[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 53 (Tuesday, March 18, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14460-14462]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-5462]


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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 October 1, 2007 through December 
31, 2007.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melisande Lee or JoLeta Reynolds. 
Telephone: (202) 245-7468.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of this notice in 
an

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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 October 1, 2007 through December 31, 
2007. 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 of and topic addressed by each 
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 602--Definitions

Topic Addressed: Child With a Disability
     Letter dated November 28, 2007 to individual (personally 
identifiable information redacted), regarding criteria for making 
eligibility determinations under Part B of IDEA.

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

Section 612--State Eligibility

Topic Addressed: Child Find
     Letter dated December 21, 2007 to Texas Education Agency 
General Counsel David Anderson, Esq., clarifying that a State has no 
child find obligations under Part B of IDEA to children housed in a 
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement residential facility.
Topic Addressed: Least Restrictive Environment
     Letter dated November 30, 2007 to Chapman Management Group 
member Tom Trigg, clarifying the placement requirements in Part B of 
IDEA.
Topic Addressed: Methods of Ensuring Services
     Letter dated December 20, 2007 to Indiana Department of 
Education Medicaid Liaison John Hill, clarifying whether school-based 
Medicaid billing is optional or required under IDEA.
Topic Addressed: Personnel Qualifications
     Letter dated November 7, 2007 to Mountain Plains Regional 
Resource Center Director Dr. John Copenhaver, clarifying the 
relationship between the requirements regarding highly qualified 
teachers and the provision of extended school year services.
Topic Addressed: Prohibition on Mandatory Medication
     Letter dated October 22, 2007 to U.S. Senator James M. 
Inhofe regarding the application and implementation of the statutory 
prohibition on mandatory medication.

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

Topic Addressed: Evaluations, Parental Consent, and Reevaluations
     Letter dated October 19, 2007 to Mountain Plains Regional 
Resource Center Director Dr. John Copenhaver, clarifying the 
application of the requirements for parent consent for initial 
evaluations when a response to intervention process is used for 
evaluating children with disabilities.
     Letter dated October 19, 2007 to Bowling Green State 
University Special Needs Assistant Brigitte Green-Churchwell, 
explaining that an evaluation under Part B of IDEA is not required 
before terminating a child's eligibility due to graduation from 
secondary school with a regular diploma or due to exceeding the age of 
eligibility for a free appropriate public education under State law.

Section 615--Procedural Safeguards

Topic Addressed: Independent Educational Evaluations
     Letter dated December 21, 2007 to California Attorney 
Nancy J. LoDolce, clarifying whether age and grade level scores, along 
with recommendations pertaining to specific methodologies and/or use of 
materials, can be included in evaluations conducted by independent 
educational evaluators.
Topic Addressed: Procedural Safeguards Notice
     Letter dated November 30, 2007 to Texas Education Agency 
Special Programs Director Kathy Clayton, regarding a State's obligation 
to communicate to parents the information contained in the procedural 
safeguards notice under Part B of IDEA.
     Letter dated November 14, 2007, to Virginia Assistant 
Superintendent for Special Education and Student Services H. Douglas 
Cox, regarding a revision to the procedural safeguards notice model 
form developed by the Office of Special Education Programs.
Topic Addressed: Impartial Due Process Hearing
     Letter dated October 25, 2007 to Advocacy Center for 
Persons with Disabilities Education Team Manager Robert Jacobs, 
clarifying whether a State educational agency (SEA) may contract with 
another agency to hold due process hearings for the SEA and the 
applicable appeals process.
     Letter dated December 12, 2007 to Connecticut Attorney 
David Shaw, regarding State rules for hearing officer review of 
negotiated settlement agreements reached outside of mediation or the 
resolution process and enforcement of these settlement agreements.

Part C--Infants and Toddlers With Disabilities

Section 635--Requirements for a Statewide System

Topic Addressed: Complaint Resolution
     Letter dated November 28, 2007 to Connecticut Attorney 
Lawrence W. Berliner, regarding Part C complaint resolution procedures 
and clarifying that the current Part C regulations do not give an early 
intervention services provider an opportunity to respond to a 
complaint.

Other Letters That Do Not Interpret Idea but May Be of Interest to 
Readers

Topic Addressed: Accelerated Programs
     Dear Colleague Letter dated December 26, 2007 from the 
Department's Office for Civil Rights Assistant Secretary Stephanie 
Monroe, regarding issues in the enrollment of students with 
disabilities in accelerated programs such as Advanced Placement and 
International Baccalaureate classes or 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/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 the document 
published in the Federal

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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)

    Dated: March 12, 2008.
Tracy R. Justesen,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
 [FR Doc. E8-5462 Filed 3-17-08; 8:45 am]
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