iCan ONLINE - House shoots down special ed fund
Well, Democrats didn't get what they wanted in terms of mandatory funding. Republicans get their bill passed. Advocates for the disabled worry about students' civil rights eroding, and parents are left in fear for their children. It's interesting how some things get through without any debate. Maybe with the Senate a compromise can be reached. We shall see.

From Article--
"There will be no debate in the United States House of Representatives on the most critical issue facing special education today," said Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass.

The money issue is significant because states and school districts must pay for whatever expenses the Congress doesn't cover. That amounts to billions of dollars that school leaders say they need for teacher training and salaries, books, equipment and other expenses.
Quote from the Washington Post:
"By failing to make full special education funding mandatory, we will be rolling the dice in the appropriations process every year in the hopes that children with disabilities get the resources they need," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). "Gambling with the education of America's children is wrong."

The bill would also allow schools to expel or suspend special education students without determining whether their behavior was linked to their disability.