Public Hearing - January 2008

PUBLIC HEARING ANNOUNCEMENT - SAVE THE DATE

Proposed Amendments to the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education to conform to Chapter 378 of the New York State (NYS) Laws of 2007, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as Amended in 2004, and the Final Federal Regulations to Implement IDEA 2004

The New York State Education Department, Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID), has scheduled three public hearings on its proposed regulations to implement Chapter 378 of the NYS Laws of 2007, IDEA 2004 and the final federal regulations to implement IDEA 2004. The regulations are scheduled for discussion at the January 2008 Regents meeting and for action at the Regents meeting in May 2008.

A copy of the proposed regulations may be accessed at the following websites.

http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/timely.htm
and
http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/idea/home.html

Public comment on the proposed regulations will be accepted for 45-days (until April 7, 2008) after its publication in the NYS Register on February 20, 2008. In addition to providing comment at the scheduled public hearings, you may also provide written public comment on the proposed regulations by writing to: VESID, Special Education Policy, Room 1624, One Commerce Plaza, Albany, New York 12234. Comments may also be faxed to 518-473-5387. We request that written public comment regarding the proposed amendments be provided using the Public Comment Submission Sheet.

The public hearing sessions are scheduled as follows:

	New York City*
Date	Wednesday March 26, 2008
Time	2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location	Manhattan VESID District Office 116 West 32nd Street 5^th Floor Conference Room NY, NY 10001 Directions: www.vesid.nysed.gov/manhattan/directions.htm

	Albany
Date	Wednesday April 2, 2008
Time	2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location	State Education Department Education Building Seminar Room 5A/B, Albany, New York 12234 Directions: www.emsc.nysed.gov/cte/techprep/webpages/ DirectionstotheNYSED_Building.html Parking: http://www.ogs.state.ny.us/parking/forVisitor/visitor.html

	Syracuse*
Date	Wednesday April 2, 2008
Time	2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location	Senator Hughes Office Building VESID District Office 333 East Washington Street 2^nd Floor Syracuse, NY 13202 Directions: http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/syracuse/directions.htm

* The New York City public hearing will be conducted by video teleconference with an Albany site.

Pre-registration is not required.
You must bring photo identification and follow sign-in procedures, which may include a security scanning, as required at the door.
Individuals may register to comment at the door on a first-come, first-served basis. Comments can be oral or written. Written comments that accompany oral remarks are optional.
The meeting rooms are accessible to individuals with disabilities.
Individuals who need accommodations for a disability in order to attend the meeting (i.e., interpreting services and material in an alternative format) should notify Judy DeSapio at (518) 473-2878 no later than two weeks before the scheduled meeting date.
Participants wishing to provide comment between 4:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. must arrive and register no later than 4:30 p.m.

Please check the following two VESID websites prior to the meeting dates for additional information and any changes regarding these meetings:

http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/timely.htm
and
http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/specialed/idea/home.html

Questions regarding the public hearings may be directed to Tim Knapik at (518) 486-7462 and questions regarding the proposed regulations may be directed to Alison Conners at (518) 473-2878.