Ed Department Plans To Scale Back IDEA Data Collection

From Disability Scoop, by reporter Michelle Diament. Full story here. The comment period runs through October 21, 2025. This is docket number ED-2025-SCC-0481. The information has been published in the Federal Register here.

From the article:

The Trump administration is laying out plans to stop collecting certain information from states about students with disabilities.

The U.S. Department of Education wants to end data collection on what’s known as “significant disproportionality,” the agency said in a recent notice.

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, states are required to identify school districts with high rates of students from particular racial or ethnic groups who have disabilities, are placed in restrictive settings or are subject to discipline. The law also outlines steps that states must take to address problems associated with this.

Traditionally, the Education Department has collected significant disproportionality data from states each year and posted it to the agency’s website, but now the Trump administration wants to end that practice.

“The department believes that removal of the data collection related to significant disproportionality will reduce the burden on respondents when completing the Annual State Application under Part B of IDEA,” the Education Department notice indicates.

The proposed change would not alter the mandate for states to track significant disproportionality, advocates say, but it would make it much harder to assess the picture nationally.

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The Education Department proposal is up for public comment through Oct. 21.

To comment:

To access and review all the documents related to the information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2025-SCC-0481. Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the regulations.gov site is not available to the public for any reason, the Department will temporarily accept comments at ICDocketMgr@ed.gov. Please include the docket ID number and the title of the information collection request when requesting documents or submitting comments. Please note that comments submitted after the comment period will not be accepted. Written requests for information or comments submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave SW, LBJ, Room 4A119, Washington, DC 20202-1200.