[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 19]
[Senate]
[Page 25304]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT

  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I express my support for the Individuals 
with Disabilities Education Act conference report that passed the 
Senate yesterday. It is not a perfect bill, but I believe it represents 
a fair balance of the concerns of schools and parents of children with 
disabilities. Above all, it upholds the rights of all children with 
disabilities to a free, appropriate education in our public schools. It 
promises them access to a high quality education to help them succeed 
and live productive lives. And it includes strong monitoring and 
enforcement provisions to ensure that that promise is kept.
  The bill includes several improvements over current law that will 
help secure the rights of children with disabilities and uphold the 
rights of parents advocating for their children. First, it holds 
schools accountable for educating disabled students by giving the 
Secretary of Education the tools to monitor how well States and schools 
are complying with the law and sanctioning those that fail to serve 
disabled students. It provides flexibility and resources for early 
intervention and preschool services for younger children, and promotes 
transition services for older students in order to prepare for their 
post-school years. It preserves the Individualized Education Programs 
to ensure that parents have quarterly reports of their child's progress 
and short-term objectives for those with the most severe disabilities. 
It provides for more teacher training and strengthens teacher quality 
requirements so that students are taught by highly qualified teachers. 
It also adds options for parents and schools to work together to 
resolve disputes, but preserves the right to due process if a school is 
out of compliance.
  At the same time, this bill also responds to many of the concerns 
raised by schools and teachers. It provides relief from unnecessary and 
burdensome paperwork so that teachers can focus their attention on 
educational services. It provides more opportunities to resolve 
conflicts and disagreements other than through costly and acrimonious 
litigation. And it provides more resources for professional development 
so teachers are equipped to deal with the often complex but critical 
needs of students with disabilities.
  This bill also addresses the serious issue of discipline--an issue 
that has caused many concerns over the years by both education 
officials and parents of children with disabilities. The bill includes 
a bipartisan compromise that clarifies and strengthens discipline 
provisions so that schools can remove children who pose a serious 
danger to themselves or others to an alternative setting, while 
ensuring that those children continue to receive services. At the same 
time, this compromise protects the rights of disabled children in 
disciplinary action by preserving the manifestation determination so 
that children are not punished for behavior caused by their disability, 
and continuing services if a child is placed in an alternative setting. 
I know that some parents are worried about these revised discipline 
provisions and would prefer current law. I agree that we must continue 
to monitor these provisions carefully to ensure they are implemented 
fairly and with the best interests of disabled children in mind.
  Despite these positive features, I am very disappointed that this 
bill does not move us any closer to fully funding IDEA. When IDEA was 
first enacted in 1975, Congress made a commitment to fund 40 percent of 
the costs, in recognition of the added expenses schools would incur in 
serving disabled students. Today, the Federal Government is funding 
IDEA at the highest levels since it was created--but sadly, that 
funding only covers approximately 19 percent of the costs. I have 
cosponsored and supported legislation that would require mandatory full 
funding for IDEA, and as a member of the Appropriations Committee, I 
will continue to fight for full funding of IDEA. It is past time for 
the Federal Government to live up to its obligations.
  The conference report is not a perfect bill. Clearly, there are 
provisions that will trouble both sides--both the educational community 
and the families of disabled children. But on balance, I think the bill 
represents a real compromise and has great potential to lead to 
improved educational services for children with disabilities. It 
attempts to create a balanced approach that recognizes the challenges 
faced by teachers and schools, while still ensuring that all children 
with disabilities have access to the highest quality education. I will 
continue to work to fully fund its provisions so that the promises it 
makes will become a reality. This bill is worthy of the Senate's 
support and I urge my colleagues to vote for it.

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