October 17, 2003

Mr.
Los Angeles, California 90064-3313

Dear Mr. :

I am writing in response to your letter regarding the
reauthorization of the "Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act" (IDEA) and your concerns about attorney fees. Feedback
from my constituents is very important to me, and it is a pleasure to
have this opportunity to reply.

As you know, Congress is currently reauthorizing IDEA.
The House of Representatives voted in favor of H.R. 1350, the
"Improving Education Results for Children With Disabilities Act,"
on March 30th. The Senate version of the IDEA reauthorization, S.
1248, was approved by the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
(HELP) Committee, but has not yet been considered by the full
Senate.

The House-passed bill contains language that would allow
the Governor of each State to place limits on reimbursement to
parents for attorney fees in special education litigation. The Senate
version currently does not contain this provision. Please know that
I understand your objections to placing a "cap" on attorney fees,
and I recognize that in some cases legal action may be the only
recourse available to parents to ensure that their children are
receiving the education and services to which they are entitled.

I strongly believe that every student deserves to be placed
in a classroom led by a qualified teacher who will teach at a level
that is appropriate for each student's academic abilities. I realize
that our nation's 6.5 million students with disabilities have unique
learning needs, and it is imperative that our schools have both
trained special education teachers and well-equipped facilities in
order to meet these needs. Please know that when this legislation
is brought before the Senate later this year, I will be certain to
keep
your comments in mind.

Thank you for taking the time to share your views with me.
I hope you will continue to keep me informed about issues that are
important to you. If I can be of any additional assistance, please
feel free to call my office in Washington, D.C. at (202) 224-3841.




Sincerely yours,

Dianne Feinstein
United States Senator

http://feinstein.senate.gov

Further information about my position on issues of concern to
California and the Nation are available at my website
http://feinstein.senate.gov . You can also receive electronic e-mail
updates by subscribing to my e-mail list at
http://feinstein.senate.gov/issue.html .