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In order to meet the public participation requirements under §441 of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) at 20 USC 1232d(b)(7)(B) and Part C of the IDEA at 34 CFR §303.208, the Early Steps State Office (ESSO), as lead agency for implementation of IDEA, Part C in Florida, is publishing proposed policies and the annual renewal application for funds under IDEA, Part C. In accordance with IDEA, Part C, the proposed policies and the application will be available for public review on http://www.cms-kids.com, for at least 60 days beginning January 25, 2012 through March 26, 2012.

The opportunity for public comment on the proposed policies and the Part C application is available for 30 days beginning February 1, 2012 through March 1, 2012. Comments will be accepted from the general public, including parents of infants and toddlers with disabilities, providers of services, advocacy groups and organizations and other stakeholders in the state.

The purpose of the public participation period is to gather comments regarding the proposed policies and the annual Part C application for funds. The ESSO is interested in information that would assist us in maintaining a statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, interagency system of early intervention services for infants and toddlers and their families.

1. Public Meetings to hear comments will be conducted at the following dates, times and locations:

   SITE	LOCATION	DATE/TIME
   Tampa, FL	Children's Board of Hillsborough County 1002 E. Palm Avenue Tampa, Florida 33605	Wednesday, February 15, 2012 5:30 p.m. --- 7:30 p.m. (Eastern time)
   Tallahassee, FL	Children’s Home Society 1000 W. Tharpe Street, Suite 15 Tallahassee, Florida 32303	Thursday, February 16, 2012 5:30 p.m. --- 7:30 p.m. (Eastern time)

   Any person requiring special accommodations to participate in the hearings, such as interpretation into languages other than English or sign language interpretation must contact Dawn Lynch at (850)245-4200 or send an e-mail request to CMS_EarlyStepsPublicComment@doh.state.fl.us no later than February 1, 2012.
2. Comments may be submitted to CMS_EarlyStepsPublicComment@doh.state.fl.us
3. Comments may be submitted to the Early Steps State Office via postal mail, commercial/express delivery, or hand delivery.
   Comments should indicate that they are concerning proposed policies or the Part C application.
   Address comments to:

   Mailing Address: Renee Jenkins Florida Department of Health Children’s Medical Services Early Steps State Office 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin #A06 Tallahassee, FL 32399-1707

   Express Mail/Hand Delivery Address: Renee Jenkins Florida Department of Health Children’s Medical Services Early Steps State Office 4025 Esplanade Way, Room 235L Tallahassee, FL 32399

The Early Steps State Office must receive your comments no later than March 1, 2012. Note that the Early Steps State Office will not accept comments by phone, fax or e-mail to ESSO staff. To ensure that your comments have the maximum effect in developing final policies, we urge you to identify clearly the specific section or sections of the proposed policy that each of your comments addresses and to arrange your comments in the same order as the proposed policies. Responses to individual questions will not be provided; however, the ESSO will review and consider all comments and make any modifications deemed necessary to the policies. All comments submitted will be available for public review at http://www.cms-kids.com, without personal identifiers or contact information. Policies must be approved by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs prior to adoption.