Q&A
DOE outlines efforts to reduce due process budget and cases
1:25:44
ยท
3 min
Liz Vladeck, General Counsel for the DOE, outlines several steps being taken to reduce the due process budget and number of cases:
- Investigating why per-student tuition costs in Carter cases have increased dramatically
- Working to have fewer cases in the system overall
- Implementing a new state rule that has decreased due process filings by an estimated 30-50%
- Making investments in providing services directly to ISP students to reduce reliance on outside providers
- Hiring special education certified teachers to dispatch as needed
- Opening after-school and weekend programs to students in private schools
Liz Vladeck
1:25:44
Alright.
1:25:45
1, we're increasing rates for a voucher.
1:25:48
I think what you're mostly talking about are ISP cases.
1:25:52
Correct me if I'm wrong, because I
Althea Stevens
1:25:53
mean, it's wrong.
1:25:54
I'm talking about just like even with the Carter cases, we're at $2,100,000,000 with Carter cases.
1:25:59
And so thinking about what is the plan to reduce that, and how are we making sure that we have, what, the staff?
1:26:05
Is it staffing?
1:26:07
Is it locations?
1:26:08
Like, what is it, and what are the things that we're putting in place so that number can come down?
1:26:12
Because that is taking resources for my children, because I I feel like I have not heard a plan.
1:26:18
I'm like, what are we doing?
Liz Vladeck
1:26:20
Let me start by just correcting something on the record about the budget.
1:26:24
The we refer to it as Carter.
1:26:26
I want us to stop doing that.
1:26:28
The due process budget, that has been
Althea Stevens
1:26:30
made Okay.
1:26:31
Great.
1:26:31
Whatever you wanna refer to it as, I don't care.
1:26:33
What are we doing to reduce it?
1:26:34
Because it's it's it's too expensive.
Liz Vladeck
1:26:37
Right.
1:26:37
Agreed.
1:26:38
1, we're taking a look right now at why per student tuition costs in Carter actual Carter cases has gone up very dramatically over the last few years.
1:26:47
We need to understand that, and we need to get the hearing officers who hear these cases to start pushing back on the programs.
1:26:55
2, we need to have fewer cases in the system.
1:26:58
They take up the time of my attorneys and prevent us from spending all
Althea Stevens
1:27:01
the time.
1:27:02
Doing to have fewer cases?
Liz Vladeck
1:27:04
3, the state instituted this rule this year to decrease the number of cases as DC Foti mentioned.
1:27:12
Due process filings are down, you know, we'll have to wait till the end of the year, but we think by at least 30 to 50%.
1:27:19
Fewer cases is fewer obligated dollars.
1:27:23
We are making unprecedented investments in providing services directly ourselves to ISP students so that we're not paying outside providers 100
Althea Stevens
1:27:33
of dollars direct investments that you're doing to reduce that?
Liz Vladeck
1:27:36
Sure.
1:27:36
The first two are we have invested in hiring a couple of dozen special education certified teachers who we can dispatch many?
1:27:46
How many?
1:27:48
23?
1:27:49
20.
1:27:50
20?
1:27:51
20 itinerant teachers, to How
Althea Stevens
1:27:54
many do you think you need to get it all the way down?
1:27:56
Because it
Liz Vladeck
1:27:57
It depends a lot on how the private schools work with us.
1:28:00
There is a high concentration of students with IESPs at a number of private schools.
1:28:05
We would like to engage in consultation with them so that rather than working student by student, we can talk programmatic and schedule providers because sets in particular can be provided in groups for many students and we've been doing it individually for in far too many cases.
1:28:22
We've also invested in we have opened our after school and weekend programs to students in private schools for the very first time.
1:28:29
These are excellent programs that we're already paying for.
1:28:32
So we are attacking and, you know, frankly, we have implemented rigorous fraud controls in these legal processes because we are concerned about fraud and we most of all do not list
Althea Stevens
1:28:44
some of those fraud controls?
1:28:44
Because that was one of the other Sure.
1:28:45
That I was gonna ask was, like, how are we ensuring that the parents who are bringing these cases are actual cases
Liz Vladeck
1:28:51
Right.