Connecticut SB 424: AN ACT CONCERNING REAL ESTATE AND THE PROBATE COURTS.

Bill Text

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 424
February Session, 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING OVERSIGHT OF PLANS PURSUANT TO
SECTION 504 OF THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973 AND SPECIAL
EDUCATION NEEDS IN THE STATE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) For the fiscal year ending June 1
30, 2027, and each fiscal year thereafter, the State Department of 2
Education shall annually compile and make publicly available on its 3
Internet web site data organized by school district showing the number 4
of students in a public school, grades kindergarten to twelve, inclusive, 5
with a plan pursuant to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as 6
amended from time to time. The department shall track trends in such 7
data. All local and regional boards of education shall provide any 8
information necessary for the department to compile such data. The 9
department shall disaggregate and post such information in a manner 10
that complies with the requirements of the Family Educational Rights 11
and Privacy Act, 20 USC 1232g, as amended from time to time. 12
Sec. 2. (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) The Commissioner of Education shall, 13
within available appropriations, convene a working group to review 14
how local and regional boards of education are providing 15
accommodations to students under plans pursuant to Section 504 of the 16
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended from time to time, including the 17
use of staff and the amount of staff time dedicated to the development 18
and implementation of such plans. The working group shall include, but 19

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need not be limited to, representatives from the Connecticut Education 20
Association, Connecticut School Counselor Association, American 21
Federation of Teachers-Connecticut, Connecticut Association of Boards 22
of Education, Connecticut Association of Public School 23
Superintendents, Connecticut Chapter of the National Association of 24
Social Workers and Connecticut Association of School Psychologists. 25
(b) Not later than January 1, 2027, the Commissioner of Education 26
shall submit a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a 27
of the general statutes, to the joint standing committees of the General 28
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education and 29
government oversight. Such report shall include, but need not be 30
limited to, any best practices for plans pursuant to Section 504 of the 31
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, recommendations for statutory changes, if 32
applicable, and a summary and analysis of the impact of such plans and 33
their usage since 2020. 34
Sec. 3. Section 10-15o of the 2026 supplement to the general statutes 35
is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective 36
October 1, 2026): 37
(a) There is established an Office of the Educational Ombudsperson, 38
which shall be within the Office of Governmental Accountability for 39
administrative purposes only. The Office of the Educational 40
Ombudsperson shall serve students and families of students in the 41
pursuit of preschool, elementary and secondary education, special 42
education, vocational education and adult education. The Office of the 43
Educational Ombudsperson shall be under the direction of an 44
Educational Ombudsperson who shall be appointed by the Governor 45
and be selected from among individuals with expertise and experience 46
in educational advocacy, special education and educational law. 47
(b) The Office of the Educational Ombudsperson shall: 48
(1) Receive, review and attempt to resolve any complaints from 49
students and students' families, including, but not limited to, attempts 50
to resolve such complaints in collaboration with schools and educators; 51

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(2) Compile and analyze data on students and young people, through 52
available data systems, including, but not limited to, the Connecticut 53
Preschool through Twenty and Workforce Information Network, 54
established pursuant to section 10a-57g; 55
(3) Assist employees of local and regional boards of education 56
involved in planning and placement team meetings; 57
(4) Provide information to the public, agencies, legislators and others 58
regarding the issues and concerns of students and make 59
recommendations for resolving such issues and concerns; 60
(5) Analyze and monitor the development and implementation of 61
federal, state and local laws, regulations and policies relating to students 62
and recommend any changes the Educational Ombudsperson deems 63
necessary; 64
(6) Disseminate information concerning the availability of the Office 65
of the Educational Ombudsperson to assist students and families of 66
students, as well as local and regional boards of education with 67
educational resource concerns; 68
(7) On and after July 1, 2027, prioritize the office's efforts on those 69
school