SENATE BILL No. 993
January 9, 2002, Introduced by Senator PETERS and referred to the Committee on Education.
A bill to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled
"The revised school code,"
by amending sections 1701 and 1703 (MCL 380.1701 and 380.1703),
section 1703 as amended by 1995 PA 289, and by adding section
1703a.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
1 Sec. 1701. The
state board SUPERINTENDENT
OF PUBLIC
2 INSTRUCTION shall DO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:
3 (a) Develop, establish, and continually evaluate and modify
4 in cooperation with intermediate school boards, a state plan for
5 special education which shall provide for the delivery of special
6 education programs and services designed to develop the maximum
7 potential of every handicapped person. The plan shall coordinate
8 all special education programs and services.
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1 (b) Require each intermediate school board to submit a plan
2 pursuant to section 1711, in accordance with the state plan, to
3 be approved by the
state board SUPERINTENDENT OF
PUBLIC
4 INSTRUCTION.
5 (c) Promulgate
SUBJECT TO SECTION 1703A,
PROMULGATE rules
6 setting forth the requirements of the plans and procedures for
7 submitting them.
8 Sec. 1703. (1)
Special SUBJECT TO SECTION
1703A, SPECIAL
9 education personnel shall meet the qualifications and require-
10 ments of rules promulgated by
the state board
SUPERINTENDENT OF
11 PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.
12 (2) Curriculum
SUBJECT TO SECTION 1703A,
CURRICULUM, eli-
13 gibility of specific persons for special education programs and
14 services and for each particular program or service, review pro-
15 cedures regarding the placement of persons in the programs or
16 services, size of classes, size of programs, quantity and quality
17 of equipment, supplies and housing, adequacy of methods of
18 instruction, and length and content of school day shall be in
19 accordance with rules
promulgated by the state
board
20 SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION relative to special educa-
21 tion programs and services.
22 (3) Not later
than September 30, 1996, the
state board
23 shall conduct a
review of all rules promulgated by
the state
24 board or
department pertaining to special
education. The review
25 shall consider at
least all of the following:
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1 (a) The need to
eliminate unnecessary
separation and
2 duplication between
regular education and special
education
3 facilities, staff,
programs, services, and pupils.
4 (b) Potential
benefits from coordination
between all rele-
5 vant federal, state,
regional, and local
organization services,
6 including public and
private organization services,
for pupils
7 with special needs,
and encouragement of the
provision of compre-
8 hensive necessary
services delivered by the most
appropriate
9 organization or
person in the most cost-effective
and programmat-
10 ically effective
manner.
11 (c) The
advisability of simplification of
rules or regula-
12 tions and processes
relating to identification of
need and provi-
13 sion of services to
special needs pupils, avoidance
of barriers
14 and cost and other
penalties or discouragements to
effective pro-
15 gramming, and
avoidance of requirements as to staff
or program
16 criteria that are not
research based; allowing and
encouraging
17 reasonably flexible,
workable, and, if appropriate,
cooperatively
18 operated
comprehensive services, including
reasonable endorsement
19 or other
qualification categories for personnel, to
be delivered
20 to pupils with
related or similar special needs, as
may be con-
21 sistent with
research.
22 (d) A goal of
providing educational and
training services in
23 a manner that
maximizes for the benefit of the
pupil the combina-
24 tion of the
provisions of this act and federal law
relating to
25 inclusion, while
avoiding, to the degree reasonably
possible,
26 requiring by rule an
overall increase in a program
or service
27 beyond that
required before December 23, 1978.
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1 SEC. 1703A. (1) THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION,
2 STATE BOARD, DEPARTMENT, OR ANY OTHER STATE AGENCY SHALL NOT
3 PROMULGATE ANY RULE THAT DOES ANY OF THE FOLLOWING:
4 (A) ELIMINATES ANY SPECIAL EDUCATION DISABILITY CATEGORY
5 THAT WAS IN EFFECT AS OF JANUARY 1, 2002 OR REDUCES THE NUMBER OF
6 SPECIAL EDUCATION DISABILITY CATEGORIES THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS OF
7 JANUARY 1, 2002.
8 (B) ELIMINATES CLASS SIZE REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION
9 THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS OF JANUARY 1, 2002 OR INCREASES THE PER-
10 MISSIBLE SIZE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION CLASSES ABOVE THE CLASS SIZE
11 REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS OF
12 JANUARY 1, 2002.
13 (C) ELIMINATES OR REDUCES FULL FUNDING OF SPECIAL EDUCATION
14 PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, OR THAT HAS THE EFFECT OF ELIMINATING OR
15 REDUCING FULL FUNDING OF SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS AND
16 SERVICES.
17 (D) ELIMINATES THE MAXIMUM AGE SPAN REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL
18 EDUCATION CLASSES THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS OF JANUARY 1, 2002 OR
19 INCREASES THE MAXIMUM AGE SPAN REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION
20 CLASSES ABOVE THE MAXIMUM AGE SPAN REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL EDU-
21 CATION CLASSES THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS OF JANUARY 1, 2002.
22 (E) ELIMINATES THE STANDARDS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION PROFES-
23 SIONAL OR PARAPROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION THAT WERE IN EFFECT AS
24 OF JANUARY 1, 2002 OR REDUCES THE STANDARDS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION
25 PROFESSIONAL OR PARAPROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION THAT WERE IN
26 EFFECT AS OF JANUARY 1, 2002.
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1 (2) ANY RULE CONTRARY TO THIS SECTION IS INVALID.
2 (3) THE PURPOSE OF THIS SECTION IS TO ENSURE THAT THE RULES
3 UNDER THIS ARTICLE CONTINUE TO BE INTENDED TO MAXIMIZE EACH
4 AFFECTED STUDENT'S POTENTIAL.
5 (4) THIS SECTION SHALL BE KNOWN AS THE "SPECIAL EDUCATION
6 PROTECTION LAW".
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