Parents At Disadvantage In Current Special Ed Appeals System

Thanks to the emailer who sent me this. Check out the Action Alert link, where you can contact your state representative and senator.

Action Alert

Assign Burden of Proof in IDEA Disputes to School District
Parents At Disadvantage In Current System

The U.S Supreme Court decision in Schaffer vs. Weast determined that, unless state rules indicate otherwise, the party "seeking relief" has the burden of proof in IDEA due process proceedings. The Court acknowledged that school districts have a natural advantage over parents in such disputes, particularly when it comes to resources. Prior to this court decision, Pennsylvania school districts had the burden of proof, regardless of who requested the due process hearing. Therefore, it was the obligation of the district to present its case first. Such an allocation of the burden made sense, as it is the school district that has the duty to provide FAPE (free and appropriate public education) in the least restrictive environment. Moreover, it is practical, productive, time-saving, and cost-minimizing to have the school district (which has the easiest access to the student's records and the teachers and experts that work with the child daily) to testify first at the hearing. A large percentage of parents are unrepresented during due process hearings.

With the U.S. Supreme Court decision, parents were placed at a disadvantage. Pennsylvania has no statute or regulation that assigns the burden of proof to school districts. Few parents go into this process with the resources or knowledge to properly present their child's case against seasoned professionals and bureaucrats representing school districts.

The Arc urges passage of legislation that places the burden of proof in special education matters onto school districts rather than parents. House Bill 2438 has been introduced by House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, and Senate Education Committee Chairman James Rhoades has introduced Senate Bill 1414, both of which would assign the burden of proof in IDEA disputes to the school district and not the parent. The only exception would be if the parent has unilaterally chosen a private school placement, which usually means a segregated setting. The legislation also requires school districts to complete special education evaluations within 60 calendar days year round (Chapter 14 regulations exempt summer months from the count).

Members of both the state Senate and House of Representatives should be urged to cosponsor these pieces of legislation right away and work to pass one of the bills before the end of the 2008 legislative session.

Greenland: Do You Want the Good News or the Bad News?

Here's an update on the beleaguered Greenland Arkansas school district.

July 10: Fundraiser anchors efforts to keep Greenland School District independent
The Board of Education set a lofty goal to raise $ 321, 000 in donations or pledges by Sunday afternoon in its efforts to convince the state the district shouldn't be annexed due to financial shortcomings. A major piece of the fundraising will be the "Save the School" fundraiser [Ed Note: Nice name!] planned for Saturday on the school campus. The district is also asking for pledges in hopes that getting as close to the number as possible will convince the Arkansas State Board of Education not to annex Greenland to another system.

July 12: TIMELINE: Greenland's Financial Woes

July 12: Optimism The Word For Greenland Residents
Mounds of clothing and boxes filled with everything from puzzles to a pair of rubber boots is the last-ditch effort to save the Greenland School District. Optimism is the word for many in Greenland in the face of Monday's decision by the state Board of Education which could force a neighboring school district, such as Fayetteville, to swallow Greenland's. The rummage sale and auctions at the school's campus are all supporters have left to erase the district's negative balance of some $400,000.

Then came the decision from the state board of education yesterday: The Arkansas State Board of Education spared the Greenland School District from annexation and instead opted to place the district under state control for the foreseeable future Monday. Education Commissioner Ken James said he would formally notify the Greenland Board of Education of the decision by letter, which is standard procedure in a takeover. He will give the board reports on district progress with improving its financial situation every three months. He will appoint his own superintendent and dismiss the school board as part of the change, he said. The board voted 5-0 to defer annexation and assume control of the district.

Earned Income Tax?

Maybe so in Newtown Township. “In this unstable economy, it’s going to concern people,” he said. “I just think there is a negative mindset that will make people apprehensive and vote it down.” Stop by Morrisville. We have a beautiful vista of a magnificent negative mindset.

Board mulls tax hike
Supervisors would use the extra funds to purchase open space.
By CHRISTIAN MENNO

An earned income tax increase could be on the way for Newtown Township.

A public hearing on the increase, which would be used to fund open space, will be on the board of supervisors’ July 23 agenda.

The board last week voted 3-2 to hold the public hearing, which is required to get a tax referendum on the ballot in November. Supervisors Phillip Calabro and Jerry Schenkman voted against the move.

If approved at the polls, the tax hike wouldn’t take effect until an ordinance is enacted. And that, the board members said, wouldn’t happen until land is purchased. The increased part of the tax would remain in effect only until the necessary funds are raised to pay for the purchase, officials said.

“The solicitor will present the board with four different tax percentages, up to a .25 percent increase,” Supervisor Michael Gallagher said. “It will probably be closer to .1 percent, which would generate about $1.1 million.”

Working residents and non-residents employed in the township already pay a 1 percent EIT, split between the Council Rock School District and the township. If a .1 percent increase is approved by voters, the school district would continue to receive its .5 percent, while the township’s portion would increase to .6 percent.

About 41 percent of the increased revenue would come from non-residents, said Gallagher, citing the township’s most recent budget report. According to the census, 18,206 people live in the township. Data wasn’t available on how many people work in the township.

With the average income of township residents at approximately $34,335, according to the 2000 census, a .1 percent EIT hike would cost the average resident $34.34 per year, boosting the total paid to the township to $206.01. That would make the total EIT $377.69 for the average resident.

Proponents of the EIT increase say it’s better than a property tax hike.

Calabro said his problem is not with the tax hike, but the timing.

“In this unstable economy, it’s going to concern people,” he said. “I just think there is a negative mindset that will make people apprehensive and vote it down.”

That would set the open space progress back, perhaps another two years, he said, noting a similar open space referendum was defeated eight years ago during a decidedly positive economic period.

Open space supporter and resident Sue Beasley agreed.

“Let’s just get over the economic crisis and then go forward from there,” she said. “I would just hate to see another referendum defeated. It would send a terrible message that Newtown residents don’t care about this issue.”

Supervisor Robert Ciervo said the timing is right.

“I think this is the exact time with real estate being at its lowest level and only about to go up,” he said. “We know the parcels available and which ones we want to be protected. We can’t wait on this, because two years from now, they most likely won’t be available.”

Board Chairman Robert Jirele cited the Melsky tract as an example of a piece of property that could have been preserved as open space but has since been sold and developed.

If the tax referendum fails in November, Jirele said that alternative revenue streams and potential purchases would be cautiously explored to preserve open space.

Jeffrey Marshall, a resident and vice president of Resource Protection of the Heritage Conservancy group, said hesitation would prove costly.

“We don’t know if the economy is going to be better in six months or a year,” he said. “It’s better to be ahead of the curve instead of behind. Because once it’s gone, it’s gone.”

Constitutional Convention?

From the BCCT. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?” The U.S. Constitution was last done in 1787. When we follow its rules, we seem to do just fine.

Then there's an editorial where the BCCT agrees with the concept.

A call made to overhaul constitution
Two Bucks lawmakers say it’s time for a constitutional convention. Pennsylvania is operating under guidelines set in the 1800s.
By JAMES MCGINNIS

Two Bucks County lawmakers are calling for changes to the state’s Constitution to bring about “true reform.”

State Reps. Chris King, D-142, and John Galloway, D-140, said they want a voter referendum on the ballot in November. If approved by voters, a constitutional convention could convene in December.

Each senatorial district would send three convention delegates who are elected by the general public.

In a bill introduced in the House July 4, Galloway and King estimated the convention would need a budget of at least $20 million. No one currently holding state office could sit on the convention, according to the bill.

Galloway and King introduced a similar bill in March 2007. But that bill never made it to the House floor.

The last time the Pennsylvania Constitution was given a “comprehensive look” Ulysses Grant was in the White House, Galloway said.

“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”

“The need for a state constitutional convention is clear and convincing,” King said. “Many of our freshman colleagues in the House were elected to bring reform to Pennsylvania. A citizens’ constitutional convention is the most important reform this commonwealth could undertake.”

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Broken system
The state Legislature is a dysfunctional body in need of repair. Citizens should be entrusted to fix it.

Anybody who’s watched the goings-on in Harrisburg for a few years or even a few days knows that often there’s not much going on. Not much we can call progress. There’s plenty of politics and all sorts of chicanery as recent indictments indicate. But there’s little progress on issues that really matter to people.

Property taxes, for example. Lawmakers have been trying for decades to do something about this unfair and increasingly costly means of paying for our schools. After numerous false starts and two alleged reform laws, not much has changed. Lawmakers talk about change constantly, but most don’t have the guts or the moxie to support the real thing.

Then there’s redistricting, the census-dictated process of reshaping legislative districts to reflect population shifts. Legislative leaders have turned this into a jigsaw puzzle contest.

In an effort to protect incumbents, far-flung neighborhoods sometimes stretching from one county to another are drafted into a district to pack in as many Democratic or Republican voters as possible. This highly political process makes it virtually impossible to defeat incumbents, depriving the Legislature of much needed independent voices with new ideas.

One of the few new ideas to come out of Harrisburg belongs to state Reps. John Galloway and Chris King, freshman Democrats from Falls and Middletown respectively. The two reformers have introduced legislation to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot calling for a “citizens’ constitutional convention.”

The idea is to let a delegation of citizens — three elected from each of the state’s 50 senatorial districts — review and reform a state government that no longer seems capable of serving the interests of citizens. The convention would last nine months.

“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers that would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said, raising this logical question: “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”

Answer: Not very well.

Essentially, our state government is broken. And by government, we mean the Legislature, which is dominated by entrenched “leaders” who keep change at bay by controlling the legislative agenda, committee assignments, the money — you name it, they own it.

Instated, Galloway and King want to “allow the people to own the government again. We should trust them to look at our Constitution and do the right thing,” Galloway said, adding that lawmakers have a “credibility problem.”

He’s right about that. One scandal after another has practically destroyed our faith in Harrisburg. Maybe it’s time, as the old saying goes, to give the power to the people. They couldn’t do any worse.

Oktoberfest

From the BCCT

Morrisville planning Oktoberfest
Posted in News on Sunday, July 13th, 2008 at 4:39 pm by Courier Times staff writer Danny Adler

Residents, local businesses and companies in Morrisville are planning an Oktoberfest celebration to be held Oct. 3 through Oct. 5.

Organizers are looking for individuals, businesses, companies, groups, schools, churches, and more to join the planning committee at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the First Baptist Church of Morrisville, 50 N. Pennsylvania Ave.

The Oktoberfest celebration will benefit the Morrisville Fire Co., organizers said. It will include a chili cook off, crafters, vendors, games, entertainment, food, rides and more.

Earned Income Tax?