Ensures that special education children are provided with transportation to preschool by their parents if such parents have the means and ability to provide such transportation; provides reimbursement payments for parental transportation.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5173
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 3, 2011
___________
Introduced by Sen. GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to ensuring that special
education children are provided with transportation to preschool by
their parents if the parents have the means and ability to provide
such transportation
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 8 of section 4410 of the education law, as
2 amended by chapter 474 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 8. Transportation. The municipality in which a preschool child resides
5 shall, beginning with the first day of service, provide either directly
6 or by contract for suitable transportation, as determined by the board,
7 to and from special services or programs; provided, however, that if the
8 municipality is a city with a population of one million or more persons
9 the municipality may delegate the authority to provide such transporta-
10 tion to the board; and provided further, that prior to providing such
11 transportation directly or contracting with another entity to provide
12 such transportation, such municipality or board shall request and
13 encourage the parents to transport their children at public expense,
14 where cost-effective, at a rate per mile or a public service fare estab-
15 lished by the municipality and approved by the commissioner. To further
16 encourage parent provided transportation, reimbursement payments for
17 parental transportation shall be paid within thirty days from the date a
18 valid reimbursement request is filed with the municipality. Except as
19 otherwise provided in this section, the parents' inability [or declina-
20 tion] to transport their child shall in no way [effect] affect the
21 municipality's or board's responsibility to provide recommended
22 services. If it is determined that a parent has the ability and means
23 to provide transportation to their special education preschool child,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11356-01-1
S. 5173 2
1 then it is the municipality or board's discretion on whether to provide
2 transportation. The determination of a parent's ability and means to
3 provide transportation shall be made by proof of a physically limiting
4 disability which renders a parent or guardian of a child unable to
5 accompany the child to or from preschool special education services
6 which shall be certified by a doctor in a form to be prescribed by the
7 department; proof of an inability to provide transportation due to a
8 parent or guardian employment obligations shall be made by a signed
9 affidavit of the parent or guardian to be filed with the municipality
10 providing the transportation. Additionally, if a parent or guardian is
11 unable to transport their child due to the inability to gain access to
12 and/or operate a motor vehicle, such as, but not limited to, not being
13 licensed to operate a motor vehicle, the guardian or parent shall file
14 an affidavit with the municipality listing the reason for the lack of
15 access to and/or operation of a motor vehicle. Such transportation shall
16 be provided once daily from the child care location to the special
17 service or program and once daily from the special service or program to
18 the child care location up to fifty miles from the child care location.
19 If the board determines that a child must receive special services and
20 programs at a location greater than fifty miles from the child care
21 location, it shall request approval of the commissioner. For the
22 purposes of this subdivision, the term "child care location" shall mean
23 a child's home or a place where care for less than twenty-four hours a
24 day is provided on a regular basis and includes, but is not limited to,
25 a variety of child care services such as day care centers, family day
26 care homes and in-home care by persons other than parents. All transpor-
27 tation of such children shall be provided pursuant to the procedures set
28 forth in section two hundred thirty-six of the family court act using
29 the date called for in the written notice of determination of the board
30 or the date of the written notice of determination of the board, which-
31 ever comes later, in lieu of the date the court order was issued.
32 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
