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Letter to Barack Obama, President of the United States - Increase Funding for Special Education

Letter

By: Lois Frankel, Scott Peters, Gregory Meeks, Yvette Clarke, Rubén Hinojosa, Sr., Kilili Sablan, Collin Peterson, Beto O'Rourke, Gary Peters, Keith Ellison, Julia Brownley, Jerry McNerney, Marcia Fudge, Mike Doyle, Jr., Tammy Duckworth, Don Payne, Jr., Jim Moran, Jr., Bob Brady, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Rush Holt, Jr., Eliot Engel, Tony Cárdenas, Allyson Schwartz, Bennie Thompson, John Larson, Gerry Connolly, Kathy Castor, Jim McDermott, Frederica Wilson, Bill Pascrell, Jr., Joe Courtney, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Paul Tonko, Jim McGovern, Chellie Pingree, Mike Capuano, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Jim Himes, Donna Christensen, Stephen Lynch, Zoe Lofgren, Nick Rahall II, Rick Nolan, Gloria Negrete McLeod, Matt Cartwright, David McKinley, John Lewis, Earl Blumenauer, Suzan DelBene, John Tierney, Karen Bass, Mike Michaud, Michael Grimm, Joaquin Castro, Gene Green, Ron Kind, Rodney Davis, Richard Hanna, Katherine Clark, Patrick Murphy, Betty McCollum, Ted Deutch, Sheila Jackson Lee, André Carson, Linda Sánchez, Maxine Waters, Filemon Vela, Jr., John Conyers, Jr., Pat Meehan, Bill Enyart, Mike Thompson, Jared Polis, Chris Van Hollen, Jr., Tim Ryan, Mark Takano, Chris Gibson, Joe Garcia, Bobby Rush, John Garamendi, Lacy Clay, Jr., Jim Langevin, Jim Matheson, John Yarmuth, Dina Titus, Jan Schakowsky, Ron Barber, Charlie Rangel, Mark Pocan, Peter DeFazio, John Sarbanes, Brian Higgins, Sandy Levin, Raul Grijalva, Adam Schiff, Corrine Brown, Ben Luján, Jr., Derek Kilmer, Elizabeth Esty, Gwen Moore, Henry Waxman, Jared Huffman, Jim Costa, Carolyn McCarthy, Cheri Bustos, Tim Walz, John Delaney, Dutch Ruppersberger, Doris Matsui, Donald Young, Annie Kuster, Steve Cohen, Judy Chu, Juan Vargas, Alan Lowenthal, Eleanor Norton, Sanford Bishop, Jr., Peter Welch, Rick Larsen, Louise Slaughter, Alan Grayson, Bruce Braley, Gregg Harper, Jackie Speier, Sean Maloney, Tim Bishop, Eric Swalwell, Carol Shea-Porter, Elijah Cummings, Tim Murphy, Al Green, Susan Davis, Hank Johnson, Jr., Mike Honda, Dan Lipinski
Date: Feb. 18, 2014
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: K-12 Education

February 18, 2014

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Obama,

As you craft your budget for fiscal year 2015, we write to recommend a significant increase in federal funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

The IDEA provides individual-specific programs and services for students with a wide range of disabilities, including hearing impairment, autism, language impairment, and learning disabilities. Currently, there are over 6.5 million children eligible for special education services under the disability categories of the IDEA. The comprehensive assessment and support services authorized by IDEA help to close the academic achievement gap and ensure a meaningful education for every student.

We owe it to all students to provide a quality education that will help them graduate and enter successful careers. Under Part B of IDEA--the main component of the law for school children ages 3-21--the federal government committed to contributing 40 percent of the average per pupil expenditure (APPE) for each special education student. However, we have always fallen short of this commitment, with funding for IDEA Part B never reaching above 18.5 percent. This shortfall exacerbates the long-running challenges facing states and local school districts, which are faced with decreasing federal resources, rising special education costs, and growing student populations. Ultimately, this situation shortchanges all students because this federal funding shortfall strains state general funds.

The federal government needs a plan to move us toward full funding for IDEA. This should begin with incremental increases, beginning in fiscal year 2015, in spending. Full federal funding for IDEA will help deliver an appropriate education for children with disabilities and provide necessary support to our teachers and school administrators who are working tirelessly, with limited resources, to better the lives of all students.

In addition to the request of increased FY15 funds for the IDEA program, we propose a renewed partnership with the Administration to consider reauthorization of the Act and identify a plan to reach full funding for IDEA over the next ten years.

Please do not hesitate to contact our offices with any questions. We look forward to hearing your thoughts on how best to increase federal funding for IDEA for the coming fiscal year and in the future.

Sincerely,


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