HB754

February 3, 2025 HB754 Testimony Rep. Nancy Murphy Good Afternoon Mr. Chair and Honorable Members of the Committee, HB754-FN, a bill I filed on behalf of a constituent, outlines a process for establishing automatic discovery in due process hearings for actions seeking to enforce special education rights. It seeks to codify which documents parents should receive before a due process hearing in an attempt to make ‘due process’ less legally onerous for pro se parents and advocates. Many parents are unaware of what their rights are to discovery of items in the possession of the school district in order to support their child’s special education rights. Though I have been told that many districts like my own (Merrimack) do an excellent job providing these documents to parents before they begin due process; my constituent, in his work as an educational advocate, is aware of others that do not. The process is unnecessarily more arduous for those parents. Zip codes and SAU numbers should not determine which records parents are provided, nor the time frames in which they are received relative to the hearing. Codifying this will help streamline the process for Hearing Officers who could expect a list of basic documents to be produced at the outset of a due process hearing and improve communication between parties. HB 754-FN is a bipartisan, collaborative effort to support children with disabilities and their parents as they seek due process in enforcing special education rights. If passed, HB754 would improve and guarantee consistency in access to documents central to due process. This would ensure that no child or family will be left disadvantaged by lack of access to pre-hearing documents that could impact the outcome of the hearing or result in a child’s needs not being fully addressed. Due process hearing decisions should result in maximizing the potential of NH’s children with special needs and improving outcomes. Though I’m a parent of now adult children with disabilities and do not have any direct personal experience with due process, I do know that if I had to engage in due process and could not rely upon my school district to readily provide them to me; I certainly would want to have had HB754 in place so that I could be assured of having access to the core documents that could provide the information necessary to making decisions in the best interests of my child. I respectfully request that you recommend HB754-FN OTP and thank you for your time and consideration. Kind regards, Rep. Nancy Murphy Hills. 12/ Town of Merrimack

I am writing to express my strong support for HB 754-FN. This bill represents a meaningful step toward ensuring fairness, transparency, and equity in the special education process for students and their families. First, I want to commend the bipartisan sponsorship of this bill. It is heartening to see lawmakers from both sides of the aisle come together to address the needs of students with disabilities and their families. This collaborative effort underscores the importance of this issue and the shared commitment to improving outcomes for all children. Having gone through the due process system myself, I can attest to the importance of having access to core documents—such as the Individualized Education Program (IEP), Written Prior Notice (WPN), evaluations, and progress reports—prior to a pre-hearing conference. These documents are the foundation of a fair and informed discussion about a student’s needs and the services they require to succeed. When families and school districts have equal access to this information ahead of time, it promotes mutual understanding, reduces misunderstandings, and fosters more equitable agreements. HB 754-FN ensures that families are not left at a disadvantage by requiring these documents to be made available in advance. This is not just a matter of fairness; it is a matter of ensuring that the rights of students with disabilities are fully protected and that their educational needs are met. I urge you to support HB 754-FN and to pass this important legislation.