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A Washington Update: ISTP, Federal Funding and IDEA Annual Report

This weekly Washington Update is intended to keep members informed on Capitol Hill activities impacting the educator preparation community. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of AACTE.

It was another busy week in Washington. The Department of Education co-hosted the 2023 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP), welcoming more than 22 member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The theme for this year’s summit was “Poised for the Future: Transformative Teaching for Global Engagement, Sustainability, and Digital Access.” Building on discussions held during past summits, 2023 focused on elevating and enhancing the teaching profession, educating for global and cultural competence and civic engagement, and leveraging digital technologies to ensure equitable access and enhanced learning for all. Jill Biden and Secretary Cardona both participated in the convening using the opportunity in part to tout President Biden’s commitment to educators. This comes on the heels of President Biden announcing his 2024 reelection campaign. In his first two campaign videos President Biden has referred to Republican-led efforts to restrict what’s taught in schools — we expect education will continue to be a major theme throughout this election cycle.

On Capitol Hill this week, AFT President Randi Weingarten testified before House Select Subcommittee on the Covid-19 Pandemic. While the hearing was intended to focus on the AFT’s involvement in the CDC guidance surround school closures during the pandemic; Wednesday’s proceedings ultimately devolved into debate over the debt-limit, stimulus spending packages, culture wars, the AFT’s political donations and policy priorities, and school shootings. “I’ve been to some weird hearings in this Congress … But this one might be the weirdest because it’s convened in order to accuse a federal agency of the crime of consulting with American citizens,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD).

House Republicans Pass Bill that would Cap Federal Funding at FY22 Levels

On Wednesday, House Republicans passed a bill would raise the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion or through the end of next March, whichever happens first, in exchange for a wide range of proposals to decrease government funding. The bill passed 215-217 along party lines and ties the debt limit to the appropriations cycle and would cap federal funding at fiscal year (FY) 2022 levels- a nearly 22% cut — while also limiting spending growth to 1% every year over the next decade.

Democrats have been referring to the measure as the “Default on America (DOA) Act.”

“That’s what the Default on America Act does. And not just that, it would eliminate over 142,000 new jobs, including 18,000 manufacturing jobs, that have been created since the Inflation Reduction Act was passed…If you’re a parent struggling to pay for child care, the Default on America Act will eliminate more than 105,000 child care slots across the country — making it harder for parents to find work, finish their education, or even provide for their families,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

Senate Democrats have said they would refuse to negotiate over spending until Republicans agreed to pass a debt limit increase without conditions. House Republicans for their part see the measure as their opening offer in negotiations with President Biden to raise the debt limit.

As you will recall, last month, Ranking Member on the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) sent a letter to all federal agencies asking the respective Secretaries to detail what a roll back to the FY22 levels would mean for their agency. Secretary Cardona responded to Rep. DeLauro’s request outlining in detail just how devastating these cuts would be for students and educators across America. Highlights from the letter include:

  • ESEA Title I Grants to LEAs – a reduction to the FY 2022 enacted level would cut $850 million in funding from this program – a cut equivalent to removing more than 13,000 teachers and service providers from classrooms serving low-income children; a 22% reduction from the currently enacted level would cut approximately $4.0 billion in funding, impacting an estimated 25 million students and reducing program funding to its lowest level in almost a decade – a cut equivalent to removing more than 60,000 teachers and related service providers from classrooms serving low-income students.

  • IDEA Grants to States – a reduction to the FY 2022 enacted level would cut $850 million in funding from this program – a cut equivalent to removing more than 13,000 teachers and service providers from classrooms serving low-income children; a 22% reduction from the currently enacted level would cut more than $3.1 billion in funding, impacting an estimated 7.5 million children with disabilities and reducing Federal support to its lowest share since 1997 – a cut equivalent to removing more than 48,000 teachers and related services providers from the classroom.

  • Title II-A (Supporting effective instruction State grants) and Title IV-A (Student support and academic enrichment grants) – a reduction to the FY 2022 enacted level would cut more than $35 million for these activities; a 22% reduction from the currently enacted level would cut more than $500 million in annual support for teachers and students, curtailing learning opportunities for teachers and school leaders, and hampering school districts’ efforts to promote a well-rounded education for students in safe schools.

This week, the Department of Education released a fact sheet that outlines in depth what the roll back to the FY22 levels would mean for education. Additionally, the Department provides a fact sheet for each state on what these cuts would mean for education. For example, under the proposal,  in the state of Wisconsin the cuts would mean as many as 123,000 children with disabilities would face reduced supports — a cut in IDEA funding equivalent to removing approximately 800 teachers and related services providers from the classroom.

Now is the time to get to the table — accessing CEC’s Action Alerts are one easy and efficient way to tell Congress to prioritize funding for education.

U.S. Department of Education submitted its 2022 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Annual Report to Congress

The U.S. Department of Education submitted its 2022 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) annual report to Congress this week.

The 44th Annual Report to Congress focuses on children and student with disabilities who received services specific to IDEA Part C for infants and toddlers or IDEA Part B for children and youth.

The report summarizes U.S. progress in the following:

  1. providing a free appropriate public education (FAPE) for children with disabilities under IDEA, Part B and early intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families under IDEA, Part C,
  2. ensuring that the rights of these children with disabilities and their parents are protected,
  3. assisting states and localities in providing for the education of all children with disabilities, and
  4. assessing the effectiveness of efforts to educate children with disabilities.

The report also includes information from studies, evaluations, and databases of the Institute of Education Sciences and U.S. Census Bureau.

Read the 44th Annual Report to Congress preface or read the full report.

New Resources for Educators

  • The CDC released the results of its most recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The survey is based on data from 13,677 students from across the country in 2019 and 17,232 students in 2021. A preliminary release of the survey’s results showed in February that youth mental health had worsened in 2021, with about 30% of respondents saying they had poor mental health and more than 40% saying they had “persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness” in the past year. 

  • OSERS released their next blog in the series entitled Discipline Discussions: The Power of Asking “Why”.

  • IES Director Mark Schneider released a blog on IES priorities for the remainder of the year.

Wishing you all a wonderful week. Until next time, see you on Twitter! Kait @brennan_kait.


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