Federal Legislation & News
in Special Education
Appropriations Committee Holds Hearing on Federal Investment in K-12 Education
On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-H) held a hearing to discuss investments in elementary education. Testimony was heard from Ms. Virginia “Ginny” Gentles, Director, Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies; Dr. Lindsey Burke, Director of the Center for Education Policy, The Heritage Foundation and author of the education section of Project 2025; Mr. Robert Kim, Executive Director, Education Law Center; and Ms. Starlee Coleman, President and CEO, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. School choice, student performance, protection of special education funding, and allocation of federal dollars for education emerged as the major topics. The majority party and three of four witnesses advocated sending federal dollars back to the states and shifting oversight responsibility for federally required programs out of the U.S. Department of Education to other agencies. Dr. Burke specifically recommended that funding under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Title I should move to Health and Human Services (HHS), data collection for the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) to the Census Bureau, and Indian Education programs to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). Mr. Kim reminded the committee that oversight to ensure all students have free and fair access to public education would be lost if funds were dispersed across agencies.
Watch the hearing and read the testimonies here.
Full-Year CR “Likely”
With a March 14 deadline looming large -amidst significant partisan disagreements on top line spending for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY2025) appropriations- Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) announced this week that a full year continuing resolution (CR) “was likely.” President Trump also signaled his support for a funding patch, freeing up Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senator Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) to negotiate. While a deal that would run through September 30 seems doable, hardline conservatives are pushing to codify some of the “most egregious” examples of alleged waste found by Elon Musk’s team in recent personnel firings and contract cancellations made across federal agencies. The White House has already floated a list of examples; however, the idea is a hard ‘no’ for Democrats and when pressed about incorporating controversial cuts as part of the deal, Chair Collins said, “I don’t see how that could work.” Both Thune and Johnson have indicated that finalizing an FY2025 deal is the absolute priority next week as President Trump prepares to make his first address as the 47th President to Congress on March 4 at 9:00 PM ET.
COPAA Submits Amicus Brief to the Ninth Circuit in Support of the Right of Students to the Public Funding of ALJ-Ordered Placements
In early February, COPAA submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in support of the family of a child with a disability, urging the court to reverse the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in J.H. v. Seattle Public Schools. You can read the amicus brief here.
In J.H., the family prevailed following a due process hearing, where the administrative law judge (ALJ) found that the school district had failed to provide the student with a free appropriate public education (FAPE) and ordered the district to pay the costs of a private placement. As COPAA argued in its brief, the ALJ’s findings were careful and thorough and were entitled to deference by the federal district court, which overturned the ALJ’s decision.
The district court further erred by ordering the parents to reimburse the school district for the costs of the private placement. The IDEA requires school districts to bear the costs of private placements that are ordered by ALJs during the pendency of litigation.
COPAA noted that there is no case precedent requiring parents to reimburse a school district for the costs it incurs in complying with an ALJ order that is later overturned. Requiring parents to do so runs counter to both the IDEA’s stay-put requirement and to the substantive FAPE guarantee.
COPAA Legal Director Selene Almazan and board member Ellen Saideman authored the amicus brief. Charlotte Cassady represents the family in the appeal along with COPAA member, Kerri Feeney.
Lawsuit threatens Section 504
In September 2024, 17 states’ Attorneys General filed a lawsuit in Northern Texas. The lawsuit challenges the legality of Section 504 and its new rules, which protect people with disabilities from discrimination in health care and human services. Texas v. Bacerra was filed to challenge the new 504 (from May 2024) regulations enacted to protect people with disabilities from discrimination in health care and human services. However, the lawsuit, in its relief and remedies section, has asked the court to declare Section 504, in its entirety, to be unconstitutional.
DREDF and others have issued alerts on actions to take https://dredf.org/protect-504/
Write to state Attorneys General on why Section 504 is important
- Ask if your state is one of the 17 states to drop out of the lawsuit
- Say why you support Section 504
There is a sample letter on the DREDF website.
On February 19, 2025, Texas submitted a Joint Status Report to the court to clarify its demands and assert that its demand has never been to declare Section 504 unconstitutional. However, they have not moved to amend their complaint, and they remain committed (per their filing last week) to changing Section 504’s application in such instances as people with disabilities being able to live in the community.
The states involved in the lawsuit are: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah, and West Virginia.
Your Voice Is Making an Impact: Tell Congress to Protect Students with Disabilities
In just one week, COPAA has sent over 1500 emails to the U.S. Congress urging support for Medicaid -to ensure eligible students with disabilities have access to school-based services- to ensure investments in the IDEA that support children and families, and to reject proposals to close the U.S. Department of Education. To keep up the momentum, COPAA encourages anyone who has not emailed Congress about these critical issues to visit COPAA’s Take Action page and send an email this week.
Senate Committee Advances Linda McMahon as Education Secretary Nominee
Last week in a 12-11 vote, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee voted to advance the nomination of Linda McMahon for Secretary of Education. Prior to the vote, COPAA CEO Denise Marshall issued a statement expressing “deep concern with the nominee”, and explained that based on answers provided to the HELP Committee during her nomination hearing, “Ms. McMahon lacks essential knowledge of crucial laws…and, we are not confident she will uphold all tenets and requirements of key federal education, disability and civil rights statutes that Congress has meaningfully aligned to support the 9.5 million children with disabilities to promote their educational access and opportunity.” A date has not been announced for McMahon’s full vote on the Senate floor. COPAA is also monitoring the Senate HELP Committee schedule as they will also consider additional nominees including Kim Richey as Assistant Secretary, Office for Civil Rights.
ED Instructs Schools to End Racial Preference, Legal Experts Push Back
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) advising educational institutions receiving federal funds to cease using race as a factor in admissions, hiring, promotions, compensation, scholarships, discipline, and related areas. The DCL targets programs that promote or support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and while ED includes a footnote that the DCL “does not have the force and effect of law and does not bind the public or create new legal standards,” it also warns educational institutions that “…noncompliance could result in investigations and loss of federal funding, with enforcement beginning within 14 days.” In direct response, lawyers who study and teach antidiscrimination law, education law, employment law, constitutional law, and civil rights have issued a joint public letter expressing “concern” that federally funded institutions will “eliminate, or already have eliminated, important DEI initiatives that remain legally defensible and often further institutions’ legal obligations under federal laws. They summarize their response by noting. “ … under prevailing federal civil rights laws and Supreme Court precedent, DEI initiatives that do not employ racial classifications or otherwise limit opportunity to individuals from certain racial groups remain legally secure…[and] urge(s) school leaders not to sacrifice essential and legally defensible DEI initiatives.”
This Week: House Hearing to Focus on Federal Investments in Elementary Education
The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-H) will conduct a hearing on Wednesday, February 26 to discuss the status of federal investments in elementary education. Chaired by Rep. Robert Aderholdt (R-AL) with Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) expert witnesses for the Republicans include Ms. Virginia Gentles, Director, Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies; Dr. Lindsey Burke, Director of the Center for Education Policy, The Heritage Foundation; and, Ms. Starlee Coleman, President and CEO, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Mr. Robert Kim, Executive Director, Education Law Center is the witness for the Democrats. Given the disagreement between parties on how to focus federal K-12 investments as well as recent cuts by the Trump Administration to K-16 research, teacher training programs, longitudinal studies, grants that included the terms diversity, equity, inclusion, transition and more, a lively discussion is expected.
Education Dept. lifts pause on some civil rights probes, but not cases of race, gender discrimination
ProPublica
The U.S. Department of Education on Thursday told employees that it would lift its monthlong freeze on investigating discrimination complaints at schools and colleges across the country — but only to allow disability investigations to proceed. That means that thousands of outstanding complaints filed with the department’s Office for Civil Rights related to race and gender discrimination — most of which are submitted by students and families — will continue to sit idle. That includes cases alleging unfair discipline or race-based harassment, for example. “I am lifting the pause on the processing of complaints alleging discrimination on the basis of disability. Effective immediately, please process complaints that allege only disability-based discrimination,” Craig Trainor, the office’s acting director, wrote in an internal memo obtained by ProPublica.
COPAA Submits Amicus Brief to the Ninth Circuit Regarding School Districts’ Obligation To Offer FAPE via an IEP
Earlier this month, COPAA submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in support of the family of a child with a disability, urging the court to reverse the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California in L.B. v. San Diego Unified School District. You can read the amicus brief here.
In this case, the child’s parents exercised their right under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and provided notice to the school district of a unilateral private placement. Following the family’s request for and participation in an IEP meeting, the district declined to offer a new Individualized Education Program (IEP) and instead informed the family that the student’s old IEP offer could go into effect if he were re-enrolled in the school district. The federal district court ruled in favor of the district, erroneously holding that parents, in effect, had to use “magic words” and explicitly request an IEP document to trigger their right to private school tuition reimbursement.
COPAA emphasized in its brief that the IDEA requires public school districts to collaborate with families and prepare IEPs for students attending private schools when those families request IEP meetings to discuss their children’s educational needs. The process of planning for free appropriate public education via an IEP for a child with a disability is at the heart of the IDEA.
COPAA Legal Director Selene Almazan and board members Ellen Saideman and Alexis Casillas wrote the amicus brief. Meagan Nunez represents the family.
What does NAEP show for special education students?
K-12 Dive
Math and reading scores declined or held steady for special education students on the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress — for both 4th and 8th graders — when compared to NAEP results from 2022 and 2019. The biggest decline came with 2024’s average score for 8th-grade math, which dropped to 238, down from 242 in 2022 and 247 in 2019. Looking at reading scores for 2024, 72% of 4th graders with disabilities, including those with a 504 plan, scored below basic — the lowest achievement category. For 8th graders, 66% of students with disabilities scored below basic. The other categories are: at or above basic, at or above proficient, and at advanced. While the decline in scores from pre- and post-COVID-19 performances is disappointing to many in the special education field, the scores from students with disabilities are similar to the average score declines seen for all students.
Department of Education Halts Thousands of Civil Rights Investigations
ProPublica
In the three-and-a-half weeks since Donald Trump returned to the presidency, investigations by the agency that handles allegations of civil rights violations in the nation’s schools and colleges have ground to a halt. At the same time, there’s been a dramatic drop in the number of new cases opened by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights — and the few that attorneys have been directed to investigate reflect some of Trump’s priorities: getting rid of gender-neutral bathrooms, banning transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports and alleged antisemitism or discrimination against white students. The OCR has opened about 20 new investigations since Trump’s inauguration, sources inside the department told ProPublica, a low number compared with similar periods in previous years. Historically, the bulk of investigations in the office have been launched after students or their families file complaints. Since Trump took office, the focus has shifted to “directed investigations,” meaning that the Trump administration has ordered those inquiries.
What Happens to Students With Disabilities if the Department of Education Were Dismantled?
The Tennessee Tribune
COPAA member Heather Eckner shares this column about the potential impact of dismantling the US Department of Education, noting, “The U.S. Department of Education plays a crucial role in ensuring that all students, regardless of background or ability, have access to a quality education. For students with disabilities, the Department has been instrumental in creating programs, policies, and frameworks that ensure equitable educational opportunities. For students with disabilities, the consequences could be significant and detrimental to their ability to succeed in school and beyond.”
ACT NOW! Tell Congress to Support Medicaid, Protect Children with Disabilities
The House and Senate are negotiating budget resolution bills to support major tax cuts in the pending budget reconciliation package. To pay for the tax credits, the House Budget Committee has asked authorizers to find $880 Billion in cuts, and the Senate Budget Committee is looking for $1 Billion. We know that Medicaid is a primary target to pay for the tax credits. If Congress cuts Medicaid funding, states will not have the promised federal matching dollars to pay for the vital health services that ensure students with disabilities have adequate educational opportunities and jeopardize $7.5 billion in funding for school-based Medicaid services. Medicaid is a cost-effective and efficient provider of essential healthcare services for children. School-based Medicaid programs serve as a lifeline to children who can’t access critical health care and health services outside of their school. Some school districts use Medicaid to pay for school nurses, counselors, psychologists, and other trained professionals who help all children, and these positions and the services they provide will be in jeopardy as states struggle to make up the difference.
Contact your representatives here.
COPAA also signed with 60+ national education and disability organizations in a letter sent to Congress last week.
Senate Committee Holds McMahon Confirmation Hearing
On Thursday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing to consider the nomination of Linda McMahon to be Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education (ED). In her opening remarks, McMahon pledged to deliver on education-related campaign promises, including focusing on parents and limiting the federal role in education. A question-and-answer session began with HELP Committee Chair Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who asked about early diagnosis of dyslexia, whereby McMahon committed to working with the Chair on his priority. Among many questions related to the Trump campaign promise to shutter ED, Senator Collins (R-ME) asked how oversight and administration of education programs would continue under a reorganization or closure of the Department. McMahon remarked that she would examine whether laws such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) “might be better served” in other agencies. The plan about other laws was less transparent, and McMahon did offer that ED cannot be eliminated without an act of Congress. Sen. Hassan (D-NH) spent much of her time focused on IDEA, stating, “It takes national commitment to get it [implementing IDEA] done. And that is why so many people are so concerned about this proposal to eliminate the Department. Because they think kids will once again be shoved aside and especially kids with disabilities.” Follow up questions noted the terminations this week of ED employees whose statuses were provisional. McMahon replied that she is not yet privy to personnel practices at ED. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) raised the issue of private school choice and the impact of such models in rural areas with only one school. She asked McMahon what her commitment is to public schools and the reply was “public schools are the bedrock of our society.” In regard to a recent Executive Order on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) asked how a school knows whether it is running a “DEI” program, and noted that the confusion around the definition has resulted in Department of Defense schools halting Black History Month activities. An area of agreement across the aisle and with the nominee revolved around shared commitment to promoting and supporting career and technical education that leads to employment. Chairman Cassidy also announced the Committee will vote on McMahon’s nomination on February 20.
To view the hearing or download McMahon’s statement, go here.