The regulations currently require each district to submit a plan for
gifted education for DOE approval, with districts working on a five
year plan with an annual update on progress towards the plan's
goals. 8 VAC 20-40-60.

The revised regulations give approval of an annual plan to the local
school board alone. Since the local school board members are not
experts in GT education (and some have made public comments hostile
to GT education), without DOE oversight and peer review, there is a
real risk that the GT Plan will be watered down. At a minimum, the
annual plans will require more time and effort, as each plan expires
before administrators can effectively determine if its goals have
been met. 8 VAC 20-40-60.