Federal Legislation & News
in Special Education
House Bill Intends to Stop the Transfer of Four ED Offices
Representatives John Mannion (D-NY), Bobby Scott (D-VA), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) have introduced HR 10232, a bipartisan bill to prevent the U.S. Department of Education (ED) from transferring four programs to other federal agencies through interagency agreements. The legislation mirrors S. 5046 -as passed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in July- and would prohibit the Secretary of Education from transferring programs administered by the Offices of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Elementary and Secondary Education, Postsecondary Education, and Indian Education. While COPAA supports the underlying agreement to protect OSERS and other education programs from transfers outside of ED, the organization did not endorse HR 10232 because it does not include a prohibition to move the Office for Civil Rights which COPAA views as vital to protecting the civil and educational rights of students with disabilities.
ED Releases Guidance on Tech in Classrooms
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) recently released guidance on the responsible use of
technology in classrooms. In a Dear Colleague letter on Tech in Classrooms, Kirsten Baesler, assistant secretary
for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), urges educators to keep student
academic outcomes at the forefront of decisions about technology use. She advises educators
and technology providers to avoid recreational uses of technology, evaluate whether technology
has demonstrated positive learning outcomes, establish processes for reviewing implementation
and results, support professional learning that integrates technology into effective instruction,
and understand how technology increases access for students whose education needs require
additional supports, including students with disabilities.
Trump upends special education oversight, stirring parents and advocates
U.S. News
More than 8 million American children with disabilities are starting the new school year with guarantees of a decent public education at their local schools and federal funding that helps pay for it. But parents and advocates are split on whether a Trump administration move that transfers federal responsibility for special education from the Department of Education to the Department of Health and Human Services will help or harm students with disabilities. The Trump administration announced the change over the summer, saying it will boost academic achievement of students with disabilities and make it easier for them to access programs and become self-sufficient. Some parents fear the reverse will happen, meaning they will have to fight harder for their children’s educational rights – historically protected for decades by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. Among the detractors is Katie Moureau, who has three kids receiving special education services at schools in Cottage Grove, Wisconsin. She says the change could be a step toward a scenario in which “all children with disabilities will lose the federal oversight and accountability that makes their rights under IDEA meaningful.”
New federal guidance could roll back special ed. transition services
Education Week
New federal guidance threatens to upend decades of progress in high school transition planning, which helps students with disabilities prepare for college, the workforce, and living independently, advocates and researchers say. In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Olmstead v. L.C. that states must eliminate unnecessary segregation of people with disabilities and ensure they receive services in “the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs.” The ruling established that unjustified institutionalization constitutes discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But in June, the U.S. Department of Justice stated it “will not rely upon the Olmstead Guidance in its enforcement” of the ADA, and that Olmstead is “not enforceable.” The Olmstead ruling has for decades served as the backbone of students’ individualized education programs (IEPs) by requiring transition plans that teach students with disabilities 16 and older independent living skills. Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, transition plans must include goals related to postsecondary education or training, employment, and, if appropriate, independent living. “To have a document that says segregated living is OK and transitioning into that integrated setting isn’t the priority, it’s really the antithesis of what we’re working for 21 years of their lives in special education,” said Meghan Burke, a professor of special education at Vanderbilt University. […]
Note: Limited free articles, then requires subscription.
Long-awaited civil rights data about students is finally out
NPR
A massive trove of data about the civil rights of American students was quietly published on the U.S. Department of Education’s website this week. The Civil Rights Data Collection includes information about which groups of students are being bullied, which students across the country can access Advanced Placement classes, and how students with disabilities are treated at school, among other things. The CRDC was supposed to be published at the end of last year, according to the agency’s own deadline. The data, from nearly every public school in the country, reveals disparities in the way students are treated based on race, ethnicity, disability, sex, and other factors. It’s a tool for educators, policymakers, advocates, and families to understand students’ experiences and for the federal government to better enforce students’ civil rights. The federal government has been collecting this kind of information for over 50 years. The Trump administration did not answer questions from NPR about what was behind the delay. […]
Their daughter needs a school with 24/7 care. No one will take her
USA Today
Parents of children with disabilities often find themselves advocating to get their kids the support they need to thrive. While the vast majority of the 7.5 million special education students in the United States stay enrolled in regular schools, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, experts say some children can benefit from programs dedicated to students with disabilities. But because these programs are rare and many have years-long waiting lists, some families are left with nowhere to go. Some students, like Charlotte, continue in the public school system while parents search for a solution. Others with more extreme behaviors are sent home with no educational pathway at all. […]
Civil Rights Data Collection (CDRC) for the 2023-24 School Year Now Available
The U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) administers the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), which is a mandatory survey of all public school districts and schools in the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The CRDC gathers information on student access to educational programs, activities, and staff in public schools serving students from preschool through 12th grade. For the 2023-24 school year, the CRDC includes data from more than 17,000 school districts and 97,000 schools nationwide. For more information about the CRDC or to download the full CRDC public-use data file, please visit https://civilrightsdata.ed.gov/data.
3 special education funding strategies states can use to support districts
K-12 Dive
What should states prioritize when designing special education funding systems? One special education expert says building systems that provide school districts with the resources for high-quality, evidence-based services that respond to students’ individual needs — rather than focusing solely on funding formula elements — is the way to go. While a state’s special education funding formula is important, “it’s the means, it’s not the ends, for getting resources to districts,” said Tammy Kolbe, managing researcher at American Institutes for Research, during an Aug. 19 webinar hosted by the Education Commission of the States. Before states consider what funding mechanisms are best, they should start their conversations by conveying an understanding about what the funding will support, she said. “At its core, the purpose of [a] state special education funding system is to ensure that districts have the resources they need to provide special education services that students with disabilities actually need,” Kolbe said…
DoD schools struggle to identify, support military children with learning disabilities, GAO finds
Navy Times
For military families, a permanent change of station can mean more than adjusting to a new school. Government Accountability Office officials told Military Times that parents have repeatedly reported problems transferring educational records and individualized education programs when military families move, sometimes delaying services or leaving educators to reconstruct a child’s needs. A new GAO review found gaps at multiple stages of the Department of Defense Education Activity’s process for identifying and supporting students with specific learning disabilities, including screening, referrals, evaluations and instruction. GAO officials said those gaps can compound, affecting when students receive help and the quality of the services they receive. “Those are gaps that, when you add them up, they multiply, and they have a compounding effect on when and the quality of services that students receive,” said Jennifer Gregory, a GAO assistant director who oversees part of the agency’s special education work…
COPAA Attends Roundtable with Senator Kaine
On Thursday, August 20, Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) hosted a roundtable in Newport News, Virginia. Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) was also in attendance, as were parents, advocates, school administrators, and teachers. COPAA CEO Denise Marshall and parent member Myleisha McKiver from Stafford, VA attended on behalf of COPAA.
Senator Kaine led a discussion focused on funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and other pressing topics including recent federal administrative actions affecting special education, such as efforts to move functions of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) from the Department of Education (ED) to the Department of Health and Human Services, protecting access to special education services and accommodations, and improving postsecondary outcomes and transition from K–12 education into higher education, employment, and independent living.
Marshall spoke on behalf of students and families and first thanked the Senator for leading the bipartisan bill (S 5046) that passed the Senate HELP Committee in July that would stop ED from moving four offices to other agencies, including OSERS. They also discussed the need to protect IDEA and the Office for Civil Rights, and that no bills should come through the Senate to amend IDEA. McKiver, who has two children with disabilities and is an advocate, spoke passionately about the importance of IDEA and expressed why current efforts to remove federal oversight of IDEA give parents great angst. The group addressed topics such as full funding of IDEA, discipline, personnel preparation, early intervention/head start, and monitoring and compliance.
Receptive to the group’s discussion and recommendations, both Kaine and Scott spoke to their ongoing commitment to protecting and supporting the civil and educational rights of students with disabilities.
Watch the news here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GljB4T2jOSE
States see spike in special ed complaints
Disability Scoop
With major changes happening in Washington, families are increasingly turning to states to help resolve special education disputes. Data collected from 33 states shows that written complaints related to special education are up nearly 48%. The Council for Exceptional Children and the National Association of State Directors of Special Education asked all states to voluntarily provide data on the number of complaints they received, as well as mediation and due process hearing requests, for each of the last three years. So far, 33 have obliged. The states reported receiving 12,398 complaints during the 2025-2026 school year. That’s up significantly compared to the previous two years when there were fewer than 8,400 complaints lodged annually. The jump comes as the U.S. Department of Education and its Office for Civil Rights, which fields complaints of disability discrimination in schools, have been in upheaval. Last year, the Education Department laid off hundreds of civil rights staffers and closed seven of 12 regional offices…
Note: Limited free articles; then requires a subscription.
Trump puts autistic kids in the spotlight and cuts agencies built to protect them
CBS News
At Chain of Lakes Elementary School in Winter Haven, Florida, Josette Smith’s 9-year-old son, Ethan, gets to do what he loves most: crafts, math, and science. That is, when he isn’t being pulled out of class. Ethan has autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. He was diagnosed with autism in kindergarten after displaying behavior that concerned his relatives: He paced, flapped his arms, and became consumed with highly specific interests, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and dachshunds. In a meeting with school administrators and the district to develop his individualized education program, a legal agreement that outlines the support Ethan requires, the team agreed he required a trained paraprofessional to help him regulate his emotions and remain in class, according to complaints Smith filed against the school. However, the complaints alleged that administrators were unwilling to provide the dedicated aide. Instead of implementing the supports her son needed, his school repeatedly removed him from instruction, suspended him, and even called police on him when he was in third grade, Smith wrote…
Department of Education Requires Schools to Eliminate Race Consideration in Student Discipline
Today, in new guidance issued to educational institutions via a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL), Kim Richey, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, told schools that discipline policies must “treat students even-handedly and must neither favor nor disfavor any student based on their race.” To support the removal of the requirement to consider race in the discipline of students, the DCL states, “neither Title VI nor the Constitution requires the use of race in student discipline and that the use or consideration of race in student discipline violates Title VI and the Constitution absent truly extraordinary circumstances that satisfy strict scrutiny.” According to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) press release, the guidance follows ED’s rulemaking in July that removed several disparate impact provisions from Federal regulations implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI). Along with the new guidance, ED also announced that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has opened two Title VI investigations into school districts that allegedly require personnel to consider race when making disciplinary decisions.
COPAA reminds members and colleagues that Dear Colleague Letters are neither dispositive nor binding. In addition, Section 618(d) of the IDEA and its implementing regulations (34 C.F.R. §§ 300.646–300.647) continue to mandate that states annually collect and analyze data to determine whether significant disproportionality based on race or ethnicity exists in the state and in its local educational agencies (LEAs).
Special education state complaints jump nearly 50%
K-12 Dive
State education agencies saw a 46% jump in the number of written state complaints in special education during the 2025-26 school year compared to the year before, according to new survey responses from 31 states. The self-reported survey data, collected by the Council for Exceptional Children and the National Association of State Directors of Special Education, shows that during the 2024-25 school year there were 7,907 written state complaints. That number rose to 11,523 in the 2025-26 school year…
Shut out of special education, this Texas family is fighting back
The Nation
In March 2020, Courtney and Spencer Morey moved to Aledo, Texas, a rapidly expanding suburb of Fort Worth, because of the stellar reputation of its schools. But about three years later, when their daughter Annie, who has Down syndrome, was supposed to start preschool, she was denied the education that is guaranteed to her by law under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), even though no one from the school had ever met her. I met the Moreys on an unusually warm afternoon last spring. Dressed in white shorts, a sleeveless red sweater, and modest jewelry, Courtney waved me into her well-air-conditioned SUV, and she and I drove to pick up Annie from KinderFrogs, an early-intervention program for children with disabilities on the campus of nearby Texas Christian University. Annie has attended KinderFrogs ever since the district’s requirements for an assessment of her special-education needs—including an IQ test—prevented her from enrolling in its preschool program…