R.S. v. New York City Department Of Education

Background

R.S., individually and on behalf of the minor child A.S., brought claims under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and New York law. The plaintiffs sought reimbursement from the defendants for A.S.’s private-school tuition. The court had previously issued an injunction ordering certain reimbursements.

The plaintiffs then moved for judgment on the administrative record. That motion asked the court to resolve issues concerning the reimbursement payments. The opinion addresses Issue I; it also states that the plaintiffs withdrew Issues II and III from consideration.

Disputed pendency date

Under the IDEA, “pendency” generally preserves a child’s educational placement during an administrative dispute. The parties disputed whether the New York City Department of Education (DOE) had to make pendency payments retroactive to June 23, 2020, or only from October 19, 2020.

Independent Hearing Officer Gibbons had determined that pendency began on October 19, 2020, when the hearing officer reviewing the plaintiffs’ first due process complaint issued findings of fact and a decision. That decision found that the defendants had failed to offer A.S. a fair and accessible public education and approved R.S.’s placement of A.S. in a private school.

The court determined that the decision should have been issued no later than June 23, 2020—45 days after the applicable period for resolving the due process complaint. The DOE did not appeal the decision to the New York State Review Officer, so the decision became final and binding.

Court’s reasoning

The court relied on the Second Circuit’s decision in a prior related proceeding, which held that a school district could be required to make pendency payments retroactively when an administrative decision was issued late. That decision reasoned that parents should not bear the financial consequences of delays they did not cause and that allowing unjustified delays could encourage school districts or the State to postpone administrative decisions.

The court found that the reasoning applied at least as strongly here because the DOE benefited from its own delay. The DOE did not appoint an independent hearing officer to decide the plaintiffs’ first due process complaint until September 4, 2020, making a decision by June 23, 2020 impossible. The court therefore ordered the DOE to make pendency payments retroactive to June 23, 2020.

Disposition

The court granted the plaintiffs’ motion for judgment on the administrative record on Issue I. It directed the Clerk of Court to close the motion at Docket Number 30. The opinion does not state a separate disposition for Issues II and III beyond noting that the plaintiffs withdrew them from consideration.