Category: Federal Government Actions

USDE Rescinds Disparate Impact Regs without Seeking Public Comment (July 27, 2026)

As reported by K-12 Dive, on July 23, 2026 the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE)  Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it has rescinded regulations to implement disparate impact provisions under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Those regulations have been used to investigate school districts accused of racial discrimination. In fact, a final rule was published on July 24, 2026 Friday in the Federal Register without seeking public comment beforehand.

The move is in accordance with a 2025 executive order issued by President Donald Trump that called to “eliminate” disparate impact liability “in all contexts to the maximum degree possible to avoid violating the Constitution, Federal civil rights laws, and basic American ideals.”

It is feared that the removal of OCR’s disparate impact process will harm Black, Latino, Asian American, Native American, and other students of color who face higher discrimination rates.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

PA Is One of 25 States and DC Suing FEMA and DHS for Withholding Funding (July 24, 2026)

As reported by CBS News, a coalition of 25 states and the District of Columbia  is suing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, accusing the Trump administration of withholding hundreds of millions of dollars in disaster-preparedness and homeland security grants to force states to adopt its policies on elections and immigration. Plaintiffs estimate that FEMA could withhold at least 20% of Homeland Security Grant Program awards (approximately $148 million) from reaching them and terminate entire awards for continued noncompliance, moving forward.

The lawsuit also alleges DHS is using the funds as leverage over policies that the states argue are largely unrelated to those programs as part of a pressure campaign and challenges language that would permit FEMA to cancel grants that no longer align with the Trump administration’s changing priorities or view of the “national interest.”

For more details from CBS News, click here.

Key Senate Committee to Consider Bills to Undo Some USDE Transfers (July 24, 2026)

On July 30, 2026 he U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee plans to take up two bills next week that would prohibit the outsourcing of certain education programs from the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) to other federal agencies. One of them is a bipartisan bill that would prohibit interagency agreements for various K-12 and postsecondary activities. The other bill specifically addresses special education.

Under bill S. 5046, sponsored by Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, the USDE could not transfer offices that oversee special education, postsecondary education, elementary and secondary education, and Native American education programs. The bipartisan bill would prevent federal agencies from using existing interagency agreements, contracting and transfer authorities to circumvent bans on interagency agreements

The other bill is the Special Education Administration Protection Act. Filed by Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., the bill would bar the USDE from outsourcing special education programming to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Cassidy, a physician, is chair of the Senate HELP Committee. The special education interagency agreement with HHS has been a source of much contention with opponents arguing that it would hurt services for children with disabilities. Neither bill addresses the USDE’s equally controversial Office for Civil Rights (OCR) interagency agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

In addition. interagency agreements that were in effect on Feb. 1, 2025, would be exempt from the proposed bans under both bills.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.

Experts at CEC/CASE Summit Sound Alarm (July 23, 2026)

On July 22, 2026, special education professionals and advocates warned that moving special education functions out of the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) would be detrimental to students with disabilities. Citing the likelihood that the  move would cause disparities in services across the states and reduce accountability measures, along with the  risk that the guidance received from one agency and the guidance received from another agency would make it difficult to  impossible to administer all applicable laws, were examples given expressing great concern. For instance, the recently announced interagency agreement between the USDE and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would move key responsibilities for special education formula and discretionary grants, compliance and monitoring, and annual state performance determinations to HHS. However, the USDE, would maintain statutory responsibility for the functions being outsourced.

CEC and CASE officials also say the level of funding proposed in the FY 2027 budget is not enough to address the needs in the field, such as severe teacher shortages, growing demands for student mental health services, and year-over-year increases in special education enrollment. In 2024, about 8.2 million students ages 3-21 qualified for IDEA Part B school-aged services, which was a 3.8% increase compared to the year before.

For more details, click here.

Federal Judge Ruling Prevents Trump Officials from Revoking Grants Due to Change in Priorities (July 20, 2026)

On July 17, 2026, a federal judge ruled in favor of a coalition of 21 attorneys general and three governors who sued over the Trump administration’s approach to grant terminations. According to the lawsuit, since the Trump administration began its second term, it has terminated billions of dollars in federal grants, including for school lunch programs, because they no longer align with the federal government’s goals.

Pursuant to the ruling, federal officials cannot cancel existing grants simply because they don’t align with new government priorities. In fact, federal regulations and the U.S. Constitution’s spending clause prohibit the administration from canceling existing grants based on such a reason.

Governor Josh Shapiro filed suit on behalf of Pennsylvania.

For more from K-12 Dive, click here.