Texas Administrative Code
Title 19 - EDUCATION
Part 2 - TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY
Chapter 102 - EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
Subchapter MM - COMMISSIONER'S RULES CONCERNING SUPPLEMENTAL SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES PROGRAM
Section 102.1601 - Supplemental Special Education Services and Instructional Materials Program for Certain Public School Students Receiving Special Education Services
Universal Citation: 19 TX Admin Code ยง 102.1601
Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) The Texas Education Agency (TEA) will administer the Supplemental Special Education Services Program described in Texas Education Code (TEC), Chapter 29, Subchapter A-1, under the name Parent-Directed Special Education Services (PDSES). Any reference to the Supplemental Special Education Services Program, supplemental special education services, supplemental special education instructional materials, or SSES in state law and TEA materials is to be considered synonymous with the PDSES program.
(b) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply.
(1) Eligible student--A student who meets all
program eligibility criteria under TEC, §
29.044, and this
section.
(2) Management system--The
online system provided by the marketplace vendor to allow for account creation,
management of funds, and access to the marketplace.
(3) Marketplace--The virtual platform where
parents and guardians with program funds may purchase goods and
services.
(4) Marketplace
vendor--The vendor chosen by TEA to create an online marketplace for the use of
program funds.
(5) Parent-directed
special education instructional materials (materials)--This term has the
meaning defined in TEC, §
29.041, and
specifically excludes materials that are provided as compensatory services or
as a means of providing a student with a free appropriate public
education.
(6) Parent-directed
special education services (services)--This term has the meaning defined in
TEC, §
29.041, and
specifically excludes services that are provided as compensatory services or as
a means of providing a student with a free appropriate public education or an
independent educational evaluation.
(7) Program--This term has the meaning in
TEC, Chapter 29, Subchapter A-1, as well as the PDSES program.
(c) Eligibility criteria. All students currently enrolled in a Texas public school district or open-enrollment charter school who are served under an individualized education program (IEP) in a special education program, including, but not limited to, students in early childhood special education, prekindergarten, Kindergarten-Grade 12, and 18-and-over transition programs, are eligible for the program with the following exclusions:
(1)
students who do not reside in Texas or move out of the state, not including
military-connected students entitled to enroll or remain enrolled while outside
the state; or
(2) students who
previously received a program grant, beginning with the program's launch in the
2020-2021 school year.
(d) Awards.
(1) Parents and guardians of eligible
students will receive grants of $1,500 as long as funds are available for use
in the purchasing of materials and services through the curated marketplace of
educational goods and services. Parents and guardians may receive only one
grant for each eligible student. A student enrolled in a school district or
open-enrollment charter school that is eligible for a compensatory education
allotment under TEC, §
48.104, will be
prioritized to receive a grant award.
(2) TEA will use Public Education Information
Management System (PEIMS) codes submitted by school districts and
open-enrollment charter schools by each school year's TEA-established fall data
submission deadline to verify eligibility in order to award accounts for the
program.
(e) Establishment of the marketplace.
(1) In
accordance with TEC, §
29.042(d),
TEA shall award an education service center (ESC) with an operational and
school district support grant, which may include, but is not limited to, the
following operational requirements:
(A)
writing and administering a contract for a vendor for the program marketplace
that curates the content in its marketplace for educational relevancy. In
accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, the contract
must require the vendor for the marketplace to protect and keep confidential
students' personally identifiable information, which may not be sold or
monetized;
(B) providing technical
assistance to parents and guardians throughout the program process;
(C) serving as the main point of contact for
the selected marketplace vendor to ensure eligible student accounts are
appropriately spent down;
(D)
approving or denying all purchases from the program marketplace, including
communication with parents and guardians about purchase order requests;
and
(E) approving or denying all
potential service providers.
(2) Providers of materials and services may
apply to be listed in the marketplace. To become an approved marketplace
service provider, an applicant must sign a service provider agreement and
comply with licensing, safety, and employee background checks.
(A) Organization service providers are
required to provide their Texas Tax ID for TEA to verify the validity of the
organization.
(B) Individual
service providers are required to provide proof of credentials and licensing in
accordance with the individual service provider categories established by
TEA.
(3) TEA shall
provide a process for the application and approval of vendors to the
marketplace.
(4) TEA and the
marketplace vendor shall provide a curated list of vendors through which
parents and guardians can purchase educationally relevant materials. The
established marketplace vendor shall be responsible for ensuring the vendors
comply with program parameters as they relate to the marketplace and be
responsible for all communications with marketplace vendors.
(f) Application process for grant on behalf of a student.
(1) TEA is responsible
for the application process and the determination of which applicants are
approved for program grants.
(2)
Parents and guardians who would like to apply on behalf of their eligible
students must complete the online application.
(3) TEA will establish an annual application
window. If applications are submitted during the window for students who would
not show as eligible under the fall PEIMS data collection used by TEA under
subsection (d)(2) of this section, a parent must submit evidence of eligibility
when submitting the application.
(4) Upon approval of the application:
(A) TEA shall send contact information for
parents and guardians of eligible students in a secure manner to the online
marketplace vendor for account creation and distribution;
(B) parents and guardians of eligible
students will receive an email to the same email address provided during
application from the marketplace vendor with information on how to access their
accounts; and
(C) parents and
guardians will be awarded an account of $1,500, depending on availability of
funds, per eligible student to be used to purchase services and
materials.
(5) Parents
and guardians of students who are deemed not eligible or who are determined to
have violated account use restrictions under subsection (i) of this section
will receive notification from TEA and be provided an opportunity to appeal the
denial or account use determination. TEA shall exercise its discretion to
determine the validity of any such appeal.
(6) A parent or guardian of a student who is
deemed not eligible because the student cannot be verified through the PEIMS
process described under subsection (d)(2) of this section or because the parent
or guardian did not submit the necessary documentation during the designated
application window for a student who became eligible after the timeline
described in subsection (d)(2) of this section but before the end of the
application window must wait until the following school year's application
window to reapply.
(7) If
necessary, eligible students will be placed on a waitlist and parents and
guardians will be notified. When additional funds become available, priority
will be given in the order established by the waitlist and in accordance with
subsection (d) of this section.
(8)
TEA shall maintain confidentiality of students' personally identifiable
information in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
and, to the extent applicable, the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act.
(g) Approval of application; assignment of account.
(1) TEA shall set aside funds for a
pre-determined number of accounts of $1,500 to be awarded to parents and
guardians of eligible students.
(2)
Parents and guardians with more than one eligible student may apply and receive
a grant for each eligible student.
(3) Approved parents and guardians will
receive an award notification email from the marketplace vendor and may begin
spending account funds upon completion of account setup.
(4) Parents and guardians who receive an
award notification but whose student no longer qualifies under subsection (c)
of this section shall notify TEA of their student's change in eligibility
status.
(5) Within 30 calendar days
from receiving an award notification email, parents and guardians must:
(A) access or log in to their account or the
account may be subject to reclamation; and
(B) agree to and sign the parental
agreement.
(h) Use of funds. Use of program funds provided to parents and guardians are limited as follows.
(1) Only materials and services available
through the marketplace of approved providers and vendors may be purchased with
program funds.
(2) Materials and
services must directly benefit the eligible student's educational
needs.
(3) Materials shall be used
in compliance with TEA purchasing guidelines.
(4) If TEA approves vendors for a category of
material under subsection (e) of this section, materials must be purchased from
the TEA-approved vendor for that category of material. If TEA does not
establish criteria for a category of materials, funds in a student's account
may be used to purchase the materials from any vendor.
(5) The contracted ESC has full authority to
reject or deny any purchase.
(6)
Parents and guardians may not use program funds for reimbursement of goods or
services obtained outside of the marketplace. Program funds shall not be paid
directly to parents or guardians of eligible students.
(i) Account use restrictions. TEA may, subject to the appeal process referenced in subsection (f)(5) of this section, close or suspend accounts and reclaim a portion or all of the funds from accounts in the marketplace if:
(1) the
materials or services that parents or guardians attempt to purchase are not
educational in nature or are deemed to be in violation of the purchasing
guidelines set forth by TEA;
(2) it
is determined that the materials or services purchased do not meet the
definitions in subsection (b)(5) and (6) of this section;
(3) the program parental agreement is not
signed within 30 calendar days of receipt of account email from the marketplace
vendor; or
(4) a student no longer
meets the eligibility criteria set out in subsection (c) of this
section.
(j) Requirements to provide information. School districts and open-enrollment charter schools shall notify families of the program and, unless the school district or charter school has verified that a parent has already received or applied for a program grant, shall provide the following at the student's admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee meeting:
(1) instructions and resources on accessing
the online accounts, including the application window established by TEA;
and
(2) information about the types
of goods and services that are available through the program grant.
(k) Restrictions. A student's ARD committee may not consider a student's current or anticipated eligibility for any materials or services that may be provided under this section when developing or revising a student's IEP, when determining a student's educational setting, or in the provision of a free appropriate public education.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Texas may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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