Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a federal law that ensures that all children ages birth through 21 receive a free and appropriate public school education regardless of the severity or type of their disability. Before this law was passed, many children with disabilities were excluded entirely from participation in public education or were not receiving an education appropriately designed to meet their needs.

Originally introduced into legislation in 1975 as the Education of All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law No. 94–142), the law was renamed in 1990 and has since undergone two additional reauthorizations. President George W. Bush signed the most recent reauthorization into law on December 3, 2004, and most provisions became effective on July 1, 2005. Final regulations were made available on August 14,2006. This reauthorization was characterized by several modifications, including revised and added definitions, revised school discipline procedures, an emphasis on progress monitoring and accountability, changes to procedures in funding allocation, and changes intended to better align the act with the No Child Left Behind act. In addition, taking into consideration feedback from several national organizations and the public, the authors included measures to support the needs of at-risk populations, including homeless children and their families, migratory families, children with limited English proficiency, children exposed to family violence, and children in foster care.

Like its predecessors, the revised IDEA outlines state and local education agency responsibilities, procedures and criteria for determining eligibility for services, regulations pertaining to documentation and monitoring of services and student progress, the scope of included services and placements, and safeguards related to parental involvement and privacy. The law is divided into four parts. Part A outlines general provisions. Children ages 3 through 21 are covered under Part B. Part C details unique regulations concerning services for infants and toddlers with disabilities. Part D includes a description of national activities to improve the education of children with disabilities. IDEA also details the provision of funding to local and state agencies that serve children with disabilities in accordance with this law. IDEA is not fully funded [Page 251]and does not cover all expenses incurred by schools to provide services to individuals with disabilities.