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Act 57 Amendment (HB2802) Passed
Dear PARID Member,
HB2802 passed in both Houses of the legislature as proposed with no
amendments. Here is the history of what happened.
Tuesday June 27, 2006 - final passage in the House of Representatives
(199-0). There was no discussion.
Friday June 30, 2006 - final passage in the Senate as sent from the House
without amendment (49-0). Note, Senator Orie, did try to submit an
amendment to the bill that would have returned the 3.5 score on the EIPA to
exemption #7 and add a 1-year extension for individuals to earn the
credential. However, she was told that there was not enough time left in
the session to do so. She then went on the record stating her intention to
add the amendment and why it was not happening. There was at least one
other Senator who read comments on the Senate floor that he received from an
interpreter regarding this bill. If you are interested in seeing exactly
what the discussion was, it can be found in the Senate Journal. It takes
approximately one month for this publication to become available. Contact
your Senator to obtain a copy.
This bill now goes to Governor Rendell for his signature. If he signs it,
it becomes law.
If the Governor signs it, I will call the Pennsylvania Board of Education
and ask to be put on the "interested parties" list so that PARID is informed
of any action or meetings regarding the regulations that will be written.
If you are interested in receiving this information directly, contact the
Board of Education and ask to be added to the "interested parties" list as
well.
I have spoken with Dr. Linda Rhen, from the Bureau of Special Education.
She has assured me that the Department of Education intends to include PARID
and the other stakeholders in the process of writing the regulations. I
have already been invited to a meeting regarding this issue. Understand
that writing regulations is a lengthy process. You will be updated on the
progress of these regulations in the PARID newsletter.
PARID still has the comments and feedback that were collected from members
during the Act 57 Forums held around the state in Dec 2005 - Jan 2006. This
information will be shared with the stakeholders.
Remember, this amendment to Act 57 only affects Exemption #7 (educational
interpreters). The Pennsylvania Board of Education is only writing the
regulations for educational interpreters. ODHH is still responsible for the
administration of Act 57 as it pertains to interpreters in all other
settings in the Commonwealth.
Thank you for your interest in this matter.
Sincerely,
Cindi Brown
PARID President
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