PUBLIC LAW 103-382—OCT. 20, 1994 108 STAT. 3951 "(b) SPECIAL RULE. — In carrying out activities authorized under this part, a State shall ensure that such programs and activities address the needs of families who are economically disadvantaged. "SEC. 709. STRATEGIC PLAN. 20 USC 1491h. "(a) IN GENERAL.— Not later than 6 months after the date on which assistance is received by a State under this part, the lead entity of the State, in conjunction with the Council, shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a strategic plan designed to achieve the purposes and policy of this part. "(b) CONTENTS. — The strategic plan shall include— "(1) a statement of the mission, purpose, and principles of the statewide system of family support for families of children with disabilities in the State; "(2) a statement of family-centered outcomes to be achieved by the statewide system of family support for families of children with disabilities; " (3) specific goals and objectives for developing and implementing, or expanding and improving, the system for providing family support services for families of children with disabilities, and for achieving the family-centered outcomes; "(4) systemic approaches for accomplishing the objectives and achieving the family-centered outcomes, including interagency coordination and cooperation, that builds upon stateof-the-art practices and research findings; "(5) a description of the specific programs, projects, and activities funded under this part and the manner in which the programs, projects, and activities accomplish the objectives and achieve the family-centered outcomes; "(6) a description of an ongoing quality improvement or quality enhancement system, which utilizes information from ongoing measurements of the extent to which family-centered outcomes are achieved, to improve the system; "(7) a description of an appeals process that will be used in resolving any disputes families of children with disabilities may have regarding the determination of eligibility or the provision of family support services to the family or to the child with a disability; "(8) a description of the eligibility criteria to be used to carry out programs, projects, and activities under this part that includes all eligible families; "(9) an analysis of the extent to which family support for a family of a child with a disability is defined as a benefit and not as income; and "(10) a description of the plan to conduct an annual evaluation of the statewide system of family support for families of children with disabilities, in conjunction with the Council, to improve such statewide system and to document progress as required by section 710. "(c) PERIOD AND UPDATES. —The strategic plan shall cover the period of the grant and shall be reviewed and updated on an annual basis to reflect actual experience and family satisfaction information over the preceding year and input from the Council, families of children with disabilities, and other interested parties. "(d) RECOMMENDATIONS. —Prior to developing the strategic plan, the State shall solicit input and recommendations from interested members of the public, either by holding public hearings or through
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