Notes from the 2004 Reauthorization

Congressional Action
Congress has passed H.R. 1350, a bill to reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) after three years of difficult work to revise federal special education law. The bill is expected to be signed by President George W. Bush before the end of the year. The compromise between the House and the Senate contains many positive provisions advocated by NASSP members related to the discipline of special education students, reduction of burdensome paperwork provisions, and reform of the contentious litigation process.

Conference Report Agreement
Discipline
With the goal of finding a balance between keeping schools safe and holding students accountable for their actions, the new discipline language allows for special education students and general education students to be disciplined in the same manner for the same misconduct as long as the misconduct is not a direct result of a student’s disability.

Current law allows schools to expel or suspend a student from school if he or she is caught with a gun or weapon or who knowingly possesses or sells illegal drugs as long as the student’s disability is not the cause of the incident. The new law provides an additional category to the bill involving “serious bodily injury.” The category will be defined by current U.S. code and is viewed as a victory by administrators and teachers.

Paperwork
The new IDEA allows up to 15 states to test innovative paperwork-reduction practices that seek to streamline and reduce paperwork at the state and local levels. NASSP strongly advocated for changes to the law that would reduce the amount of duplicative documentation required of teachers and administrators. Although many paperwork provisions have been issued by states in an attempt to shield schools and states from lawsuits, the federal inclusion of this program is a move in the right direction.

Due Process
Parents and schools will now be required to undergo a resolution session prior to the filing of a lawsuit. Under the new rules, parents must file a clear and specific complaint to the school, and a meeting must take place with the local educational agency, parents, and appropriate school personnel within 15 days of the filing. The school will then have an additional 15 days to react and offer a resolution. If the parents do not agree to the resolution, a lawsuit may then be filed. In addition, if a lawsuit is filed on behalf of a student that is deemed frivolous by the courts, the prosecuting attorney will be held accountable for all costs of the suit, including the costs to the school district and the principal.

Funding
Although Congress addressed many concerns of educators in this reauthorization, one notable omission from the law is the inclusion of a mandatory full-funding measure, which NASSP has strongly supported. In lieu of the provision, a plan to get to full funding of the law within six years was included in the bill. Such measures have been a part of past Congressional bills but have been unsuccessful in compelling the federal government to pay the full 40% of funding promised to IDEA in the original law.

Highly Qualified Teachers
During conference committee negotiations, Sen. Pete Sessions (R-AL) offered an amendment that would have allowed an additional year for the approximately 100,000 current practicing special education teachers to meet highly qualified teacher requirements. Current NCLB requirements mandate that special education teachers be highly qualified by the 2005–06 school year. The Senate passed the resolution, but House members on the committee rejected it, citing the need for all students to have high-quality educators. This was the only amendment offered in conference negotiations.

Acknowledging the cooperation and commitment required since the law’s original passage in 1975 and the current three-year process to approve a new bill, Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA), ranking member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, referenced the struggle to affirm disabled students’ rights as “a long, arduous march.” Rep. John Boehner, chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, noted that, although the law is not perfect, Congress did not want to “make ‘perfect’ the enemy of ‘good.’ ”

NASSP sent a letter in support of final passage of the bill, acknowledging the hard work and commitment of the Congress in getting such important legislation completed.

U.S. House of Representatives action:
H.R. 1350, Improving Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act of 2003, passed the full U.S. House of Representatives on April 30, 2003. The legislation, approved on a 251-171 vote, includes several provisions supported by NASSP that attempt to streamline discipline policies, reduce paperwork requirements, and improve professional development. However, the bill stops short of providing mandatory full funding of the law, which would require the federal government to provide 40 percent of the costs of educating IDEA-eligible students.

Senate action:
On May 13, 2004 the U.S. Senate passed the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) by a vote of 95 to 3.

While the Senate bill is an improvement over current law, it does not include an amendment that NASSP strongly supported offered by Senators Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Tom Harkin (D-IA). The amendment would have fully funded IDEA over a six-year period by providing increases of $2 billion per year through mandatory funding. Currently the federal government is providing only 19.5% of the National Average per Pupil Expenditure (APPE) for every child instead of the promised 40%.

Following are a few of the highlights and NASSP comment regarding the Senate legislation:

• Establishes a 2-year time limit within which parents must file a complaint related to the educational placement of a student.
  NASSP favors the House bill which provides a 1-year time limit, but the 2-year time limit is an improvement over current law.
  
• Retains "manifestation determination" policies that hinge certain disciplinary action on whether a student's infraction is a result of his or her disability.
  NASSP favors the House bill which allows schools to determine whether or not to consider manifestation determination.
  Note: NASSP does not believe a student should be expelled "because" of his or her disability, but that principals and other school personnel are best able to determine the best course of action related to discipline based on all factors.
• Adds "serious bodily harm" to the list of disciplinary infractions that allow a 45-day removal of the student from the classroom.
  NASSP supports this inclusion; the House bill did not need to address this issue since manifestation determinations are left to the school.
• Clarifies that the majority of special education teachers do not have to acquire certification in all subjects taught (as mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act), but must be certified in special education.
  NASSP supports the inclusion of this language.