Alabama Administrative Code, Chapter 290-8-9 

The Alabama Administrative Code, Chapter 290-8-9, is Alabama's state special education rule. It carries the force of law for public agencies in Alabama, and it is the document ALSDE monitoring is measured against. IDEA sets the federal floor; Chapter 290-8-9 tells you exactly what Alabama LEAs must do, and in several places it adds requirements beyond IDEA. When someone asks "what does Alabama require?", the answer starts with this chapter.

• Alabama Administrative Code, Chapter 290-8-9 — Special Education Services (State Board of Education rule)

• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and 34 CFR Part 300 — the federal requirements the chapter implements

• Alabama Administrative Procedure Act (Ala. Code § 41-22-1 et seq.) — how the rule is adopted, amended, and published

Where to find the official text. The current chapter is published on the Alabama Legislature's Administrative Code site (admincode.legislature.state.al.us, Chapter 290-8-9) and linked from the ALSDE Special Education Services Policies and Procedures page. The Legislature's site is the controlling source; print it or save it with the date you accessed it, because the rule is amended by supplement.

How the chapter is organized. The chapter runs from 290-8-9-.00 through 290-8-9-.12:

• • .00 Definitions

  • .01 Child Identification (Child Find)

  • .02 Evaluations

  • .03 Disability Definitions, Criteria, and Minimum Required Evaluative Components

  • .04 Eligibility and Consent for Services

  • .05 Individualized Education Program (IEP)

  • .06 Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

  • .07 Other Educational Services and Program Options

  • .08 Procedural Safeguards

  • .09 Discipline Procedures

  • .10 Administration

  • .11 Case Manager for Children with Disabilities

  • .12 Gifted

Learn this skeleton. Almost any special education question maps onto one of these rules, and knowing the structure is the fastest way to find the controlling text.

A note on bold italics. The chapter states that any provision required only by State Board of Education rule — not by federal or state law — is printed in bold italics. When you read a bold-italic provision, you are seeing an Alabama-specific requirement that exceeds IDEA. Those provisions deserve extra attention, because they are unique to Alabama and are frequently cited in monitoring findings.

How the chapter relates to IDEA. The chapter follows IDEA's structure closely, and much of its language tracks the federal regulations. But the chapter is the operative rule in Alabama: when a monitoring review, state complaint, or due process decision evaluates an LEA's conduct in Alabama, it cites Chapter 290-8-9. If IDEA is ever amended and the chapter has not yet caught up, contact the TA Team before assuming which standard applies.

• Open the Legislature's Administrative Code site and bookmark Chapter 290-8-9

• Check the supplement date on any printed or saved copy before relying on it

• Note bold-italic provisions — they are Alabama-only requirements

• Cite the rule number (for example, 290-8-9-.05) whenever you write a procedure or document a decision

• Relying on a saved or printed copy that predates the latest supplement

• Reading a federal regulation into the Alabama chapter without checking whether the chapter's wording differs

• Missing bold-italic provisions because they look like formatting, not a warning sign

• Citing "the law" generally in correspondence instead of the specific rule number

Alabama Legislature, Administrative Code, Chapter 290-8-9: https://admincode.legislature.state.al.us/administrative-code/290-8-9 

ALSDE Special Education Services, Policies and Procedures: https://www.alabamaachieves.org/special-education/policies-and-procedures/ 

Mastering the Maze  ALSDE procedural guide: the forms and directions that operationalize the chapter