Education experts and advocacy groups are sounding alarms over the potential fallout of removing federal oversight from special education — a move they say could dismantle critical safeguards for students with disabilities.

David Bateman, principal researcher at the American Institutes for Research and professor emeritus at Shippensburg University, cautioned that without federal guidance, schools could face procedural missteps, service delays, and serious data gaps.

Speaking during a webinar hosted by Parallel Learning and attended by district leaders, Bateman underscored that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act “remain the law of the land.” He urged school leaders to remind teachers that despite the policy shifts underway, their legal responsibilities remain unchanged, K–12 Dive reported.

Several advocacy organisations for public education and disability rights echoed those concerns, warning that transferring IDEA oversight to states and districts could create uneven enforcement and add new administrative burdens for educators already stretched thin.

As the Trump administration continues to advance its broader push to decentralise control and scale back federal oversight, experts say the future of special education governance — and the rights of millions of children who depend on it — hang in the balance.