A little over a year ago, I wrote about President Donald Trump’s executive order that moved special education services and protections from the Department of Education (DoE) to the Health and Human Services Department (HHS). Last week, on June 16, 2026, the Trump administration began the formal restructuring of the federal DoE, specifically moving civil rights enforcement to the Justice Department and special education oversight to HHS.

For families whose children are protected by congressionally mandated civil rights and who rely on special education services, the question arises: How will these changes affect our children? Last year’s executive order outlined the president’s intentions; this most recent restructuring begins the formal reassigning of responsibilities.

Since 1975, the Individuals with Disabilities Act (I.D.E.A.) has protected the rights of children with disabilities and provided guidelines for special education services. Together with F.A.P.E. (Free and Appropriate Public Education) and L.R.E. (Least Restrictive Environment), I.D.E.A. has ensured that children with disabilities, from birth to age 21, receive quality education by providing funding and support for instruction, mental health counseling, professional development, research, special grants, and transportation to local and state municipalities. All of these protections have happened under the purview of the DoE since its establishment in 1979.

For more than 50 years, disability services and special education protections have been overseen by the DoE because Congress agreed that, in the classroom, disabled children should be considered students before patients. Teachers and administrators, Congress determined, would be better suited to create education plans, curricula, accountability, and access than other bureaucratic agencies.

Now that formal restructuring is happening, should parents worry their children’s current services will be reduced or eliminated? Not necessarily!

• State and local education agencies still must comply with I.D.E.A., F.A.P.E., and L.R.E., regardless of funding sources. Decisions at the state and local level can lead to very different outcomes across the country. In addition, there may be legal challenges if changes to services are considered harmful to disabled children.
• Some service reductions, such as suspending hiring special services professionals, could be implemented immediately or could be phased in over time. Public campaigns, lobbying and legal action can all lead to slower implementation or revisions that could mitigate negative effects.
• Changes could come as the result of budget cuts, policy revisions, or restructured programs. While budget cuts and policy revisions could be instituted quickly, by curtailing services, for example, or slowly, as with reducing staff through attrition, restructuring programs usually takes time to plan and implement.

  Now that formal restructuring is happening, should parents worry their children’s current services will be reduced or eliminated? Not necessarily!

  • State and local education agencies still must comply with I.D.E.A., F.A.P.E., and L.R.E., regardless of funding sources. Decisions at the state and local level can lead to very different outcomes across the country. In addition, there may be legal challenges if changes to services are considered harmful to disabled children.
  • Some service reductions, such as suspending hiring special services professionals, could be implemented immediately or could be phased in over time. Public campaigns, lobbying and legal action can all lead to slower implementation or revisions that could mitigate negative effects.