50th Anniversary of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, this past Saturday marked 50 years since the passing of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 1975.

Before IDEA, children with disabilities were often institutionalized or excluded from classrooms, deprived of the support needed to achieve their God-given potential. IDEA changed that by guaranteeing every child, regardless of ability, the right to a free and appropriate public education.

The IDEA said that every child--every child--is worthy of reaching their full potential and that the Federal Government ought to provide the resources to make that possible.

Massachusetts, the birthplace of public education, first passed a State law, section 766, which established the high legal standard that would be adapted and expanded federally as IDEA. I was proud to vote for that bill, section 766, as a State representative--one of my first votes in my career. That bill then became the law for the entire country.

In the decades since the IDEA became Federal law, students, parents, educators, administrators, and support staff have worked tirelessly to deliver the promise of a world-class education to millions of students with disabilities. But far too many students with disabilities are still waiting for their shot at a meaningful education.

The Federal Government committed to funding 40 percent of the cost to school districts of implementing the IDEA, but Congress has never fully funded special education. Right now, the Federal Government is only covering 12 percent of the tab, and that is unacceptable.

Now President Trump and Education Secretary Linda McMahon are threatening the very foundation of public education. They are slashing education funding, stealing from children to give tax breaks to CEO billionaires and millionaires. It is Robin Hood in reverse. They are trying to destroy the Department of Education. When the Department first opened its doors, fewer than one in three students with a disability graduated from high school--only one in three. Today, that number is over 70 percent of kids with disabilities who graduate from high school. But instead of fighting to make that 100 percent, Trump and McMahon are attempting to send education for students with disabilities back to the Stone Age.

In their ``Big Ugly Bill,'' Trump and the MAGA Republicans doing his bidding also slashed Medicaid, which covers over $8 billion of school- based health services delivered to students. Medicaid funding is the fourth largest Federal funding stream for public schools.

Two weeks ago, I visited the Campus School in Boston, which is a school for students with complex disabilities and extensive support needs. During my visit, I met Natalie, a middle school student, and her mom Julia. Natalie has Dup15q syndrome, which causes serious developmental, behavioral, and medical needs, such as frequent seizures. Natalie requires 24-hour caregiving support.

Natalie's story demonstrates how crucial the IDEA is and how devastating Trump and MAGA Republicans' cuts will be to families around the country.

In April of 2023, Natalie and her mom moved to Massachusetts to seek out a safe, accessible education for her, which she was not receiving in her home State. The implementation of IDEA and outcomes for students with disabilities vary dramatically across State lines. Now Natalie is receiving the support she needs to flourish. Her school has set up an individual education plan with goals for her academic achievement, occupational therapy, communication, and motor skills. Her home school district is able to access funding from the State of Massachusetts, the IDEA, and Medicaid to cover Natalie's educational costs.

Her school pays $18 million each year to allow students like Natalie to receive the highest quality and best-fit school placements out of district. In turn, her school receives $1.7 million from IDEA funding and $500,000 in Medicaid funds to offset those costs--around 10 percent. If this Federal funding is jeopardized, the school, Natalie, and her peers, their educators, and their families will have no idea how to continue providing the level of education that these students not only deserve but are legally entitled to.

That includes the nurses, the teachers, the occupational therapists, and the school staff who work with Natalie. It includes the assistive technology that Natalie uses to communicate. Federal health and education funding give Natalie her voice. It also includes the transportation that Natalie receives to and from school each and every day.

Natalie's disability does not preclude her ability or deny her the right to receive an excellent education. At school and at home, Natalie radiates joy because she is given the support she needs to flourish. Every student with a disability is worthy of that same support, inclusion, and joy.

Natalie's mom Julia, with whom I spent a couple of hours talking, is among the strongest amongst us. Natalie's mother navigates a world that is not yet designed for her daughter to thrive without ceaseless advocacy and effort. Yet Julia says what keeps her up at night is thinking of the thousands of children just like Natalie who don't have the extensive support that her daughter has. I will tell you that Julia needs that help. It is 24 hours a day. She needs that help that is going to be slashed.

There are millions of students across America who are still fighting for what Natalie has and what is promised by the IDEA: an education that allows them to thrive. Because of Donald Trump, Linda McMahon, and MAGA Republicans, that promise is moving further and further out of reach.

At the same time, the education that Natalie currently receives is under threat. Natalie, her mom, her teachers, her school administrators--they all want to ensure that Natalie receives a world- class education, but a vision without funding is a hallucination. If the Federal funding and protections backstopping education for students with disabilities stop flowing, as insufficient as they may be right now, we will see a nationwide regression. We cannot let that happen to Natalie or to any child in our country. They deserve our Nation's support.

As we look ahead to the next 50 years of the IDEA, our moral obligation to students with disabilities must not waver. We must, finally, fully fund the IDEA. We must forcefully reject the Trump administration's continued attacks on public education. Ultimately, we must make sure that every child in America--no matter what State they live in--is given the opportunity to excel and to thrive.

This anniversary is a call to action. Children are only 25 percent of our population, but they are 100 percent of our future. We must fight for them every single day. Natalie's is a story that all of us must be aware of.

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