Reps. Angie Craig, Pete Stauber Continue to Push for Special Education Funding

Today, U.S. Reps. Angie Craig and Pete Stauber continued their bipartisan push for the federal government to meet its obligation to fully fund special education for Minnesota schools. The two introduced an amendment to a House spending package that stresses the importance of state grants under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The amendment was adopted by the House this morning, and the package itself provides over $14 billion for special education, a nearly 8% increase over the 2019 enacted level.

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or IDEA, the federal government is required to fund special education up to 40% per pupil. Special education programs in Minnesota currently receive as little as 8%. Reps. Craig and Stauber have cosponsored the IDEA Full Funding Act, which would ensure the federal government meets its funding obligation for Minnesota students.

"As the wife of an educator and the daughter of a teacher, I know that there is no replacement for a high-quality education," said Rep. Craig. "I'm proud to continue to work across the aisle to ensure every student has the resources they need to succeed, because when all of our students have the opportunity to be successful, all of our communities are stronger."

"The federal government's broken promise to students with special needs negatively impacts every student in Minnesota because schools are forced to subsidize rising special education costs with general education funds," said Rep. Stauber. "As the parent of a child with special needs, I am proud to continue the fight to ensure Congress fulfills its promise to our special needs students and their parents, so our educators can strengthen special education services while meeting the needs of every student."