District Must Fund Speech-Language IEE After Late Report Caused 156-Day Delay

Riverside Unified School District filed for due process to defend two assessments — a psychoeducational evaluation and a speech and language evaluation — after parents requested independent educational evaluations (IEEs) at public expense. The ALJ found the psychoeducational assessment legally compliant, but ruled the speech and language assessment was not because the report was completed and translated so late that the IEP team meeting did not occur until 156 days after the parent signed the assessment plan. As a result, the student was awarded a publicly funded independent speech and language evaluation.

What Happened

A four-year-old Spanish-speaking girl attended preschool within Riverside Unified School District after transitioning from early intervention services through Inland Regional Center due to a communication delay. Her parent signed an assessment plan on December 5, 2015, authorizing the district to evaluate her in multiple areas, including speech and language. The district's school psychologist completed her psychoeducational report on January 6, 2016, and attempted to schedule an IEP meeting shortly after. However, the district's speech-language pathologist did not finish testing until March 2016, did not complete her written report until late April 2016, and did not submit it for Spanish translation — which the parent had specifically requested — until April 13, 2016. The IEP team meeting was not held until June 3, 2016, a full 156 days after the parent signed the assessment plan.

After the IEP meeting, the parent disagreed with both the psychoeducational and speech and language assessments and requested publicly funded independent educational evaluations (IEEs) in December 2016. Rather than fund the IEEs, the district filed for due process to defend both of its assessments. The ALJ ruled in favor of the district on the psychoeducational assessment but sided with the student on the speech and language assessment because the district's own delays — a late report and a delayed translation — caused the legally required IEP meeting deadline to be missed by a wide margin.

What the District Did Wrong

Speech and Language Assessment — Untimely Report and Delayed Translation California law requires that an IEP team meeting be held within 60 days (approximately 150 calendar days accounting for school breaks) of a parent signing an assessment plan. The speech-language pathologist did not complete formal testing until late February 2016, continued informal testing into March 2016 because she did not believe an IEP meeting had been scheduled, and did not submit her report for Spanish translation until April 13, 2016 — nearly a month after the parent had requested it in Spanish. The IEP team meeting was ultimately held on June 3, 2016, 156 days after the parent signed the assessment plan. The district failed to prove its speech and language assessment was legally compliant because these delays directly caused the IEP meeting to occur well outside the legally required window.

Psychoeducational Assessment — District Prevailed The ALJ found the psychoeducational assessment conducted by the district's school psychologist, Ms. Anderson, was legally compliant. Minor technical issues — such as not tallying scores at the bottom of individual subtests, not filling out the cover page of one test form, asking a few questions beyond the established ceiling, and not recording stopwatch times on certain timed tasks — did not invalidate the assessment. The scores were correctly calculated on the score sheet, nothing beyond the ceiling was counted toward the score, and the parent's concerns about protocol violations were not substantiated by the evidence. The delay in holding the IEP meeting was attributed to the incomplete speech and language report, not to the psychoeducational assessment.

What Was Ordered

The district's December 8, 2015 psychoeducational assessment met all legal requirements. The student is not entitled to a publicly funded independent psychoeducational evaluation.
The district's February 2016 speech and language assessment did not meet all legal requirements due to its untimeliness. The student is entitled to an independent speech and language evaluation at public expense (funded by the district).

Why This Matters for Parents

Deadlines are legally binding — not just guidelines. Districts must hold an IEP meeting to discuss assessment results within 60 days of the parent signing the assessment plan (accounting for school breaks). If the district misses this window due to its own delays — such as a late report or delayed translation — that is a legal violation that can entitle the student to a publicly funded IEE.
Request reports in your language, in writing, and early. This parent requested the reports be translated into Spanish, but the district did not submit the report for translation until weeks after that request. Always make language-access requests in writing and as early as possible. If reports aren't provided in your language in time for the IEP meeting, document the delay carefully.
Minor paperwork errors don't automatically invalidate an assessment. A forgotten cover page, a missing tally at the bottom of a subtest, or questions asked slightly beyond protocol do not necessarily mean an assessment is invalid — as long as the scores were calculated correctly and the overall results are accurate. Focus your IEE challenge on errors that actually affected the outcome or findings.
When a district files for due process to defend its assessment, it carries the burden of proof. In these cases, the district — not the parent — must prove its assessment was legally proper. If the district can't meet that burden (as happened here with the speech and language assessment), the parent wins the IEE.
Both assessments matter — don't accept a partial picture. Even though the psychoeducational assessment was upheld, the student still won a publicly funded independent speech and language evaluation. If you have concerns about multiple assessments, request IEEs for each area you disagree with — each assessment is evaluated separately on its own merits.

What Happened

What the District Did Wrong

What Was Ordered

The district's December 8, 2015 psychoeducational assessment met all legal requirements. The student is not entitled to a publicly funded independent psychoeducational evaluation.
The district's February 2016 speech and language assessment did not meet all legal requirements due to its untimeliness. The student is entitled to an independent speech and language evaluation at public expense (funded by the district).

Why This Matters for Parents

Deadlines are legally binding — not just guidelines. Districts must hold an IEP meeting to discuss assessment results within 60 days of the parent signing the assessment plan (accounting for school breaks). If the district misses this window due to its own delays — such as a late report or delayed translation — that is a legal violation that can entitle the student to a publicly funded IEE.
Request reports in your language, in writing, and early. This parent requested the reports be translated into Spanish, but the district did not submit the report for translation until weeks after that request. Always make language-access requests in writing and as early as possible. If reports aren't provided in your language in time for the IEP meeting, document the delay carefully.
Minor paperwork errors don't automatically invalidate an assessment. A forgotten cover page, a missing tally at the bottom of a subtest, or questions asked slightly beyond protocol do not necessarily mean an assessment is invalid — as long as the scores were calculated correctly and the overall results are accurate. Focus your IEE challenge on errors that actually affected the outcome or findings.
When a district files for due process to defend its assessment, it carries the burden of proof. In these cases, the district — not the parent — must prove its assessment was legally proper. If the district can't meet that burden (as happened here with the speech and language assessment), the parent wins the IEE.
Both assessments matter — don't accept a partial picture. Even though the psychoeducational assessment was upheld, the student still won a publicly funded independent speech and language evaluation. If you have concerns about multiple assessments, request IEEs for each area you disagree with — each assessment is evaluated separately on its own merits.