POLICY LETTER: June 26, 2012 to U.S. Congresswoman Lynn C. Woolsey

June 26, 2012Lynn C. WoolseyMember of Congress6th District, CaliforniaU.S. House of Representatives2263 Rayburn BuildingWashington, DC 20515Dear Congresswoman Woolsey:This is in response to your December 7, 2011 letter to me addressing concerns raised by California's Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) Administrators regarding the reporting requirements established by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), to monitor compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA or Act). With your letter, you attached a position paper from the SELPA Administrators and asked that we respond to the concerns stated there. Specifically, the SELPA Administrators expressed concerns with: (Each State has the discretion to define significant disproportionality for the LEAs and for the State in general. The State's definition needs to be based on an analysis of numerical information, and may not include consideration of the State's or LEA's policies, procedures, or practices. This is because IDEA section 618(d)(2) is clear that a review of policies, procedures, or practices is a consequence of, rather than a part of, a determination of significant disproportionality. Under IDEA section 618(d)(2), when the SEA identifies an LEA with significant disproportionality in any of the areas identified above, the State must: (1) provide for the review and, if appropriate, revision of its policies, procedures, and practices; (2) require the LEA to reserve the maximum Woolsey