March 28, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 54 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages H2889-H2890]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   CONGRESS MUST UPHOLD IDEA PROMISE

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, in the 1970s, Congress 
made a commitment to provide a free and appropriate education to 
students with disabilities.
  While we have made tremendous progress, thanks to the Individuals 
with Disabilities Education Act, we have also failed to fully fund the 
cost of special education that was promised by Congress at that point 
in time.
  Congress promised to cover 40 percent of the extra cost of special 
education, but we have never come close to fulfilling that promise. In 
fact, current funding remains only at 14 percent of the targeted 
amount.
  Mr. Speaker, that is shameful.
  This means our students and schools suffer, it means that the 
programs will be cut, it means schools won't be able to recruit and 
retain qualified teachers, and above all else, it means that students 
with disabilities will not be able to succeed, not without the 
appropriate high-quality services they deserve.
  That is why I proudly cosponsored the bipartisan IDEA Full Funding 
Act, which would mandate gradual increases in IDEA funding to reach 
that full commitment made by Congress of 40 percent by fiscal year 2029 
and each subsequent fiscal year.

[[Page H2890]]

  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill and uphold the 
promise to provide students and schools with the resources they need.

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