[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 120 (Monday, June 23, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37141-37142]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-15807]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: List of correspondence from January 2, 2003 through March 31, 
2003.

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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 Format Center. Telephone: (202) 205-8113.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following list identifies correspondence 
from the Department issued from January 2, 2003 through March 31, 2003.
    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 B

Assistance for education of All Children With Disabilities Section 
611--Authorization; Allotment; Use of Funds; Authorization of 
Aappropriations Section 619--Preschool Grants

Topic Addressed: Use of funds
    [sbull] Letter dated March 25, 2003 to American Samoa Special 
Education Division Director Moeolo Vaatausili, regarding whether the 
purchase of vehicles to meet the transportation needs of children with 
disabilities using Part B funds is an allowable cost.
    [sbull] Letter dated March 21, 2003 to Louisiana Department of 
Education Director Virginia Beridon, regarding criteria for determining 
whether use of Part B funds for international travel is an allowable 
cost.

[[Page 37142]]

Section 612--State Eligibility.

Topic Addressed: Confidentiality of Education Records
    [sbull] Letter dated February 14, 2003 to Bergen County, New Jersey 
Freeholder Louis A. Tedesco, clarifying that rights under the 
confidentiality provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy 
Act (FERPA) and the IDEA vest with the parent or eligible student and 
that FERPA does not provide for these rights to be vested in a third 
party that has not suffered an alleged violation.
Topic Addressed: Procedural Safeguards
    [sbull] Letter dated February 26, 2003 to Vermont Director of 
Special Education Dennis Kane, regarding issues the State needs to 
review and resolve pursuant to State complaint procedures and the 
complaint requirements in the part B regulations at 34 CFR 300.660-
300.662.
    [sbull] Letter dated March 6, 2003 to individual, (personally 
identifiable information redacted), regarding the change in the Part B 
regulations that removed the Secretarial review process under the State 
complaint procedures effective May 11, 1999.
Topic Addressed: State Education Agency General Supervisory Authority
    [sbull] Letter dated March 24, 2003 to Connecticut Commissioner of 
Education Theodore S. Sergi, regarding the State's due process hearing 
procedures and compliance with the Special Conditions on its Federal 
fiscal year 2002 grant award under Part B.

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

Topic Addressed: Evaluations and Reevaluations
    [sbull] Letter dated March 20, 2003 to Vermont Department of 
Education Legal Counsel Geoffrey A. Yudien, clarifying (1) that a 
school district may not override parental consent for the initial 
provision of special education and related services, (2) that a school 
district is not required to obtain separate parental consent for 
additional services that the individualized education programs team 
deems necessary or for a continuation of services after the parent has 
previously consented to the initial provision of services, and (3) that 
the protections under the IDEA, including the discipline procedures at 
34 CFR 300.520-300.529, would not apply to children whose parents have 
refused consent for the initial provision of special education and 
related services.
    [sbull] Letter dated February 11, 2003 to New Jersey Director of 
Special Education Barbara Gantwerk, clarifying (1) the ways in which 
school districts can document efforts to obtain parental consent for 
the initial provision of special education and related services and 
reevaluations, and (2) that school districts are not required to 
provide the Part B discipline protections to children who are not 
receiving special education because their parents have refused to 
consent.
Topic Addressed: Individualized Education Programs
    [sbull] Letter dated February 4, 2003 to West Virginia Advocate 
Susan Given, regarding factors that States may use in determining when 
extended school year services are appropriate under Part B.

Section 615--Procedural Safeguards

Topic Addressed: Independent Educational Evaluations
    [sbull] Letter dated March 20, 2003 to Arkansas Volunteer 
Educational Advocate David Young, clarifying that a school district's 
practice of maintaining and requiring a parent to use a list of 
qualified independent educational evaluation (IEE) examiners is not 
inconsistent with the parent's right to an IEE.
Topic Addressed: Surrogate Parents
    [sbull] Letter dated March 11, 2003 to Vermont Department of 
Education Legal Counsel Geoffrey A. Yudien, regarding the authority of 
the State and the role of the surrogate parent in making educational 
decisions for children with disabilities placed in State custody.

Part C

Infants and Toddlers With Disabilities

Section 636--Individualized Family Service Plan

Topic Addressed: Early Intervention Services
    [sbull] Letter dated March 25, 2003 to Connecticut Birth to Three 
System Director Linda Goodman, regarding whether assistive technology 
can be provided under Part C.
    [sbull] Letter dated March 13, 2003 to South Carolina Part C 
Coordinator David K. Steele, clarifying that although the provision of 
respite or other care arrangements may be necessary for some families 
to participate in appropriate early intervention activities, the term 
``respite'' is not intended to serve as child-care or ``baby-sitting'' 
assistance in ordinary circumstances.

Electronic Access to This Document

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Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe 
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    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.


(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.027, Assistance to 
States for Education of Children with Disabilities)
    Dated: June 18, 2003.
Robert H. Pasternack,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 03-15807 Filed 6-20-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P