Response to Federal Cuts to Services for Students with Disabilities

The OCR Alumni Collective wrote to U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon objecting to the cuts to special education and children’s disability services, benefits, and nondiscrimination enforcement by the Trump Administration. The letter outlines the statutory and regulatory requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the critical role of the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) in implementing and enforcing these laws. The letter urges the Administration to restore staffing and funding to ensure that the benefits of these laws are realized to support this nation’s students with disabilities.