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Q&A
Challenges in separating spending between Carter and Connors cases
4:24:49
ยท
3 min
Council Member Rita Joseph follows up on a previous commitment to separate spending between Carter and Connors cases. Daniel Weisberg and Liz Vladek explain the challenges in doing so and discuss the inequities in access to due process for special education services.
- DOE was unable to separate spending between Carter and Connors cases due to data organization issues
- Direct payments, which were supposed to distinguish Connors cases, are also used in Carter cases for pendency
- The Connors case model has not succeeded in leveling the playing field for access to due process
- Inequities persist due to the burdens of filing cases, finding attorneys, and navigating the process
- DOE suggests that expanding programs like those under Deputy Chancellor Foti could help address these inequities
Rita Joseph
4:24:49
You'll share all of that information Absolutely.
4:24:51
Thank you very much.
4:24:53
Chancellor Weisberg, this is for you.
4:24:55
Last year, in our DOE, you testified you'd be able to separate the spending between Carter and Connick cases.
4:25:02
Were successful at that?
4:25:04
Tell me.
4:25:04
No.
4:25:05
Oh,
Daniel Weisberg
4:25:05
no.
4:25:05
I was not successful.
Sebastian
4:25:07
Oh, no.
Daniel Weisberg
4:25:07
Certainly, my intention was if we had that information was to get it to you.
4:25:14
The distinction gets lost in the data, and I can do my best to explain why, and and our our great GC Liz Vladek will will back me up if I get something wrong.
4:25:25
But the the distinction with with Connor is supposed to be direct payments.
4:25:31
Right?
4:25:31
So so lower income families can access the system through getting direct payments.
4:25:36
It hasn't worked out that way for a variety of reasons.
4:25:40
But it turns out we give direct so my thought was we can separate the direct payment cases from the reimbursement cases.
4:25:47
Higher income families obviously being more represented in the reimbursement scenario.
4:25:53
The issue is we do direct payments for pendency all over the place for the full range.
4:25:59
It's it's not Connor.
4:26:01
It's it's Carter cases where the year one, the first year they're in, they they win the due process hearing, and then every year after that, we're directly paying.
4:26:12
So we don't have that distinction.
4:26:14
It's not really direct payment doesn't tell us what's Conn or what's Carter.
4:26:18
So Liz can follow-up.
4:26:20
If there was a way to cut that for you, we would do it.
4:26:23
We just don't have the data organized that way.
Liz Vladek
4:26:26
Thanks, Dan.
4:26:28
I do just want to add that for practitioners when the Connor case was first decided that created this model, I think the hope was that the model was going to help level the playing field in terms of access to due process.
4:26:44
Unfortunately, as both our demographic data that I've summarized, as well as our litigation experience tells us, it has not succeeded at doing that.
4:26:55
To Dan's exact point, once you've won your case, pendency is flowing and should be flowing without interruption.
4:27:03
But filing that first case, finding an attorney to represent you, figuring out with a school that you want to attend, whether the school's willing to wait for payment or not, signing a contract.
4:27:19
This is a pretty big burden.
4:27:21
It's a lot to ask for families that don't have a big cash reserve to take risks with.
4:27:27
So in our view, that's where that inequity, that's the source in terms of the process.
4:27:36
Now we of course think the solution is more of Deputy Chancellor Foti's programs, especially the more we talk about autism.
4:27:47
But are the facts that we think are telling the story of where the inequities begins.
Rita Joseph
4:27:54
Thank you, and Deputy Chancellor Foti and First Deputy Chancellor know we feel the same way.
4:28:00
If we have great programming, have the services, we can reduce these costs, and and the students can stay here and stay in communities, and I've been a champion of of AIMS from day one.