Excerpt from H.R.1350

Improving Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act of 2003

(Introduced in House by Rep. Michael Castle (R-DE) on March 19, 2003)

See Subsections (h) and (i) for advocacy restrictions

`SEC. 672. PARENT AND COMMUNITY TRAINING AND INFORMATION CENTERS.

        `(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED- The Secretary may make grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, parent and community organizations to support parent and community training and information centers to carry out activities under this section.

        `(b) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES- Each parent and community training and information center that receives assistance under this section shall--

                        `(1) provide training and information that meets the needs of parents of children with disabilities living in the area served by the center, including underserved parents and parents of children who may be inappropriately identified, to enable children with disabilities--

                                `(A) to meet developmental and challenging academic achievement goals that have been established for all children; and

                                `(B) to be prepared to lead productive independent adult lives to the maximum extent possible.

                        `(2) ensure that the training and information provided meets the needs of low-income parents and parents of children with limited English proficiency;

                        `(3) serve the parents of infants, toddlers, and children with the full range of disabilities;

                        `(4) assist parents--

                                `(A) to better understand the nature of their children's disabilities and their educational, developmental, and transitional needs;

                                `(B) to communicate effectively and work collaboratively with personnel responsible for providing special education, early intervention, transition services, and related services;

                                `(C) to participate in decisionmaking processes and the development of individualized education programs under part B and individualized family service plans under part C;

                                `(D) to obtain appropriate information about the range, type and quality of options, programs, services, and resources available to assist children with disabilities and their families in school and at home;

                                `(E) to understand the provisions of this Act for the education of, and the provision of early intervention services to, children with disabilities; and

                                `(F) to participate in activities at the school level which benefit their children;

                        `(5) assist parents in resolving disputes in the most expeditious way possible, including encouraging the use, and explaining the benefits, of alternative methods of dispute resolution, such as the use of individualized education program facilitators and mediation and voluntary binding arbitration processes described in section 615(e);

                        `(6) assist parents to understand the availability of, and how to effectively use, procedural safeguards under this Act;

                        `(7) network with appropriate clearinghouses, including organizations conducting national dissemination activities under subpart 2, and with other national, State, and local organizations and agencies, such as protection and advocacy agencies, that serve parents and

families of children with the full range of disabilities; and

                        `(8) annually report to the Secretary on--

                                `(A) the number and demographics of parents to whom it provided information and training in the most recently concluded fiscal year;

                                `(B) the effectiveness of strategies used to reach and serve parents, including underserved parents of children with disabilities; and

                                `(C) the number of parents served who have resolved disputes through alternative methods of dispute resolution.

        `(c) OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES- A parent training and community and information center that receives assistance under this section may--

                        `(1) provide information to teachers and other professionals to assist them in improving results for children with disabilities; and

                        `(2) assist students with disabilities to understand their rights and responsibilities under section 615(l) on reaching the age of majority.

        `(d) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS- Each application for assistance under this section shall identify with specificity the special efforts that the applicant will undertake--

                        `(1) to ensure that the needs for training and information of underserved parents of children with disabilities in the area to be served are effectively met; and

                        `(2) to work with community-based organizations, including those that work with low-income parents and parents of children with limited English proficiency.

        `(e) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS-

                        `(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall make at least 1 award to a parent organization in each State, unless the Secretary does not receive an application from such an organization in each State of sufficient quality to warrant approval.

                        `(2) SELECTION REQUIREMENT- The Secretary shall select among applications submitted by parent organizations in a State in a manner that ensures the most effective assistance to parents, including parents in urban and rural areas, in the State.

        `(f) QUARTERLY REVIEW-

                        `(1) REQUIREMENTS-

                                `(A) MEETINGS- The board of directors or special governing committee of each organization that receives an award under this section shall meet at least once in each calendar quarter to review the activities for which the award was made.

                                `(B) ADVISING BOARD- Each special governing committee shall directly advise the organization's governing board of its views and recommendations.

                        `(2) CONTINUATION AWARD- When an organization requests a continuation award under this section, the board of directors or special governing committee shall submit to the Secretary a written review of the parent training and information program conducted by the organization during the preceding fiscal year.

        `(g) DEFINITION OF PARENT ORGANIZATION- As used in this section, the term `parent organization' means a private nonprofit organization (other than an institution of higher education) that--

                        `(1) has a board of directors--

                                `(A) the majority of whom are parents of children with disabilities ages birth through 21;

                                `(B) that includes--

                                `(i) individuals working in the fields of special education, related services, and early intervention; and

                                `(ii) individuals with disabilities; and

                                `(C) the parent and professional members of which are broadly representative of the population to be served, including low-income and limited English proficient parents of children with disabilities; or;

                        `(2) has--

                                `(A) a membership that represents the interests of individuals with disabilities and has established a special governing committee that meets the requirements of paragraph (1); and

                                `(B) a memorandum of understanding between the special governing committee and the board of directors of the organization that clearly outlines the relationship between the board and the committee and the decisionmaking responsibilities and authority of each.

        `(h) EXCEPTIONS-

                        `(1) FEDERAL RELATIONS- Any organization or affiliated entity that conducts, in whole or in part, Federal relations, is ineligible to serve as a parent and community training and information center and ineligible to be considered a parent organization under subsection (g).

                        `(2) PROHIBITION ON CENTER BOARD MEMBERS AND STAFF-

No member of the board of directors, or paid staff, of a parent and community training and information center may serve on the board of directors, or as paid staff, of any organization (whether profit or non-profit) that conducts Federal relations in whole or in part.

        `(i) LOBBYING ORGANIZATIONS INELIGIBLE-

                        `(1) IN GENERAL- No organization is eligible for an award under this section if it, or an affiliated organization, engages in lobbying with the Federal Government with respect to this Act.

                        `(2) PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN BOARD MEMBERS AND STAFF-

An organization that receives a grant under this section may not have, on its board of directors or in any paid position on its staff, an individual who serves on the board of directors as a paid staff member of any organization that engages in lobbying activities with the Federal Government with respect to this Act.

                        `(3) DEFINITIONS- As used in this subsection--

                                `(A) the term `lobbying activities' has the meaning given such term in section 2(7) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602(7)); and

                                `(B) the term `affiliated organization' has the meaning given such term in section 4911(f)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 4911(f)(2)).