TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Bob Gordon that will shield public school districts from having to assume the special education costs for out-of-state students enrolled in private schools within the district was signed into law last week by Governor Christie.
“When a school district is doing its due diligence under federal special education law, the State should step up to meet the district halfway,” said Sen. Gordon, D-Bergen. “However, for years the State Department of Education has denied districts funding for special ed evaluations that districts are required to perform under federal mandates. This new law introduces a little more fairness into the process, and requires the State to act as good-faith partners with local school districts to make sure that students get the education they need.”