Out-of-District Placement and Tuition Reimbursement in New Hampshire

When a New Hampshire public school district cannot provide a child with a Free Appropriate Public Education in the Least Restrictive Environment, the district is legally obligated to find a placement that can. That might mean a neighboring SAU's program, a regional cooperative, or a state-approved private special education facility. The district pays. That is not optional, and "we don't have anything appropriate locally" is not an excuse to do nothing.

This post covers how out-of-district placement works in New Hampshire, what parents must do when they disagree with the district's offer, and how tuition reimbursement works when a family places a child privately without waiting for the district.

When Districts Must Fund Out-of-District Placement

Under RSA 186-C:9 and RSA 186-C:10, if a public school district cannot provide appropriate services within its own programs, it is required to fund the appropriate placement elsewhere. This is not a discretionary option — it is a mandate.

Appropriate placements the district might fund include:

• Programs in another NH public school district through a cooperative arrangement
• State-approved private special education programs within New Hampshire
• Out-of-state residential programs when nothing in-state is appropriate
• Therapeutic day schools when a child's behavioral or emotional needs cannot be addressed in a general school setting

The district cannot cite budget constraints, staffing shortages, or administrative inconvenience as reasons to avoid funding an appropriate out-of-district placement. These are the most common excuses used, and they have no legal standing. Federal law is explicit: FAPE obligations are not contingent on local financial capacity.

How the District Proposes Out-of-District Placement

If the district determines that its own programs cannot meet your child's needs, it should propose an out-of-district placement at an IEP team meeting. The proposal must come with a Written Prior Notice explaining the placement being proposed, why the district cannot serve the child within its own programs, what alternatives were considered, and what the legal basis for the decision is.

The IEP team must still determine all the services your child will receive. Simply being placed in a private program does not mean the placement is appropriate — the program must be able to implement the full IEP. Ask specifically: Can this program implement every service and accommodation in my child's IEP? Who delivers each service? What are the qualifications of the staff?

If the district proposes a placement and you believe it is not appropriate, you do not have to accept it. You have the right to dispute the proposed placement through mediation, the Neutral Conference process (RSA 186-C:23-b), or due process.

Unilateral Private Placements: When Parents Don't Wait

Sometimes parents cannot wait for a district to offer an appropriate placement. The child is regressing, behavioral incidents are escalating, or the district has proposed a placement the parent believes is inadequate. In these cases, a parent may choose to enroll the child in a private school unilaterally — without the district's agreement — and then seek tuition reimbursement.

Tuition reimbursement for unilateral private placements is available under federal law (Florence County School District v. Carter, 1993) and is well-established in New Hampshire case law. But it is not automatic, and the bar can be significant.

To have the best chance of obtaining reimbursement, parents typically need to establish:

1. The district's program was not appropriate. This means the district failed to offer FAPE — either through an inadequate IEP, an inappropriate placement, or procedural violations that impeded the parent's ability to participate meaningfully.

2. The private placement is appropriate. The school where the child was enrolled must actually be providing a meaningful educational benefit. The placement does not need to be the best possible option — it needs to be appropriate.

3. The parent gave the district notice. At the last IEP meeting before removing the child, or in a letter at least 10 business days before the removal, the parent should inform the district that they are rejecting the district's proposed program and intend to enroll the child privately at public expense. Failure to give notice can reduce or eliminate reimbursement.

Courts have discretion to reduce reimbursement if the parent's failure to provide notice was not reasonable, or if the parent otherwise acted in bad faith. Cooperative parents who have documented their concerns in writing throughout the IEP process are in a much stronger position than parents who removed their child without warning.

Filing for Reimbursement in New Hampshire

If a parent and district cannot agree on tuition reimbursement, the parent must file a formal complaint — either through due process or, in some cases, a state complaint depending on the nature of the dispute.

Due process is the primary vehicle for reimbursement claims. Because New Hampshire shifted the burden of proof to the school district under HB 581, the district must now prove that its proposed program was appropriate rather than the parent having to prove it was inadequate. This is a significant change that strengthens the parent's position in reimbursement disputes.

Review the NHDOE's case archive: a significant portion of New Hampshire due process cases involve placement disputes and reimbursement claims. Districts that are unable to document why their proposed program was appropriate, or that failed to adequately develop the IEP in the first place, frequently settle these cases or lose at hearing.

What to Document Before Any Placement Decision

Whether you are pushing the district to propose an out-of-district placement or considering a unilateral removal, your documentation trail matters enormously. Build a record that shows:

• All the services your child was supposed to receive and evidence of whether they were actually delivered
• Any evaluations showing the child's current levels of performance and how they compare to peers or benchmarks
• Meeting notes or records showing that you raised concerns about the district's program and what the district said in response
• Written requests you made for changes or additional services, and the district's written or verbal responses
• Any emails, school communications, or behavioral incident reports

This documentation is what transforms a parent's assertion that "the district's program wasn't working" into a legal record that a hearing officer can review.

The New Hampshire IEP & 504 Advocacy Playbook includes templates for written prior notice demands, WPN requests, and the communication frameworks that build the record needed when placement disputes escalate to formal proceedings.

The Cost Reality

Out-of-district placements and private therapeutic schools in New Hampshire are expensive — tuition at a state-approved private special education facility can run $40,000 to $100,000 per year or more. The district's obligation to fund this placement, when appropriate, represents a significant financial commitment that administrators feel acutely.

This is why placement disputes are among the most contested in New Hampshire's due process system, and why small SAUs particularly resist out-of-district referrals. Understanding your legal position — and having a written record that supports it — is what makes the difference between a district that quietly funds the placement and one that forces you through a hearing.

Do not accept a refusal without demanding it in writing. Do not accept a sub-appropriate proposed placement without documenting your objections. And do not remove your child privately without giving the required notice. All three of these steps change the trajectory of what comes next.

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