reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
MA Gen L ch 71b § 5c (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 5c - Zero Interest Loan Program for Extraordinary and Unanticipated Special Education Costs

Section 5C. (a) There is hereby established a zero interest loan program for extraordinary and unanticipated special education costs, to be administered by the department. The board of education shall promulgate regulations necessary for the operation of this program.  (b) Local and regional school districts may elect to apply to the loan program by vote of the school committee.  (c) The state comptroller shall establish on the books of the commonwealth a special education loan program trust fund. Any amounts appropriated for the purposes of this program shall be transferred into said trust fund.  (d) Any funds remaining in the trust fund at the end of a fiscal year shall be carried forward into the following fiscal year and shall remain available for expenditure without further appropriation.  (e) Districts may apply for zero interest loans to cover any portion of the amount by which the current year's total special education expenses are expected to exceed 110 per cent of the district's average total special education expenses of the prior three years. For the purposes of this section, total special education expenses shall include instructional costs, private school tuition costs and premiums paid to the risk pool trust fund established in section 5B, but shall not include transportation costs. Loan applications shall be subject to review and approval by the commissioner. Approved loan amounts shall be paid from the trust fund established in subsection (c).  (f) The commissioner may make such adjustments as are necessary to loan applications to account for reimbursements received under any other state or federal programs.  (g) Loans shall be repaid over a five-year period according to a schedule to be established through department regulations. At the direction of the commissioner, loan repayments due from participating districts shall be deducted from said district's quarterly local aid distributions and deposited in said trust fund.  (h) Commonwealth charter schools may participate in the program in the same manner as local and regional school districts provided that any payments due to the trust fund may be deducted from tuition payments otherwise to be deducted from district quarterly local aid distributions pursuant to subsection (nn) of section 89 of chapter 71. Said payments shall be deposited in said trust fund.  (i) A reasonable amount of administrative costs may be expended annually from the trust fund for the administration of the program.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 6 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 6 - Assignment of Children to Classes; Annual Report; Equal Educational Opportunities; Prima Facie Denial; Hearings; Injunctive or Other Relief

Section 6. School committees shall annually report to the department, pursuant to regulations promulgated by the department, the assignment by sex, national origin, economic status, race and religion, of children by age level to special education classes and the distribution of children residing in the district by sex, national origin, economic status, race and religion of children by age level. Within any school district if in any special education program there is a pattern of assignment throughout the district on the basis of sex, national origin, economic status, race or religion of the students which is substantially disproportionate from the distribution, the department shall notify such school district of its prima facie denial of equal educational opportunities. The department shall hold public hearings to investigate into such prima facie denial, at which hearings the local school district shall show that such disproportion is necessary to promote a compelling education interest of the children affected and of the commonwealth. If the local school district fails to make such showing, a denial of equal educational opportunities shall be declared by the department and it shall order said district to submit a plan to eliminate such denial to be effective for the school year immediately following such declaration and order. If in the view of the department the plan submitted is inadequate, or if implementation of said plan proves inadequate, the department may request the attorney general to proceed to the superior court for all necessary injunctive and other relief. If such prima facie denial has continued without elimination for a period of two consecutive years in any school district, any person residing in such school district may bring suit in the superior court of his residence to determine whether there is such adequate justification for the prima facie denial, and in the event there is not, to obtain the necessary and appropriate injunctive or other relief.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 7 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 7 - Tests for Selection of Children for Referral, Diagnosis, or Evaluation

Section 7. No results of standardized or local tests of ability, aptitude, attitude, affect, achievement, or aspiration may be used exclusively in the selection of children for referral, diagnosis, or evaluation. Such tests shall be approved by the department in accordance with regulations issued by the board to insure that they are as free as possible from cultural and linguistic bias or, wherever necessary, separately evaluated with reference to the linguistic and cultural groups to which the child belongs.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 8 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 8 - Transportation to and From School; Reimbursement to Parents

Section 8. If a school age child with a disability attends a school approved by the department within or without the city or town of residence of the parent or guardian, the school committee of the town where the child resides may be required by the department to provide transportation once each day including weekends where applicable to and from such school while the child is in attendance. The city or town providing transportation under this section shall be reimbursed according to the provisions of section fourteen.  A school committee may adopt a program to reimburse parents who voluntarily choose to transport their disabled child to a school approved by the department that is located outside of the city or town of residence of the parent or guardian. The reimbursement program may utilize rates in excess of the standard state mileage reimbursement amounts and may be based on a mileage, daily or weekly rate. Committees choosing to utilize this option shall be able to demonstrate that parental reimbursements represent a cost savings compared to other modes of available transportation. An eligible parent shall not be required to participate in the program.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 9 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 9 - Department to Define Circumstances Requiring Special Education Programs and to Provide Standards

Section 9. The department, after consultation with the departments of mental health, developmental services and public health, shall define the circumstances in which school committees may be required to provide special classes, instruction periods or other special education programs for school age children with a disability and shall provide standards for class size, curriculum, personnel and other aspects of special education for such children.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 9a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 9a - Workshop Curriculum; Parent Advisory Committee

Section 9A. The department of education shall provide a workshop curriculum on the rights of students, their parents and guardians under the special education laws of the commonwealth and the federal government to each school district in the commonwealth to be used by such school districts in conducting the workshops required by section 1C of chapter 71. The department of education shall establish a Parent Advisory Committee to assist and advise in developing said workshop curriculum. The Parent Advisory Committee shall consist of representatives from the Federation for Children with Special Needs, the Massachusetts Association of Parent Advisory Councils, the Parent Professional Advocacy League, the Disability Law Center, and the Massachusetts Advocacy Center.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 11a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 11a - Incarcerated Children With a Disability; Special Education

Section 11A. The department of education shall provide special education to school aged children with a disability who are incarcerated in county houses of correction.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 12a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 12a - Definitions Applicable to Secs. 12a to 12c

Section 12A. For the purposes of sections twelve A to twelve C, inclusive, the following words shall have the following meanings:  ''Disabled person'', a person who is unable to engage in substantial gainful activity by reason of medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or be of at least twelve months' duration; provided, however, that such impairment is of such severity that such individual is unable to do his previous work, if any, and, considering his age, education, and work experience, cannot engage in substantial gainful activity.  ''Education authority'', the school committee or other education provider responsible for the provision of special education pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.  ''Habilitative services'', services directed toward the alleviation of limitations on major life activities of a disabled person, including diagnosis, evaluation, treatment, personal care, daycare, respite care, home care, residential care, group care in a community residence, special living arrangements, training, education, sheltered employment, supported work, recreation, counseling, protective and social services, legal services, information and referral services, and transportation services.  ''Major life activity'', self-care, including personal hygiene, dressing and eating; communication and language skills, including reception and expression; learning; mobility; capacity for independent living; and economic self-sufficiency.  ''Substantial gainful activity'', the performance of a task for at least twenty hours per week for which a disabled person receives compensation either in currency or in-kind; provided, however, that such activity shall not include sheltered workshops, supported work, occupational therapy or any other work activity supported by the federal, state, or local governments for the purpose of assisting such disabled person to participate in such activity.  ''Transitional plan'', a plan for a program of habilitative services for disabled person whose entitlement to services under special education programs has terminated or will terminate as a result of such person's graduation from high school or attainment of age twenty-two.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 12b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 12b - Bureau of Transitional Planning; Transitional Advisory Committee; Establishment

Section 12B. There shall be within the executive office of human services a bureau of transitional planning. There is also hereby established within the executive office of human services a committee, to be known as the transitional advisory committee, which shall meet on a regular and periodic basis for the purpose of reviewing and approving transitional plans for disabled persons whose entitlement to services under special education programs has terminated or will terminate within two years. The committee shall consist of the secretary of the executive office of human services who shall be chairman, or his designee, and one representative from each of the following agencies: the executive office of labor and workforce development, the department of mental health, the department of developmental services, the department of children and families, the department of transitional assistance, the department of public health, the Massachusetts rehabilitation commission, the Massachusetts office of deafness, the Massachusetts commission for the blind and the department of education. Said representatives shall be designated by the executive secretary, commissioner or department head whose agency they shall represent. The committee shall adopt rules and procedures governing its proceedings. Members of the committee shall not be compensated for service on said committee.
MA Gen L ch 71b § 16 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 71b - Children With Special Needs|Section 16 - Students With Disabilities; Participation in High School Graduation Ceremonies and Activities Without Award of High School Diploma

Section 16. A school age child with a disability, in this section called a student, who is completing the twelfth grade but who has not yet earned the competency determination as required under section 1D of chapter 69 for high school graduation, shall be allowed to participate fully in high school graduation ceremonies and activities conducted or sponsored by the school or school committee even though the student will not receive a diploma during the ceremony if:—  (a) The student has maintained at least a 95 per cent attendance level, meaning no more than 9 days of absence from school in a 180 day school year, during the school year before the twelfth grade, but, a student's absence from school due to disability, illness, religious observance or other reason that constitutes an excused absence under the school's or school committee's rules shall not be counted for purposes of this section;  (b) The student has taken the grade 10 MCAS examination in each subject area in which the student did not achieve a passing score at least 3 times, or has participated in the MCAS alternate assessment by submitting at least 2 portfolios; and  (c) The student is in good standing, having met all of the school's or school committee's nonacademic standards for students to be eligible to participate in graduation ceremonies and related school activities.  Nothing in this section shall compel a student to participate in the high school graduation ceremony and activities. The superintendent shall consider the recommendation, if any, of the student's individualized education program team as well as the student's own expressed preference. A student's participation in the high school graduation ceremony and activities without award of the high school diploma shall not affect or limit the student's eligibility for special education services.
MA Gen L ch 72 § 1 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 72 - School Registers and Returns|Section 1 - Distribution of Forms

Section 1. The commissioner of education shall prepare and send forms for the registration of minors required by section two, the school registers, blank forms for school returns required by section three, and the annual report of the department of education, as soon as ready for distribution, to the superintendent of schools of each town, who shall, on receipt thereof, deliver them to the several persons charged with duties in connection therewith, and send to the commissioner a list of the private schools in such town and the names of their principals. If said superintendent does not receive said forms on or before July fifth, he shall forthwith notify the commissioner who shall thereupon transmit them to him. The commissioner shall also send the report of the department to the chairman of each school committee.
MA Gen L ch 72 § 2 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 72 - School Registers and Returns|Section 2 - Registration of Children; Reports

Section 2. The school committee of each town shall ascertain and record the names, ages and such other information as may be required by the department of education, of all minors residing therein between five and sixteen, and of all minors over sixteen who do not meet the requirements for the completion of the sixth grade of the public schools of the town where he resides. The school committee of each town shall also ascertain the number of pupils, regardless of age, whose parents or guardians are residents of the town and who are enrolled for full-time attendance, in kindergarten and grades up to and including grade twelve, in public and vocational schools and classes in the commonwealth and nonpublic schools anywhere. Whoever, in control of any such minor, withholds information sought by a school committee or its agents under this section or makes a false statement relative thereto, shall be punished by a fine of not more than fifty dollars. Supervisors of attendance, under the direction of the committee and superintendent of schools, shall have charge of the records required by this section, shall be responsible for their completeness and accuracy, and shall receive the co-operation of principals, teachers and supervisory officers in the discharge of their duties hereunder. A card, as prescribed by the department, shall be kept for every child whose name is recorded hereunder. Supervisors of attendance shall compare the names of children enrolled in the public and private schools with the names of those recorded as required herein, and examine carefully into all cases where children of school age are not enrolled in, and attending school, as required by section one of chapter seventy-six.  The annual school committee report shall set forth the number of children recorded as herein required, classified by ages, together with the number attending public or private schools, and the number not attending school, in any given year.  The supervisory officers of all private schools shall, within thirty days after the enrollment or registration of any child of compulsory school age, report his name, age and residence to the superintendent of schools of the town where the child resides; and whenever a child withdraws from a private school, such officers shall, within ten days, notify said superintendent.
MA Gen L ch 72 § 2a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 72 - School Registers and Returns|Section 2a - Annual Reports of Superintendents of Schools; Contents

Section 2A. The superintendent of schools of each town shall file annually on or before May first with the commissioner of education, on forms provided by the department of education, a sworn statement reporting the number of pupils whose parents or guardians were residents of the town and who were enrolled on the preceding January first for full-time attendance in the following schools and classes, respectively, including kindergarten and grades one through twelve:—  First. Pupils in schools and classes in the town under the control of the school committee, excluding pupils in schools and classes of regional school districts.  Second. Pupils in schools and classes of a regional school district which includes the town.  Third. Pupils in schools and classes elsewhere in the commonwealth under the control of school committees.  Fourth. Pupils in vocational schools and classes in the town under the control of the local trustees of vocational education, excluding pupils in vocational schools and classes under the control of district trustees for vocational education.  Fifth. Pupils in vocational schools and classes under the control of district trustees for vocational education in a district which includes the town.  Sixth. Pupils in vocational or other schools and classes elsewhere in the commonwealth which are supported by public funds.  Seventh. Pupils in nonpublic schools anywhere. Such information shall be collected during the months of January and February.  Before filing said statement, the superintendent shall submit it to the chairman of the school committee, who shall countersign it on oath, if after examination, he finds it correct.  In any city or town wherein a twelve-month school year has been adopted, the enrollment on the preceding January first, as aforesaid, shall include all of said pupils attending public schools, notwithstanding that their actual date of enrollment is subsequent to said January first.
MA Gen L ch 72 § 3 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 72 - School Registers and Returns|Section 3 - School Returns; Contents

Section 3. The superintendent of schools shall annually on or before September fifteenth transmit the school returns to the commissioner, signed and sworn to by him, containing the following information together with any other information required by the commissioner in accordance with section one of chapter sixty-nine:—  First. The average daily membership of the public and vocational schools of the town for the school year last preceding the date of said certificate as determined under section eight.  Second. The amount of money raised by taxation by the town and expended during the fiscal year last preceding said date for the support of public schools, including the wages of teachers, and transportation of children, or board in place thereof, fuel, the care of fires, schoolrooms and school premises, repairs, supervision, textbooks and supplies, and school sundries or incidentals, but excluding alterations of school buildings, other than repairs, and construction of schoolhouses and contributions for, and reimbursements on account of, the support of public schools from the commonwealth or from other sources than local taxation; and the total expenditures, classified, for the public schools during the school year last preceding said date.  Third. That the town has maintained during the school year last preceding the said date each of its schools, as required by section one of chapter seventy-one, for a period of not less than one hundred and eighty days, or for what shorter period one or more schools have been maintained, if specifically exempted by the department.  Fourth. That the town has, during said school year, complied with said chapter seventy-one in the matter of school instruction, and the number of days schools were in session.  Before filing said school returns, the superintendent shall submit them to the chairman of the school committee, who shall countersign them on oath, if, after examination, he finds them correct.
MA Gen L ch 72 § 4 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title XII - Education|Chapter 72 - School Registers and Returns|Section 4 - Report of Condition of Schools

Section 4. The committee shall annually make a detailed report of the condition of the public schools, containing such statements or suggestions relative thereto as it considers necessary or proper. It shall cause said report to be printed, for the use of the inhabitants, in octavo, pamphlet form, of the size of the annual reports of the department. The superintendent of schools shall transmit two copies thereof to the commissioner on or before April thirtieth, and shall deposit one copy in the office of the town clerk.