(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, timelines and other procedural safeguards required to be provided under IDEA and Article 9 of Chapter 115C of the N.C. Gen. Stat. must be followed in an impartial due process hearing initiated when a petition is filed under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-109.6 with the Office of Administrative Hearings.

(b) The administrative law judge who conducts a hearing under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-109.6 shall not be a person who has a personal or professional interest that conflicts with the judge’s objectivity in the hearing. Furthermore, the judge must possess knowledge of, and the ability to understand, IDEA and legal interpretations of IDEA by federal and State courts. The judges are encouraged to participate in training developed and provided by the State Board of Education under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115C-107.2(h)[(g)].

(c) For the purpose of this section, the term “IDEA” means The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400, et seq., (2004), as amended, and its regulations. (2006-69, s. 5.)