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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 248 (Friday, December 27, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 105505-105506]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-31187]

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Part 300

[Docket ID ED-2022-OSERS-0052]
RIN 1820-AB82

Assistance to States for the Education of Children With 
Disabilities; Withdrawal

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, 
Department of Education.

ACTION: Withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary is withdrawing a notice of proposed rulemaking, 
which proposed to amend regulations under Part B of the Individuals 
with Disabilities Education Act (Part B of IDEA or the Act) that govern 
the Assistance to States for the Education of Children with 
Disabilities program, including the Preschool Grants program. 
Specifically, the Secretary proposed to amend the IDEA Part B 
regulations to remove the requirement for public agencies to obtain 
parental consent prior to accessing for the first time a child's or 
parent's public benefits or insurance to provide or pay for required 
IDEA Part B services.

DATES: The notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal 
Register at 88 FR 31659 on May 18, 2023, is withdrawn as of December 
23, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca Walawender, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, Room 5130, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 245-7399. Email: 
[email protected].
    If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and 
wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7-1-1.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On May 18, 2023, the Department published in the Federal Register a 
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to amend the IDEA 
regulations at 34 CFR 300.154(d)(2)(iv), which requires a Local 
Educational Agency to obtain informed written parental consent before 
it accesses the child's or parent's public benefits or insurance (e.g., 
Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program) for the first time for 
the provision of Medicaid-reimbursable services identified on a child's 
individualized education program (IEP). 88 FR 31659. This consent 
provision was initially added to

[[Page 105506]]

the 2006 final Part B regulations implementing the 2004 reauthorization 
of IDEA and was further revised in 2013. A correction to the docket ID 
for the May 18, 2023, NPRM was published on May 26, 2023. 88 FR 34100.
    The comment period closed on August 1, 2023. The Department 
received over 9,700 public comments in response to the NPRM. There were 
two large write-in campaigns, including one from a national parents' 
rights organization, totaling more than 8,000 comments opposing the 
proposed change. Of the remaining 1,700 comments, in general, half 
(including major national membership organizations representing 
educators and service providers) were in support, and the other half 
(including major disability rights organizations and parent 
organizations) were in opposition.

Withdrawal of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    After publication of the NPRM, the Department carefully considered 
the comments received. A number of commenters raised concerns about 
instances where students with disabilities were denied reimbursement 
for and access to Medicaid services provided outside of school as a 
result of the student's school accessing the student's public benefits 
for services provided in school. In light of these comments, the 
Department decided to focus our time and attention on providing 
technical assistance and working with Federal agencies, States and 
other partners to improve implementation of school-based Medicaid 
rather than engage in further rulemaking.
    As part of our technical assistance efforts, the Department engaged 
with stakeholders to better understand the existing implementation 
challenges for school-based Medicaid, and we also worked closely with 
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services within the U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services to address the barriers related 
to accessing Medicaid for services outside of school. However, at this 
time, and with the limited time and resources remaining during this 
administration, the Department has not been able to fully analyze and 
develop responsive ways to address the State and local policies and 
practices that may be contributing to barriers in accessing Medicaid 
reimbursement for services provided outside of school.
    For the above-stated independent reasons, the Department is 
withdrawing the NPRM published in the Federal Register at 88 FR 31659 
on May 18, 2023. Withdrawal of this NPRM does not preclude the 
Department from issuing rulemaking on this subject in the future or 
commit the Department to any future course of action.
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will 
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich 
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, 
braille, large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible 
format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this 
document, as well as all other Department documents published in the 
Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF 
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the 
site.
    You may also access Department documents published in the Federal 
Register by using the article search feature at 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

Miguel Cardona,
Secretary of Education.
[FR Doc. 2024-31187 Filed 12-23-24; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
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