U.S. Department of Education Signals Final Decision on Parental Consent Expected Soon

January 18, 2012

The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) recently published a status report on ongoing policy reviews which indicates that the Department anticipates issuing final regulations on the proposed change to parental consent requirements under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) by July or August of 2012.

On September 28, 2011, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services in the DOE proposed revised guidelines for parental consent requirements under IDEA. If approved, the new regulations would eliminate the requirement that schools obtain parental consent each time access to public benefits or insurance programs is sought.

The new guidelines propose replacing the existing regulation with a one-time written notification requirement and would permit a public agency to use public benefits or insurance programs in which a child participates to provide or pay for services required under IDEA Part B, provided that parental consent requirements imposed under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) have already been met.

Read Paradigm’s issue analysis of parental consent…