(a) OSSE shall administer impartial due process hearings as required by IDEA (20 U.S.C. § 1415(f) and 20 U.S.C. § 1439(a)(1)) and may issue regulations necessary for this purpose.
(b) In selecting hearing officers for administering special education due process hearings, OSSE shall submit potential candidates for review to a 7-member community review panel.
(c)(1) The members of the community review panel shall be appointed by OSSE and consist of the following:
(A) One attorney knowledgeable in the field of special education who has experience representing parents and who is admitted to practice and in good standing in the District of Columbia;
(B) One attorney knowledgeable in the field of special education who has experience representing schools and who is admitted to practice and is in good standing in the District of Columbia;
(C) One educator knowledgeable in the field of special education and special education programming;
(D) One representative from a charter school LEA who is knowledgeable in the field of special education and special education programming;
(E) One representative from DCPS who is knowledgeable in the field of special education and special education programming; and
(F) Two parents of individuals who are or at one time were eligible to receive special education and related services in the District of Columbia.
(2) No member of the community review panel may be an employee of OSSE.
(d) Following its review of candidates for hearing officers, the community review panel shall forward its recommendations to the State Superintendent of Education.
(Mar. 10, 2015, D.C. Law 20-194, § 202, 61 DCR 12411.)