2023 New York Laws › EDN - Education › Title 6 - Special Schools and Instruction › Article 89 - Children With Disabilities. › 4403 - Duties of Education Department.

§ 4403. Duties of education department. The state education department
shall have power and it shall be its duty:  1. To maintain a statistical
summary  of  the  number of children with disabilities who reside within
the state and the nature of their disabilities and to use all means  and
measures necessary to adequately meet the physical and educational needs
of such children, as provided by law.
2.  To  stimulate  all private and public efforts designed to relieve,
care for or educate children with disabilities and  to  coordinate  such
efforts with the work and function of governmental agencies.
3.  To formulate such rules and regulations pertaining to the physical
and educational needs of such children as the commissioner of  education
shall deem to be in their best interests. In the city school district of
the  city  of  New  York  in  complying  with  any  rules or regulations
promulgated under this section relating to  maximum  group  size,  other
than  regulations  prescribing  the maximum class size in self-contained
special education classes, the commissioner shall allow school districts
a variance of up to fifty percent rounded up to the nearest whole number
from the maximum number of students as specified  in  regulation  in  an
instructional group in a resource room program, a related service group,
and the total number of students assigned to a resource room teacher.
4.  To  periodically  inspect,  report  on  the  adequacy  of and make
recommendations concerning instructional programs  or  special  services
for  all  children  with  disabilities who reside in or attend any state
operated or state financed social service facilities, youth  facilities,
health   facilities,   mental  health,  and  developmental  disabilities
facilities or state correctional facilities.
5. To require such financial information as may be necessary from  and
to  audit  any  public  or non-public school receiving any public moneys
pursuant to any provision of the education law as the commissioner deems
appropriate.
* 6. To provide for an advisory panel, appointed by  the  commissioner
composed  of  individuals involved in or concerned with the education of
children with disabilities,  including  individuals  with  disabilities,
teachers  of  children with disabilities, parents or persons in parental
relation of children or individuals with disabilities from birth to  age
twenty-six,  state  and local educational officials, including officials
who carry out  activities  under  subtitle  B  of  title  seven  of  the
McKinney-Vento  homeless  assistance  act  (section eleven thousand four
hundred thirty-one of title forty-two of  the  United  States  code,  et
seq.),  representatives of state or regional associations concerned with
the  education  of  children  with  disabilities,   representatives   of
institutions of higher education that prepare special education teachers
or  administrators  and/or related services personnel, administrators of
programs for students with disabilities, a representative of the  office
of  children  and  family  services with responsibility for foster care,
representatives of other state agencies involved  in  the  financing  or
delivery   of   related   services   to   children   with  disabilities,
representatives of nonpublic schools and,  upon  establishment  of  such
schools,  representatives  of  public charter schools, not less than one
representative of  a  vocational,  community  or  business  organization
concerned  with  the  provision  of transition services to students with
disabilities,  and  representatives  of   state   juvenile   and   adult
corrections   agencies,   to   advise   the  governor,  legislature  and
commissioner of unmet  needs  within  the  state  in  the  education  of
children  with  disabilities, in developing procedures for evaluation of
the special education system and the reporting of data  as  required  by
federal  law,  in developing corrective action plans to address findings
identified in federal monitoring reports, in developing and implementing

policies relating to coordination of services, and on the  education  of
students  with  disabilities  who  have  been  convicted  as  adults and
incarcerated in adult prisons and to comment publicly on  any  rules  or
regulations  proposed  for  issuance  by  the commissioner regarding the
education  of  children  with  disabilities  and  the   procedures   for
distribution  of  funds under this article. A majority of the members of
the advisory panel shall be individuals with disabilities or parents  of
children  with  disabilities.  Such  panel  members  shall serve without
compensation except that such members shall be entitled to reimbursement
for actual and necessary expenses incurred in such service.
* NB Effective until June 30, 2024
* 6. To provide for an advisory panel, appointed by  the  commissioner
composed  of  individuals involved in or concerned with the education of
children with disabilities,  including  individuals  with  disabilities,
teachers  of  children with disabilities, parents or persons in parental
relationship of children with disabilities, state and local  educational
officials,  representatives  of state or regional associations concerned
with the education of children  with  disabilities,  representatives  of
institutions of higher education that prepare special education teachers
or  administrators  and/or related services personnel, administrators of
programs for students with disabilities, representatives of other  state
agencies  involved  in  the financing or delivery of related services to
children with disabilities, representatives of  nonpublic  schools  and,
upon  establishment  of  such schools, representatives of public charter
schools, at least one  representative  of  a  vocational,  community  or
business   organization  concerned  with  the  provision  of  transition
services to students with disabilities,  and  representatives  of  state
juvenile  and  adult  corrections  agencies,  to  advise  the  governor,
legislature and commissioner of unmet needs  within  the  state  in  the
education  of  children  with disabilities, in developing procedures for
evaluation of the special education system and the reporting of data  as
required  by  federal  law,  in  developing  corrective  action plans to
address findings identified in federal monitoring reports, in developing
and implementing policies relating to coordination of services,  and  on
the  education  of students with disabilities who have been convicted as
adults and incarcerated in adult prisons and to comment publicly on  any
rules or regulations proposed for issuance by the commissioner regarding
the  education  of  children  with  disabilities  and the procedures for
distribution of funds under this article. A majority of the  members  of
the  advisory panel shall be individuals with disabilities or parents of
children with disabilities.  Such  panel  members  shall  serve  without
compensation except that such members shall be entitled to reimbursement
for actual and necessary expenses incurred in such service.
* NB Effective June 30, 2024
7.   To   define,   no   later   than  July  first,  nineteen  hundred
seventy-seven, in a report to the legislature and the governor, specific
criteria for determining whether a particular disorder or condition  may
be  considered  a  specific  learning disability and to describe in such
report diagnostic procedures which can be used in determining whether  a
particular  child  has such a disorder or condition, and to recommend in
such report, in consultation with the division of  the  budget,  a  cost
effective program proposal and finance recommendations.
8.  To  develop and distribute a handbook for parents of children with
disabilities and the members of committees and subcommittees on  special
education,  which handbook shall explain, in layman terms, the financial
and educational obligations of the state, the county or city,  the  home
school  district,  the committee on special education, and the parent or
legal guardian of a child with disabilities,  the  special  services  or

programs  available  pursuant  to this article, and the legal procedures
available to an aggrieved parent or  legal  guardian  of  a  child  with
disabilities.
9.  To  make provision by regulation of the commissioner to assure the
confidentiality of any personally identifiable  data,  information,  and
records  collected or maintained by the state department of education or
any school district, including a committee or  subcommittee  on  special
education,  and  the officers, employees or members thereof, pursuant to
or in furtherance of the purposes of this article, and  shall  establish
procedures   upon   which   any   such   personally  identifiable  data,
information, or records may be disclosed.
10. a. The commissioner shall determine whether a child, whose  report
is  submitted  to  the  department  pursuant  to  clause  (b)  or (d) of
subparagraph  five  of  paragraph  b  of  subdivision  one  of   section
forty-four  hundred  two  of  this  article  or  subdivision thirteen of
section three hundred ninety-eight of  the  social  services  law,  will
likely  need adult services and, if such need will likely exist, develop
a recommendation of all appropriate adult programs operated or  approved
by  the department which may be available. If necessary and appropriate,
the commissioner may conduct an evaluation of the child to determine  if
adult services will be needed. Such recommendation of all programs shall
be  made  available  to  the parent or guardian of such child as soon as
practicable but no later than six months before such child  attains  the
age of twenty-one.
b.  If  the  commissioner  determines, pursuant to paragraph a of this
subdivision, that such  child  will  not  require  adult  services,  the
commissioner  shall  notify the child's parent or guardian in writing of
such determination. Such notice shall be given as  soon  as  practicable
but  no  later  than  six  months  before  the  child attains the age of
twenty-one.
c. Notwithstanding  paragraphs  a  and  b  of  this  subdivision,  the
commissioner   may  determine  that  the  education  department  is  not
responsible for determining and recommending  adult  services  for  such
child.  When  such  a  determination is made it shall be made as soon as
practicable after  receiving  the  report  and  the  commissioner  shall
promptly   notify   in  writing  the  committee  on  special  education,
multidisciplinary team or social services official who sent  the  report
that  such  determination  has  been  made.  Such notice shall state the
reasons for the determination and may recommend a state agency which may
be responsible for determining and recommending adult services.
d. Nothing in  this  subdivision  shall  be  construed  to  create  an
entitlement to adult services.
e.  A  designee of the commissioner may carry out the functions of the
commissioner described in this subdivision.
11. To promulgate regulations concerning standards for the  protection
of  children in residential care from reportable incidents in accordance
with this section  and  article  eleven  of  the  social  services  law,
including procedures for:
(a)  consistent  with appropriate collective bargaining agreements and
applicable  provisions  of  the  civil  service  law,  the  review   and
evaluation  of  the  backgrounds  of and the information supplied by any
person applying to be an employee,  a  volunteer  or  consultant,  which
shall include but not be limited to the following requirements: that the
applicant  set forth his or her employment history, provide personal and
employment  references,  and  relevant  experiential   and   educational
qualifications  and,  sign  a  sworn  statement  indicating  whether the
applicant, to the best of his or her knowledge has ever  been  convicted
of a crime in this state or any other jurisdiction;
(b)  establishing,  for  employees,  relevant minimal experiential and
educational  qualifications,  consistent  with  appropriate   collective
bargaining  agreements  and  applicable  provisions of the civil service
law;
(c)  assuring  adequate  and  appropriate  supervision  of  employees,
volunteers and consultants;
(d)  demonstrating  by  a  residential  facility   or   program   that
appropriate  action  is  taken  to assure the safety of the child who is
alleged to have been subjected to a reportable incident in a  report  to
the vulnerable persons' central register in accordance with section four
hundred  ninety-two of the social services law as well as other children
in care,  immediately  upon  notification  that  such  a  report  of  an
allegation  of  a  reportable  incident  has been made with respect to a
child in such residential facility or program;
(e) removing a child when it is determined that there is risk to  such
child  if he or she continues to remain within a residential facility or
program; and
(f) appropriate preventive and remedial action to be  taken  including
legal   actions,   consistent  with  appropriate  collective  bargaining
agreements and applicable provisions of the civil service law.
Such standards shall also establish as a priority requirements that:
(A)  subject  to  amounts   appropriated   therefor,   administrators,
employees,  volunteers  and consultants receive training in at least the
following:   child  abuse  prevention  and  identification,  safety  and
security   procedures,   the   principles   of  child  development,  the
characteristics of children in care, and techniques of group  and  child
management  including  crisis  intervention,  the  laws, regulations and
procedures  governing  the  protection  of  children   from   reportable
incidents,  and  other  appropriate  topics,  provided however, that the
department  may  exempt  administrators  and   consultants   from   such
requirements upon demonstration of substantially equivalent knowledge or
experience; and
(B)  subject  to  the  amounts appropriated therefor, children receive
instruction, consistent with their age, needs and circumstances as  well
as  the  needs  and  circumstances within the program, in techniques and
procedures which will enable such children to advocate for  and  protect
themselves from reportable incidents.
The  department  shall  take  all  reasonable and necessary actions to
assure  that  employees,  volunteers  and  consultants  in   residential
facilities  and  programs  are  kept  apprised on a current basis of all
department  policies  and  procedures  relating  to  the  protection  of
children  from  reportable incidents and shall monitor and supervise the
provision of training to  such  administrators,  employees,  volunteers,
children  and consultants.  Regulations and standards developed pursuant
to this subdivision shall, to the extent possible,  be  consistent  with
those promulgated by other state agencies for such purposes.
(g)  consistent  with  applicable  collective  bargaining  agreements,
assuring that an individual who has committed a category one offense, as
defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision four  of  section  four  hundred
ninety-three  of  the  social  services  law,  that  is  included on the
vulnerable persons' central register is not hired or otherwise  used  in
any position in which such individual would have regular and substantial
contact  with  a service recipient in any program described in paragraph
(e) of subdivision four of section  four  hundred  eighty-eight  of  the
social services law.
12.  To  provide  for  the development and implementation of a plan of
prevention and remediation with respect to  a  substantiated  report  of
abuse  or  neglect.  Such  action  shall include: (a) within ten days of

receipt of such a substantiated report, development  and  implementation
of  a  plan  of prevention and remediation to be taken with respect to a
custodian or the residential facility in order to assure  the  continued
health  and  safety  of  children  and  to provide for the prevention of
future acts constituting reportable incidents; and (b)  development  and
implementation  of a plan of prevention and remediation, in the event an
investigation of an allegation of abuse or  neglect  determines  that  a
preponderance  of  the  evidence  of  such  allegation  exists  and such
substantiated allegation may be  attributed  in  whole  or  in  part  to
noncompliance  by the residential facility or program with provisions of
this  chapter  or  regulations  of  the  department  applicable  to  the
operation   of  such  residential  facility  or  program.  Any  plan  of
prevention and remediation required to be  developed  pursuant  to  this
subdivision  by  a  facility  supervised  by  the  department  shall  be
submitted to and approved by the  department  in  accordance  with  time
limits  established  by regulations of the department. Implementation of
the plan  shall  be  monitored  by  the  department.  In  reviewing  the
continued  qualifications  of  a  residential facility or program for an
operating certificate, the department  shall  evaluate  such  facility's
compliance  with  plans  of  prevention  and  remediation  developed and
implemented pursuant to this subdivision.
13.  To  provide  technical  assistance  to   school   districts   for
appropriate evaluation and assessment.
14.  To  provide technical assistance to school districts to assist in
the adaptation of  curriculum  for  the  instruction  of  children  with
disabilities.
15.  To  provide technical assistance to school districts to assist in
developing criteria for placement in special education and criteria  for
reviewing the ability of a pupil to participate in regular education.
16.  Commencing  with  the nineteen hundred eighty-seven--eighty-eight
school year, to provide for instruction during the months  of  July  and
August   of   students   with   disabilities  who  have  received  state
appointments  pursuant   to   article   eighty-five,   eighty-seven   or
eighty-eight  of this chapter and whose disabilities, in the judgment of
the commissioner, are severe enough to exhibit the need for a structured
learning environment of twelve months duration to maintain developmental
levels, by making such appointments for twelve months; provided that the
initial term of appointment of a student with a disability  who  is  the
minimum  age  eligible  for  such a state appointment shall not commence
during the months of July or August.
18. To establish guidelines for determining when a child is at risk of
a future placement in a residential school, and  for  the  provision  by
committees  on  special  education  of  information to parents and other
persons  in  parental  relationship  concerning  the   availability   of
community  support  services  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  family. The
guidelines shall be developed by the department after consultation  with
the  office  of  mental health, the office for people with developmental
disabilities, the office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, the
department of health, the department of social services and the division
for youth.
* 19. To adopt regulations prescribing the state complaint  procedures
pursuant to sections 300.151 through 300.153 of title thirty-four of the
code of federal regulations, where an individual or organization files a
written  complaint  alleging that a public agency has violated part B of
the individuals with disabilities education act. Such regulations  shall
include,  but  not  be  limited  to,  remedies for denial of appropriate
services,  including,  as  appropriate,   the   awarding   of   monetary

reimbursement,   compensatory   services   or  other  corrective  action
appropriate to the needs of the child.
* NB Effective until June 30, 2024
* 20.  To adopt regulations prescribing the state complaint procedures
pursuant to sections 300.660 through 300.662 of title thirty-four of the
code of federal regulations, where an individual or organization files a
written complaint alleging that a public agency has violated part  B  of
the  individuals with disabilities education act. Such regulations shall
include, but not be limited  to,  remedies  for  denial  of  appropriate
services,   including,   as   appropriate,   the  awarding  of  monetary
reimbursement or other corrective action appropriate to the needs of the
child.
* NB Effective June 30, 2024
21. (a) To require special act school districts listed in chapter five
hundred sixty-six of  the  laws  of  nineteen  hundred  sixty-seven,  as
amended,  to  provide, on an annual basis or more frequently, as needed,
enrollment  reports,  including  current  and   projected   enrollments,
proposed  budgets  and  any financial information the commissioner deems
appropriate, which shall include, but not  be  limited  to,  outstanding
revenue  anticipation  notes  as defined in paragraph (a) of subdivision
one of section fifty-five of the state  finance  law,  balance  owed  to
employee  benefit systems, outstanding bonds, lease costs, and any other
debts to monitor the fiscal stability of special act school districts.
(b) Upon receiving the information identified in paragraph (a) of this
subdivision, the department shall determine if any special act  district
is  in  need  of  financial guidance and assistance upon a comprehensive
review of such information provided. Upon a determination that a special
act district is in  need  of  financial  guidance  and  assistance,  the
department  shall,  as  soon  as  practicable, provide the district with
specific recommendations to improve the special act district's financial
standing in the short and long-term.