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(6.8) What happens after I file a compliance complaint?

(6.8) What happens after I file a compliance complaint?

Under federal and state law, the CDE has 60 calendar days from receipt of the complaint to carry out any necessary investigation and to resolve the complaint. [34 C.F.R. Secs. 300.152(a)(1)-(5); 5 C.C.R. Sec. 3203(a).] When CDE receives your complaint, it must review the complaint to determine if it has jurisdiction. For example, the CDE will make sure the alleged violations occurred no later than one year after you filed the complaint. The CDE will also verify that the alleged violations fit into one of the five situations in 5 C.C.R. Sec. 3201.

If your complaint involves one or two simple compliance issues, you may wish to ask in your complaint that the investigation be expedited or “fast tracked.” Examples might include:  (1) your child’s IEP specifies that he is to receive transportation and the bus has not come for two days; (2) your child’s teacher does not attend his IEP meetings; (3) your child’s IEP specifies that he have an instructional aide during certain periods of the day and the aide has not been provided; or (4) your child’s principal has told you that because of the child’s behavior at school, you should not bring him back. After filing your complaint, you may also wish to call the compliance office to find out who has been assigned the complaint to remind that investigator of your request and reasons for expedited processing. The CDE’s Special Education Dispute Resolution Process is available at . https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/qa/cmplntproc.asp.

Whether or not you file a fast-track complaint, if you do not hear from CDE within 10 days after you mail your complaint, you should call 800-926-0648 to follow up. You can also fax the CDE at 916-327-3704.