With the reauthorization process finally creaking into motion for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), lawmakers of both parties--and both houses of Congress--say this is now a top priority for 2003. In the first of what will doubtless prove to be many rounds, House Republicans last week introduced a bill calling for reforms that focus on accountability and results for students rather than on bureaucratic compliance. Proponents assert that there is wide agreement about what aspects of special education are in greatest need of reform, such as over-identification of minorities and the classification of many illiterate students as "learning disabled," although it seems certain that specific reform proposals will stir much debate.
The new GOP bill contains accountability provisions that mirror those found in the No Child Left Behind Act, including requirements that all special ed teachers be "highly qualified," and that states align their accountability systems for disabled students with the guidelines laid out in NCLB. Two years ago, in the NCLB context, there was much talk of bipartisan support for such requirements, but consensus for similar provisions in IDEA may prove hard to come by. Democrats have already faulted the Bush team for not providing adequate funding for states to comply with NCLB, and now some complain that, despite unprecedented increases in special education funding, the Administration is dooming reform prospects by not boosting the federal share to the "fully funded" (if arbitrary) forty percent level. Democrats will likely also take issue with the choice provisions contained in an IDEA "companion bill," introduced last Thursday by Rep. Jim DeMint (R-SC), which encourages states to experiment with special-ed voucher programs akin to Florida's McKay scholarship program.
Other sticky political wickets will be reforms in school discipline and IDEA special-ed litigation. Today, in effect, schools must apply different disciplinary standards to disabled students. Under the GOP bill, they could establish uniform discipline practices for all pupils. To minimize litigation, this bill would also encourage early mediation and create opportunities for voluntary binding arbitration. The measure would also require parents to cite specific grievances in a formal complaint and to file such a complaint within a year of a school infraction.
H.R. 1350, Improving Educational Results for Children with Disabilities Act of 2003.
H.R. 1373, IDEA Parental Choice Act of 2003.
House Republicans Propose Reforms to Improve Educational Results for Children with Disabilities, Press Release from the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
"House Republicans unveil IDEA overhaul," by Lisa Fine Goldstein, Education Week, March 26, 2003.
"Battles over funding, school choice plague special-ed reauthorization," by Bill Swindell, Congressional Quarterly, March 15, 2003 (not available online)
