WASHINGTON (TNND) — The Education Department plans to move the offices overseeing special education services and civil rights out of the agency, according to a report.
The move is part of the Trump administration’s effort to close the department by moving its functions to other parts of the government, three unnamed sources told the Washington Post on Tuesday.
The official announcement on the move was expected later Tuesday.
The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, which oversees the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, will move to the Department of Health and Human Services, according to the sources. The Office for Civil Rights will be moved to the Justice Department.
Disability rights advocacy groups have lobbied the federal government against moving the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services over concerns that it will result in less federal oversight of the states and fewer students receiving needed and federally mandated services.
The department’s Office for Civil Rights investigates complaints of discrimination against students based on their race, national origin, gender, or disability status, among other things. The Trump administration has used the office to investigate universities that allow biological male students to participate in female sports and that implement diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
The Education Department did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment.
Several of the Education Department’s offices have already been moved to other parts of the government, with many of the K-12 programs operating out of the Labor Department under interagency agreements. The agreements allow the Education Department to retain ultimate control of programs that Congress delegated to it while functionally moving its operations and staff elsewhere.
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Congress created the Education Department, which cannot be closed without congressional approval. No legislation to close the department has been advanced, as both parties say there is not enough support to pass such a bill.