

16 hearing officer shall, at a minimum, review the

17 information under clause (iii) of such section.

18 ‘‘(B) The child shall remain in the current

19 educational placement of the child until the hear20 ing officer reaches a final decision under this

21 subsection.

22 ‘‘(C) The hearing officer shall make a deter23 mination of findings and reach a final decision

24 not later than 20 days after the first day of the

25 hearing, or, at the discretion of the hearing offi-
127

•HR 3268 RH

1 cer, not later than 30 days after such first day

2 of the hearing.

3 ‘‘(D) The placement of the child, including

4 the placement of the child during any due proc5 ess or judicial proceeding, shall be determined in

6 accordance with the final decision of the hearing

7 officer under this subsection, unless the parents

8 and the State or local educational agency agree

9 otherwise.

10 ‘‘(g) APPEAL.—If the hearing required by subsection

11 (f) is conducted by a local educational agency, any party

12 aggrieved by the findings and decision rendered in such a

13 hearing may appeal such findings and decision to the State

14 educational agency. Such agency shall conduct an impar15 tial review of such decision. The officer conducting such re16 view shall make an independent decision upon completion

17 of such review.

18 ‘‘(h) SAFEGUARDS.—Any party to a hearing conducted

19 pursuant to subsection (f), or an appeal conducted pursuant

20 to subsection (g), shall be accorded—

21 ‘‘(1) the right to be accompanied and advised by

22 counsel and by individuals with special knowledge or

23 training with respect to the problems of children with

24 disabilities;
128

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) the right to present evidence and confront,

2 cross-examine, and compel the attendance of wit3 nesses;

4 ‘‘(3) the right to a written, or, at the option of

5 the parents, electronic verbatim record of such hear6 ing; and

7 ‘‘(4) the right to written, or, at the option of the

8 parents, electronic findings of fact and decisions

9 (which findings and decisions shall be made available

10 to the public consistent with the requirements of sec11 tion 617(c) (relating to the confidentiality of data, in12 formation, and records) and shall also be transmitted

13 to the advisory panel established pursuant to section

14 612(a)(18)).

15 ‘‘(i) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A decision made in a hear17 ing conducted pursuant to subsection (f) shall be

18 final, except that any party involved in such hearing

19 may appeal such decision under the provisions of sub20 section (g) and paragraph (2) of this subsection.

21 ‘‘(2) RIGHT TO BRING CIVIL ACTION.—

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any party aggrieved by

23 the findings and decision made under subsection

24 (f) who does not have the right to an appeal

25 under subsection (g), and any party aggrieved
129

•HR 3268 RH

1 by the findings and decision under this sub2 section, shall have the right to bring a civil ac3 tion with respect to the complaint presented pur4 suant to this section, which action may be

5 brought in any State court of competent jurisdic6 tion or in a district court of the United States

7 without regard to the amount in controversy.

8 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In any

9 action brought under this paragraph the court—

10 ‘‘(i) shall receive the records of the ad11 ministrative proceedings;

12 ‘‘(ii) may hear additional evidence at

13 the request of a party; and

14 ‘‘(iii) basing its decision on the pre15 ponderance of the evidence, shall grant such

16 relief as the court determines is appro17 priate.

18 ‘‘(3) JURISDICTION OF DISTRICT COURTS; ATTOR19 NEYS’ FEES.—

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The district courts of

21 the United States shall have jurisdiction of ac22 tions brought under this section without regard

23 to the amount in controversy.

24 ‘‘(B) AWARD OF ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—In

25 any action or proceeding brought under this sec-
130

•HR 3268 RH

1 tion, the court, in its discretion, may award rea2 sonable attorneys’ fees as part of the costs to the

3 parents of a child or youth with a disability who

4 is the prevailing party.

5 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF AT6 TORNEYS’ FEES.—Fees awarded under this para7 graph shall be based on rates prevailing in the

8 community in which the action or proceeding

9 arose for the kind and quality of services fur10 nished. No bonus or multiplier may be used in

11 calculating the fees awarded under this sub12 section.

13 ‘‘(D) PROHIBITION OF ATTORNEYS’ FEES

14 AND RELATED COSTS FOR CERTAIN SERVICES.—

15 (i) Attorneys’ fees may not be awarded and re16 lated costs may not be reimbursed in any action

17 or proceeding under this subsection for services

18 performed subsequent to the time of a written

19 offer of settlement to a parent if—

20 ‘‘(I) the offer is made within the time

21 prescribed by Rule 68 of the Federal Rules

22 of Civil Procedure or, in the case of an ad23 ministrative proceeding, at any time more

24 than ten days before the proceeding begins;
131

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(II) the offer is not accepted within

2 10 days; and

3 ‘‘(III) the court or administrative offi4 cer finds that the relief finally obtained by

5 the parents is not more favorable to the par6 ents than the offer of settlement.

7 ‘‘(ii) Attorneys’ fees may not be awarded re8 lating to any meeting of the IEP Team unless

9 such meeting is convened as a result of a judicial

10 action or proceeding.

11 ‘‘(E) EXCEPTION TO PROHIBITION ON AT12 TORNEYS’ FEES AND RELATED COSTS.—Notwith13 standing subparagraph (D), an award of attor14 neys’ fees and related costs may be made to a

15 parent who is the prevailing party and who was

16 substantially justified in rejecting the settlement

17 offer.

18 ‘‘(F) REDUCTION IN AMOUNT OF ATTOR19 NEYS’ FEES.—Except as provided in subpara20 graph (G), whenever the court finds that—

21 ‘‘(i) the parent, during the course of

22 the action or proceeding, unreasonably pro23 tracted the final resolution of the con24 troversy;
132

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the attorneys’ fees

2 otherwise authorized to be awarded unrea3 sonably exceeds the hourly rate prevailing

4 in the community for similar services by at5 torneys of reasonably comparable skill and

6 experience;

7 ‘‘(iii) the time spent and legal services

8 furnished were excessive considering the na9 ture of the action or proceeding;

10 ‘‘(iv) the attorney representing the par11 ent did not provide to the school district the

12 appropriate information in the due process

13 complaint in accordance with subsection

14 (b)(7); or

15 ‘‘(v) the amount of attorneys’ fees re16 quested is not consistent with the extent of

17 the success of the parents;

18 the court shall reduce, accordingly, the amount of

19 the attorneys’ fees awarded under this subsection.

20 ‘‘(G) EXCEPTION TO REDUCTION IN AMOUNT

21 OF ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—The provisions of sub22 paragraph (F) shall not apply in any action or

23 proceeding if the court finds that the State or

24 local educational agency unreasonably protracted
133

•HR 3268 RH

1 the final resolution of the action or proceeding

2 or there was a violation of this section.

3 ‘‘(j) MAINTENANCE OF CURRENT EDUCATIONAL

4 PLACEMENT.—Except as provided in subsection (k), during

5 the pendency of any proceedings conducted pursuant to this

6 section, unless the State or local educational agency and

7 the parents otherwise agree, the child shall remain in the

8 then current educational placement of such child, or, if ap9 plying for initial admission to a public school, shall, with

10 the consent of the parents, be placed in the public school

11 program until all such proceedings have been completed.

12 ‘‘(k) PLACEMENT IN ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL SET13 TING.—

14 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF SCHOOL PERSONNEL.—

15 School personnel under this section may, to the same

16 extent as a court, order a change in the placement of

17 a child with a disability—

18 ‘‘(A) to an appropriate interim alternative

19 educational setting, another setting, or suspen20 sion, for not more than 10 school days (to the ex21 tent such alternatives would be applied to chil22 dren without disabilities); and

23 ‘‘(B) to an appropriate interim alternative

24 educational setting for the same amount of time

25 that a child without a disability would be subject
134

•HR 3268 RH

1 to discipline, but for not more than an addi2 tional 45 school days if—

3 ‘‘(i) the child carries a weapon to

4 school or to a school function under the ju5 risdiction of a State or a local educational

6 agency;

7 ‘‘(ii) the child possesses or uses illegal

8 drugs or sells or solicits the sale of medica9 tions or illegal drugs while at school or a

10 school function under the jurisdiction of a

11 State or local educational agency; or

12 ‘‘(iii) the child causes serious injury

13 while at school or at a school function under

14 the jurisdiction of a State or a local edu15 cational agency.

16 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF HEARING OFFICER.—A

17 hearing officer under this section may, to the same ex18 tent as a court, order a change in the placement of

19 a child with a disability to an appropriate interim

20 alternative educational setting for not more than 45

21 school days if—

22 ‘‘(A) the maintenance of the current place23 ment of such child is substantially likely to re24 sult in injury to the child or to others; and

25 ‘‘(B) the hearing officer—
135

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) determines that the public agency

2 has demonstrated by substantial evidence

3 that the requirement of subparagraph (A)

4 has been met;

5 ‘‘(ii) considers the appropriateness of

6 the child’s current placement; and

7 ‘‘(iii) considers whether the public

8 agency has made reasonable efforts to mini9 mize the risk of harm including the use of

10 supplementary aids and services.

11 ‘‘(3) DETERMINATION OF SETTING.—The alter12 native educational setting described in paragraph (1)

13 or paragraph (2) shall be determined by the individ14 ualized education program team.

15 ‘‘(4) MANIFESTATION DETERMINATION RE16 VIEW.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a change in place18 ment or disciplinary proceeding, including ex19 pulsion, is contemplated as a result of an action

20 described in paragraph (1) or paragraph (2)—

21 ‘‘(i) not later than 3 school days after

22 the date on which such action has been

23 taken the parents shall be notified of such

24 action; and
136

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) not later than 15 school days

2 after the date on which such action has been

3 taken a review shall be conducted of the re4 lationship between the child’s disability and

5 the behavior described in paragraph (1).

6 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUALS TO CARRY OUT RE7 VIEW.—A review described in subparagraph (A)

8 shall be conducted by the IEP Team and other

9 qualified personnel.

10 ‘‘(C) CONDUCT OF REVIEW.—In carrying

11 out a review described in subparagraph (A), the

12 individuals described in subparagraph (B) shall

13 consider appropriate factors, including—

14 ‘‘(i) the appropriateness of the child’s

15 placement;

16 ‘‘(ii) the consistency of the implemen17 tation of the child’s entire IEP, including

18 the technical soundness of the behavior

19 strategies used;

20 ‘‘(iii) evaluation and diagnostic re21 sults, which may include any such results

22 supplied by the parents or guardian of the

23 child; and

24 ‘‘(iv) observations of the child.
137

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(5) DETERMINATION THAT BEHAVIOR WAS MAN2 IFESTATION OF DISABILITY.—If the result of the re3 view described in paragraph (4) is a determination

4 that the behavior of the child with a disability was

5 a manifestation of such child’s disability and the par6 ents of such child agree with such determination, the

7 educational placement of such child may be changed.

8 If the parents do not agree with such determination

9 or with such changed educational placement, an im10 mediate appeal may be made to a hearing officer to

11 determine whether the child’s placement should be

12 changed. Any party aggrieved by the determination of

13 the hearing officer may initiate a due process hearing

14 as described in subsection (f).

15 ‘‘(6) DETERMINATION THAT BEHAVIOR WAS NOT

16 MANIFESTATION OF DISABILITY.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—

18 ‘‘(i) INITIAL DETERMINATION RE19 QUIREMENT.—The IEP Team may deter20 mine that the behavior of the child was not

21 a manifestation of such child’s disability

22 only if the IEP Team first determines that

23 the disability—
138

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(I) did not impair the ability of

2 the child to understand the impact and

3 consequences of the behavior; and

4 ‘‘(II) did not impair the ability of

5 the child to control the behavior.

6 ‘‘(ii) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—If the

7 result of the review described in paragraph

8 (4) is a determination that the behavior of

9 the child with a disability was not a mani10 festation of such child’s disability, the rel11 evant disciplinary procedures applicable to

12 children without disabilities may be applied

13 in the same manner in which they would be

14 applied to children without disabilities. If

15 the parents do not agree with such applica16 tion, a due process hearing, as described in

17 subsection (f), may be initiated. Any deter18 mination under paragraph (4) that a

19 child’s behavior was not a manifestation of

20 a disability shall be reviewed by a hearing

21 officer under subsection (f), whether or not

22 the child’s parents request a hearing, before

23 educational services to the child may be ter24 minated under this paragraph. During the

25 pendency of such due process procedures, the
139

•HR 3268 RH

1 child shall continue to receive educational

2 services in the alternative educational set3 ting.

4 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—Where application of

5 the relevant disciplinary procedures in subpara6 graph (A) would result in the expulsion of the

7 child without the receipt of educational services,

8 the child may be expelled only if—

9 ‘‘(i) the child carries a weapon to

10 school or to a school function under the ju11 risdiction of a State or local educational

12 agency; or

13 ‘‘(ii) the child possesses or uses illegal

14 drugs or sells or solicits the sale of medica15 tions or illegal drugs while at school or a

16 school function under the jurisdiction of a

17 State or local educational agency.

18 ‘‘(7) EXPEDITED HEARING.—The State or local

19 educational agency shall arrange for an expedited

20 hearing in any case described in this subsection when

21 requested by the parent.

22 ‘‘(8) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—

23 ‘‘(A) MAINTENANCE OF ALTERNATIVE EDU24 CATIONAL SETTING.— If the parent of a child de25 scribed in this section requests a hearing pursu-
140

•HR 3268 RH

1 ant to subsection (f), the child shall remain in

2 the alternative educational setting in which such

3 child was placed during the pendency of any

4 proceedings under this section, unless the parents

5 and the State or local educational agency agree

6 otherwise.

7 ‘‘(B) PROTECTIONS FOR CHILDREN NOT YET

8 ELIGIBLE FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION AND RELAT9 ED SERVICES.—

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A child who has

11 not been determined to be eligible for special

12 education and related services under this

13 part and who has engaged in behavior that

14 violated any rule or code of conduct of the

15 local educational agency, including any be16 havior described in paragraph (1), may as17 sert any of the protections provided for in

18 this part if the local educational agency had

19 knowledge (as determined in accordance

20 with this subparagraph) that the child was

21 a child with a disability before the behavior

22 that precipitated the disciplinary action oc23 curred.

24 ‘‘(ii) BASIS OF KNOWLEDGE.—A local

25 educational agency shall be deemed to have
141

•HR 3268 RH

1 knowledge that a child is a child with a dis2 ability if—

3 ‘‘(I) the parent of the child has ex4 pressed concern in writing (unless the

5 parent is illiterate or has a disability

6 that prevents compliance with the re7 quirements contained in this subclause)

8 to personnel of the appropriate edu9 cational agency that the child is in

10 need of special education and related

11 services;

12 ‘‘(II) the behavior of the child

13 demonstrates the need for such services;

14 ‘‘(III) the parent of the child has

15 requested an evaluation of the child

16 pursuant to section 614; or

17 ‘‘(IV) the teacher of the child, or

18 other personnel of the local educational

19 agency, has expressed concern about

20 the behavior of the child to the director

21 of special education of such agency or

22 to other personnel of the agency.

23 ‘‘(iii) CONDITIONS THAT APPLY IF NO

24 BASIS OF KNOWLEDGE.—
142

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—If a local edu2 cational agency does not have knowl3 edge that a child is a child with a dis4 ability (in accordance with clause (ii))

5 prior to taking disciplinary measures

6 against the child, the child may be sub7 jected to the same disciplinary meas8 ures as measures applied to children

9 without disabilities, who engaged in

10 comparable behaviors consistent with

11 paragraph (2).

12 ‘‘(II) LIMITATIONS.—If a request

13 is made for an evaluation of a child

14 during the time period in which the

15 child is subjected to disciplinary meas16 ures under paragraph (1), the evalua17 tion shall be conducted in an expedited

18 manner. If the child is determined to

19 be a child with a disability, taking

20 into consideration information from

21 the evaluation conducted by the agency

22 and information provided by the par23 ents, the agency shall provide special

24 education and related services in ac25 cordance with the provisions of this
143

•HR 3268 RH

1 part, except that, pending the results of

2 the evaluation, the child shall remain

3 in the educational placement deter4 mined by school authorities.

5 ‘‘(C) REFERRAL TO AND ACTION BY LAW

6 ENFORCEMENT AND JUDICIAL AUTHORITIES.—

7 Nothing in this part shall be construed to pro8 hibit an agency from reporting a crime commit9 ted by a child with a disability to appropriate

10 authorities or to prevent State law enforcement

11 and judicial authorities from exercising their re12 sponsibilities with regard to the application of

13 Federal and State law to crimes committed by a

14 child with a disability.

15 ‘‘(9) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub16 section, the following definitions apply:

17 ‘‘(A) ILLEGAL DRUG.—The term ‘illegal

18 drug’—

19 ‘‘(i) means a controlled substance with20 in the meaning of any of paragraphs (1)

21 through (5) of section 202 of the Controlled

22 Substances Act (21 U.S.C 812); but

23 ‘‘(ii) does not include a controlled sub24 stance within the meaning of paragraphs
144

•HR 3268 RH

1 (1) through (5) of section 202 of such Act

2 if—

3 ‘‘(I) such controlled substance is

4 legally possessed or used under the su5 pervision of a licensed health care pro6 fessional; or

7 ‘‘(II) such controlled substance is

8 legally possessed or used under any

9 other authority under such Act or

10 under any other provision of Federal

11 law.

12 ‘‘(B) SERIOUS INJURY.—The term ‘serious

13 injury’ means an injury that involves substan14 tial risk of death, extreme physical pain, obvious

15 or protracted disfigurement, loss of the use of

16 bodily members or organs, broken bones, or sig17 nificant endangerment to an individual’s emo18 tional health or safety that is the result of a

19 physical or verbal assault.

20 ‘‘(C) WEAPON.—The term ‘weapon’ has the

21 meaning given the term ‘dangerous weapon’

22 under paragraph (2) of the first subsection (g) of

23 section 930 of title 18, United States Code.

24 ‘‘(l) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this part

25 shall be construed to restrict or limit the rights, procedures,
145

•HR 3268 RH

1 and remedies available under the Constitution, the Ameri2 cans with Disabilities Act, title V of the Rehabilitation Act

3 of 1973, or other Federal laws protecting the rights of chil4 dren with disabilities, except that before the filing of a civil

5 action under such laws seeking relief that is also available

6 under this part, the procedures under subsections (f) and

7 (g) shall be exhausted to the same extent as would be re8 quired had the action been brought under this part.

9 ‘‘(m) TRANSFER OF PARENTAL RIGHTS AT AGE OF

10 MAJORITY.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives

12 amounts from a grant under this part may provide

13 that, when a child with a disability reaches the age

14 of majority under State law (except for a child with

15 a disability who has been determined to be incom16 petent under State law)—

17 ‘‘(A) the public agency shall provide any

18 notice required by this section to both the indi19 vidual and the parents;

20 ‘‘(B) all other rights accorded to parents

21 under this part transfer to the child;

22 ‘‘(C) the agency shall notify the individual

23 and the parents of the transfer of rights; and

24 ‘‘(D) all rights accorded to parents under

25 this part transfer to children who are incarcer-
146

•HR 3268 RH

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 is determined not to have

6 the ability to provide informed consent with respect

7 to the educational program of the child, the State

8 shall establish procedures for appointing the parent of

9 the child, or another appropriate individual, to rep10 resent the educational interests of the child throughout

11 the period of eligibility of the child under this part.

12 ‘‘SEC. 616. WITHHOLDING AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.

13 ‘‘(a) WITHHOLDING OF PAYMENTS.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Whenever the Secretary,

15 after reasonable notice and opportunity for hearing to

16 the State educational agency involved (and to any

17 local educational agency or State agency affected by

18 any failure described in subparagraph (B)), finds—

19 ‘‘(A) that there has been a failure by the

20 State to comply substantially with any provision

21 of this part; or

22 ‘‘(B) that there is a failure to comply with

23 any condition of a local educational agency’s or

24 State agency’s eligibility under this part;
147

•HR 3268 RH

1 the Secretary shall, after notifying the State edu2 cational agency, withhold any further payments to

3 the State under this part.

4 ‘‘(2) NATURE OF WITHHOLDING.—If the Sec5 retary withholds further payments under paragraph

6 (1), the Secretary may determine that such withhold7 ing will be limited to programs or projects, or por8 tions thereof, affected by the failure, or that the State

9 educational agency shall not make further payments

10 under this part to specified local educational agencies

11 or State agencies affected by the failure. Until the

12 Secretary is satisfied that there is no longer any fail13 ure to comply with the provisions of this part, as

14 specified in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph

15 (1), no further payments shall be made to the State

16 under this part, or payments by the State educational

17 agency under this part shall be limited to local edu18 cational agencies and State agencies whose actions

19 did not cause or were not involved in the failure, as

20 the case may be. Any State educational agency, State

21 agency, or local educational agency that has received

22 notice under paragraph (1) shall, by means of a pub23 lic notice, take such measures as may be necessary to

24 bring the pendency of an action pursuant to this sub-
148

•HR 3268 RH

1 section to the attention of the public within the juris2 diction of such agency.

3 ‘‘(b) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If any State is dissatisfied

5 with the Secretary’s final action with respect to the

6 eligibility of the State under section 612, such State

7 may, not later than 60 days after notice of such ac8 tion, file with the United States court of appeals for

9 the circuit in which such State is located a petition

10 for review of that action. A copy of the petition shall

11 be forthwith transmitted by the clerk of the court to

12 the Secretary. The Secretary thereupon shall file in

13 the court the record of the proceedings upon which the

14 Secretary’s action was based, as provided in section

15 2112 of title 28, United States Code.

16 ‘‘(2) JURISDICTION; REVIEW BY UNITED STATES

17 SUPREME COURT.—Upon the filing of such petition,

18 the court shall have jurisdiction to affirm the action

19 of the Secretary or to set it aside, in whole or in part.

20 The judgment of the court shall be subject to review

21 by the Supreme Court of the United States upon cer22 tiorari or certification as provided in section 1254 of

23 title 28, United States Code.

24 ‘‘(3) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—The findings of

25 fact by the Secretary, if supported by substantial evi-
149

•HR 3268 RH

1 dence, shall be conclusive, but the court, for good

2 cause shown, may remand the case to the Secretary

3 to take further evidence, and the Secretary may there4 upon make new or modified findings of fact and may

5 modify the Secretary’s previous action, and shall file

6 in the court the record of the further proceedings.

7 Such new or modified findings of fact shall likewise

8 be conclusive if supported by substantial evidence.

9 ‘‘SEC. 617. ADMINISTRATION.

10 ‘‘(a) RESPONSIBILITIES OF SECRETARY.—In carrying

11 out this part, the Secretary shall—

12 ‘‘(1) cooperate with, and (directly or by grant or

13 contract) furnish technical assistance necessary to, the

14 State in matters relating to—

15 ‘‘(A) the education of children with disabil16 ities; and

17 ‘‘(B) carrying out this part; and

18 ‘‘(2) provide short-term training programs and

19 institutes.

20 ‘‘(b) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—In carrying out the

21 provisions of this part, the Secretary shall issue regulations

22 under this Act only to the extent that such regulations are

23 necessary to ensure that there is compliance with the spe24 cific requirements of this Act.
150

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(c) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Secretary shall take ap2 propriate action, in accordance with the provisions of sec3 tion 444 of the General Education Provisions Act (20

4 U.S.C. 1232g), to assure the protection of the confidentiality

5 of any personally identifiable data, information, and

6 records collected or maintained by the Secretary and by

7 State and local educational agencies pursuant to the provi8 sions of this part.

9 ‘‘(d) PERSONNEL.—The Secretary is authorized to hire

10 qualified personnel necessary to conduct data collection and

11 evaluation activities authorized by subsection (a) and sec12 tion 618 without regard to the provisions of title 5, United

13 States Code, relating to appointments in the competitive

14 service and without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter

15 III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification and

16 general schedule pay rates, except that no more than twenty

17 such personnel shall be employed at any time.

18 ‘‘SEC. 618. PROGRAM INFORMATION.

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each State that receives assist20 ance under this part, and the Secretary of the Interior, shall

21 provide data, which may be based on a sampling of data,

22 each year to the Secretary on—

23 ‘‘(1) the number of children, categorized by race,

24 ethnicity, gender, and disability, who are receiving—

25 ‘‘(A) a free appropriate public education; or
151

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) early intervention services because—

2 ‘‘(i) such children have developmental

3 delays; or

4 ‘‘(ii) such children have a diagnosed

5 physical or mental condition that has a

6 high probability of resulting in developmen7 tal delay;

8 ‘‘(2) the progress of the State, and of the children

9 with disabilities in the State, toward meeting the

10 goals established under section 612(14);

11 ‘‘(3) the types of early intervention services pro12 vided to such children;

13 ‘‘(4) the number of children with disabilities,

14 categorized by race, ethnicity, gender, and disabil15 ity—

16 ‘‘(A) participating in regular education

17 programs;

18 ‘‘(B) in separate classes, separate schools or

19 facilities, or public or private residential facili20 ties;

21 ‘‘(C) who have been otherwise removed from

22 the regular education environment; and

23 ‘‘(D) in various early intervention settings;

24 ‘‘(5) for each year of age from age 14 to 21, the

25 number of children with disabilities, categorized by
152

•HR 3268 RH

1 race, ethnicity, gender, and disability, who, because of

2 program completion or for other reasons, stopped re3 ceiving special education, and the reasons why such

4 children stopped receiving such special education;

5 ‘‘(6)(A) the number of children with disabilities,

6 categorized by race, ethnicity, gender, and disability,

7 who, under section 615(k), are removed to an interim

8 alternative educational setting;

9 ‘‘(B) the acts or items precipitating such remov10 als; and

11 ‘‘(C) the number of children with disabilities who

12 are expelled from school without receiving services;

13 and

14 ‘‘(7) any other information required by the Sec15 retary.

16 ‘‘(b) DISPROPORTIONALITY.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State that receives as18 sistance under this part, and the Secretary of the In19 terior, shall provide for the collection and examina20 tion of data to determine if significant

21 disproportionality based on race is occurring in the

22 State with respect to—

23 ‘‘(A) the identification of children as chil24 dren with disabilities, including the identifica25 tion of children as children with disabilities in
153

•HR 3268 RH

1 accordance with a particular impairment de2 scribed in section 602(3); and

3 ‘‘(B) the placement in particular edu4 cational settings of such children.

5 ‘‘(2) REVIEW AND REVISION OF POLICIES, PRAC6 TICES, AND PROCEDURES.—In the case of a deter7 mination of significant disproportionality with re8 spect to the identification of children as children with

9 disabilities, or the placement in particular edu10 cational settings of such children, in accordance with

11 paragraph (1), the State or the Secretary of the Inte12 rior, as the case may be, shall provide for the review

13 and, if appropriate, revision of the policies, proce14 dures, and practices used in such identification or

15 placement to ensure that such policies, procedures,

16 and practices comply with the requirements of this

17 Act.

18 ‘‘SEC. 619. PRESCHOOL GRANTS.

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide grants

20 under this section to assist States to provide special edu21 cation and related services, in accordance with this part—

22 ‘‘(1) to children with disabilities aged 3 to 5, in23 clusive; and
154

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) at the State’s discretion, to 2-year-old chil2 dren with disabilities who will turn 3 during the

3 school year.

4 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—A State shall be eligible for a grant

5 under this section if such State—

6 ‘‘(1) is eligible under section 612 to receive a

7 grant under this part; and

8 ‘‘(2) makes a free appropriate public education

9 available to all children with disabilities, aged 3 to

10 5, inclusive, residing in the State.

11 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the amount appro13 priated for any fiscal year pursuant to the authoriza14 tion of appropriations under subsection (m), the Sec15 retary shall allot to each eligible State the amount it

16 received for fiscal year 1996 under this section (as

17 this section was in effect on the day before the date

18 of the enactment of the IDEA Improvement Act of

19 1996).

20 ‘‘(2) INSUFFICIENT FUNDS.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the amount appro22 priated under subsection (m) for a fiscal year is

23 insufficient to make the full allotments described

24 in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
155

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) first, reduce the allocation to any

2 State whose number of children aged 3 to 5,

3 inclusive, is less than the number of such

4 children in such State in fiscal year 1995

5 by the same percentage by which such num6 ber of children declined from the number of

7 children in fiscal year 1995; and

8 ‘‘(ii) second, if necessary, ratably re9 duce the allocations of all States, including

10 those allocations reduced under clause (i).

11 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY OF ADDITIONAL

12 FUNDS.—If additional funds become available to

13 make allocations under this section, the alloca14 tions that were reduced under subparagraph (A)

15 shall be increased on the same basis as such allo16 cations were reduced.

17 ‘‘(d) ALLOTMENT OF REMAINING FUNDS.—After mak18 ing allotments under subsection (c), the Secretary shall allot

19 any remaining funds to eligible States on the basis of their

20 relative population of children aged 3 to 5, inclusive.

21 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULE WITH RESPECT TO PUERTO

22 RICO.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this sub23 section, the amount allotted to Puerto Rico for a fiscal year

24 shall bear the same or lower proportion to the amount ap25 propriated pursuant to subsection (m) as the amount re-
156

•HR 3268 RH

1 ceived by Puerto Rico under this section for fiscal year 1996

2 bears to the aggregate of the amounts received by all States

3 under this section for fiscal year 1996.

4 ‘‘(f) DETERMINATION OF POPULATION FIGURES.—For

5 the purpose of providing grants under this section, the Sec6 retary shall use the most recent population data that are

7 available and satisfactory to the Secretary.

8 ‘‘(g) RESERVATION FOR STATE ACTIVITIES.—A State

9 may reserve not more than 25 percent of the amount allot10 ted to the State under this section for a fiscal year for ad11 ministration and other State-level activities in accordance

12 with subsections (h) and (i).

13 ‘‘(h) STATE ADMINISTRATION.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State may use up to 3

15 percent of the amount allotted to the State under this

16 section for a fiscal year for the purpose of administer17 ing this section, including the coordination of activi18 ties under this part with, and providing technical as19 sistance to, other programs that provide services to

20 children with disabilities.

21 ‘‘(2) USE OF AMOUNTS FOR ADMINISTRATION OF

22 PART C.—If the State educational agency is the lead

23 agency for the State under part C, amounts described

24 in paragraph (1) may also be used for the adminis25 tration of such part C.
157

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) OTHER STATE-LEVEL ACTIVITIES.—Each State

2 shall use any funds it retains under subsection (g) and does

3 not use for administration under subsection (h)—

4 ‘‘(1) for support services (including establishing

5 and implementing the mediation process required by

6 section 615(d)), which may benefit children with dis7 abilities younger than 3 or older than 5 as long as

8 those services also benefit children with disabilities

9 aged 3 to 5, inclusive;

10 ‘‘(2) for direct services for children eligible for

11 services under this section;

12 ‘‘(3) to develop a State improvement plan under

13 part D;

14 ‘‘(4) for activities at the State and local levels to

15 meet the performance goals established by the State

16 under section 612(a)(14) and to support implementa17 tion of the State improvement plan under part D if

18 the State receives funds under that part; or

19 ‘‘(5) to supplement other funds used to develop

20 and implement a Statewide coordinated services sys21 tem designed to improve results for children and fam22 ilies, including children with disabilities and their

23 families, but not to exceed one percent of the amount

24 received by the State under this section for a fiscal

25 year.
158

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(j) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN2 CIES.—

3 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT TO MAKE SUBGRANTS.—

4 Each State that receives a grant under this section for

5 any fiscal year shall distribute at least 75 percent of

6 the grant funds to local educational agencies in the

7 State, and to State agencies that received funds under

8 section 614A(a) (as such section was in effect on the

9 day before the date of the enactment of the IDEA Im10 provement Act of 1996) for fiscal year 1996, that have

11 established their eligibility under section 613.

12 ‘‘(2) METHODS OF DISTRIBUTION.—A State may

13 distribute funds under paragraph (1) on the basis

14 of—

15 ‘‘(A) total school age population;

16 ‘‘(B) school enrollment;

17 ‘‘(C) numbers of children with disabilities

18 aged 3 to 5, inclusive, receiving a free appro19 priate public education;

20 ‘‘(D) allocations for previous fiscal years;

21 ‘‘(E) any two or more of the factors de22 scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (D); or

23 ‘‘(F) poverty, in combination with one or

24 more of the factors described in subparagraphs

25 (A) through (D).
159

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(k) PART C INAPPLICABLE.—Part C of this Act does

2 not apply to any child with a disability receiving a free

3 appropriate public education, in accordance with this part,

4 with funds received under this section.

5 ‘‘(l) PROHIBITION ON CONSOLIDATION OF GRANTS FOR

6 TERRITORIES.—The provisions of section 501 of Public

7 Law 95–134 (48 U.S.C. 1469a; relating to the consolidation

8 of one or more grants provided to certain territories) shall

9 not apply with respect to amounts provided to a territory

10 under a grant under this section.

11 ‘‘(m) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For the

12 purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized

13 to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may be

14 necessary.

15 ‘‘PART C—INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH

16 DISABILITIES

17 ‘‘SEC. 631. FINDINGS AND POLICY.

18 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that there is an

19 urgent and substantial need—

20 ‘‘(1) to enhance the development of infants and

21 toddlers with disabilities and to minimize their po22 tential for developmental delay;

23 ‘‘(2) to reduce the educational costs to our soci24 ety, including our Nation’s schools, by minimizing

25 the need for special education and related services
160

•HR 3268 RH

1 after infants and toddlers with disabilities reach

2 school age;

3 ‘‘(3) to minimize the likelihood of institutional4 ization of individuals with disabilities and maximize

5 the potential for their independently living in society;

6 ‘‘(4) to enhance the capacity of families to meet

7 the special needs of their infants and toddlers with

8 disabilities; and

9 ‘‘(5) to enhance the capacity of State and local

10 agencies and service providers to identify, evaluate,

11 and meet the needs of historically underrepresented

12 populations, particularly minority, low-income,

13 inner-city, and rural populations.

14 ‘‘(b) POLICY.—It is therefore the policy of the United

15 States to provide financial assistance to States—

16 ‘‘(1) to develop and implement a statewide, com17 prehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, inter18 agency system of early intervention services for in19 fants and toddlers with disabilities and their families;

20 ‘‘(2) to facilitate the coordination of payment for

21 early intervention services from Federal, State, local,

22 and private sources (including public and private in23 surance coverage); and

24 ‘‘(3) to enhance their capacity to provide quality

25 early intervention services and expand and improve
161

•HR 3268 RH

1 existing early intervention services being provided to

2 infants and toddlers with disabilities and their fami3 lies.

4 ‘‘SEC. 632. DEFINITIONS.

5 ‘‘As used in this part:

6 ‘‘(1) AT-RISK INFANT OR TODDLER.—The term

7 ‘at-risk infant or toddler’ means an individual under

8 3 years of age who would be at risk of experiencing

9 a substantial developmental delay if early interven10 tion services were not provided to the individual.

11 ‘‘(2) COUNCIL.—The term ‘council’ means a

12 State interagency coordinating council established

13 under section 641.

14 ‘‘(3) DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY.—The term ‘devel15 opmental delay’, when used with respect to an indi16 vidual residing in a State, has the meaning given

17 such term by the State under section 635(a)(1).

18 ‘‘(4) EARLY INTERVENTION SERVICES.—The term

19 ‘early intervention services’ means developmental

20 services which—

21 ‘‘(A) are provided under public supervision;

22 ‘‘(B) are provided at no cost except where

23 Federal or State law provides for a system of

24 payments by families, including a schedule of

25 sliding fees;
162

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(C) are designed to meet the developmental

2 needs of an infant or toddler with a disability

3 in any one or more of the following areas—

4 ‘‘(i) physical development;

5 ‘‘(ii) cognitive development;

6 ‘‘(iii) communication development;

7 ‘‘(iv) social or emotional development;

8 or

9 ‘‘(v) adaptive development;

10 ‘‘(D) meet the standards of the State in

11 which they are provided, including the require12 ments of this part;

13 ‘‘(E) include—

14 ‘‘(i) family training, counseling, and

15 home visits;

16 ‘‘(ii) special instruction;

17 ‘‘(iii) speech-language pathology and

18 audiology services;

19 ‘‘(iv) occupational therapy;

20 ‘‘(v) physical therapy;

21 ‘‘(vi) psychological services;

22 ‘‘(vii) service coordination services;

23 ‘‘(viii) medical services only for diag24 nostic or evaluation purposes;
163

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ix) early identification, screening,

2 and assessment services;

3 ‘‘(x) health services necessary to enable

4 the infant or toddler to benefit from the

5 other early intervention services;

6 ‘‘(xi) social work services;

7 ‘‘(xii) vision services;

8 ‘‘(xiii) assistive technology devices and

9 assistive technology services; and

10 ‘‘(xiv) transportation and related costs

11 that are necessary to enable an infant or

12 toddler and the infant’s or toddler’s family

13 to receive another service described in this

14 paragraph;

15 ‘‘(F) are provided by qualified personnel,

16 including—

17 ‘‘(i) special educators;

18 ‘‘(ii) speech-language pathologists and

19 audiologists;

20 ‘‘(iii) occupational therapists;

21 ‘‘(iv) physical therapists;

22 ‘‘(v) psychologists;

23 ‘‘(vi) social workers;

24 ‘‘(vii) nurses;

25 ‘‘(viii) nutritionists;
164

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ix) family therapists;

2 ‘‘(x) orientation and mobility special3 ists; and

4 ‘‘(xi) pediatricians and other physi5 cians;

6 ‘‘(G) to the maximum extent appropriate,

7 are provided in natural environments, including

8 the home, and community settings in which chil9 dren without disabilities participate; and

10 ‘‘(H) are provided in conformity with an

11 individualized family service plan adopted in

12 accordance with section 636.

13 ‘‘(5) INFANT OR TODDLER WITH A DISABILITY.—

14 The term ‘infant or toddler with a disability’—

15 ‘‘(A) means an individual under 3 years of

16 age who needs early intervention services because

17 the individual—

18 ‘‘(i) is experiencing developmental

19 delays, as measured by appropriate diag20 nostic instruments and procedures in one or

21 more of the areas of cognitive development,

22 physical development, communication devel23 opment, social or emotional development,

24 and adaptive development; or
165

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) has a diagnosed physical or men2 tal condition which has a high probability

3 of resulting in developmental delay; and

4 ‘‘(B) may also include, at a State’s discre5 tion, at-risk infants and toddlers.

6 ‘‘SEC. 633. GENERAL AUTHORITY.

7 ‘‘The Secretary shall, in accordance with this part,

8 make grants to States (from their allocations under section

9 643) to assist each State to maintain and implement a

10 statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary,

11 interagency system to provide early intervention services for

12 infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.

13 ‘‘SEC. 634. ELIGIBILITY.

14 ‘‘In order to be eligible for a grant under section 633,

15 a State shall demonstrate to the Secretary that the State—

16 ‘‘(1) has adopted a policy that appropriate early

17 intervention services are available to all infants and

18 toddlers with disabilities in the State and their fami19 lies, including Indian infants and toddlers with dis20 abilities and their families residing on a reservation

21 geographically located in the State; and

22 ‘‘(2) has in effect a statewide system that meets

23 the requirements of section 635.
166

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 635. REQUIREMENTS FOR STATEWIDE SYSTEM.

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A statewide system described in

3 section 633 shall include, at a minimum, the following com4 ponents:

5 ‘‘(1) A definition of the term ‘developmental

6 delay’ that will be used by the State in carrying out

7 programs under this part.

8 ‘‘(2) A timely, comprehensive, multidisciplinary

9 evaluation of the functioning of each infant or toddler

10 with a disability in the State, and a family11 directed identification of the needs of each family of

12 such an infant or toddler, to appropriately assist in

13 the development of the infant or toddler.

14 ‘‘(3) For each infant or toddler with a disability

15 in the State, an individualized family service plan in

16 accordance with section 636, including service coordi17 nation services in accordance with such service plan.

18 ‘‘(4) A comprehensive child find system, consist19 ent with part B, including a system for making refer20 rals to service providers that includes timelines and

21 provides for participation by primary referral

22 sources.

23 ‘‘(5) A public awareness program focusing on

24 early identification of infants and toddlers with dis25 abilities, including the preparation and dissemina26 tion by the lead agency designated or established
167

•HR 3268 RH

1 under paragraph (8) to all primary referral sources,

2 especially hospitals and physicians, of information

3 for parents on the availability of early intervention

4 services, and procedures for determining the extent to

5 which such sources disseminate such information to

6 parents of infants and toddlers.

7 ‘‘(6) A central directory which includes informa8 tion on early intervention services, resources, and ex9 perts available in the State and research and dem10 onstration projects being conducted in the State.

11 ‘‘(7) A comprehensive system of personnel devel12 opment, including the training of paraprofessionals

13 and the training of primary referral sources respect14 ing the basic components of early intervention serv15 ices available in the State, that is consistent with the

16 comprehensive system of personnel development de17 scribed in section 612(a)(13) (or with the personnel

18 development requirements for State improvement

19 plans under section 683) and may include—

20 ‘‘(A) implementing innovative strategies

21 and activities for the recruitment and retention

22 of early education service providers;

23 ‘‘(B) promoting the preparation of early

24 intervention providers who are fully and appro-
168

•HR 3268 RH

1 priately qualified to provide early intervention

2 services under this part;

3 ‘‘(C) training personnel to work in rural

4 and inner city areas; and

5 ‘‘(D) training personnel to coordinate tran6 sition services for infants and toddlers served

7 under this part from an early intervention pro8 gram under this part to preschool or other ap9 propriate services.

10 ‘‘(8) Policies and procedures relating to the es11 tablishment and maintenance of standards to ensure

12 that personnel necessary to carry out this part are

13 appropriately and adequately prepared and trained,

14 including—

15 ‘‘(A) the establishment and maintenance of

16 standards which are consistent with any State

17 approved or recognized certification, licensing,

18 registration, or other comparable requirements

19 which apply to the area in which such personnel

20 are providing early intervention services; and

21 ‘‘(B) subject to subsection (b), to the extent

22 such standards are not based on the highest re23 quirements in the State applicable to a specific

24 profession or discipline, the steps the State is

25 taking to require the retraining or hiring of per-
169

•HR 3268 RH

1 sonnel that meet appropriate professional re2 quirements in the State;

3 except that nothing in this part, including this para4 graph, prohibits the use of paraprofessionals and as5 sistants who are appropriately trained and super6 vised, in accordance with State law, regulations, or

7 written policy, to assist in the provision of early

8 intervention services to infants and toddlers with dis9 abilities under this part.

10 ‘‘(9) A single line of responsibility in a lead

11 agency designated or established by the Governor for

12 carrying out—

13 ‘‘(A) the general administration and super14 vision of programs and activities receiving as15 sistance under section 633, and the monitoring

16 of programs and activities used by the State to

17 carry out this part, whether or not such pro18 grams or activities are receiving assistance made

19 available under section 633, to ensure that the

20 State complies with this part;

21 ‘‘(B) the identification and coordination of

22 all available resources within the State from

23 Federal, State, local and private sources;
170

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(C) the assignment of financial respon2 sibility in accordance with section 637(a)(1) to

3 the appropriate agencies;

4 ‘‘(D) the development of procedures to en5 sure that services are provided to infants and

6 toddlers and their families under this part in a

7 timely manner pending the resolution of any

8 disputes among public agencies or service pro9 viders;

10 ‘‘(E) the resolution of intra- and inter11 agency disputes; and

12 ‘‘(F) the entry into formal interagency

13 agreements that define the financial responsibil14 ity of each agency for paying for early interven15 tion services (consistent with State law) and pro16 cedures for resolving disputes and that include

17 all additional components necessary to ensure

18 meaningful cooperation and coordination.

19 ‘‘(10) A policy pertaining to the contracting or

20 making of other arrangements with service providers

21 to provide early intervention services in the State,

22 consistent with the provisions of this part, including

23 the contents of the application used and the condi24 tions of the contract or other arrangements.
171

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(11) A procedure for securing timely reimburse2 ment of funds used under this part in accordance

3 with section 640(a).

4 ‘‘(12) Procedural safeguards with respect to pro5 grams under this part, as required by section 639.

6 ‘‘(13) A system for compiling data requested by

7 the Secretary under section 618 that relates to this

8 part.

9 ‘‘(14) A State interagency coordinating council

10 that meets the requirements of section 641.

11 ‘‘(b) MODIFICATION OF PERSONNEL REQUIREMENT.—

12 If a State determines that the requirement of subsection

13 (a)(7)(B) would significantly inhibit the ability of the State

14 to contract with, or employ, an appropriate number and

15 types of personnel to provide early intervention services to

16 infants and toddlers with disabilities in a geographic re17 gion, the State may, subject to public notice and comment,

18 temporarily suspend the requirement for the region, in a

19 manner consistent with State law and for a period not ex20 ceeding 3 years, with respect to the most qualified available

21 individuals in shortage areas who are making annual

22 progress in applicable coursework.

23 ‘‘SEC. 636. INDIVIDUALIZED FAMILY SERVICE PLAN.

24 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENT AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT.—A

25 statewide system described in section 633 shall provide, at
172

•HR 3268 RH

1 a minimum, for each infant or toddler with a disability,

2 and the infant’s or toddler’s family, to receive—

3 ‘‘(1) a multidisciplinary assessment of the

4 unique strengths and needs of the infant or toddler

5 and the identification of services appropriate to meet

6 such needs;

7 ‘‘(2) a family-directed assessment of the re8 sources, priorities, and concerns of the family and the

9 identification of the supports and services necessary

10 to enhance the family’s capacity to meet the devel11 opmental needs of the infant or toddler; and

12 ‘‘(3) a written individualized family service plan

13 developed by a multidisciplinary team, including the

14 parents, as required by subsection (e).

15 ‘‘(b) PERIODIC REVIEW.—The individualized family

16 service plan shall be evaluated once a year and the family

17 shall be provided a review of the plan at 6-month intervals

18 (or more often where appropriate based on infant or toddler

19 and family needs).

20 ‘‘(c) PROMPTNESS AFTER ASSESSMENT.—The individ21 ualized family service plan shall be developed within a rea22 sonable time after the assessment required by subsection

23 (a)(1) is completed. With the parents’ consent, early inter24 vention services may commence prior to the completion of

25 such assessment.
173

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(d) CONTENT OF PLAN.—The individualized family

2 service plan shall be in writing and contain—

3 ‘‘(1) a statement of the infant’s or toddler’s

4 present levels of physical development, cognitive devel5 opment, communication development, social or emo6 tional development, and adaptive development, based

7 on objective criteria;

8 ‘‘(2) a statement of the family’s resources, prior9 ities, and concerns relating to enhancing the develop10 ment of the family’s infant or toddler with a disabil11 ity;

12 ‘‘(3) a statement of the major outcomes expected

13 to be achieved for the infant or toddler and the fam14 ily, and the criteria, procedures, and timelines used

15 to determine the degree to which progress toward

16 achieving the outcomes is being made and whether

17 modifications or revisions of the outcomes or services

18 are necessary;

19 ‘‘(4) a statement of specific early intervention

20 services necessary to meet the unique needs of the in21 fant or toddler and the family, including the fre22 quency, intensity, and method of delivering services;

23 ‘‘(5) a statement of the natural environments in

24 which early intervention services shall appropriately

25 be provided;
174

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(6) the projected dates for initiation of services

2 and the anticipated duration of such services;

3 ‘‘(7) the identification of the service coordinator

4 from the profession most immediately relevant to the

5 infant’s or toddler’s or family’s needs (or who is oth6 erwise qualified to carry out all applicable respon7 sibilities under this part) who will be responsible for

8 the implementation of the plan and coordination with

9 other agencies and persons; and

10 ‘‘(8) the steps to be taken to support the transi11 tion of the toddler with a disability to preschool or

12 other appropriate services.

13 ‘‘(e) PARENTAL CONSENT.—The contents of the indi14 vidualized family service plan shall be fully explained to

15 the parents and informed written consent from such parents

16 shall be obtained prior to the provision of early intervention

17 services described in such plan. If such parents do not pro18 vide such consent with respect to a particular early inter19 vention service, then the early intervention services to which

20 such consent is obtained shall be provided.

21 ‘‘SEC. 637. STATE APPLICATION AND ASSURANCES.

22 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION.—A State desiring to receive a

23 grant under section 633 shall submit an application to the

24 Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary

25 may reasonably require. Such application shall contain—
175

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) a designation of the lead agency in the

2 State that will be responsible for the administration

3 of funds provided under section 633;

4 ‘‘(2) a designation of a person responsible for as5 signing financial responsibility among appropriate

6 agencies;

7 ‘‘(3) information demonstrating eligibility of the

8 State under section 634, including—

9 ‘‘(A) information demonstrating to the Sec10 retary’s satisfaction that the State has in effect

11 the statewide system required by section 633;

12 and

13 ‘‘(B) a description of services to be provided

14 to infants and toddlers with disabilities and

15 their families through the system;

16 ‘‘(4) a description of the uses for which funds

17 will be expended in accordance with this part;

18 ‘‘(5) a description of the procedure used to en19 sure that resources are made available under this part

20 for all geographic areas within the State;

21 ‘‘(6) a description of State policies and proce22 dures that ensure that, prior to the adoption by the

23 State of any other policy or procedure necessary to

24 meet the requirements of this part, there are public

25 hearings, adequate notice of the hearings, and an op-
176

•HR 3268 RH

1 portunity for comment available to the general public,

2 including individuals with disabilities and parents of

3 infants and toddlers with disabilities;

4 ‘‘(7) a description of the policies and procedures

5 to be used—

6 ‘‘(A) to ensure a smooth transition for tod7 dlers receiving early intervention services under

8 this part to preschool or other appropriate serv9 ices, including a description of how—

10 ‘‘(i) the families of such toddlers will

11 be included in the transition plans required

12 by subparagraph (C); and

13 ‘‘(ii) the lead agency designated or es14 tablished under section 635(a) will—

15 ‘‘(I) notify the local educational

16 agency for the area in which such a

17 child resides that the child will shortly

18 reach the age of eligibility for preschool

19 services under part B, as determined

20 in accordance with State law;

21 ‘‘(II) in the case of such a child

22 who may be eligible for such preschool

23 services, with the approval of the fam24 ily of the child, convene a conference

25 among the lead agency, the family, and
177

•HR 3268 RH

1 the local educational agency at least 90

2 days (and at the discretion of all such

3 parties, up to 6 months) before the

4 child is eligible for the preschool serv5 ices, to discuss any such services that

6 the child may receive; and

7 ‘‘(III) in the case of such a child

8 who may not be eligible for such pre9 school services, with the approval of the

10 family, make reasonable efforts to con11 vene a conference among the lead agen12 cy, the family, and providers of other

13 appropriate services for children who

14 are not eligible for preschool services

15 under part B, to discuss the appro16 priate services that the child may re17 ceive;

18 ‘‘(B) to review the child’s program options

19 for the period from the child’s third birthday

20 through the remainder of the school year; and

21 ‘‘(C) to establish a transition plan; and

22 ‘‘(8) such other information and assurances as

23 the Secretary may reasonably require.

24 ‘‘(b) ASSURANCES.—The application described in sub25 section (a) shall contain the following:
178

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) A satisfactory assurance that the State

2 will—

3 ‘‘(A) make such reports in such form and

4 containing such information as the Secretary

5 may require to carry out the Secretary’s func6 tions under this part; and

7 ‘‘(B) keep such records and afford such ac8 cess thereto as the Secretary may find necessary

9 to assure the correctness and verification of such

10 reports and proper disbursement of Federal

11 funds under this part.

12 ‘‘(2) A satisfactory assurance that Federal funds

13 made available under section 633 will be used to sup14 plement and increase the level of State and local

15 funds expended for infants and toddlers with disabil16 ities and their families under this part and in no

17 case to supplant such State and local funds.

18 ‘‘(3) Such other information and assurances as

19 the Secretary may reasonably require by regulation.

20 ‘‘(c) STANDARD FOR DISAPPROVAL OF APPLICATION.—

21 The Secretary may not disapprove such an application un22 less the Secretary determines, after notice and opportunity

23 for a hearing, that the application fails to comply with the

24 requirements of this section.
179

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(d) SUBSEQUENT STATE APPLICATION.—If a State

2 has on file with the Secretary a policy, procedure, or assur3 ance that demonstrates that the State meets a requirement

4 of this section, including any policy or procedure filed

5 under part H (as in effect before the date of the enactment

6 of the IDEA Improvement Act of 1996), the Secretary shall

7 consider the State to have met the requirement for purposes

8 of receiving a grant under this part.

9 ‘‘(e) MODIFICATION OF APPLICATION.—An application

10 submitted by a State in accordance with this section shall

11 remain in effect until the State submits to the Secretary

12 such modifications as the State determines necessary. This

13 section shall apply to a modification of an application to

14 the same extent and in the same manner as this section

15 applies to the original application.

16 ‘‘SEC. 638. USES OF FUNDS.

17 ‘‘In addition to using funds provided under section

18 633 to maintain and implement the statewide system re19 quired by such section, a State may use such funds—

20 ‘‘(1) for direct early intervention services for in21 fants and toddlers with disabilities, and their fami22 lies, under this part that are not otherwise funded

23 through other public or private sources;
180

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) to expand and improve on services for in2 fants and toddlers and their families under this part

3 that are otherwise available; and

4 ‘‘(3) to provide a free appropriate public edu5 cation, in accordance with part B, to children with

6 disabilities from their third birthday to the beginning

7 of the following school year.

8 ‘‘SEC. 639. PROCEDURAL SAFEGUARDS.

9 ‘‘(a) MINIMUM PROCEDURES.—The procedural safe10 guards required to be included in a statewide system under

11 section 635(a)(10) shall provide, at a minimum, the follow12 ing:

13 ‘‘(1) The timely administrative resolution of

14 complaints by parents. Any party aggrieved by the

15 findings and decision regarding an administrative

16 complaint shall have the right to bring a civil action

17 with respect to the complaint in any State court of

18 competent jurisdiction or in a district court of the

19 United States without regard to the amount in con20 troversy. In any action brought under this paragraph,

21 the court shall receive the records of the administra22 tive proceedings, shall hear additional evidence at the

23 request of a party, and, basing its decision on the

24 preponderance of the evidence, shall grant such relief

25 as the court determines is appropriate.
181

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) The right to confidentiality of personally

2 identifiable information, including the right of par3 ents to written notice of and written consent to the

4 exchange of such information among agencies consist5 ent with Federal and State law.

6 ‘‘(3) The right of the parents to determine wheth7 er they, their infant or toddler, or other family mem8 bers will accept or decline any early intervention

9 service under this part in accordance with State law

10 without jeopardizing other early intervention services

11 under this part.

12 ‘‘(4) The opportunity for parents to examine

13 records relating to assessment, screening, eligibility

14 determinations, and the development and implemen15 tation of the individualized family service plan.

16 ‘‘(5) Procedures to protect the rights of the infant

17 or toddler whenever the parents of the child are not

18 known or cannot be found or the child is a ward of

19 the State, including the assignment of an individual

20 (who shall not be an employee of the State or any

21 person, or any employee of a person, providing early

22 intervention services to the infant or toddler or any

23 family member of the infant or toddler) to act as a

24 surrogate for the parents.
182

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(6) Written prior notice to the parents of the

2 infant or toddler with a disability whenever the State

3 agency or service provider proposes to initiate or

4 change or refuses to initiate or change the identifica5 tion, evaluation, placement, or the provision of appro6 priate early intervention services to the infant or tod7 dler with a disability.

8 ‘‘(7) Procedures designed to assure that the no9 tice required by paragraph (6) fully informs the par10 ents, in the parents’ native language, unless it clearly

11 is not feasible to do so, of all procedures available

12 pursuant to this section.

13 ‘‘(8) The right of parents to use mediation in ac14 cordance with section 615(e), except that—

15 ‘‘(A) any reference in such section to a

16 State educational agency shall be considered to

17 be a reference to a State’s lead agency established

18 or designated under section 635(a)(8);

19 ‘‘(B) any reference in such section to a local

20 educational agency shall be considered to be a

21 reference to a local service provider or the State’s

22 lead agency under this part, as the case may be;

23 and

24 ‘‘(C) any reference in such section to the

25 provision of free appropriate public education to
183

•HR 3268 RH

1 children with disabilities shall be considered to

2 be a reference to the provision of appropriate

3 early intervention services to infants and tod4 dlers with disabilities.

5 ‘‘(b) SERVICES DURING PENDENCY OF PROCEED6 INGS.—During the pendency of any proceeding or action

7 involving a complaint by the parents of an infant or toddler

8 with a disability, unless the State agency and the parents

9 otherwise agree, the infant or toddler shall continue to re10 ceive the appropriate early intervention services currently

11 being provided or, if applying for initial services, shall re12 ceive the services not in dispute.

13 ‘‘SEC. 640. PAYOR OF LAST RESORT.

14 ‘‘(a) NONSUBSTITUTION.—Funds provided under sec15 tion 643 may not be used to satisfy a financial commitment

16 for services which would have been paid for from another

17 public or private source but for the enactment of this part,

18 except that whenever considered necessary to prevent a

19 delay in the receipt of appropriate early intervention serv20 ices by an infant, toddler, or family in a timely fashion,

21 funds provided under section 643 may be used to pay the

22 provider of services pending reimbursement from the agency

23 which has ultimate responsibility for the payment.

24 ‘‘(b) REDUCTION OF OTHER BENEFITS.—Nothing in

25 this part shall be construed to permit the State to reduce
184

•HR 3268 RH

1 medical or other assistance available or to alter eligibility

2 under title V of the Social Security Act (relating to mater3 nal and child health) or title XIX of the Social Security

4 Act (relating to medicaid for infants or toddlers with dis5 abilities) within the State.

6 ‘‘SEC. 641. STATE INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COUNCIL.

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State that desires to re9 ceive financial assistance under this part shall estab10 lish a State interagency coordinating council.

11 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—The council shall be ap12 pointed by the Governor. In making appointments to

13 the council, the Governor shall ensure that the mem14 bership of the council reasonably represents the popu15 lation of the State.

16 ‘‘(3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Governor shall des17 ignate a member of the council to serve as the chair18 person of the Council, or shall require the council to

19 so designate such a member. Any member of the coun20 cil who is a representative of the lead agency des21 ignated under section 635(b)(8) may not serve as the

22 chairperson of the council.

23 ‘‘(b) COMPOSITION.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The council shall be com25 posed as follows:
185

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) PARENTS.—At least 20 percent of the

2 members shall be parents of infants or toddlers

3 with disabilities or children with disabilities

4 aged 12 or younger, with knowledge of, or experi5 ence with, programs for infants and toddlers

6 with disabilities. At least one such member shall

7 be a parent of an infant or toddler with a dis8 ability or a child with a disability aged 6 or

9 younger.

10 ‘‘(B) SERVICE PROVIDERS.—At least 20

11 percent of the members shall be public or private

12 providers of early intervention services.

13 ‘‘(C) STATE LEGISLATURE.—At least one

14 member shall be from the State legislature.

15 ‘‘(D) PERSONNEL PREPARATION.—At least

16 one member shall be involved in personnel prepa17 ration.

18 ‘‘(E) AGENCY FOR EARLY INTERVENTION

19 SERVICES.—At least one member shall be from

20 each of the State agencies involved in the provi21 sion of, or payment for, early intervention serv22 ices to infants and toddlers with disabilities and

23 their families and shall have sufficient authority

24 to engage in policy planning and implementa25 tion on behalf of such agencies.
186

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(F) AGENCY FOR PRESCHOOL SERVICES.—

2 At least one member shall be from the State edu3 cational agency responsible for preschool services

4 to children with disabilities and shall have suffi5 cient authority to engage in policy planning and

6 implementation on behalf of such agency.

7 ‘‘(G) AGENCY FOR INSURANCE.—At least

8 one member shall be from the agency responsible

9 for the State governance of insurance, especially

10 in the area of health insurance.

11 ‘‘(H) HEAD START AGENCY.—A representa12 tive from a Head Start agency or program in

13 the State.

14 ‘‘(I) A representative from a State agency

15 responsible for child care.

16 ‘‘(2) OTHER MEMBERS.—The council may in17 clude other members selected by the Governor, includ18 ing a representative from the Bureau of Indian Af19 fairs, or where there is no BIA operated or funded

20 school, from the Indian Health Service or the tribe/

21 tribal council.

22 ‘‘(c) MEETINGS.—The council shall meet at least quar23 terly and in such places as it deems necessary. The meetings

24 shall be publicly announced, and, to the extent appropriate,

25 open and accessible to the general public.
187

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(d) MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY.—Subject to the ap2 proval of the Governor, the council may prepare and ap3 prove a budget using funds under this part to conduct hear4 ings and forums, to reimburse members of the council for

5 reasonable and necessary expenses for attending council

6 meetings and performing council duties (including child

7 care for parent representatives), to pay compensation to a

8 member of the council if such member is not employed or

9 must forfeit wages from other employment when performing

10 official council business, to hire staff, and to obtain the serv11 ices of such professional, technical, and clerical personnel

12 as may be necessary to carry out its functions under this

13 part.

14 ‘‘(e) FUNCTIONS OF COUNCIL.—

15 ‘‘(1) DUTIES.—The council shall—

16 ‘‘(A) advise and assist the lead agency des17 ignated or established under section 635(b)(8) in

18 the performance of the responsibilities set out in

19 such section, particularly the identification of

20 the sources of fiscal and other support for serv21 ices for early intervention programs, assignment

22 of financial responsibility to the appropriate

23 agency, and the promotion of the interagency

24 agreements;
188

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) advise and assist the lead agency in

2 the preparation of applications and amendments

3 thereto;

4 ‘‘(C) advise and assist the State educational

5 agency regarding the transition of toddlers with

6 disabilities to preschool and other appropriate

7 services; and

8 ‘‘(D) prepare and submit an annual report

9 to the Governor and to the Secretary on the sta10 tus of early intervention programs for infants

11 and toddlers with disabilities and their families

12 operated within the State.

13 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITY.—The council may

14 advise and assist the lead agency and the State edu15 cational agency regarding the provision of appro16 priate services for children aged birth to 5, inclusive.

17 ‘‘(f) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—No member of the coun18 cil shall cast a vote on any matter which would provide

19 direct financial benefit to that member or otherwise give

20 the appearance of a conflict of interest under State law.

21 ‘‘SEC. 642. FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION.

22 ‘‘Sections 616, 617, 618, and 620 shall, to the extent

23 not inconsistent with this part, apply to the program au24 thorized by this part, except that—
189

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) any reference in such sections to a State

2 educational agency shall be considered to be a ref3 erence to a State’s lead agency established or des4 ignated under section 635(a)(8);

5 ‘‘(2) any reference in such sections to a local

6 educational agency, educational service agency, or a

7 State agency shall be considered to be a reference to

8 an early intervention service provider under this

9 part; and

10 ‘‘(3) any reference to the education of children

11 with disabilities or the education of all children with

12 disabilities shall be considered to be a reference to the

13 provision of appropriate early intervention services to

14 infants and toddlers with disabilities.

15 ‘‘SEC. 643. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.

16 ‘‘(a) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR TERRITORIES.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the sums appropriated

18 to carry out this part for any fiscal year, the Sec19 retary may reserve up to one percent for payments to

20 Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the

21 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in

22 accordance with their respective needs.

23 ‘‘(2) CONSOLIDATION OF FUNDS.—The provisions

24 of Public Law 95–134, permitting the consolidation of
190

•HR 3268 RH

1 grants to the territories, shall not apply to funds those

2 areas receive under this part.

3 ‘‘(b) PAYMENTS TO INDIANS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, subject

5 to this subsection, make payments to the Secretary of

6 the Interior to be distributed to tribes, tribal organi7 zations (as defined under section 4 of the Indian Self8 Determination and Education Assistance Act), or

9 consortia of the above entities for the coordination of

10 assistance in the provision of early intervention serv11 ices by the States to infants and toddlers with disabil12 ities and their families on reservations served by ele13 mentary and secondary schools for Indian children

14 operated or funded by the Department of the Interior.

15 The amount of such payment for any fiscal year shall

16 be 1.25 percent of the aggregate of the amount avail17 able to all States under this part for such fiscal year.

18 ‘‘(2) ALLOCATION.—For each fiscal year, the Sec19 retary of the Interior shall distribute the entire pay20 ment received under paragraph (1) by providing to

21 each tribe, tribal organization, or consortium an

22 amount based on the number of infants and toddlers

23 residing on the reservation as determined annually

24 divided by the total of such children served by all

25 tribes, tribal organizations, or consortia.
191

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION.—To receive a payment

2 under this paragraph, the tribe, tribal organization,

3 or consortia shall submit such information to the Sec4 retary of the Interior as is needed to determine the

5 amounts to be allocated under paragraph (2).

6 ‘‘(4) USE OF FUNDS.—The funds received by a

7 tribe, tribal organization, or consortia shall be used

8 to assist States in child find, screening, and other

9 procedures for the early identification of Indian chil10 dren under 3 years of age and for parent training.

11 Such funds may also be used to provide early inter12 vention services in accordance with this part. Such

13 activities may be carried out directly or through con14 tracts or cooperative agreements with the BIA, local

15 educational agencies, and other public or private non16 profit organizations. The tribe, tribal organization, or

17 consortia is encouraged to involve Indian parents in

18 the development and implementation of these activi19 ties. The above entities shall, as appropriate, make

20 referrals to local, State, or Federal entities for the

21 provision of services or further diagnosis.

22 ‘‘(5) REPORTS.—To be eligible to receive a grant

23 under paragraph (2), a tribe, tribal organization, or

24 consortia shall make a biennial report to the Sec25 retary of the Interior of activities undertaken under
192

•HR 3268 RH

1 this subsection, including the number of contracts and

2 cooperative agreements entered into, the number of

3 children contacted and receiving services for each

4 year, and the estimated number of children needing

5 services during the 2 years following the year in

6 which the report is made. The Secretary of the Inte7 rior shall include a summary of this information on

8 a biennial basis to the Secretary of Education along

9 with such other information as required under section

10 611(f)(3)(D). The Secretary of Education may require

11 any additional information from the Secretary of the

12 Interior.

13 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITED USES OF FUNDS.—None of the

14 funds under this subsection may be used by the Sec15 retary of the Interior for administrative purposes, in16 cluding child count, and the provision of technical as17 sistance.

18 ‘‘(c) STATE ALLOTMENTS.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graphs (2), (3), and (4), from the funds remaining for

21 each fiscal year after the reservation and payments

22 under subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary shall first

23 allot to each State an amount that bears the same

24 ratio to the amount of such remainder as the number
193

•HR 3268 RH

1 of infants and toddlers in the State bears to the num2 ber of infants and toddlers in all States.

3 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM ALLOTMENTS.—Except as pro4 vided in paragraphs (3) and (4), no State shall re5 ceive an amount under this section for any fiscal year

6 that is less than the greatest of—

7 ‘‘(A) one-half of one percent of the remain8 ing amount described in paragraph (1); or

9 ‘‘(B) $500,000.

10 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE FOR 1997 THROUGH 1999.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

12 paragraph (4), no State may receive an amount

13 under this section for any of the fiscal years

14 1997 through 1999 that is less than the sum of

15 the amount such State received for fiscal year

16 1994 under—

17 ‘‘(i) part H (as in effect on the day be18 fore the date of the enactment of the IDEA

19 Improvement Act of 1996); and

20 ‘‘(ii) subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1

21 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary

22 Education Act of 1965 (as in effect on the

23 day before the date of the enactment of the

24 Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994)
194

•HR 3268 RH

1 for children with disabilities under 3 years

2 of age.

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—If, for fiscal year 1998

4 or 1999, the number of infants and toddlers in

5 a State, as determined under paragraph (1), is

6 less than the number of infants and toddlers so

7 determined for fiscal year 1994, the amount de8 termined under subparagraph (A) for the State

9 shall be reduced by the same percentage by which

10 the number of such infants and toddlers so de11 clined.

12 ‘‘(4) RATABLE REDUCTION.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the sums made avail14 able under this part for any fiscal year are in15 sufficient to pay the full amounts that all States

16 are eligible to receive under this subsection for

17 such year, the Secretary shall ratably reduce the

18 allocations to such States for such year.

19 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—If additional

20 funds become available for making payments

21 under this subsection for a fiscal year, alloca22 tions that were reduced under subparagraph (A)

23 shall be increased on the same basis as such allo24 cations were reduced.
195

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(5) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this sub2 section—

3 ‘‘(A) the terms ‘infants’ and ‘toddlers’ mean

4 children under 3 years of age; and

5 ‘‘(B) the term ‘State’ means each of the 50

6 States, the District of Columbia, and the Com7 monwealth of Puerto Rico.

8 ‘‘(d) REALLOTMENT OF FUNDS.—If a State elects not

9 to receive its allotment under subsection (c), the Secretary

10 shall reallot, among the remaining States, amounts from

11 such State in accordance with such subsection.

12 ‘‘SEC. 644. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

13 ‘‘For the purpose of carrying out this part, there are

14 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec15 essary for each of the fiscal years 1997 through 2001.

16 ‘‘PART D—NATIONAL ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE

17 EDUCATION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

18 ‘‘SEC. 651. PURPOSE OF PART.

19 ‘‘The purpose of this part is to support national, State,

20 and local activities aimed at improving educational, early

21 intervention, and transitional services and opportunities

22 for children with disabilities.

23 ‘‘SEC. 652. ELIGIBILITY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

24 ‘‘No State, State educational agency, local educational

25 agency, educational service agency, or other public institu-
196

•HR 3268 RH

1 tion or agency may receive a grant, contract, or cooperative

2 agreement under this part which relates exclusively to pro3 grams, projects, and activities for children aged 3 to 5, in4 clusive, unless the State, or, in the case of an agency or

5 institution, the State in which the agency or institution is

6 located, is eligible to receive a grant under section 619.

7 ‘‘Subpart 1—General Provisions and National

8 Research and Improvement Activities

9 ‘‘SEC. 661. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop and

11 implement a comprehensive plan for ongoing activities con12 ducted by the Secretary under this part.

13 ‘‘(b) USE OF KNOWLEDGE IN DEVELOPING PLAN.—To

14 the maximum extent appropriate, the Secretary shall ensure

15 that the plan is based upon the knowledge gained from re16 search on practices that have been proven effective in im17 proving the achievement of children with disabilities.

18 ‘‘(c) CONSULTATION.—In developing the plan, the Sec19 retary shall consult the following persons:

20 ‘‘(1) Individuals with disabilities.

21 ‘‘(2) Parents of children with disabilities.

22 ‘‘(3) Representatives of State and local edu23 cational agencies and educational service agencies.

24 ‘‘(4) Private schools.

25 ‘‘(5) Institutions of higher education.
197

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(6) Other Federal agencies.

2 ‘‘(7) The National Council on Disability.

3 ‘‘(8) National organizations with an interest in,

4 and expertise in, providing services to children with

5 disabilities and their families.

6 ‘‘(9) Any other professionals determined appro7 priate by the Secretary.

8 ‘‘(d) DEADLINE.—The plan shall be developed not later

9 than the date that is 12 months after the date of the enact10 ment of the IDEA Improvement Act of 1996.

11 ‘‘SEC. 662. PRIORITIES.

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In making awards under this

13 part, the Secretary may, without regard to the rule making

14 procedures under section 553 of title 5, United States Code,

15 limit such awards to, or otherwise give priority to—

16 ‘‘(1) projects that address the improvement of the

17 academic performance of children with disabilities;

18 ‘‘(2) projects that address one or more—

19 ‘‘(A) age ranges;

20 ‘‘(B) disabilities;

21 ‘‘(C) grades in school;

22 ‘‘(D) types of educational placements or

23 early intervention environments;

24 ‘‘(E) types of services; or

25 ‘‘(F) content areas such as reading;
198

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) projects that address the needs of children

2 based on the severity of their disability;

3 ‘‘(4) projects that address the needs of—

4 ‘‘(A) low-achieving students;

5 ‘‘(B) underserved populations;

6 ‘‘(C) children from low-income families;

7 ‘‘(D) children with limited English pro8 ficiency;

9 ‘‘(E) unserved and underserved areas;

10 ‘‘(F) particular types of geographic areas,

11 such as inner-city or rural areas; or

12 ‘‘(G) institutionalized children in juvenile

13 and adult correctional institutions;

14 ‘‘(5) any activity that is expressly authorized in

15 this title;

16 ‘‘(6) a large-scale longitudinal study designed to

17 provide information on the long-term impact of edu18 cation agency disciplinary procedures on children

19 with disabilities;

20 ‘‘(7) research and development projects includ21 ing—

22 ‘‘(A) projects that advance knowledge

23 about—

24 ‘‘(i) teaching and learning practices,

25 and assessment techniques, instruments,
199

•HR 3268 RH

1 and strategies, including behavioral strate2 gies, that lead to improved results for chil3 dren with disabilities;

4 ‘‘(ii) the developmental and learning

5 characteristics of children with disabilities

6 in a manner that will improve the design

7 and effectiveness of interventions and in8 struction; or

9 ‘‘(iii) the coordination of education

10 with health and social services;

11 ‘‘(B) large-scale longitudinal studies de12 signed to produce information on the long-term

13 impact of early intervention and education on

14 results for individuals with disabilities;

15 ‘‘(C) model demonstration projects to apply

16 and test research findings in typical service set17 tings to determine the usability, effectiveness,

18 and general applicability of such research find19 ings in such areas as improving instructional

20 methods, curricula, and tools such as textbooks,

21 media, and other materials; and

22 ‘‘(D) projects which apply research and

23 other knowledge to improve educational results

24 for children with disabilities by—
200

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(i) synthesizing useful research and

2 educational products;

3 ‘‘(ii) ensuring that such research and

4 products are in appropriate formats for dis5 tribution to administrators, teachers, par6 ents, and individuals with disabilities; or

7 ‘‘(iii) making such research and prod8 ucts available through libraries, electronic

9 networks, parent training projects, and

10 other information sources, including the Na11 tional Information Dissemination System

12 under part D of title IX of Public Law

13 103–227;

14 ‘‘(8) projects which provide technical assistance

15 to—

16 ‘‘(A) States—

17 ‘‘(i) to link States to other technical

18 assistance resources, including special and

19 general education resources; or

20 ‘‘(ii) in gaining access to information,

21 including information on research and best

22 practices; or

23 ‘‘(B) State educational agencies, State lead

24 agencies serving infants and toddlers with dis25 abilities under part C, and other organizations
201

•HR 3268 RH

1 and agencies that play a critical role in provid2 ing for the participation of children with dis3 abilities in State and local assessments;

4 ‘‘(9) activities to produce, and promote the use

5 of, knowledge to address the special needs of children

6 who have a high likelihood of needing special edu7 cation and related services in order to reduce, through

8 early intervention, the need for special education serv9 ices later in life;

10 ‘‘(10) educational media activities including—

11 ‘‘(A) through September 30, 1998, video de12 scription, open captioning, or closed captioning;

13 ‘‘(B) video description, open captioning, or

14 closed captioning of educational, news, and in15 formational materials;

16 ‘‘(C) through September 30, 1998, distribu17 tion of captioned and described materials and

18 videos;

19 ‘‘(D) distribution of captioned and de20 scribed educational, news, and informational

21 materials and videos; and

22 ‘‘(E) recording free educational materials,

23 including textbooks, for visually impaired and

24 print-disabled students in elementary, secondary,

25 post-secondary, and graduate schools; and
202

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(11) projects to assist institutions of higher edu2 cation in appropriately serving students with disabil3 ities, including deaf students.

4 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term

5 ‘low-incidence disability’ means—

6 ‘‘(1) a visual impairment, a hearing impair7 ment, or simultaneous visual and hearing impair8 ments;

9 ‘‘(2) a significant cognitive impairment; or

10 ‘‘(3) any impairment for which a small number

11 of personnel, with highly specialized skills and knowl12 edge, are needed nationwide in order for all children

13 with disabilities who have the impairment to receive

14 early intervention services or a free appropriate pub15 lic education.

16 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—If the Secretary awards a grant, con17 tract, or cooperative agreement under this part prior to

18 February 1, 1998 with respect to an educational media ac19 tivity described in subparagraph (A) or (C) of subsection

20 (a)(10), the Secretary, after consulting with the chairman

21 of the Federal Communications Commission, shall submit

22 to the Committee on Economic and Educational Opportu23 nities of the House of Representatives and the Committee

24 on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate, not later

25 than April 15, 1998, a report on the progress that the Fed-
203

•HR 3268 RH

1 eral Communications Commission is making towards meet2 ing the requirements imposed on the Commission under sec3 tion 713 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

4 613).

5 ‘‘SEC. 663. PEER REVIEW.

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use a panel

7 of experts who are competent, by virtue of their training,

8 expertise, or experience, to evaluate an application under

9 this part that requests more than $75,000 in Federal finan10 cial assistance.

11 ‘‘(b) COMPOSITION OF PANEL.—A majority of a panel

12 described in subsection (a) shall be composed of individuals

13 who are not employees of the Federal Government.

14 ‘‘(c) PAYMENT OF FEES AND EXPENSES OF CERTAIN

15 MEMBERS.—The Secretary may use available funds appro16 priated to carry out this part to pay the expenses and fees

17 of panel members who are not employees of the Federal Gov18 ernment.

19 ‘‘SEC. 664. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.

20 ‘‘Except as otherwise provided in this part, the persons

21 who, and the agencies that, may apply for receipt of grants,

22 contracts, or cooperative agreements under this part are the

23 following:

24 ‘‘(1) Institutions of higher education.

25 ‘‘(2) State educational agencies.
204

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) Local educational agencies.

2 ‘‘(4) Educational service agencies.

3 ‘‘(5) Other public agencies.

4 ‘‘(6) Private nonprofit organizations.

5 ‘‘(7) Indian tribes and tribal organizations (as

6 defined under section 4 of the Indian Self-Determina7 tion and Education Assistance Act).

8 ‘‘(8) For-profit organizations.

9 ‘‘SEC. 665. APPLICANT AND RECIPIENT RESPONSIBILITIES.

10 ‘‘(a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS ON APPLICANTS AND

11 RECIPIENTS.—The Secretary may not make a grant to, or

12 enter into a contract or cooperative agreement with, a per13 son or agency under this part unless—

14 ‘‘(1) the person or agency involves individuals

15 with disabilities, and parents of children with disabil16 ities, in planning, implementing, and evaluating ac17 tivities conducted under the grant, contract, or agree18 ment;

19 ‘‘(2) the person or agency, where appropriate,

20 evaluates the potential for replication and widespread

21 adoption of such activities; and

22 ‘‘(3) the person or agency prepares their findings

23 and work product in a format useful for a specific

24 audience specified by the Secretary, such as parents,

25 administrators, teachers, early intervention personnel,
205

•HR 3268 RH

1 related services personnel, or individuals with disabil2 ities.

3 ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS IMPOSED AT DIS4 CRETION OF SECRETARY.—The Secretary may require that

5 a person who, or agency that, is awarded a grant, contract,

6 or cooperative agreement under this part—

7 ‘‘(1) assume a portion of the cost of carrying out

8 the grant, contract, or agreement;

9 ‘‘(2) disseminate the findings and work product

10 of the person or agency; and

11 ‘‘(3) collaborate with other such persons and

12 agencies.

13 ‘‘SEC. 666. INDIRECT COSTS.

14 ‘‘The Secretary—

15 ‘‘(1) may not permit any recipient of Federal

16 funds under this part to use more than 25 percent of

17 such funds for indirect costs; and

18 ‘‘(2) may further limit the extent to which any

19 such recipient may use such funds for such costs.

20 ‘‘SEC. 667. PROGRAM EVALUATION.

21 ‘‘The Secretary may use funds appropriated to carry

22 out this part to evaluate any activity carried out under

23 this part.
206

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 668. NATIONAL ASSESSMENT.

2 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE OF ASSESSMENT.—The Secretary shall

3 carry out a national assessment of activities carried out

4 with Federal funds under this title in order—

5 ‘‘(1) to determine the effectiveness of the title in

6 achieving the purposes of the title;

7 ‘‘(2) to provide information to the President, the

8 Congress, the States, local educational agencies, and

9 the public on how to implement the title more effec10 tively; and

11 ‘‘(3) to provide the President and the Congress

12 with information that will be useful in developing leg13 islation to achieve the purposes of this title more effec14 tively.

15 ‘‘(b) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall plan, re16 view, and conduct the national assessment under this sec17 tion in consultation with researchers, State practitioners,

18 local practitioners, parents of children with disabilities, in19 dividuals with disabilities, and other appropriate individ20 uals.

21 ‘‘(c) SCOPE OF ASSESSMENT.—The national assess22 ment shall examine how well schools, local educational

23 agencies, States, other recipients of assistance under this

24 title, and the Secretary are achieving the purposes of this

25 title, including—
207

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) the performance of children with disabilities

2 in general scholastic activities and assessments as

3 compared to nondisabled children;

4 ‘‘(2) providing for the participation of children

5 with disabilities in the general education curriculum;

6 ‘‘(3) helping children with disabilities make suc7 cessful transitions from—

8 ‘‘(A) early intervention services to preschool

9 education;

10 ‘‘(B) preschool education to elementary

11 school; and

12 ‘‘(C) secondary school to adult life;

13 ‘‘(4) placing and serving children with disabil14 ities, including children from underserved popu15 lations, in the least restrictive environment appro16 priate;

17 ‘‘(5) preventing children with disabilities, espe18 cially children with emotional disturbances and spe19 cific learning disabilities, from dropping out of

20 school;

21 ‘‘(6) assessing the use of disciplinary measures,

22 and the effect of such use, with children with disabil23 ities as compared to nondisabled children;

24 ‘‘(7) coordinating services provided under this

25 title with each other, with other educational and
208

•HR 3268 RH

1 pupil services (including preschool services), and with

2 health and social services funded from other sources;

3 ‘‘(8) addressing the participation of parents of

4 children with disabilities in the education of their

5 children; and

6 ‘‘(9) resolving disagreements between education

7 personnel and parents through activities such as me8 diation.

9 ‘‘(d) INTERIM AND FINAL REPORTS.—The Secretary

10 shall submit to the President and the Congress—

11 ‘‘(1) an interim report that summarizes the pre12 liminary findings of the assessment not later than Oc13 tober 1, 1998; and

14 ‘‘(2) a final report of the findings of the assess15 ment not later than October 1, 2000.

16 ‘‘SEC. 669. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro18 priated to carry out this subpart such sums as may be nec19 essary for each of the fiscal years 1997 through 2001.

20 ‘‘(b) MINIMUM AMOUNTS.—Subject to subsection (c),

21 the Secretary shall ensure that, for each fiscal year, at least

22 the following amounts are provided under this part to ad23 dress the following needs:
209

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(1) $12,832,000 to address the educational, re2 lated services, transitional, and early intervention

3 needs of children with deaf-blindness.

4 ‘‘(2) $4,000,000 to address the postsecondary, vo5 cational, technical, continuing, and adult education

6 needs of individuals with deafness.

7 ‘‘(c) RATABLE REDUCTION.—If the total amount ap8 propriated to carry out this part for any fiscal year is less

9 than $135,600,000, the amounts listed in subsection (b)

10 shall be ratably reduced.

11 ‘‘Subpart 2—Professional Development

12 ‘‘SEC. 671. PURPOSE.

13 ‘‘The purpose of this subpart is to help ensure that—

14 ‘‘(1) personnel responsible for serving children

15 with disabilities, including general and special edu16 cation personnel, related services personnel, and early

17 intervention personnel, have the knowledge and skills

18 necessary to help such children—

19 ‘‘(A) meet developmental goals and, to the

20 maximum extent possible, those challenging ex21 pectations that have been established for all chil22 dren; and

23 ‘‘(B) be prepared to lead productive, inde24 pendent adult lives to the maximum extent pos25 sible;
210

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(2) there are adequate numbers of such person2 nel to meet the needs of children with disabilities; and

3 ‘‘(3) the skills and knowledge of personnel re4 sponsible for serving children with disabilities reflect

5 the best practices, as determined through research and

6 experience, particularly with respect to the inclusion

7 of children with disabilities in the regular education

8 environment.

9 ‘‘SEC. 672. FINDING.

10 ‘‘The Congress finds that the conditions noted in para11 graphs (7) through (10) of section 601(c) can be greatly im12 proved by providing opportunities for the full participation

13 of minorities through the implementation of the following

14 recommendations:

15 ‘‘(1) Implementation of a policy to mobilize the

16 Nation’s resources to prepare minorities for careers in

17 special education and related services.

18 ‘‘(2) Focusing such policy on—

19 ‘‘(A) the recruitment of minorities into

20 teaching; and

21 ‘‘(B) financially assisting Historically

22 Black Colleges and Universities and other insti23 tutions of higher education (whose minority stu24 dent enrollment is at least 25 percent) to prepare
211

•HR 3268 RH

1 students for special education and related service

2 careers.

3 ‘‘SEC. 673. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES.

4 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may

5 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative

6 agreements with, eligible entities to support activities of na7 tional significance that—

8 ‘‘(1) have broad applicability; and

9 ‘‘(2) will help ensure that the purpose of this

10 subpart is met.

11 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out this

12 section, the Secretary may support any activity that is con13 sistent with subsection (a), including—

14 ‘‘(1) the development, evaluation, demonstration,

15 or dissemination of effective personnel preparation

16 practices for personnel to work with children with

17 disabilities;

18 ‘‘(2) promoting the transferability of licensure

19 and certification of teachers and administrators

20 among State and local jurisdictions;

21 ‘‘(3) developing and disseminating models that

22 prepare teachers with strategies, including behavioral

23 management techniques, for addressing the conduct of

24 children with disabilities that impedes their learning

25 and that of others in the classroom; and
212

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(4) supporting Historically Black Colleges and

2 Universities and institutions of higher education with

3 minority enrollments of at least 25 percent for the

4 purpose of preparing personnel.

5 ‘‘SEC. 674. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR PERSONNEL

6 SERVING LOW-INCIDENCE POPULATIONS.

7 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may

8 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative

9 agreements with, eligible entities to meet the purpose of this

10 subpart by supporting preparation for personnel who will

11 provide educational and related services to children with

12 low-incidence disabilities and personnel who will provide

13 early intervention services to infants and toddlers with dis14 abilities.

15 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Individuals who may be pre17 pared pursuant to this section include personnel

18 who—

19 ‘‘(A) are currently prepared in the fields of

20 educational, related, or early intervention serv21 ices; and

22 ‘‘(B) are studying—

23 ‘‘(i) to obtain degrees, certification, li24 censure, or endorsements in one or more of

25 such fields; or
213

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(ii) to meet competency requirements

2 in one or more of such fields.

3 ‘‘(2) SCHOLARSHIPS.—The Secretary may in4 clude funds for scholarships, with necessary stipends

5 and allowances, in awards under this section.

6 ‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.—Any application for assistance

7 under this section shall propose to provide preparation that

8 addresses a significant need, as shown by letters from one

9 or more States stating that the State—

10 ‘‘(1) intends to accept successful completion of

11 the proposed personnel preparation as meeting State

12 personnel standards for serving children with low-in13 cidence disabilities, or for serving infants and tod14 dlers with disabilities; and

15 ‘‘(2) needs personnel in the area or areas in

16 which the applicant proposes to provide preparation,

17 as identified in the State’s comprehensive system of

18 personnel development under part B or C, or in the

19 State’s State improvement plan under subpart 3.

20 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

21 term ‘low-incidence disability’ has the meaning given such

22 term in section 662(b).

23 ‘‘SEC. 675. LEADERSHIP PERSONNEL.

24 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may

25 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative
214

•HR 3268 RH

1 agreements with, eligible entities to meet the purpose of this

2 subpart by preparing educational, related service, and early

3 intervention leadership personnel (including teacher-prepa4 ration faculty, administrators, researchers, supervisors, and

5 principals) so that they are prepared to help children with

6 disabilities—

7 ‘‘(1) meet developmental goals and, to the maxi8 mum extent possible, those challenging expectations

9 that have been established for all children; and

10 ‘‘(2) be prepared to lead productive, independent

11 adult lives to the maximum extent possible.

12 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this section,

14 the Secretary may support any activity that is con15 sistent with subsection (a), including—

16 ‘‘(A) preparation of personnel at the ad17 vanced graduate, doctoral, or post-doctoral levels;

18 and

19 ‘‘(B) professional development of leadership

20 personnel.

21 ‘‘(2) SCHOLARSHIPS.—The Secretary may in22 clude funds for scholarships, with necessary stipends

23 and allowances, in awards under this section.

24 ‘‘(c) PREFERENCES.—In making awards under this

25 section, the Secretary shall give preference to projects at in-
215

•HR 3268 RH

1 stitutions of higher education that have successfully inte2 grated the professional development of general and special

3 education personnel.

4 ‘‘SEC. 676. SERVICE OBLIGATION.

5 ‘‘Each application for funds under section 674 or 675

6 shall include an assurance that the applicant will ensure

7 that individuals who are prepared under the proposed

8 project will subsequently perform work related to their prep9 aration or repay all or part of the cost of such preparation.

10 ‘‘SEC. 677. OUTREACH.

11 ‘‘(a) PLAN FOR OUTREACH SERVICES.—The Secretary

12 shall develop a plan for providing outreach services to the

13 entities and populations described in subsection (b) in order

14 to increase the participation of such entities and popu15 lations in competitions for grants, contracts, and coopera16 tive agreements under this subpart.

17 ‘‘(b) ENTITIES AND POPULATIONS DESCRIBED.—The

18 entities and populations referred to in subsection (a) are—

19 ‘‘(1) Historically Black Colleges and Universities

20 and other institutions of higher education whose mi21 nority student enrollment is at least 25 percent;

22 ‘‘(2) eligible institutions, as defined in section

23 312 of the Higher Education Act of 1965;
216

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(3) nonprofit and for-profit agencies at least 51

2 percent owned or controlled by one or more minority

3 individuals; and

4 ‘‘(4) underrepresented populations.

5 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.—For the purpose of implementing the

6 plan required under subsection (a), the Secretary shall, for

7 each of the fiscal years 1997 through 2002, expend 1 percent

8 of the funds appropriated for the fiscal year involved for

9 carrying out this subpart.

10 ‘‘(d) DILIGENCE.—The Secretary shall exercise the ut11 most authority, resourcefulness, and diligence of the Sec12 retary to meet the requirements of this section.

13 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than January 31 of each

14 year, beginning with fiscal year 1997 and ending with fis15 cal year 2002, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress

16 a final report on the progress toward meeting the goals of

17 this section during the preceding fiscal year. The report

18 shall include—

19 ‘‘(1) a full explanation of any progress toward

20 meeting the goals of this section; and

21 ‘‘(2) a plan to meet the goals, if necessary.

22 ‘‘(f) UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATIONS DEFINED.—

23 For purposes of this section, the term ‘underrepresented

24 populations’ means populations such as minorities, the
217

•HR 3268 RH

1 poor, individuals with limited English proficiency, and in2 dividuals with disabilities.

3 ‘‘Subpart 3—State Program Improvement Grants for

4 Children with Disabilities

5 ‘‘SEC. 681. PURPOSE.

6 ‘‘The purpose of this subpart is to assist States in re7 forming and improving their systems for providing edu8 cational and early intervention services, particularly their

9 systems for professional development, to improve the

10 achievement of children with disabilities.

11 ‘‘SEC. 682. ELIGIBILITY AND COLLABORATIVE PROCESS.

12 ‘‘(a) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A State may apply for

13 a grant under this subpart for a grant period that is not

14 less than one year, but is not greater than 4 years.

15 ‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION THAT COLLABORATIVE PROCESS

16 HAS BEEN USED.—A State that desires to receive a grant

17 under this subpart shall certify to the Secretary that a col18 laborative process with persons described in subsection (c)

19 has been used in developing the State improvement plan

20 described in section 683.

21 ‘‘(c) COLLABORATIVE PROCESS PARTICIPANTS.—

22 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED PARTICIPANTS.—The collabo23 rative process referred to in subsection (b) is a State

24 process for making decisions which includes as par-
218

•HR 3268 RH

1 ticipants, at a minimum, the Governor of the State

2 and representatives, appointed by such Governor, of—

3 ‘‘(A) parents of children with disabilities;

4 ‘‘(B) parents of nondisabled children;

5 ‘‘(C) individuals with disabilities;

6 ‘‘(D) organizations representing individuals

7 with disabilities and their parents;

8 ‘‘(E) community-based and other nonprofit

9 organizations related to the education and em10 ployment of individuals with disabilities;

11 ‘‘(F) the lead State agency official or offi12 cials for part C;

13 ‘‘(G) local educational agencies;

14 ‘‘(H) general and special education teach15 ers;

16 ‘‘(I) the State educational agency;

17 ‘‘(J) the State advisory panel established

18 under part B; and

19 ‘‘(K) the State interagency coordinating

20 council established under part C.

21 ‘‘(2) OPTIONAL PARTICIPANTS.—The collabo22 rative process may include, at the Governor’s discre23 tion, representatives, appointed by the Governor, of—

24 ‘‘(A) individuals knowledgeable about voca25 tional education;
219

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(B) the State agency for higher education;

2 ‘‘(C) institutions of higher education;

3 ‘‘(D) schools of education;

4 ‘‘(E) the State vocational rehabilitation

5 agency;

6 ‘‘(F) public agencies with jurisdiction in the

7 areas of health, mental health, social services,

8 and juvenile justice; and

9 ‘‘(G) any other individuals designated by

10 the Governor.

11 ‘‘SEC. 683. STATE IMPROVEMENT PLANS.

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State that desires to receive a

13 grant under this subpart shall submit to the Secretary a

14 State improvement plan that is integrated, to the maximum

15 extent possible, with State plans under the Elementary and

16 Secondary Education Act of 1965 and the Rehabilitation

17 Act of 1973, as appropriate.

18 ‘‘(b) DETERMINING CHILD AND PROGRAM NEEDS.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State improvement

20 plan shall identify those critical aspects of early

21 intervention, general education, and special education

22 programs (including professional development, based

23 on an assessment of State and local needs) that must

24 be improved to enable children with disabilities to
220

•HR 3268 RH

1 meet the goals established by the State under section

2 612(a)(14).

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIRED ANALYSES.—To meet the re4 quirement of paragraph (1), the State improvement

5 plan shall include at least—

6 ‘‘(A) an analysis of all information, reason7 ably available to the State, on the performance

8 of children with disabilities in the State, includ9 ing—

10 ‘‘(i) their performance on State assess11 ments and other performance indicators es12 tablished for all children, including drop13 out rates and graduation rates;

14 ‘‘(ii) their participation in postsecond15 ary education and employment; and

16 ‘‘(iii) how their performance on the as17 sessments and indicators described in clause

18 (i) compares to that of non-disabled chil19 dren;

20 ‘‘(B) an analysis of State and local needs

21 for professional development for personnel to

22 serve children with disabilities that includes, at

23 a minimum, relevant information on current

24 and anticipated personnel shortages, and on the

25 extent of certification or retraining necessary to
221

•HR 3268 RH

1 eliminate such shortages, that is based, to the

2 maximum extent possible, on existing assess3 ments of personnel needs; and

4 ‘‘(C) a summary of the information and

5 analysis provided by the State to the Secretary

6 under parts B and C on the effectiveness of the

7 State’s systems of early intervention, special edu8 cation, and general education in meeting the

9 needs of children with disabilities.

10 ‘‘(c) IMPROVEMENT STRATEGIES.—Each State im11 provement plan shall—

12 ‘‘(1) describe the strategies the State will use to

13 address the needs identified under subsection (b)(1),

14 including—

15 ‘‘(A) how it will hold school districts and

16 schools accountable for educational progress of

17 children with disabilities;

18 ‘‘(B) how it will provide technical assist19 ance to school districts and schools to improve

20 results for children with disabilities;

21 ‘‘(C) how it will address the identified needs

22 for in-service and pre-service preparation to en23 sure that all personnel who work with children

24 with disabilities (including both professional and

25 paraprofessional personnel who provide early
222

•HR 3268 RH

1 intervention services, special education, general

2 education, or related services) have the skills and

3 knowledge necessary to meet the needs of children

4 with disabilities, including a description of

5 how—

6 ‘‘(i) the State will prepare general edu7 cation and special education personnel with

8 the content knowledge and collaborative

9 skills needed to meet the needs of children

10 with disabilities, including how the State

11 will work with other States on common cer12 tification criteria;

13 ‘‘(ii) the State will prepare profes14 sionals and paraprofessionals in the area of

15 early intervention with the content knowl16 edge and collaborative skills needed to meet

17 the needs of infants and toddlers with dis18 abilities;

19 ‘‘(iii) the State will work with institu20 tions of higher education and other entities

21 that prepare (on both a pre-service and an

22 in-service basis) personnel who work with

23 children with disabilities to ensure that

24 such institutions and entities develop the

25 capacity to support professional develop-
223

•HR 3268 RH

1 ment programs which reflect actual edu2 cation practices and techniques;

3 ‘‘(iv) the State’s requirements for licen4 sure of teachers and administrators, includ5 ing certification and recertification, will be

6 modified to support an adequate supply of

7 personnel with the necessary skills and

8 knowledge (including, where appropriate,

9 strategies for developing reciprocal certifi10 cation agreements and common certification

11 requirements with other States); and

12 ‘‘(v) the State will work to develop col13 laborative agreements with other States for

14 the joint support and development of pro15 grams to prepare personnel for which there

16 is not sufficient demand within a single

17 State to justify support or development of

18 such a program of preparation;

19 ‘‘(D) how it will work in collaboration with

20 other States, particularly neighboring States, to

21 address the lack of uniformity and reciprocity in

22 the credentialing of teachers and other personnel;

23 ‘‘(E) strategies that will address systemic

24 problems identified in Federal compliance re-
224

•HR 3268 RH

1 views, including shortages of qualified personnel;

2 and

3 ‘‘(F) how the State will assess, on a regular

4 basis, the extent to which the strategies imple5 mented under this subpart have been effective;

6 and

7 ‘‘(2) describe how the improvement strategies

8 under paragraph (1) will be coordinated with public

9 and private sector resources.

10 ‘‘(d) REPORTING PROCEDURES.—Each State that re11 ceives a grant under this subpart shall submit performance

12 reports to the Secretary pursuant to a schedule to be deter13 mined by the Secretary, but not more frequently that annu14 ally.

15 ‘‘(e) PLAN APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall approve a

16 State improvement plan under this section if it—

17 ‘‘(1) meets the requirements of this part;

18 ‘‘(2) has been developed in accordance with the

19 requirements of section 682; and

20 ‘‘(3) in the opinion of the Secretary, has a rea21 sonable chance of achieving the purposes of the grant.

22 ‘‘(f) PLAN AMENDMENTS.—

23 ‘‘(1) MODIFICATIONS MADE BY STATE.—Subject

24 to paragraph (2), a plan submitted by a State in ac25 cordance with this section shall remain in effect until
225

•HR 3268 RH

1 the State submits to the Secretary such modifications

2 as the State determines necessary. This section shall

3 apply to a modification to a plan to the same extent

4 and in the same manner as this section applies to

5 the original plan.

6 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATIONS REQUIRED BY SEC7 RETARY.—The Secretary may require a State to

8 amend its State improvement plan at any time as a

9 result of the Secretary’s compliance reviews under

10 parts B and C. The Secretary may not provide fur11 ther funding under this subpart to the State until

12 such amendments are made.

13 ‘‘SEC. 684. USE OF FUNDS.

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives a grant

15 under this subpart may use the grant to carry out any ac16 tivities that are described in the State improvement plan

17 and that are consistent with the purpose of this subpart.

18 Such activities may include the awarding of subgrants, but

19 only if the subgrants are made to local educational agencies.

20 Any such local educational agency may award subgrants

21 to any person. Such activities may also include the award22 ing of contracts to appropriate entities.

23 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOP24 MENT.—A State that receives a grant under this subpart

25 shall use not less than 75 percent of the funds it receives
226

•HR 3268 RH

1 under the grant for any fiscal year to ensure that there is

2 a sufficient supply of personnel who have the skills and

3 knowledge necessary to enable children with disabilities to

4 meet developmental goals and to meet the needs of such chil5 dren, including working with other States on common cer6 tification criteria.

7 ‘‘(c) GRANTS TO TERRITORIES.—The provisions of

8 Public Law 95–134, permitting the consolidation of grants

9 to the territories, shall not apply to funds received under

10 this subpart.

11 ‘‘SEC. 685. MINIMUM STATE ALLOTMENTS.

12 ‘‘A State that receives a grant under this subpart shall

13 receive an amount that is—

14 ‘‘(1) not less than $200,000, in the case of the 50

15 States, the District of Columbia, and the Common16 wealth of Puerto Rico; and

17 ‘‘(2) not less than $40,000, in the case of a terri18 tory.

19 ‘‘SEC. 686. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

20 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out

21 this subpart such sums as may be necessary for each of the

22 fiscal years 1997 through 2001.
227

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘Subpart 4—Parent Training

2 ‘‘SEC. 691. GRANTS FOR PARENT TRAINING AND INFORMA3 TION CENTERS.

4 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may

5 make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative

6 agreements with, parent organizations to support parent

7 training and information centers to carry out activities

8 under this subpart.

9 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—A parent training and

10 information center that receives assistance under this sec11 tion shall—

12 ‘‘(1) assist parents to understand the availability

13 of, and how effectively to use, procedural safeguards

14 under this title, including the use of alternative meth15 ods of dispute resolution, such as mediation;

16 ‘‘(2) serve the parents of children with the full

17 range of disabilities; and

18 ‘‘(3) annually report to the Secretary on—

19 ‘‘(A) the number of parents to whom it pro20 vided information and training in the most re21 cently concluded fiscal year; and

22 ‘‘(B) the effectiveness of strategies used to

23 reach and serve parents of children with disabil24 ities, including underserved parents of children

25 with disabilities.
228

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(c) OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES.—A parent training and

2 information center that receives assistance under this sec3 tion may—

4 ‘‘(1) provide information to teachers and other

5 professionals who provide special education and relat6 ed services to children with disabilities;

7 ‘‘(2) assist students with disabilities to under8 stand their rights and responsibilities under section

9 615(j) on reaching the age of majority; and

10 ‘‘(3) establish cooperative partnerships with par11 ent organizations, and other organizations assisting

12 families of children with disabilities, in the commu13 nity.

14 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each applica15 tion for assistance under this section shall identify with

16 specificity the special efforts that the applicant will under17 take to—

18 ‘‘(1) ensure that the needs for training and infor19 mation of parents of underserved children with dis20 abilities in the area to be served are effectively met;

21 and

22 ‘‘(2) work with community-based organizations.

23 ‘‘(e) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—

24 ‘‘(1) INITIAL AWARDS.—
229

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall

2 make at least one award to a parent organiza3 tion in each State, unless the Secretary does not

4 receive an application from such an organiza5 tion in each State of sufficient quality to war6 rant approval.

7 ‘‘(B) SELECTION REQUIREMENT.—The Sec8 retary shall select among applications submitted

9 by parent organizations in a State in a manner

10 that ensures the most effective assistance to par11 ents, including parents in urban and rural

12 areas, in the State.

13 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL AWARDS.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may

15 make additional awards to community-based

16 parent organizations in each State.

17 ‘‘(B) SELECTION REQUIREMENT.—The Sec18 retary may make additional awards in a man19 ner that ensures that parents of children with

20 disabilities in low-income, high-density, and

21 rural areas have access to parent training and

22 information centers that provide appropriate

23 training and information.
230

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 692. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR PARENT TRAINING

2 AND INFORMATION CENTERS.

3 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may

4 provide technical assistance for developing, assisting, and

5 coordinating parent training and information programs

6 carried out by parent training and information centers re7 ceiving assistance under section 691.

8 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary may

9 provide technical assistance to a parent training and infor10 mation center under this section in areas such as—

11 ‘‘(1) effective coordination of parent training ef12 forts;

13 ‘‘(2) dissemination of information;

14 ‘‘(3) evaluation by the center of itself;

15 ‘‘(4) promotion of the use of technology, includ16 ing assistive technology devices and assistive tech17 nology services;

18 ‘‘(5) reaching underserved populations;

19 ‘‘(6) including children with disabilities in gen20 eral education programs;

21 ‘‘(7) facilitation of transitions from—

22 ‘‘(A) early intervention services to preschool;

23 ‘‘(B) preschool to school; and

24 ‘‘(C) secondary school to postsecondary en25 vironments; and
231

•HR 3268 RH

1 ‘‘(8) promotion of alternative methods of dispute

2 resolution.

3 ‘‘SEC. 693. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

4 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out

5 this subpart such sums as may be necessary for each of the

6 fiscal years 1997 through 2001.’’.

7 TITLE II—MISCELLANEOUS

8 PROVISIONS

9 SEC. 201. AMENDMENT TO ESEA TO COORDINATE IDEA AND

10 SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS.

11 Section 1114(a)(4) of the Elementary and Secondary

12 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6314(a)(4)) is amend13 ed—

14 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘Secretary

15 (other than formula or discretionary grant programs

16 under the Individuals with Disabilities Education

17 Act),’’ and inserting ‘‘Secretary,’’; and

18 (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘special

19 education and related services under an individual20 ized education program, procedural safeguards,’’ after

21 ‘‘civil rights,’’.

22 SEC. 202. EFFECTIVE DATES.

23 (a) PARTS A, B, AND C.—Except as provided in sub24 section (b), parts A, B, and C of the Individuals with Dis-
232

•HR 3268 RH

1 abilities Education Act, as amended by title I, shall take

2 effect on July 1, 1997.

3 (b) SECTION 605.—Section 605 of such Act, as amend4 ed by title I, shall take effect upon the enactment of this

5 Act.

6 (c) PART D.—Part D of such Act, as amended by title

7 I, shall take effect on October 1, 1997.

8 SEC. 203. REPEALERS.

9 (a) PART I.—Part I of the Individuals with Disabil10 ities Education Act is hereby repealed.

11 (b) PART H.—Effective July 1, 1997, part H of such

12 Act is hereby repealed.

13 (c) PARTS E, F, AND G.—Effective October 1, 1997,

14 parts E, F, and G of such Act are hereby repealed.