The purpose of this memorandum is to clarify the standard applied by the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) to determine if federal maintenance of effort expenditure requirements are met by a school district in its FY 2003 special education and related services budget. Federal regulations at 34 CFR 300.231(c) establish that the State may determine that a Local Education Agency (LEA) complies with IDEA maintenance of effort requirements “if the LEA budgets, for the education of children with disabilities, at least the same total or per capita amount from [state and local funds] as the LEA spent for that purpose from the same source for the most recent prior year for which information is available” (emphasis added).
The ADE will apply the standard that school district IDEA maintenance of effort requirements are met for FY 2003 when special education and related services expenditures are at least the same for either total or per capita state and local spending amounts as they were for FY 2001. School districts may demonstrate their compliance with federal maintenance of effort requirements by using either approach.
Please contact the Special Education Unit for questions regarding this clarification.