Government shutdown effects on the special education department

All about IEPs, 504s, accommodations and services

Sophia Shalbey, Staff Writer

November 6, 2025

The lives of k-12 public school children are already threatened every day– now, many of them may be loosing the essential resources and accommodations that allow them to succeed (Photo courtesy of the CDC via Unsplash).

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. — Covered in a previous article by the Griffin Gazette, the 15th government shutdown went into effect on Oct. 1 and is enduring, wreaking more havoc with each day it persists. As of Oct. 15, the special education department is suffering from mounting budget cuts under the shutdown, with earlier cuts to the Department of Education in March of 2025 as a whole starting this pattern.

The additional cuts, enacted by President Donald Trump and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, were intended to pressure Democrats to abandon the very healthcare equity demands that led to the shutdown. This development, while not surprising, affects more than just students with Autism and struggling students that require aids; the Special Education department deals with everything from Individualized Education plans and 504s to physical therapy. Historically, Trump has paid little attention to the disabled and has recruited a former WWE executive, Linda McMahon, despite her limited experience in education, to abolish the department.

Already, states have been very relaxed regarding their compliance. According to the Department of Education, only 19 states were fully compliant with the IDEA requirement to serve kids ages 3 to 21 as of June, and most have not been fully compliant for two or more years. The biggest concern about this change is its impact on IEPs and 504 plans.

A little history about 504 plans and IEPs: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 clearly defines discriminating against people with disabilities from any entity that receives federal funding as illegal, created with the intention of eliminating educational barriers for students with disabilities. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act, passed in 1975, established the definition of a “Free Appropriate Public Education” for disabled students and mandated the creation of “Individualized Education Plans” for those students.

Government shutdown effects on the special education department- IEPs and 504s

What is an IEP?

IEP stands for Individualized Education Program and is part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The federal education law IDEA requires school districts to offer free and appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment.

IEP’s outline the special education instruction, service, and support necessary for students to thrive in PreK–12 public schools applicable for those with struggles in the following categories: neurological, physical, oral, listening, reading, and mathematical

Note: there are 13 formal categories for those eligible for IEPs.
The categories are as follows:
Oral expression
Listening comprehension
Basic reading skills
Reading fluency skills
Reading comprehension
Mathematics calculation
Mathematics problem solving
The SLD category includes dyslexia, dyscalculia , and dysgraphia (ADHD not included).

Other Health Impairment (OHI): having limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment (ADHD is included).

Other categories include autism, deaf-blindness, deafness, developmental delay, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment, including blindness.

What is a 504?

Derived from Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a federal civil rights law, 504 plans safeguard against discrimination based on disability in activities and programs that receive federal financial aid.

The Rehabilitation Act broadens the requirements for what constitutes the term ‘disability’; 504 Plans require that a student have an impairment-- physical or mental-- that significantly inhibits their life in one or more ways. Students considered ineligible for IEPs may qualify for 504 plans for this reason.

What are the main differences between a 504 and an IEP?

An IEP and 504 Plan differ in what they contain. Unlike an IEP, there is no standard 504 Plan. A 504 Plan can be a written document, but it doesn’t have to be.

An IEP will include:
-A statement of the student’s present levels of academic achievement and performance

-A statement of measurable annual goals, including academic and functional goals

-A description of how the student’s progress towards meeting the annual goals will be measured, and when reports on the progress will be made

– A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids to be provided to the student, and a statement of the program modifications or supports for school personnel that will be provided for the student

-An explanation of the extent, if any, to which the student will not participate with nondisabled students in the regular class and other activities

-The projected date for the beginning of the services and modifications.

A 504 Plan can include:
– Changes in the environment, like taking tests in a quiet place

-Changes in instruction, like checking in frequently on key concepts

-Changes to how the curriculum is presented, like getting outlines of lessons

“My 504 definitely helps relieve a lot of stress, especially (when) dealing with ADHD, knowing I’ll have extra time or additional resources if I need them. As an AP student, being able to test in a separate room with more time has been a big advantage,” said Los Alamitos High School senior Kaeven Price.

This change in funding is particularly shocking in part because of the decades-long documented support by the Republican Party of special education services. The programs and accommodations provided through the Special Education department foster the life skills that create independent adults capable of entering the workforce rather than depending wholly on entitlements and other welfare benefits, thereby stimulating the economy and allowing funds to be more broadly allocated. The GOP’s understanding of this right—or lack thereof—was communicated through the transfer of the majority of the workforce and adult education programs to the Labor Department this past May.

“The reason we have a special education law is because prior to IDEA, millions of children with disabilities were denied an education,” said NEA Today journalist Cindy Long.

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