Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a) Within
five calendar days after receipt of the request from the facility, the
Secretary shall provide a list of five prospective trained impartial hearing
officers, one of whom shall be selected as the impartial hearing officer to
conduct the local hearing. Criteria for the hearing officers are as follows:
1) Shall not be an employee of the
Department, Illinois State Board of Education, the facility, any local school
district, joint agreement or cooperative program with which the facility
interacts, or any other agency or organization that is or has been directly
involved in the diagnosis, education or care of the recipient.
2) Shall not be a resident of the school
district in which the parent is a recipient or in which the facility is
located.
3) Shall not be involved
in the decisions already made about a recipient regarding identification,
evaluation, or placement, and may not have a personal or professional interest
which would conflict with his or her objectivity.
4) Shall possess knowledge, information
acquired through training under the auspices of the Illinois State Board of
Education and the Department about the nature and needs of the type of
recipient. An awareness and understanding of the types and quality of programs
available for the type of recipient is essential.
b) The Department shall pay expenses to the
hearing officer for his or her services at the local hearing.
c) Selection of one hearing officer from the
list shall occur within five calendar days after receipt of the list from the
Secretary, and shall occur as follows:
1) The
parents shall first strike a name from the list.
2) The facility shall next strike a name from
the list.
3) Both parties shall
continue striking from the list until one name remains; that person shall serve
as the impartial hearing officer.
4) The facility shall notify the Secretary
and the State Superintendent of Education, within five days after receipt of
the list, the name of the person to be the impartial hearing officer.
5) This notification may be transmitted
verbally to the Secretary, provided that the verbal notification is confirmed
in writing, with verification by the facility and the parent, to the Secretary
and the State Superintendent of Education within five days.
6) Upon receipt of the notification, the
Secretary shall appoint the hearing officer selected by the facility and the
parent(s) to convene the hearing. If the selected hearing officer is unable or
unwilling to accept the appointment, the Secretary shall seek from the facility
and parent a mutually acceptable alternate. If the facility and parent are
unable to agree to a mutually acceptable alternate, the Secretary shall provide
the facility and parent with an additional list of five prospective hearing
officers. The facility and parent shall then repeat the selection process as
detailed above.
7) The Illinois
State Board of Education shall maintain a list of those persons who serve as
hearing officers, along with their qualifications. From the list, the Secretary
shall select a list of persons especially qualified in mental disabilities and
offer further training to make them eligible to serve as Department educational
hearing officers.
d) The
hearing shall not be considered adversarial in nature, but shall be directed
toward bringing out all facts necessary for the hearing officer to make a
decision.
