Resolution calling on the New York State Department of Education to increase the application renewal period for Individualized Education Program (IEP) from 1 year to 5 years.

Res. No.

Resolution calling on the New York State Department of Education to increase the application renewal period for Individualized Education Program (IEP) from 1 year to 5 years.

By Council Member Greenfield

Whereas, According to the New York State Department of Education (NYSED) there are approximately 483,183 children with learning disabilities in NY State; and

Whereas, According to the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE), there are more than 175,000 students in New York City public schools with a broad range of disabilities, including learning disabilities, hearing impairments, orthopedic impairments, Autism, and others; and

Whereas, Additionally, there are 170 private schools particularly for students with special needs in New York City serving 23,405 students; and

Whereas, An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a federally mandated legal document written for a child with a learning disability that outlines a child’s specific educational needs and the services that a child is entitled to receive, and is developed, reviewed, and revised pursuant to state law and regulations every year; and

Whereas, An IEP is the cornerstone of a student’s special education program and is developed  by members of a child’s IEP team,  a group consisting of school personnel and the child’s parents; and

Whereas, The IEP team meets annually to consider how the child’s educational needs will be met and what educational resources are required; and

Whereas, An IEP has multiple components including measurable annual goals, promotional criteria, and, where appropriate, a transition plan for students aging out of high school, all created in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA),  a federal law which ensures services to children with disabilities; and

Whereas, Current policy requires parents of special needs children to renew their child’s IEP every year; and

Whereas, According to the New York City Independent Budget Office, the number of special-education parents applying for tuition reimbursement has nearly doubled over the last two decades, now costing the City of New York more than $200 million a year in legal fees; and 

Whereas, Some advocates contend that the frequency of this annual application renewal can cause unnecessary financial and emotional burden upon parents who can incur costly legal bills in an effort to obtain reimbursement from the City; and

Whereas, Unfortunately, families who cannot afford to pay, or find advocates or law firms able to take their case, are left very few options.

Whereas, The arduous and expensive process of applying for tuition reimbursement can take six to nine months, only to start all over again, right after months of appeals and legal fees just concluded; and

Whereas, The current policy forces parents of special needs children to remain constantly, active in their mission to secure the support and services to which  their child is entitled; and

Whereas, A beneficial solution to this onerous problem would be one that could decrease the frequency of the IEP application renewals so as to give parents reprieve, as well as one where IEPs could be valid legal written statements for longer periods of time; now, therefore, be it 

Resolved, that the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Department of Education to increase the application renewal period for Individualized Education Program (IEP) from 1 year to 5 years.

LS#10471

LY/JP

5/5/17