Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-23-.04 - REVIEWING ALLEGATIONS OF NON-COMPLIANCE

(1) The Department shall initiate a review of the allegation(s) included in the Complaint within ten (10) calendar days of receipt of the Complaint. The Department shall send a written notification of the review to the LEA in which the Complaint arose. The Department shall also notify the Reporting Party, that an investigation has been initiated and provide information regarding the procedural steps involved in the investigative process.

(2) As part of the review, the Department shall have the authority to:

(a) Request any relevant evidence from the LEA, the Reporting Party, and/or any witness; and

(b) Interview the Reporting Party and/or any other individual deemed necessary by the Department.

(3) No later than sixty (60) calendar days after initiating the review, the Department shall issue a written determination letter summarizing the findings of the review to the LEA from which the Complaint arose and to the Reporting Party. The sixty (60) calendar day timeline shall be stayed if the Department and the LEA from which the Complaint arose agree to enter into an early resolution agreement in accordance with the requirements of Rule 0520-01-23-.05 of this Chapter. Such notice shall be sent in compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232(g)); T.C.A. § 10-7-504; the Data Accessibility, Transparency, and Accountability Act, compiled in Title 49, Chapter 1, Part 7; and all other relevant privacy laws. The sixty (60) calendar day timeline may only be extended if exceptional circumstances exist, and those circumstances are appropriately documented by the Department. If there is a need for an extension of the sixty (60) calendar day timeline, the Department shall notify the LEA in which the Complaint arose and the Reporting Party of this extension in writing.

(4) If the LEA is found to be non-compliant with T.C.A. § 49-6-310, the written determination letter shall include a notice of non-compliance. The notice of non-compliance shall include, at minimum, corrective action steps required for compliance and a deadline for completion of the corrective action steps. An LEA shall not be deemed non-compliant by the Department if the failure to comply is in response to a court or other legally binding order that prohibits the LEA from complying.

(5) If the Department determines that the LEA failed to complete the required corrective action steps by the deadline included in the notice of non-compliance, the Department shall send the LEA a letter of withholding stating that due to failure to complete the required corrective action steps by the established deadline, the Commissioner shall withhold a portion of the State Education Finance Funds that an LEA is otherwise eligible to receive. The Commissioner shall withhold the portion of the State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be distributed to the LEA in accordance with Table 1 set forth below until the LEA completes each of the required corrective action steps set forth in the notice of non-compliance. When the Commissioner determines that compliance is established, the amount of State Education Finance Funds that were withheld shall be disbursed to the LEA by the Department. The amount of state funds to be withheld by the Commissioner shall be determined as set forth in Table 1 below:

Table 1:

First letter of withholding	2% of annual State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be granted to the LEA
Second letter of withholding	4% of annual State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be granted to the LEA
Third letter of withholding	6% of annual State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be granted to the LEA
Fourth letter of withholding	8% of annual State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be granted to the LEA
Fifth or more letter of withholding	10% of annual State Education Finance Funds scheduled to be granted to the LEA

(6) The letter of withholding shall state that the LEA has the right to request a contested case hearing regarding the Department's determination that the requirements of the corrective action plan have not been met by the established deadline. Any contested case hearing granted shall be conducted in accordance with the Tennessee Uniform Administrative Procedures Act at T.C.A. §§ 4-5-301 et seq. and the Rules of the Tennessee Department of State Administrative Procedures Division, Chapter 1360-04-01. If the LEA chooses to request a contested case hearing, the LEA shall make such a request within thirty (30) calendar days of the Department issuing the letter of withholding.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0520-01-23-.04

New rules filed February 24, 2023; effective 5/25/2023.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 49-1-201 and 49-6-310.