NASW Government Relations Update

• The bill does not address mandatory full funding for IDEA. Sen. Kennedy is expected to offer an amendment on the floor designating IDEA funds as mandatory spending.
• Thanks to the efforts of NASW members, and the organizational members of the National Alliance of Pupil Services Organizations (NAPSO), S. 1248 includes behavioral assessments, in addition to manifestation determinations, as part of the discipline process. Students, who are moved to an alternate setting due to discipline problems, will continue to receive the same educational and related services they were receiving in the classroom. As part of this, a behavioral assessment will be conducted (if the school did not already conduct one before the violation occurred), in order to address the behavior violation so it will not occur again.
• In addition, the bill requires schools to provide appropriate behavioral interventions to students who receive disciplinary action. Positive behavioral interventions and supports are also included in Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for students whose behavior impedes their own learning, or that of others.
  The HELP Committee inserted new language into the bill regarding related services personnel. This language states that, “related services personnel who deliver services in their discipline or profession [must] meet the requirements of clause (i) and have not had certification or licensure requirements waived on an emergency, temporary, or provisional basis.”
• S. 1248 eliminates short-term objectives from IEPs in an attempt to reduce paperwork. (NASW expressed opposition to the removal of these during the comment period.)  However, IEPs will need to include descriptions of how progress will be measured, and parents will receive quarterly progress reports.
• In a further effort to reduce paperwork, the Senate bill clarifies that IEPs do not need to include information beyond that required by federal law. Also, the bill requires the Secretary of Education to draft model forms, review paperwork requirements, and provide Congress with proposals to reduce paperwork related to IDEA.
• This bill allows parents to request initial evaluations of their children for IDEA services.
• To save time for parents and schools, S. 1248 allows parents and schools to agree to changes in IEPs during the school year, without having to reconvene an entire IEP meeting.