(a) There is established an Individualized Education Program Advisory Council that shall assist the Commissioner of Education in the development of a new individualized education program form that is easier for practitioners to use and easier for parents and students to understand, pursuant to section 10-76mm.

(b) The advisory council shall consist of the following members:

(1) Two members appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be an advocate for parents or guardians of children requiring special education and related services and one of whom shall be a special education teacher in a public school who is a member of the American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut;

(2) Two members appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of whom shall be a superintendent of schools and one of whom shall be a representative of the Connecticut State Advisory Committee on Special Education;

(3) Two members appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a principal of a public school and one of whom shall be a teacher in a public school who is a member of the Connecticut Education Association;

(4) Two members appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, one of whom shall be an advocate for parents or guardians of children requiring special education and related services and one of whom shall be a representative of the RESC Alliance;

(5) Two members appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be a director of pupil personnel and one of whom shall be a representative of the State Education Resource Center, established pursuant to section 10-357a;

(6) Two members appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, one of whom shall be a representative of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and one of whom shall be a representative of the American School for the Deaf; and

(7) The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee.

(c) All appointments to the advisory council, pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, shall be made not later than thirty days after July 1, 2015. Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority.

(d) The Commissioner of Education may appoint any employee of the Department of Education with expertise in special education to serve as a nonvoting member of the council.

(e) The speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate shall select the chairpersons of the advisory council from among the members of the advisory council. Such chairpersons shall schedule the first meeting of the advisory council, which shall be held not later than sixty days after July 1, 2015.

(f) The State Education Resource Center, established pursuant to section 10-357a, shall provide administrative support to the advisory council.

(g) The advisory council shall terminate on the date that the Commissioner of Education submits the new individualized education program form to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, in accordance with the provisions of section 10-76mm, or January 1, 2017, whichever is later.

(June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5, S. 268.)

History: June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5 effective July 1, 2015.