[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 172 (Tuesday, September 7, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54138-54139]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E4-2075]


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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 April 1, 2004, through June 30, 
2004.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary is publishing the following list pursuant to 
section 607(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as 
amended (IDEA). Under section 607(d) of the 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 (Department) of the IDEA 
or the regulations that implement the IDEA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melisande Lee or JoLeta Reynolds. 
Telephone: (202) 245-7459 (press 3).
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call 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 the contact persons listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following list identifies correspondence 
from the Department issued from April 1, 2004, through June 30, 2004.
    Included on the list are those letters that contain interpretations 
of the requirements of the 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 
Appropriations

Topic Addressed: Allocation of Grants
     Letter dated April 28, 2004, to Massachusetts Department 
of Education State Director of Special Education Marcia Mittnacht 
clarifying that under Part B of the IDEA, States are required to 
collect child count data on the number of children with disabilities 
receiving special education and related services on December 1 or, at 
the State's discretion, the last Friday in October of that school year 
and that this requirement cannot be waived, so the State could not 
collect that data on October 1.

Section 612--State Eligibility

Topic Addressed: State Eligibility
     Letter dated June 1, 2004, to Minnesota Department of 
Education Deputy Commissioner Chas Anderson, clarifying that under Part 
B of the IDEA, although a State educational agency (SEA) may not 
establish specific State priorities and require all public agencies 
within the State to spend a portion of their flow-through funds in 
accordance with those priorities, the SEA must ensure that public 
agencies comply with the Part B requirements related to qualified 
personnel, transition, and the provision of a free appropriate public 
education, and the SEA must exercise its general supervisory 
responsibility to ensure compliance with all Part B requirements.
Topic Addressed: State Educational Agency General Supervisory Authority
     Letter dated May 26, 2004, to New Jersey Department of 
Education Commissioner William J. Librera, clarifying that the SEA is 
ultimately responsible for ensuring that all Part B requirements, 
including eligibility, evaluation, and procedural safeguards, are met 
for eligible children residing within the State, including those 
children served by a public agency other than a local educational 
agency.
Topic Addressed: Maintenance of Effort
     Letter dated May 27, 2004, to California Bureau of State 
Audits Deputy State Auditor Sylvia Hensley, regarding the use of single 
audits under the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 to review a 
State's compliance with the State-level maintenance of effort and non-
supplanting requirements of Part B of the IDEA.

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

Topic Addressed: Educational Placements
     Letter dated May 26, 2004, to Education Law Center Staff 
Attorney Shari A. Mamas, clarifying that neither the statute nor the 
regulations implementing the IDEA provide a general entitlement for 
parents of children with disabilities, or their professional 
representatives, to observe their children in any current or proposed 
educational placement and that the determination of who has access to 
classrooms may be addressed by State and/or local policy.

Part C--Infants and Toddlers With Disabilities

Section 632--Definitions

Topic Addressed: Early Intervention Services
     Letter dated April 28, 2004, to Illinois Department of 
Human Services Bureau of Early Intervention Chief Janet D. Gully, 
explaining regulations and other issues that should be taken into 
consideration when determining whether services provided after medical 
or surgical procedures are early intervention services that should be 
provided under Part C.

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/news/fedregister/index.html.
    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 1-888-293-6498; 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.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.


(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.027, Assistance to 
States for Education of Children with Disabilities)

[[Page 54139]]

    Dated: August 31, 2004.
Troy R. Justesen,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Education and 
Rehabilitative Services.
 [FR Doc. E4-2075 Filed 9-3-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P