Moretown Rules Protest

Roberta, Kent and Wavell met yesterday (July 16) to review the situation
regarding the current rules being developed by the DOE in respect to Act
117, "assistance to school districts with unusual special education
costs".  As currently formulated these rules would not recognize
Moretown as such a school district.  At a DOE public meeting held in
June (at which only Moretown representatives were present) the Moretown
board challenged these rules as not conforming to legislative intent,
submitting their own proposed rules as being more appropriate.  At that
meeting Kent asked that the DOE respond to Moretown's proposal and why
they felt these rules were not appropriate.  Dennis Kane promised to do
so.
     We have not received any response whatsoever from the DOE.  Rumor
has it that the department is reworking the rules and that these would
be submitted in due course to the State Board of Education for
approval.  We assumed that this would be done at their August meeting.
However, as a result of phone calls made during the meeting we find that
at present these rules have not been proposed for the August agenda.  We
have requested a place on the agenda when these rules are proposed and
have indicated that we will be making a submission to the State board
prior to that time supporting a different set of rules than those to be
proposed by the Department.
     Wavell will prepare a draft proposal for the State board which in
effect will present the Moretown alternative as a logical interpretation
of legislative intent highlighting by contrast the illogical proposal
from the DOE.  This will be provided to the board as a draft before the
end of July.  Kent will ensure that a final document will be submitted
to the State board (as well as to the DOE) at appropriate times.