The Connecticut State Department of Education (“CSDOE”) has issued guidance to public school districts regarding the new Prior Written Notice (“PWN”) provisions contained in the recently revised special education regulations which went into effect on July 1, 2013. Under Section 10-76d-8(a)(5) of the regulations, a school district must provide parents with prior written notice whenever a PPT proposes to, or refuses to, initiate or change a child’s identification, evaluation, or educational placement or the provision of a free appropriate public education to a child with a disability.

In guidance sent to special education directors in December 2013, the CSDOE clarified that school districts have only two options for providing PWN to parents under the revised regulations.  The first option is to give the PWN at the planning and placement team (“PPT”) meeting.  The team and the parents may agree on an implementation date; such agreement must be noted on page 2 of the IEP and the agreed-upon implementation date must be noted on the PWN.  If the parties are not able to agree on an implementation date, the implementation date must be 10 school days from the date the PWN was given to the parents (i.e. the date of the PPT).  The CSDOE recommends that districts use this first option in providing parents with PWN.

The second option is for the district to send the PWN with the IEP, which must be sent within 5 school days.  As with the first option, the team and the parents may agree to an implementation date, which agreement must be noted on page 2.  If there is no agreement, the date for the implementation of the IEP is 10 school days from the date the PWN was provided to parents, which is likely 15 school days after the PPT. 

The CSDOE guidance regarding PWN has already been added to the IEP Manual, which can be accessed here.

A copy of the revised special education regulations can be found here.