In early July, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed into law a measure that will require the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) to maintain an electronic database of legal decisions concerning special education in New Jersey. Under the new law, NJDOE must make the database available on its website so that it can be easily accessed by parents, school districts, child study team members, or other interested members of the public who wish to obtain information on legal decisions regarding New Jersey special education matters.
Senate Bill No. 1451, sponsored by Senator Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) and Senator Diane Allen (R-Burlington), requires that the new database include a full-text copy of each decision rendered by the New Jersey Office of Administrative Law (OAL) in a special education due process hearing. If the OAL decision is appealed, any subsequent decision on the matter rendered by a New Jersey State court or a federal court must also be included in the database. The database will include each special education decision rendered after the bill’s effective date.
The Department has 7 months to get the website information up and available to the public.
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