Category: Federal Government Actions

Federal “Skinny Budget” for FY 2026 Released, IDEA to be Moved out of USDE (May 2, 2025)

On May 2, 2025, Office of Budget Management (OMB) Director Russell Vaught sent a letter to Appropriations Committee Chair Senator Susan Collins providing her with President Trump’s recommendations on discretionary funding levels for fiscal year (FY) 2026. The “Skinny Budget” provided is in advance of the President’s full fiscal plan. According to the documents shared, it is clear the presidentā€™s budget moves IDEA out of the U.S. Department of Education (USDE).

On the same day, U.S. Ed. Sec. Linda McMahon released a USDE press release in support of the budget. In the release she said, “The Presidentā€™s Skinny Budget reflects funding levels for an agency that is responsibly winding down…and thoughtfully preparing a plan to delegate other critical functions to more appropriate entities.” Click here to view the release.

Click to view the skinny budget on the OMB website at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/information-resources/budget/the-presidents-fy-2026-discretionary-budget-request/.

IDEA Part C Services Face Possible Budget Cuts (April 28, 2025)

The Part C early intervention program is stable for now, but advocates and researchers are worried about potential cuts to Medicaid and appropriations. The Part C program that supports infants and toddlers with developmental delays and their families could face significant fiscal pressures due to the Trump administrationā€™s overall efforts to reduce the size and budget of the federal government. 

While no specific cuts to the Part C program have been announced yet, Congress will be contemplating proposals to whittle down annual allocations and a possible reduction to Medicaid payments ā€” both of which help prop up early intervention services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

The Part C program served 462,847 children ages 2 and younger in 2023. Thatā€™s a 4.8% increase over 2022, according to an analysis by The Advocacy Institute, a nonprofit focused on improving the lives of people with disabilities. IDEAā€™s Part B program served 7.9 million children ages 3-21 in 2023. 

States voluntarily participate in Part C because the federal government does not permanently authorize it. Currently, all states participate in the Part C program.

Perhaps the biggest threat to Part C is potential cuts to Medicaid. Federal and state Medicaid contributions were the third-largest funding source for Part C at $683 million in 2023, according to research from the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown Universityā€™s McCourt School of Public Policy.

To view the original article from K-12 Dive, click here.

New COPPA Rule to take effect in June (April 28, 2025)

As reported by K-12 Dive, updates to the Childrenā€™s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) are to take effect on June 23, but companies have until April 22, 2026, to fully comply, according to the amended final rule published by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) earlier this week.

Though COPPA itself does not explicitly mention schools, the updated rule will impact how K-12 leaders interact with ed tech companies, according to student data privacy experts.

One of the key changes in the latest COPPA Rule is that companies must obtain parental consent before using childrenā€™s data for targeted advertising or disclosing their information to third parties, according to the April 22 notice published in the Federal Register. However, school districts are still allowed to give consent to ed tech companies in lieu of parental consent as long as that data is solely used for educational purposes and not commercially. 

Schools should expect to see more transparency from ed tech companies, given that they are required under the new COPPA Rule to provide a direct notice to parents ā€” or in this case school districts ā€” about how they plan to collect and use childrenā€™s data upon receiving consent.

The new rule also states that companies must put limits on retaining childrenā€™s data and cannot hold onto it indefinitely.

View the original article from K-12 Dive.

Federal Judge Rules Against Anti-DEI Policy (April 26, 2025)

In a U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia April 24, 2025 ruling, supported the plaintiffsā€™ claim that the anti-DEI policy outlined in a Feb. 14 Dear Colleague letter is ā€œunconstitutionally vague.ā€ In particular, the policy would make enforcement difficult because it did not explain the difference between ā€œa lawful DEI practice and an unlawful one.ā€

The lawsuit was brought by the NAACP. For more details, click here.

Legal Challenge to Sec. 504 is Dropped (April 26, 2025)

According to a joint status report submitted by plaintiffs and defendants, a lawsuit that was seen as a constitutional challenge against Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act will no longer be pursued. The states involved as plaintiffs in the case filed in September 2024 were: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia

Disability rights advocates and families with children who receive Section 504 accommodations in schools raised concerns about the statesā€™ lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). That lawsuit challenged an HHS rule that includes gender dysphoria in the definition of a disability under Section 504 and originally argued that Section 504 was unconstitutional.

Click for more from K-12 Dive.