Congress recently voted to pass the ADA Amendment Act (“ADAAA”), which brings the ADA back to the standards originally intended by Congress, rather than the legal standards created by several U.S. Supreme Court cases. The President signed the ADAAA into law on September 25, 2008. The ADAAA will become effective on January 1, 2009. Wisconsin...
By Mary S. Gerbig The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), first enacted in 1974, is the federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE). On March 24, 2008, the Department of Education (DOE)...
Recently the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued a decision that could have a far reaching impact on the discussions that elected officials have in closed session. In Sands v. Whitnall School District, 2008 WI 89 (July 11, 2008) , the Supreme Court concluded that the discussions and action taken by elected officials in closed session are subject to...
On June 25, 2008, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued a decision further interpreting Wisconsin’s Public Records Law. The Court addressed several different issues, some of which may affect how school districts respond to open records requests, including the format in which they provide records and who will be considered an “authority” when dealing...
On July 26, 2007, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final regulations for 403(b) plans. These final regulations were expected for several years, and they are generally consistent with proposed regulations that were issued in November 2004. Most items under the final regulations can be addressed over the next two school years. This Legal...
Correctly classifying employees as exempt or non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) can be a difficult task. Particularly difficult can be classifying employees who work in your information technology (IT) department. Employers commonly believe that, because IT personnel are often highly trained and skilled, well paid and work...
By Mary S. Gerbig After the enactment of the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Improvement Act (IDEA 2004), the Department of Education engaged in a comprehensive public comment process related to the proposed regulations implementing IDEA 2004. The new IDEA regulations released on August 3, 2006 represent the completion of that process,...
Many of you have contacted us to ask whether the IRS has made any further announcements about the new 403(b) regulations that were proposed in November 2004. While we finally do have something to report, it is only that the IRS made a formal announcement on Tuesday stating that, when issued, the regulations will not generally be effective before...
