FINAL RULE ON SIGNIFICANT DISPROPORTIONALITY – Compliance date postponed until July 1, 2020

A final rule concerning the U.S. Department of Education significant disproportionality regulations published December 19, 2016 was placed in the Federal Register on June 29, 2018. The USDOE has postponed the compliance date for implementing the significant disproportionality regulations by two years, from July 1, 2018, to July 1, 2020. The Department has also postponed the date children ages 3 through 5 must be included in the analysis of significant disproportionality, from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2022.

In May 2018, DEC sent a letter to Asst. Secretary Collette strongly opposing the proposed delay of the implementation dates for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)’s disproportionality regulations. You can view that letter here. DEC also signed onto a letter submitted by the Consortium of Citizens with Disabilities which included a variety of organizations, including the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) among others also opposing the delay. View that letter here.

According to the notice on June 29, the compliance date was postponed so that the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) can thoroughly review the significant disproportionality regulations and ensure that they effectively address the issue of significant disproportionality and best serve children with disabilities. This review is part of the Department’s regulatory reform activities pursuant to Executive Order 13777, “Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda.” It is important to note that States must continue to meet their statutory obligation to make annual determinations as to whether significant disproportionality exists in their LEAs.