CFR

303.403—Prior notice; native language.

(a) General. Written prior notice must be given to the parents of a child eligible under this part a reasonable time before a public agency or service provider proposes, or refuses, to initiate or change the identification, evaluation, or placement of the child, or the provision of appropriate early intervention services to the child and the child's family.

(b) Content of notice. The notice must be in sufficient detail to inform the parents about—

(1) The action that is being proposed or refused;

(2) The reasons for taking the action;

(3) All procedural safeguards that are available under §§ 303.401-303.460 of this part; and

(4) The State complaint procedures under §§ 303.510-303.512, including a description of how to file a complaint and the timelines under those procedures.

(i) Written in language understandable to the general public; and

(ii) Provided in the native language of the parents, unless it is clearly not feasible to do so.

(2) If the native language or other mode of communication of the parent is not a written language, the public agency, or designated service provider, shall take steps to ensure that—

(i) The notice is translated orally or by other means to the parent in the parent's native language or other mode of communication;

(ii) The parent understands the notice; and

(iii) There is written evidence that the requirements of this paragraph have been met.

(3) If a parent is deaf or blind, or has no written language, the mode of communication must be that normally used by the parent (such as sign language, braille, or oral communication).

Code of Federal Regulations

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1439(a)(6) and (7))

Code of Federal Regulations

[58 FR 40959, July 30, 1993, as amended at 64 FR 12536, Mar. 12, 1999]

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