Action | Revisions to comply with the “Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004” and its federal implementing regulations. |
Stage | Proposed |
Comment Period | Ended on 6/30/2008 |
On behalf of the Fairfax County Council of PTAs (FCCPTA), which represents PTAs in approximately 200 Fairfax County Public Schools, the following comments are submitted by the Executive Board of the FCCPTA to the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) regarding the revision of the Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children with Disabilities in
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) ensures that children with disabilities have a free appropriate public education available to meet their unique needs and prepare them for further education, employment and independent living. We believe the current Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children with Disabilities in Virginia are superior in many ways to the proposed regulations. We further believe that the existing regulations do not merit the wholesale revision that is being proposed in order to comply with the 2004 amendments to IDEA.
The FCCPTA supports
VDOE’s stated argument for the proposed deletions of Virginia-specific parental rights and protections from the current regulations is "to respect the intent of Part B of the Act [IDEA 2004] to minimize the number of rules, regulations and policies to which local educational agencies and schools are subject." However, minimization of state regulations is a common theme in federal legislation and not a specific mandate for IDEA.
Regulations promulgated by the federal government are considered the minimum standard that states must follow. States can, and regularly do, exceed federal regulations because they respond to the needs of their particular citizens, as is their right. The effort to minimize differences between the federal and state special education regulations must not mean the elimination of long-standing Virginia-specific rights currently guaranteed to our state's citizens.
The priorities listed below reflect the FCCPTA’s position on select areas of the proposed Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children with Disabilities in Virginia which significantly impact