Image: A piggy bank drowning.
In 2014, Mayor Bill De Blasio announced his Special Education Initiative, pledging to ease the burden on parents with private special education tuition and fee claims by expediting decisions, reducing extended legal battles, reducing paperwork, and expediting payments.
We were cautiously optimistic. But four years later, we are heartbroken for our families. The city took something already broken and found new ways to shatter it.
The best thing you can say about the change we’ve seen since 2014 is that the DOE’s decision to settle on a ten-day notice is being made a little more quickly than in the past. However, the execution of settlement agreements is far too often deferred for many months longer. Depressingly, paperwork requirements have actually increased with the supposed move to “monthly” payments. And, most disastrously for our modest income families (and schools accepting Connors or pendency placements), payments to parents and schools are more delayed than ever.
This is a citywide problem affecting every lawyer in our bar and every school and private provider of special education services. Schools, parents, and attorneys can dot every ‘i’ and cross every ‘t,’ and call with polite reminders until they are hoarse, but the only thing dividing the parent or provider who receives a timely payment from the one who must refinance their loan is luck of the draw. It isn’t fair, and it isn’t right.
Last year, Council Members Dromm, Kallos, and Garodnick wrote to the Mayor to describe how these systemic delays were impacting their constituents. The DOE's General Counsel Howard Friedman wrote back and acknowledged the delays, but pointed the finger at the NYC Comptroller and “new administrative systems.”
We began the 2017-18 school year hopeful, but sober, and unfortunately we have not seen any real effort to address these issues. Earlier this week, we wrote to Mayor De Blasio and Chancellor Carranza to once again detail our concerns and demand that the City make good on its promises to the families of special needs children in New York City. We will keep you updated on any replies we receive. If you wish, you can forward this letter to your local City Council Member with a personal note about your own family’s experience. Every bit of advocacy helps.