Posted on June 16, 2026
The Department of Education announced today that several offices and programs will be moved to other agencies. The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, or OSERS, will be moved to the Department of Health and Human Services, HHS. OSERS is responsible for distributing federal funding for special education and helps ensure students receive services that they are legally entitled to. The Education Department's Office of Civil Rights, or OCR, will be moved to the Department of Justice, DOJ. OCR investigates discrimination claims in schools, including disability discrimination involving accommodations, accessibility, and harassment. Additional changes have been made, but these two are the most likely to affect students with disabilities and their families.
ACB is concerned by these actions of the current administration. The Department of Education was established in part to ensure equal access to education and prevent discrimination. Moving OSERS and OCR to HHS and DOJ, respectively, will likely make it more difficult and time-consuming for students, families, and educators to navigate, access services, resolve discrimination, and hold states accountable under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA.
The administration has indicated that they seek to lessen the roles and responsibilities of the Department of Education. This movement of OSERS and OCR is an example of that. While HHS and DOJ play vital roles within the federal government, we feel that the Department of Education is the agency best equipped to oversee these essential functions of OSERS and OCR.
A link to the announcement from the Department of Education can be found here: https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-announces-additional-partnerships-strengthen-coordination-individuals-disabilities-programs-bolster-civil-rights