Louisiana IEP evaluation deadline: how long does the school have?

You signed consent for the evaluation. Here is exactly what Louisiana law requires next, and what to do if the date passes.

The part most parents miss: business days are not school days

Louisiana is one of the few states that counts business days. A business day is Monday through Friday, excluding federal and state holidays. It does not matter whether school is in session.

That distinction cuts against parents in one specific way: in a school-day state, summer weekdays never count. In a business-day state, ordinary summer weekdays would normally count — they are still Monday through Friday.

Extensions need your permission

If fewer than 60 business days are left in the school year, the district may seek an extension — but it needs parental permission. If someone tells you the deadline has moved, ask whether you agreed to that, and ask for it in writing. You did not agree to anything you did not sign.

How to count your deadline

1. Find the date the district received your signed consent. Not the date you signed it — the date they got it.
2. Count forward 60 business days: Monday through Friday only. Skip weekends. Skip federal and state holidays.
3. Stop counting during the summer interruption, then pick the count back up when the school year resumes.
4. If you agreed in writing to an extension because fewer than 60 business days remained in the year, use the extended date instead.
5. That date is the deadline for the evaluation.

What to do if the deadline passes

1. Put it in writing the same week. Email the case manager and the special education director. State the consent date, the deadline date, and that it has passed. A phone call creates no record.
2. Ask for prior written notice. If the district refuses or delays, you are entitled to a written explanation of what it is doing and why.
3. File a state complaint. A missed timeline is a straightforward compliance violation. In Louisiana this goes to the Louisiana Department of Education. It is free and does not require a lawyer.
4. Keep the paper trail. Every date, every email, every response.