James M. Jeffords: “I support the bipartisan Harkin-Hagel amendment to S. 1248, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act…”

“I support the bipartisan Harkin-Hagel amendment to S. 1248, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2003. This amendment would fully fund the Federal share of special education within 6 years, and finally meet the commitment that Congress made in 1975 when the original IDEA law was enacted. And although I am supporting this amendment, I must admit that my emotions are mixed. That is because we have been trying to accomplish this task for 29 years, and for 29 years we have failed. Quite simply, this should have been done a long time ago, and it pains me that we are still debating this issue. In 1975 I was a member of the House-Senate conference committee that authored the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. This came after courts across this country ruled that State and Federal constitutions obliged schools to provide all children with a free and appropriate education.”