[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 36 (Friday, February 22, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8446-8447]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-4285]



[[Page 8445]]

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Part VII





Department of Education





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Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; List of 
Correspondence; Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 36 / Friday, February 22, 2002 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; List of 
Correspondence

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: List of correspondence from July 1, 2001 through September 30, 
2001.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary is publishing the following list pursuant to 
section 607(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(IDEA). Under section 607(d) of IDEA, the Secretary is required, on a 
quarterly basis, to publish in the Federal Register a list of 
correspondence from the Department of Education received by individuals 
during the previous quarter that describes the interpretations of the 
Department of Education of IDEA or the regulations that implement IDEA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melisande Lee or JoLeta Reynolds. 
Telephone: (202) 205-5507.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) you may 
call (202) 205-5637 or the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 
1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of this notice in 
an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or 
computer diskette) on request to Katie Mincey, Director of the 
Alternate Formats Center. Telephone: (202) 205-8113.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following list identifies correspondence 
from the Department issued from July 1, 2001 through September 30, 
2001.
    Included on the list are those letters that contain interpretations 
of the requirements of IDEA and its implementing regulations, as well 
as letters and other documents that the Department believes will assist 
the public in understanding the requirements of the law and its 
regulations. The date and topic addressed by a letter are identified, 
and summary information is also provided, as appropriate. To protect 
the privacy interests of the individual or individuals involved, 
personally identifiable information has been deleted, as appropriate.

Part A--General Provisions

Section 607--Requirements for Prescribing Regulations

Topic Addressed: Applicability of Regulations
     OSEP memorandum 01-18 dated September 12, 2001 to State 
Directors of Special Education, regarding the availability of 
electronic copies of letters of clarification and selected OSEP 
memoranda on the OSEP web page at: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/OSEP/

Part B--Assistance for Education of all Children With Disabilities

Section 611--Authorization; Allotment; Use of Funds; Authorization of 
Appropriations.

Topic Addressed: Allocation of Grants
     Letter dated July 6, 2001 to Federated States of 
Micronesia Secretary of Health, Education and Social Affairs Dr. Eliuel 
K. Pretrick, regarding funding for the Special Education Program for 
Pacific Island Entities grant under Part B of IDEA.
Topic Addressed: Distribution of Funds Provided to the Secretary of the 
Interior
     Letter dated July 23, 2001 to Arizona Special Education 
Coordinator David Dickman, regarding the use of funds and formula 
allocations to provide special education and related services to Indian 
children with disabilities on reservations.
Topic Addressed: Use of Funds
     Letter dated September 19, 2001 to Alabama State 
Superintendent of Education Dr. Ed Richardson, regarding the use of 
Part B funds to pay for litigation costs incurred as a result of 
compliance with specific provisions of the Part B of IDEA award.
Topic Addressed: Use of Funds and Allocation of Grants
     Letter dated July 24, 2001 to U.S. Representative Patsy 
Mink, regarding the purpose and use of IDEA funding, including funding 
of the IDEA at 40 percent of the average per pupil expenditures in 
public elementary and secondary schools in the United States, the 
allocation and distribution of IDEA grants to States, and payments for 
children with disabilities under the Impact Aid program.

Section 612--State Eligibility.

Topic Addressed: Condition of Assistance
     Letter dated July 2, 2001 to individual, (personally 
identifiable information redacted), regarding (1) the Office of Special 
Education's obligation to ensure compliance with the IDEA and its 
implementing regulations, including its monitoring of Florida's 
implementation and (2) the discretion a State has in choosing whether 
the State educational agency or the public agency directly responsible 
for the education of the child conducts due process hearings.
Topic Addressed: Free Appropriate Public Education
     Letter dated July 5, 2001 to Seattle Children's Home 
President R. David Cousineau and Manager David L. Halbett, regarding 
the child find, educational, and financial responsibilities under the 
IDEA for children with disabilities placed in psychiatric residential 
treatment programs.
Topic Addressed: State Educational Agency General Supervisory Authority
     Letter dated September 21, 2001 to New York State SAFE 
(Schools Are For Everyone) President Holly B. Nann, regarding the 
requirements for filing a complaint with a State educational agency and 
the obligations the State has in responding to a filed complaint.

Section 614--Evaluations, Eligibility Determinations, Individualized 
Education Programs, and Educational Placements.

Topic Addressed: Evaluations and Reevaluations
     Letter dated September 24, 2001 to Virginia Department of 
Education Assistant Superintendent H. Douglas Cox, regarding the Part B 
of IDEA requirement that parental consent must be obtained before the 
initial evaluation, the reevaluation, and the provision of special 
education and related services and the fact that Part B of the IDEA 
does not permit public agencies to override a parent's refusal of 
consent for initial services.
Topic Addressed: Individualized Education Programs
     Letter dated July 2, 2001 to Marilyn Shepherd, Ed.D., 
clarifying issues regarding the presence of media at individualized 
education program (IEP) meetings, including that, although parents or 
the agency have the discretion to invite individuals who have knowledge 
or special expertise regarding the child to participate at IEP 
meetings, members of the news media are not there as IEP team members 
who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child and his or 
her specific IEP development in accordance with Part B, and their 
presence as observers during discussions of sensitive issues could be 
potentially injurious to the interest of the child.
     Letter dated July 23, 2001 to U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham 
Clinton, clarifying that although Federal rules do not disallow the 
presence of an attorney at an IEP meeting, participation by an attorney 
could create a potentially

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adversarial atmosphere and should be strongly discouraged.

Section 615--Procedural Safeguards

Topic Addressed: Independent Educational Evaluations
     Letter dated September 10, 2001 to Wisconsin Director of 
Special Education Dr. Stephanie J. Petska, regarding the qualifications 
that school districts may require of individuals who conduct 
independent educational evaluations.

Part C--Infants and Toddlers With Disabilities

Section 636--Individualized Family Service Plan

Topic Addressed: Natural Environments
     Letter dated August 6, 2001 to U.S. Senator Richard 
Shelby, regarding the history of implementation of the natural 
environments requirements of Part C of the IDEA since the early 
intervention program was originally enacted, and clarifying that, based 
on the child's individualized family services plan (IFSP), appropriate 
services can be provided in center-based programs.

Electronic Access to This Document

    You may view this document, as well as all other Department of 
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe 
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. 
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-800-293-6498; or in 
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of this document is published in the 
Federal Register. Free Internet access to the official edition of 
the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations is 
available on GPO Access at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.


    Dated: February 14, 2002.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.027, Assistance to 
States for Education of Children with Disabilities)
Loretta L. Petty,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and, Rehabilitative 
Services.
[FR Doc. 02-4285 Filed 2-21-02; 8:45 am]
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