Sponsors (16)
The bill prioritizes protecting existing federal oversight, personnel, and civil-rights enforcement for disability and education programs to avoid disruption, at the cost of limiting the Department of Education's ability to reorganize, modernize, or pursue potentially more efficient delivery models.
People with disabilities, students, and schools retain statutory protections and stable federal oversight of IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act, reducing the risk of service disruption or loss of civil-rights enforcement.
State governments, schools, and service providers keep clear administrative responsibility and program continuity within the Department of Education, reducing confusion about which ED offices oversee services and lowering the risk of missed obligations or enforcement gaps.
People with disabilities benefit from preserved federal accountability (not outsourcing) for enforcement of disability programs and special-education compliance, maintaining a direct federal role in protecting rights.
The Department of Education and the executive branch lose flexibility to reorganize offices, which can slow or block administrative reforms and modernization efforts that might improve efficiency or adapt programs to new needs.
People with disabilities and program beneficiaries may suffer if the law preserves existing bureaucratic structures that are less efficient, delaying potential service improvements or better delivery models.
Taxpayers and the federal budget could face higher administrative or staffing costs because blocking reorganizations may prevent cost-saving personnel changes or contracting, and legislative changes could impose time and expense on Congress.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Prohibits use of appropriated funds to move, restructure, outsource, or reassign DOE offices or staff that administer IDEA and Rehabilitation Act programs.
Official title: Prohibit the use of appropriated funds to eliminate, consolidate, or otherwise restructure any office within the Department of Education that administers or enforces programs serving individuals with disabilities.
Introduced September 18, 2025 by Angela Deneece Alsobrooks · Last progress September 18, 2025
Prohibits federal appropriated funds from being used to eliminate, consolidate, restructure, or outsource any Department of Education office that administers or enforces programs serving individuals with disabilities (including IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act), or to reassign or alter personnel responsibilities in a way that would prevent meeting statutory obligations. Reaffirms congressional findings that the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) are statutorily placed inside the Department of Education and that the executive branch may not unilaterally change those placements or responsibilities. The bill protects the existing organizational placement and staff responsibilities for disability education and workforce programs by blocking use of appropriated funds for any actions that would remove those functions from the Department, transfer them to outside entities, or otherwise impede compliance with IDEA, the Rehabilitation Act, or other applicable federal laws.