Request for Information on Addressing Significant Disproportionality Under Section 618(d) of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 35154-35156 [2014-14388]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 118 / Thursday, June 19, 2014 / Notices
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Dated: June 13, 2014.
Aaron Siegel,
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[FR Doc. 2014–14289 Filed 6–18–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001–06–P
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket No. ED–2014–OSERS–0058]
Request for Information on Addressing
Significant Disproportionality Under
Section 618(d) of the Individuals With
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Office of Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department
of Education.
ACTION: Request for Information.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Department of
Education (Department) is requesting
public comment on the actions that the
Department should take to address
significant disproportionality based on
race and ethnicity in the identification,
placement, and discipline of children
with disabilities. Specifically, we are
requesting input from the public on
actions the Department should take
related to: (1) Significant
disproportionality based on race and
ethnicity in the (a) identification of
children as children with disabilities,
including identification by disability
category; (b) placement of children with
disabilities in particular educational
settings; and (c) the incidence, duration,
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SUMMARY:
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and type of disciplinary action taken
with respect to children with
disabilities; and (2) ensuring that funds
reserved for comprehensive,
coordinated early intervening services
(CEIS) under Part B of the IDEA are used
to effectively address significant
disproportionality.
DATES: Responses must be received by
July 21, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
or via U.S. mail, commercial delivery, or
hand delivery. We will not accept
comments by fax or by email or those
submitted after the comment period. To
ensure that we do not receive duplicate
copies, please submit your comments
only once. In addition, please include
the Docket ID and the term ‘‘CEIS and
Significant Disproportionality’’ at the
top of your comments.
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
www.regulations.gov to submit your
comments electronically. Information
on using Regulations.gov, including
instructions for accessing agency
documents, submitting comments, and
viewing the docket, is available on the
site under ‘‘Are you new to this site?’’
U.S. Mail, Commercial Delivery, or
Hand Delivery: If you mail or deliver
your comments, address them to Larry
Ringer, Attention: IDEA Determinations
RFI, U.S. Department of Education, 400
Maryland Avenue SW., Room 4032,
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP),
Washington, DC 20202–2600.
Privacy Note: The Department’s policy for
comments received from members of the
public (including comments submitted by
mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery)
is to make these submissions available for
public viewing in their entirety on the
Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters
should be careful to include in their
comments only information that they wish to
make publicly available on the Internet.
Submission of Proprietary
Information: Given the subject matter,
some comments may include
proprietary information as it relates to
confidential commercial information.
The Freedom of Information Act defines
‘‘confidential commercial information’’
as information the disclosure of which
could reasonably be expected to cause
substantial competitive harm. You may
wish to request that we not disclose
what you regard as confidential
commercial information.
To assist us in making a
determination on your request, we
encourage you to identify any specific
information in your comments that you
consider confidential commercial
information. Please list the information
by page and paragraph numbers.
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Note: This Request for Information (RFI) is
issued solely for information and planning
purposes and is not a request for proposals
(RFP), a notice inviting applications (NIA), or
a promise to issue an RFP or NIA. This RFI
does not commit the Department to contract
for any supply or service whatsoever.
Further, the Department is not now seeking
proposals and will not accept unsolicited
proposals. The Department will not pay for
any information or administrative costs that
you may incur in responding to this RFI.
If you do not respond to this RFI, you
may still apply for future contracts and
grants. The Department posts RFPs on
the Federal Business Opportunities Web
site (www.fbo.gov). The Department
announces grant competitions in the
Federal Register (www.gpo.gov/fdsys). It
is your responsibility to monitor these
sites to determine whether the
Department issues an RFP or NIA after
considering the information received in
response to this RFI.
The documents and information
submitted in response to this RFI
become the property of the U.S.
Government and will not be returned.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Larry Ringer, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW.,
Room 4032, PCP, Washington, DC
20202–2600. Telephone: (202) 245–
7496.
If you use a telecommunications
device for the deaf (TDD) or a text
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay
Service (FRS), toll free, at 1–800–877–
8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In section 601(c)(12)(A) and (B) of the
IDEA, Congress found that, ‘‘[g]reater
efforts are needed to prevent the
intensification of problems connected
with mislabeling and high dropout rates
among minority children with
disabilities,’’ and that, ‘‘[m]ore minority
children continue to be served in
special education than would be
expected from the percentage of
minority students in the general school
population.’’ The IDEA and its
implementing regulations include
specific requirements to address those
findings.
Specifically, section 618(d)(1) of the
IDEA and the implementing regulations
in 34 CFR 300.646(a) require each State
to collect and examine data to
determine if significant
disproportionality based on race and
ethnicity is occurring in the State and
the local educational agencies (LEAs) of
the State with respect to:
1. The identification of children as
children with disabilities, including the
identification of children as children
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 118 / Thursday, June 19, 2014 / Notices
with disabilities in accordance with a
particular impairment described in
section 602(3) of the IDEA;
2. The placement in particular
educational settings of children with
disabilities; and
3. The incidence, duration, and type
of disciplinary actions, including
suspensions and expulsions, taken with
respect to children with disabilities.
In cases where a determination of
significant disproportionality is made in
one or more of these areas based on the
collection and examination of data,
States must: (1) Provide for the review
and, if appropriate, revision of policies,
procedures, and practices used in
identification, placement, or
disciplinary actions to ensure
compliance with the requirements of the
IDEA; (2) require any LEAs identified as
having significant disproportionality to
reserve the maximum amount of funds
under IDEA section 613(f) and 34 CFR
300.226 to provide CEIS to children in
the LEA, particularly children in groups
that are significantly overidentified; and
(3) require the LEA to publicly report on
the revision of policies, procedures, and
practices used in identification,
placement, and disciplinary actions.
Section 618(d)(2) of the IDEA and 34
CFR 300.646(b); see also, Analysis of
Comments and Changes, Assistance to
States for the Education of Children
with Disabilities and Preschool Grants
for Children with Disabilities; Final
Rule, August 14, 2006 (71 FR 46540,
46738); and OSEP Memorandum 07–09,
April 24, 2007, Disproportionality of
Racial and Ethnic Groups in Special
Education. https://www2.ed.gov/policy/
speced/guid/idea/memosdcltrs/osep0709disproportionalityofracialande
thnicgroupsinspecialeducation.pdf.
The IDEA and its implementing
regulations allow LEAs that are not
required to reserve funds for CEIS to
voluntarily use up to 15 percent of their
IDEA Part B funds to provide CEIS to
children in kindergarten through grade
12 (with a particular emphasis on
children in kindergarten through grade
three) who are not currently identified
as needing special education or related
services, but who need additional
academic or behavioral support to
succeed in a general education
environment. Section 613(f)(1) of the
IDEA and 34 CFR 300.226(a).
Neither the IDEA nor the regulations
define the term ‘‘significant
disproportionality.’’ As stated in the
preamble to the final IDEA Part B
regulations published in the Federal
Register on August 14, 2006, ‘‘[w]ith
respect to the definition of significant
disproportionality, each State has the
discretion to define the term for the
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LEAs and for the State in general.
Therefore, in identifying significant
disproportionality, a State may
determine statistically significant
levels.’’ (Analysis of Comments and
Changes, Assistance to States for the
Education of Children with Disabilities
and Preschool Grants for Children with
Disabilities; Final Rule, August 14, 2006
(71 FR 46540, 46738).)
The Department has afforded States
broad discretion in defining significant
disproportionality and in establishing
procedures for identifying significant
disproportionality within their States.
Consequently, there is wide variation in
how significant disproportionality is
defined and identified in LEAs across
States.
Data collected by the Department’s
Office of Special Education Programs
(OSEP) and Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
show significant racial and ethnic
disparity in the identification of
children for special education,
including identification by disability
category, educational placement, and
disciplinary action. Based on these data,
the Department has been concerned
about the very small number of LEAs
that have been identified by their States
as having significant disproportionality,
and the resulting limited funds that
LEAs are required to use for CEIS to
address that significant
disproportionality. The Department is
also concerned that the definitions and
procedures for identifying LEAs with
significant disproportionality that many
States have established may set the bar
so high that even LEAs with significant
racial and ethnic disparities in the
identification of children for special
education are not identified as having
significant disproportionality.
In February 2013, the Government
Accountability Office (GAO) issued a
report on CEIS, particularly as it relates
to racial and ethnic overrepresentation
in special education, which reinforced
the Department’s concerns. The GAO
report, titled ‘‘Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act: Standards
Needed to Improve Identification of
Racial and Ethnic Overrepresentation in
Special Education (GAO–13–137), can
be found at www.gao.gov/products/
GAO-13-137. In this report, the GAO
examined the numbers and
characteristics of LEAs that provide
CEIS, how States determine which LEAs
are required to provide CEIS, the types
of CEIS provided, and oversight by the
Department and States. Specifically, the
GAO: (1) Examined data on CEIS for
school years 2009–10 and 2010–11; (2)
reviewed 16 States’ methods for
identifying LEAs with significant
disproportionality, including States that
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35155
did and did not require LEAs identified
with significant disproportionality to
provide CEIS services; (3) visited State
educational agencies (SEAs) and LEAs
in four States; and (4) interviewed
Federal, State, and local officials. GAO
found that, ‘‘the discretion that States
have in defining significant
disproportionality has resulted in a
wide range of definitions that provides
no assurance that the problem is being
appropriately identified across the
nation.’’ According to the GAO report,
‘‘[a]mong the almost 15,000 school
districts nationwide that received IDEA
funding in school year 2010–2011,
states required 356 (2.4 percent)
districts to use these funds for early
intervening services due to significant
disproportionality.’’
‘‘To better understand the extent of
racial and ethnic overrepresentation in
special education and promote
consistency in how States determine the
districts required to provide early
intervening services,’’ the GAO
recommended that the Department
‘‘develop a standard approach for
defining significant disproportionality
to be used by all states. This approach
should allow flexibility to account for
state differences and specify when
exceptions can be made.’’
Context for Responses and
Information Requested:
Given the discretion a State currently
has to define the term ‘‘significant
disproportionality’’ for the State and its
LEAs, the Department requests public
comment on how best to address
significant disproportionality based on
race and ethnicity in the identification
of children for special education,
including identification by disability
category, educational placements, and
disciplinary actions. In addition to this
request for public comment, the
Department will be collecting through
EDFacts (the portal through which
OSEP collects special education and
other data from States) State definitions
of significant disproportionality and
information on the categories (as set
forth in the IDEA) in which States have
determined that a significant
disproportionality based on race and
ethnicity exists in the identification of
children for special education,
including identification by disability
category, in placement of children with
disabilities in particular educational
settings, and in disciplinary action
taken with respect to children with
disabilities.
The Assistant Secretary for Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services
invites the public, including States,
LEAs, parents, advocacy groups,
researchers, and professional
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35156
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 118 / Thursday, June 19, 2014 / Notices
organizations, to provide comment on,
and offer proposals for: (1) Addressing
significant disproportionality; (2)
encouraging greater voluntary use of
funds for CEIS in LEAs showing
significant disparities (but no
determination of significant
disproportionality) by race and ethnicity
in the rates of identification of children
for special education, including
identification by disability category,
educational placements, and
disciplinary actions; and (3)
encouraging more effective, targeted use
of funds for CEIS to address significant
disproportionality in both districts
required to use funds for CEIS (as a
result of a determination of significant
disproportionality) and districts
choosing to use funds for CEIS. The
Department will review the data
collected under section 618 of the IDEA
and by the Department’s Office for Civil
Rights, together with the information in
the GAO report and all of the input and
information received in response to this
RFI, to determine what, if any, actions
the Department should take to address
significant disproportionality.
The Assistant Secretary requests
comment on the following questions:
1. Should the Department issue
proposed regulations requiring States to
use a standard approach to determine
which LEAs have significant
disproportionality? If so, how might a
standard approach properly account for
State differences (e.g., population size,
population composition, and LEA size) ?
If so, what should be included in such
a standard approach?
2. What actions, apart from requiring
a standard approach, should the
Department take to address the very
small number of LEAs identified with
significant disproportionality, despite
data (including the data the Department
collects under section 618 of the IDEA,
data collected by the Department’s
Office for Civil Rights, and the
information in the GAO report) showing
significant disparities, based on race
and ethnicity, in the identification of
children for special education,
including by disability category,
educational placements, and
disciplinary actions?
3. What actions, including researchor evidence-based actions, should the
Department take to: (a) Encourage
greater voluntary use of funds for CEIS
in LEAs showing significant disparities
(but no determination of significant
disproportionality, pursuant to 34 CFR
§ 300.646), by race and ethnicity, in the
rates of identification of children for
special education, including
identification by disability category,
educational placements, and
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disciplinary actions; and (b) assist LEAs
in more effectively targeting their use of
funds for CEIS to address significant
disproportionality in both districts
required to use funds for CEIS (as a
result of a determination of significant
disproportionality) and districts
choosing to use funds for CEIS, in a
manner that is both consistent with the
requirements of the IDEA and which
will help to address the causes and
effects of significant disproportionality?
You may provide comments in any
convenient format (i.e., bullet points,
charts, graphs, paragraphs, etc.) and
may also provide relevant information
that is not responsive to a particular
question but may nevertheless be
helpful.
Accessible Format: Individuals with
disabilities can obtain this document in
an accessible format (e.g., braille, large
print, audiotape, or compact disc) upon
request to the program contact person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.
Electronic Access to This Document:
The official version of this document is
the document published in the Federal
Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register
and the Code of Federal Regulations is
available via the Federal Digital System
at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you
can view this document, as well as all
other documents of this Department
published in the Federal Register, in
text or Adobe Portable Document
Format (PDF). To use PDF you must
have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is
available free at the site.
You may also access documents of the
Department published in the Federal
Register by using the article search
feature at: www.federalregister.gov.
Specifically, through the advanced
search feature at this site, you can limit
your search to documents published by
the Department.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1413(f)(1)
and 1418(d).
Dated: June 16, 2014.
Michael K. Yudin,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special
Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 2014–14388 Filed 6–18–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Combined Notice of Filings #1
Take notice that the Commission
received the following electric corporate
filings:
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Docket Numbers: EC14–101–000.
Applicants: NRG Yield, Inc., NRG
Yield Operating LLC, Alta Wind I, LLC,
Alta Wind II, LLC, Alta Wind III, LLC,
Alta Wind IV, LLC, Alta Wind V, LLC,
Alta Wind X, LLC, Alta Wind XI, LLC.
Description: Joint Application for
Approval under Section 203 of the
Federal Power Act and Request for
Shortened Comment Period of NRG
Yield, Inc., et. al.
Filed Date: 6/10/14.
Accession Number: 20140610–5245.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 7/1/14.
Take notice that the Commission
received the following electric rate
filings:
Docket Numbers: ER12–2178–009;
ER10–2172–020; ER12–2311–008;
ER10–2179–023; ER11–2016–015;
ER10–2183–017; ER10–2184–020;
ER10–1048–017; ER10–2192–020;
ER11–2056–014; ER10–2178–020;
ER14–1524–001; ER11–2014–017;
ER11–2013–017; ER10–3308–019;
ER10–1020–016; ER13–1536–003;
ER10–1078–016; ER10–1080–016;
ER11–2010–017; ER10–1081–016;
ER10–2180–020; ER12–2201–008;
ER11–2011–016; ER12–2528–008;
ER11–2009–016; ER11–3989–013;
ER10–2181–023; ER10–1143–016;
ER10–2182–023; ER11–2383–004;
ER12–1829–008; ER11–2007–015;
ER12–1223–013; ER11–2005–017.
Applicants: AV Solar Ranch 1, LLC,
Baltimore Gas and Electric Company,
Beebe Renewable Energy, LLC, Calvert
Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant LLC, Cassia
Gulch Wind Park, LLC, CER Generation
II, LLC, CER Generation, LLC,
Commonwealth Edison Company,
Constellation Energy Commodities
Group Maine, LLC, Constellation Mystic
Power, LLC, Constellation NewEnergy,
Inc., Constellation Power Source
Generation LLC, Cow Branch
Windpower, LLC, CR Clearing, LLC,
Criterion Power Partners, LLC, Exelon
Framingham, LLC, Exelon Generation
Company, LLC, Exelon New Boston,
LLC, Exelon West Medway, LLC, Exelon
Wind 4, LLC, Exelon Wyman, LLC,
Handsome Lake Energy, LLC, Harvest II
Wind Farm, LLC, Harvest WindFarm,
LLC, High Mesa Energy, LLC, Michigan
Wind 1, LLC, Michigan Wind 2, LLC,
Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station, LLC,
PECO Energy Company, R.E. Ginna
Nuclear Power Plant, LLC, Safe Harbor
Water Power Corporation, Shooting Star
Wind Project, LLC, Tuana Springs
Energy, LLC, Wildcat Wind, LLC, Wind
Capital Holdings, LLC.
Description: Notice of Non-Material
Change in Status of the Exelon MBR
Entities.
Filed Date: 6/10/14.
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 118 (Thursday, June 19, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35154-35156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-14388]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket No. ED-2014-OSERS-0058]
Request for Information on Addressing Significant
Disproportionality Under Section 618(d) of the Individuals With
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S.
Department of Education.
ACTION: Request for Information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is requesting
public comment on the actions that the Department should take to
address significant disproportionality based on race and ethnicity in
the identification, placement, and discipline of children with
disabilities. Specifically, we are requesting input from the public on
actions the Department should take related to: (1) Significant
disproportionality based on race and ethnicity in the (a)
identification of children as children with disabilities, including
identification by disability category; (b) placement of children with
disabilities in particular educational settings; and (c) the incidence,
duration, and type of disciplinary action taken with respect to
children with disabilities; and (2) ensuring that funds reserved for
comprehensive, coordinated early intervening services (CEIS) under Part
B of the IDEA are used to effectively address significant
disproportionality.
DATES: Responses must be received by July 21, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
or via U.S. mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. We will not
accept comments by fax or by email or those submitted after the comment
period. To ensure that we do not receive duplicate copies, please
submit your comments only once. In addition, please include the Docket
ID and the term ``CEIS and Significant Disproportionality'' at the top
of your comments.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov to
submit your comments electronically. Information on using
Regulations.gov, including instructions for accessing agency documents,
submitting comments, and viewing the docket, is available on the site
under ``Are you new to this site?''
U.S. Mail, Commercial Delivery, or Hand Delivery: If you mail or
deliver your comments, address them to Larry Ringer, Attention: IDEA
Determinations RFI, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue
SW., Room 4032, Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Washington, DC 20202-2600.
Privacy Note: The Department's policy for comments received
from members of the public (including comments submitted by mail,
commercial delivery, or hand delivery) is to make these submissions
available for public viewing in their entirety on the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters
should be careful to include in their comments only information that
they wish to make publicly available on the Internet.
Submission of Proprietary Information: Given the subject matter,
some comments may include proprietary information as it relates to
confidential commercial information. The Freedom of Information Act
defines ``confidential commercial information'' as information the
disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to cause substantial
competitive harm. You may wish to request that we not disclose what you
regard as confidential commercial information.
To assist us in making a determination on your request, we
encourage you to identify any specific information in your comments
that you consider confidential commercial information. Please list the
information by page and paragraph numbers.
Note: This Request for Information (RFI) is issued solely for
information and planning purposes and is not a request for proposals
(RFP), a notice inviting applications (NIA), or a promise to issue
an RFP or NIA. This RFI does not commit the Department to contract
for any supply or service whatsoever. Further, the Department is not
now seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. The
Department will not pay for any information or administrative costs
that you may incur in responding to this RFI.
If you do not respond to this RFI, you may still apply for future
contracts and grants. The Department posts RFPs on the Federal Business
Opportunities Web site (www.fbo.gov). The Department announces grant
competitions in the Federal Register (www.gpo.gov/fdsys). It is your
responsibility to monitor these sites to determine whether the
Department issues an RFP or NIA after considering the information
received in response to this RFI.
The documents and information submitted in response to this RFI
become the property of the U.S. Government and will not be returned.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Ringer, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., Room 4032, PCP, Washington, DC
20202-2600. Telephone: (202) 245-7496.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-
800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
In section 601(c)(12)(A) and (B) of the IDEA, Congress found that,
``[g]reater efforts are needed to prevent the intensification of
problems connected with mislabeling and high dropout rates among
minority children with disabilities,'' and that, ``[m]ore minority
children continue to be served in special education than would be
expected from the percentage of minority students in the general school
population.'' The IDEA and its implementing regulations include
specific requirements to address those findings.
Specifically, section 618(d)(1) of the IDEA and the implementing
regulations in 34 CFR 300.646(a) require each State to collect and
examine data to determine if significant disproportionality based on
race and ethnicity is occurring in the State and the local educational
agencies (LEAs) of the State with respect to:
1. The identification of children as children with disabilities,
including the identification of children as children
[[Page 35155]]
with disabilities in accordance with a particular impairment described
in section 602(3) of the IDEA;
2. The placement in particular educational settings of children
with disabilities; and
3. The incidence, duration, and type of disciplinary actions,
including suspensions and expulsions, taken with respect to children
with disabilities.
In cases where a determination of significant disproportionality is
made in one or more of these areas based on the collection and
examination of data, States must: (1) Provide for the review and, if
appropriate, revision of policies, procedures, and practices used in
identification, placement, or disciplinary actions to ensure compliance
with the requirements of the IDEA; (2) require any LEAs identified as
having significant disproportionality to reserve the maximum amount of
funds under IDEA section 613(f) and 34 CFR 300.226 to provide CEIS to
children in the LEA, particularly children in groups that are
significantly overidentified; and (3) require the LEA to publicly
report on the revision of policies, procedures, and practices used in
identification, placement, and disciplinary actions. Section 618(d)(2)
of the IDEA and 34 CFR 300.646(b); see also, Analysis of Comments and
Changes, Assistance to States for the Education of Children with
Disabilities and Preschool Grants for Children with Disabilities; Final
Rule, August 14, 2006 (71 FR 46540, 46738); and OSEP Memorandum 07-09,
April 24, 2007, Disproportionality of Racial and Ethnic Groups in
Special Education. https://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/memosdcltrs/osep07-09disproportionalityofracialandethnicgroupsinspecialeducation.pdf.
The IDEA and its implementing regulations allow LEAs that are not
required to reserve funds for CEIS to voluntarily use up to 15 percent
of their IDEA Part B funds to provide CEIS to children in kindergarten
through grade 12 (with a particular emphasis on children in
kindergarten through grade three) who are not currently identified as
needing special education or related services, but who need additional
academic or behavioral support to succeed in a general education
environment. Section 613(f)(1) of the IDEA and 34 CFR 300.226(a).
Neither the IDEA nor the regulations define the term ``significant
disproportionality.'' As stated in the preamble to the final IDEA Part
B regulations published in the Federal Register on August 14, 2006,
``[w]ith respect to the definition of significant disproportionality,
each State has the discretion to define the term for the LEAs and for
the State in general. Therefore, in identifying significant
disproportionality, a State may determine statistically significant
levels.'' (Analysis of Comments and Changes, Assistance to States for
the Education of Children with Disabilities and Preschool Grants for
Children with Disabilities; Final Rule, August 14, 2006 (71 FR 46540,
46738).)
The Department has afforded States broad discretion in defining
significant disproportionality and in establishing procedures for
identifying significant disproportionality within their States.
Consequently, there is wide variation in how significant
disproportionality is defined and identified in LEAs across States.
Data collected by the Department's Office of Special Education
Programs (OSEP) and Office for Civil Rights (OCR) show significant
racial and ethnic disparity in the identification of children for
special education, including identification by disability category,
educational placement, and disciplinary action. Based on these data,
the Department has been concerned about the very small number of LEAs
that have been identified by their States as having significant
disproportionality, and the resulting limited funds that LEAs are
required to use for CEIS to address that significant
disproportionality. The Department is also concerned that the
definitions and procedures for identifying LEAs with significant
disproportionality that many States have established may set the bar so
high that even LEAs with significant racial and ethnic disparities in
the identification of children for special education are not identified
as having significant disproportionality.
In February 2013, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued
a report on CEIS, particularly as it relates to racial and ethnic
overrepresentation in special education, which reinforced the
Department's concerns. The GAO report, titled ``Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act: Standards Needed to Improve Identification
of Racial and Ethnic Overrepresentation in Special Education (GAO-13-
137), can be found at www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13-137. In this report,
the GAO examined the numbers and characteristics of LEAs that provide
CEIS, how States determine which LEAs are required to provide CEIS, the
types of CEIS provided, and oversight by the Department and States.
Specifically, the GAO: (1) Examined data on CEIS for school years 2009-
10 and 2010-11; (2) reviewed 16 States' methods for identifying LEAs
with significant disproportionality, including States that did and did
not require LEAs identified with significant disproportionality to
provide CEIS services; (3) visited State educational agencies (SEAs)
and LEAs in four States; and (4) interviewed Federal, State, and local
officials. GAO found that, ``the discretion that States have in
defining significant disproportionality has resulted in a wide range of
definitions that provides no assurance that the problem is being
appropriately identified across the nation.'' According to the GAO
report, ``[a]mong the almost 15,000 school districts nationwide that
received IDEA funding in school year 2010-2011, states required 356
(2.4 percent) districts to use these funds for early intervening
services due to significant disproportionality.''
``To better understand the extent of racial and ethnic
overrepresentation in special education and promote consistency in how
States determine the districts required to provide early intervening
services,'' the GAO recommended that the Department ``develop a
standard approach for defining significant disproportionality to be
used by all states. This approach should allow flexibility to account
for state differences and specify when exceptions can be made.''
Context for Responses and Information Requested:
Given the discretion a State currently has to define the term
``significant disproportionality'' for the State and its LEAs, the
Department requests public comment on how best to address significant
disproportionality based on race and ethnicity in the identification of
children for special education, including identification by disability
category, educational placements, and disciplinary actions. In addition
to this request for public comment, the Department will be collecting
through EDFacts (the portal through which OSEP collects special
education and other data from States) State definitions of significant
disproportionality and information on the categories (as set forth in
the IDEA) in which States have determined that a significant
disproportionality based on race and ethnicity exists in the
identification of children for special education, including
identification by disability category, in placement of children with
disabilities in particular educational settings, and in disciplinary
action taken with respect to children with disabilities.
The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services invites the public, including States, LEAs, parents, advocacy
groups, researchers, and professional
[[Page 35156]]
organizations, to provide comment on, and offer proposals for: (1)
Addressing significant disproportionality; (2) encouraging greater
voluntary use of funds for CEIS in LEAs showing significant disparities
(but no determination of significant disproportionality) by race and
ethnicity in the rates of identification of children for special
education, including identification by disability category, educational
placements, and disciplinary actions; and (3) encouraging more
effective, targeted use of funds for CEIS to address significant
disproportionality in both districts required to use funds for CEIS (as
a result of a determination of significant disproportionality) and
districts choosing to use funds for CEIS. The Department will review
the data collected under section 618 of the IDEA and by the
Department's Office for Civil Rights, together with the information in
the GAO report and all of the input and information received in
response to this RFI, to determine what, if any, actions the Department
should take to address significant disproportionality.
The Assistant Secretary requests comment on the following
questions:
1. Should the Department issue proposed regulations requiring
States to use a standard approach to determine which LEAs have
significant disproportionality? If so, how might a standard approach
properly account for State differences (e.g., population size,
population composition, and LEA size) ? If so, what should be included
in such a standard approach?
2. What actions, apart from requiring a standard approach, should
the Department take to address the very small number of LEAs identified
with significant disproportionality, despite data (including the data
the Department collects under section 618 of the IDEA, data collected
by the Department's Office for Civil Rights, and the information in the
GAO report) showing significant disparities, based on race and
ethnicity, in the identification of children for special education,
including by disability category, educational placements, and
disciplinary actions?
3. What actions, including research- or evidence-based actions,
should the Department take to: (a) Encourage greater voluntary use of
funds for CEIS in LEAs showing significant disparities (but no
determination of significant disproportionality, pursuant to 34 CFR
Sec. 300.646), by race and ethnicity, in the rates of identification
of children for special education, including identification by
disability category, educational placements, and disciplinary actions;
and (b) assist LEAs in more effectively targeting their use of funds
for CEIS to address significant disproportionality in both districts
required to use funds for CEIS (as a result of a determination of
significant disproportionality) and districts choosing to use funds for
CEIS, in a manner that is both consistent with the requirements of the
IDEA and which will help to address the causes and effects of
significant disproportionality?
You may provide comments in any convenient format (i.e., bullet
points, charts, graphs, paragraphs, etc.) and may also provide relevant
information that is not responsive to a particular question but may
nevertheless be helpful.
Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this
document in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print,
audiotape, or compact disc) upon request to the program contact person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this
document is the document published in the Federal Register. Free
Internet access to the official edition of the Federal Register and the
Code of Federal Regulations is available via the Federal Digital System
at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document, as well
as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the
site.
You may also access documents of the Department published in the
Federal Register by using the article search feature at:
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1413(f)(1) and 1418(d).
Dated: June 16, 2014.
Michael K. Yudin,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services.
[FR Doc. 2014-14388 Filed 6-18-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
