NY State Senate Bill 2017-S1948

Senate Bill S1948

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Requires the office of state review to render decisions on certain appeals pertaining to children with handicapping conditions within thirty days of receipt of such appeals

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jun 21, 2017	committed to rules
May 15, 2017	advanced to third reading
May 10, 2017	2nd report cal.
May 09, 2017	1st report cal.826
Jan 11, 2017	referred to education

Votes

- May 9, 2017 - Education Committee Vote
  S1948
  
  16
  
  Aye
  
  0
  
  Nay
  
  3
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Education Committee Vote: May 9, 2017
      
      aye (16)
      
      Addabbo Jr.
      
      Avella
      
      Breslin
      
      Brooks
      
      Croci
      
      Gallivan
      
      Hamilton
      
      Lanza
      
      Latimer
      
      Little
      
      Marcellino
      
      Montgomery
      
      Peralta
      
      Ranzenhofer
      
      Robach
      
      Stavisky
      
      aye wr (3)
      
      LaValle
      
      Serino
      
      Seward

2017-S1948 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A2698
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§4410 & 4404, Ed L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2013-2014: S6567
2015-2016: S2597, A6244
2019-2020: A319
2021-2022: A2048

2017-S1948 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the office of state review to render decisions on certain appeals pertaining to children with handicapping conditions within thirty days of receipt of such appeals and authorizes parties to file appeals in federal court at the expiration of the thirty days.

2017-S1948 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S1948

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the education law, in relation to
requiring the office of state review to render decisions on certain
appeals pertaining to children with handicapping conditions within
thirty days of receipt of such appeals

 PURPOSE :

This legislation will insure that not later than 30 days after receipt
of a request for review, a final decision is reached and a copy of the
decision rendered is mailed to all appropriate parties.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 7 of section 4410 of the
education law , as amended by section 57 of part H of chapter 83 of
the laws of 2002, is amended to read as follows:

(ii) Appeals taken to the office of state review shall be decided in
the order in which they were received In the event the state review
officer does not within 30 days, render a final decision and forward
such decision to the parties, then the decision of the impartial
hearing officer shall be substituted for the decision that should have
been timely rendered by the state review officer and deemed to be
final for administrative purposes without prejudice to any further

appeal that may be taken by aggrieved party to the federal court
pursuant to 34 C.F.R. § 300.516.

§ 2 Subdivision 2 of section 4404 of the education law, as amended by
chapter 53 of the laws of 1990, is amended as follows:

b. Appeals taken to the office of state review shall be decided in the
order in which they were received. In the event the state review
officer does not, within 30 days, render a final decision and forward
such decision to the parties, then the decision of the impartial
hearing officer shall be substituted for the decision that should have
been timely rendered by the state review officer and deemed to be
final for administrative purposes, without prejudice to any further
appeal that may be taken by aggrieved party to the federal court
pursuant to 34 C.F.R. § 300.516.

§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply equally to
cases that have been pending before the Office of State Review for
more than 30 days following the receipt of a request for a review
without issuance of a decision as of the date this act shall have
become a law and to cases in which the 30-day period elapses without
issuance of a decision on or after the date this act shall have become
law.

 EXISTING LAW :

Existing law does require submittal of decision by their viewing
officer within 30 days but does not allow for those hearing officers
that fail to submit a decision for administrative purposes without
prejudice to any further appeal that may be taken by aggrieved party
to the federal court pursuant to 34 C.F.R. § 300.516.

 JUSTIFICATION :

In 41 states, once the Impartial Hearing Officer rules, any appeal
from that decision goes directly to federal court. However, New York
and in 8 other states any appeal from the I.H.O.'s decision first goes
to an intermediate administrative appeal tribunal, which in New York
is the "Office of State Review", located in Albany, New York.  There
are two State Review Officers (S.R.O.'s). They are charged with
deciding such appeals, and under federal and state law, such appeals
are required to be decided on a 30 day basis unless all parties
consent to extend the 30 day time line. 34 C.F.R. § 300.515(b); N.Y.
Educ. Law 4410(7)(d); 8 N.Y.C.R.R. § 200.5(k)(2).

The relevant federal regulation states that the state educational
agency (here, the New York State Education Department) "must ensure
that not later than 30 days after the receipt of a request for review
- (1) A final decision is reached in the review; and (2) A copy of the
decision is mailed to each of the parties". 34 C.F.R. § 300.515(b).
The parties may however request extensions of this 30 day period. 34
C.F.R. § 300.515(c).

The office of State Review (OSR) has admitted to N.Y.S.E.D.,
practically all the appeals being filed with the O.S.R.'s are not
being decided within 30 days. Over the last two years, O.R.S has
accumulated a backlog of approximately 200 appeal cases that are now
materially late for their decisions. Depending on which cases the
S.R.O. selects to decide, some but not all, of these appeals have been
languishing without a decision for more than a year. This untenable
situation is keeping parents and school districts alike in a state of
limbo and it is the cause of a class action and other lawsuits being
filed in the federal court.

This legislation will help to expedite these appeals in a fair and
reasonable manner by moving those cases not heard by the impartial
hearing officer and substituting his/her decision with a decision, for
administrative purposes, without prejudice to any further appeal that
may be taken by aggrieved party to the federal court

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2013-14 - S6567-B, LATIMER; REFERRED TO EDUCATION
2015-16 - S2597,LATIMER; REFERRED TO EDUCATION

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

To be determined

 LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This legislation will take effect immediately.

2017-S1948 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1948
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. LATIMER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring  the  office
   of  state  review to render decisions on certain appeals pertaining to
   children with handicapping conditions within thirty days of receipt of
   such appeals
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Paragraph d of subdivision 7 of section 4410 of the educa-
 tion law, as amended by section 57 of part H of chapter 83 of  the  laws
 of 2002, is amended to read as follows:
   d. (I) A state review officer of the education department shall review
 the  decision  of the impartial hearing officer in the manner prescribed
 in subdivision two of section forty-four hundred four  of  this  article
 and  render  a  decision no later than thirty days after the decision of
 such hearing officer.
   (II) APPEALS TAKEN TO THE OFFICE OF STATE REVIEW SHALL BE  DECIDED  IN
 THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY ARE RECEIVED. IN THE EVENT THAT THE STATE REVIEW
 OFFICER  DOES  NOT,  WITHIN  THIRTY  DAYS,  RENDER  A FINAL DECISION AND
 FORWARD SUCH DECISION TO THE PARTIES, THEN THE DECISION OF THE IMPARTIAL
 HEARING OFFICER SHALL BE SUBSTITUTED FOR THE DECISION THAT  SHOULD  HAVE
 BEEN  TIMELY RENDERED BY THE STATE REVIEW OFFICER AND DEEMED TO BE FINAL
 FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PURPOSES, WITHOUT PREJUDICE  TO  ANY  FURTHER  APPEAL
 THAT  MAY  BE TAKEN BY ANY AGGRIEVED PARTY TO THE FEDERAL COURT PURSUANT
 TO 34 C.F.R. § 300.516.
   § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 4404 of the education law, as amended by
 chapter 53 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
   2. Review by state review officer. A. A state review  officer  of  the
 education  department  shall review and may modify, in such cases and to
 the extent that the review officer deems necessary, in order to properly
 effectuate the purposes of this article, any determination of the impar-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD00917-01-7

 S. 1948                             2
 
 tial hearing officer relating to the determination of the  nature  of  a
 child's  handicapping  condition,  selection  of  an appropriate special
 education program or service and the failure to provide such program and
 require  such  board to comply with the provisions of such modification.
 The commissioner shall adopt  regulations  governing  the  practice  and
 procedure  in such appeals to the state review officer; provided, howev-
 er, that in no event shall any fee or charge whatsoever be  imposed  for
 any  appeal taken pursuant to this subdivision. The state review officer
 is empowered to make all orders which are proper or  necessary  to  give
 effect to the decision of the review officer.
   B. APPEALS TAKEN TO THE OFFICE OF STATE REVIEW SHALL BE DECIDED IN THE
 ORDER  IN  WHICH  THEY  ARE RECEIVED. IN THE EVENT THAT THE STATE REVIEW
 OFFICER DOES NOT, WITHIN  THIRTY  DAYS,  RENDER  A  FINAL  DECISION  AND
 FORWARD SUCH DECISION TO THE PARTIES, THEN THE DECISION OF THE IMPARTIAL
 HEARING  OFFICER SHALL BE SUBSTITUTED FOR THE FINAL DECISION THAT SHOULD
 HAVE BEEN TIMELY RENDERED BY THE STATE REVIEW OFFICER AND DEEMED  TO  BE
 FINAL  FOR  ADMINISTRATIVE  PURPOSES,  WITHOUT  PREJUDICE TO ANY FURTHER
 APPEAL THAT MAY BE TAKEN BY ANY AGGRIEVED PARTY  TO  THE  FEDERAL  COURT
 PURSUANT TO 34 C.F.R. § 300.516.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply equally to
 cases  that have been pending before the office of state review for more
 than 30 days following the receipt of a request  for  a  review  without
 issuance  of  a decision as of the date this act shall have become a law
 and to cases in which the 30-day period elapses without  issuance  of  a
 decision on or after the date this act shall have become a law.

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