2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 17:1948 — Local educational agency eligibility and assistance

§1948.  Local educational agency eligibility and assistance

A.  Each local educational agency receiving assistance for the provision of education to children with disabilities within its jurisdiction must have in effect policies, procedures, and programs that are consistent with the state policies and procedures established under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).  Each of the agencies within the jurisdiction of the state Department of Education must have on file with the department information to demonstrate that the requirements of Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are consistent with state policies and procedures.

B.  The local educational agency shall make available to parents of children with exceptionalities and to the general public all documents relating to the eligibility of the agency under this Chapter.

C.  Amounts provided to the local educational agency under this Part shall be expended in accordance with the applicable provisions of this Chapter and shall be used only to pay the excess costs of providing special education and related services to children with disabilities; shall be used to supplement state, local, and other federal funds and not to supplant such funds; and shall not be used, except as provided in this Subsection and Subsection D of this Section, to reduce the level of expenditures for the education of children with disabilities made by the local educational agency from local funds below the level of those expenditures for the preceding fiscal year.

D.  Notwithstanding the restriction in Subsection C of this Section, a local educational agency may reduce the level of expenditures where such reduction is attributable to any of the following:

(1)  The voluntary departure, by retirement or otherwise, or departure for just cause of special education personnel.

(2)  A decrease in the enrollment of children with disabilities.

(3)  The termination of the obligation of the agency, consistent with this Part, to provide a program of special education to a particular child with a disability that is an exceptionally costly program, as determined by the state educational agency, because of any of the following:

(a)  The child has left the jurisdiction of the agency.

(b)  Has reached the age at which the obligation of the agency to provide a free appropriate public education to the child has terminated.

(c)  No longer needs such program of special education.

(4)  The termination of costly expenditures for long-term purchases, such as the acquisition of equipment or the construction of school facilities.

E.  Notwithstanding Subsection A of this Section or any other provision of this Part, a local educational agency may use funds received under this Part for any fiscal year to carry out a schoolwide program under Section 1114 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965,¹ except that the amount so used in any such program shall not exceed the number of children with disabilities participating in the schoolwide program multiplied by the amount received by the local educational agency under this Part for that fiscal year, divided by the number of children with disabilities in the jurisdiction of that agency.

F.  Notwithstanding Subsection C of this Section or in regard to the commingling of funds, funds provided to the local educational agency under this Part may be used for the following activities:

(1)  For the costs of special education and related services and supplementary aids and services provided in a regular class or other education-related setting to a child with a disability in accordance with the individualized education program of the child, even if one or more nondisabled children benefit from such services.

(2)  To develop and implement a fully integrated and coordinated services system.

G.  In carrying out the provisions of this Part with respect to charter schools that are public schools of the local educational agency, the local educational agency shall serve children with disabilities attending those schools in the same manner as it serves children with disabilities in its other schools and shall provide funds under this Part to those schools in the same manner as it provides those funds to its other schools.

H.  If the state educational agency, after reasonable notice and an opportunity for a hearing, finds that a local educational agency or state agency that has been determined to be eligible under this Section is failing to comply with any requirement provided in Subsection A of this Section, the state educational agency shall reduce or shall not provide any further payments to the local educational agency or state agency until the state educational agency is satisfied that the local educational agency or state agency, as the case may be, is complying with that requirement.

I.  No local educational agency or child net service provider shall be required to replace or repair any assistive technology device provided through the local educational agency or child net service provider to a child with a disability or a parent or guardian of a child with a disability if such device is lost, stolen, damaged, broken, destroyed, or otherwise misused while in the possession of the child, parent, or guardian.  This Subsection does not apply to replacement or repair of such a device which needs repair or replacement as a result of ordinary wear.

Acts 1977, No. 754, §1; Acts 1992, No. 458, §1, eff. June 20, 1992; Acts 1998, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 109, §1, eff. May 5, 1998; Acts 2000, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 67, §1.

¹As appears in enrolled bill.