This webinar examined how to use IDEA Part B funds to help local educational agencies cover the costs of educating children with disabilities. States may reserve a portion of IDEA dollars set aside for state activities for a high cost fund to provide financial assistance to LEAs and facilitate effective and innovative cost-sharing efforts. Participants learned from CIFR TA staff and state staff participants how high cost funds work, what to include in a state plan, and what to consider when setting up and running a high cost fund in their states.
Workshop on Writing IDEA Part C Maintenance of Effort Procedures
CIFR invited Part C coordinators and IDEA state fiscal staff to an in-person workshop in Washington, DC, on crafting Part C maintenance of effort (MOE) procedures. The workshop offered comprehensive training in technical assistance resources, collaborative team planning sessions, and constructive feedback. Participants had ample opportunities to foster professional connections. They departed with well-developed drafts of MOE procedures that adhere to IDEA regulations and reflect their state’s unique systems.
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: Improve IDEA Part C Fiscal Fluency to Drive Decision Making
This webinar explored strategies and resources to help IDEA fiscal state staff engage their colleagues and present financial information to local early intervention programs. Participants learned how the staff in one state collaborated to determine what data was most important for making good decisions.
Part C IDEA Fiscal Forum 2025
IDEA Fiscal Forums (IFFs) provide opportunities for Part C coordinators, state directors of special education, and state IDEA fiscal specialists to build knowledge and capacity by connecting and sharing with peers on critical IDEA fiscal issues.
The Center for IDEA Fiscal Reporting (CIFR) invited Part C coordinators and IDEA state fiscal staff to attend the Part C IDEA Fiscal Forum 2025. The conference was themed Foundations and Fundamentals for the Future and provided an opportunity for state staff, TA providers from multiple centers, and OSEP staff to collaborate and share expertise on critical IDEA fiscal issues.
Part C IFF 2025 participants:
- learned how to improve the implementation of IDEA fiscal requirements, ensuring appropriate use and oversight of Part C funds,
- enhanced their state’s capacity to collect, report, and use special education fiscal data, and
- collaborated with colleagues within and across states to support continued learning.
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: Engaging Your Part C ICC in Meaningful Fiscal Discussions
State Interagency Coordinating Councils (ICCs) provide important insight and guidance to state lead agencies. At the same time, ICC members may feel poorly prepared to advise on Part C fiscal matters. At this webinar, CIFR staff reviewed strategies and resources to help support ICC members, and one lead agency talked about how it deepened engagement on fiscal issues with its ICC.
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: Unlocking CEIS: A Deep Dive Into Monitoring Requirements
CIFR and the Data Center for Addressing Significant Disproportionality (DCASD) explored programmatic and fiscal monitoring for voluntary coordinated early intervening services (CEIS) and comprehensive CEIS. This encore session from the 2024 Part B IDEA Fiscal Forum covered fiscal requirements for LEA plans, reviewed Office of Special Education (OSEP) monitoring findings, and offered guidance on addressing issues by analyzing internal SEA procedures and training LEAs. CIFR and DCASD highlighted resources for monitoring and developing CEIS and CCEIS plans.
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: How to Review IDEA Part B LEA Subgrant Applications Plus IDEA Fiscal Forum Preview
CIFR TA providers discussed one of spring’s primary IDEA Part B fiscal activities: Local educational agency (LEA) subgrant applications. They reviewed LEA IDEA grant eligibility requirements and what states should consider when approving applications. Kansas state staff presented their LEA application and review process and encouraged participants to share their states’ practices. To close, CIFR staff previewed the agenda for the Part B IDEA Fiscal Forum in May 2024.
Part B IDEA Fiscal Forum 2024
Purpose-Driven Data: Putting the “Why” Into Fiscal Processes
The Part B IDEA Fiscal Forum (IFF) provides opportunities for state directors
of special education and state IDEA fiscal specialists to build knowledge and
capacity by connecting and sharing with peers on critical IDEA fiscal issues.
The Center for IDEA Fiscal Reporting (CIFR) hosted 140 state directors of special education and IDEA fiscal specialists at the Part B IFF 2024 in Denver, CO, on May 14–16. With the theme Purpose-Driven Data: Putting the “Why” Into Fiscal Processes, the event brought together state staff from 52 states and entities, TA providers from multiple centers, and OSEP staff to share expertise on critical IDEA fiscal issues. Participants:
- gained knowledge to increase the fidelity of implementation of IDEA fiscal requirements to ensure appropriate use and oversight of IDEA funds;
- built their state’s capacity to collect, report, and use special education fiscal data; and
- collaborated with colleagues within and across states to support continued learning.
Welcome Video: Meet Us in Denver: What to Expect from CIFR’s 2024 IDEA Part B Fiscal Forum (2:26):
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: Strategies for Implementing IDEA Part C Maintenance of Effort
The Part C maintenance of effort (MOE) requirement plays an important role in maintaining funding stability and ensuring that IDEA dollars supplement, rather than supplant, or replace, state and local public funds. Participants learned how to help their state meet MOE and proactively anticipate shortfalls. They also discussed challenges and strategies with Part C colleagues on the webinar.
CIFR 2024 Fiscal Webinar: IDEA Part B Allocations to Charter School LEAs
States must distribute IDEA Part B funds as subgrants to their local educational agencies (LEAs), including public charter schools that operate as LEAs. At this webinar, TA providers from CIFR and the National Center for Systemic Improvement (NCSI) Fiscal Support Team (FST) examined what to consider when making charter school LEA allocations, including when a charter school LEA is new or has an expanding enrollment, serves students ages 3–5, or closes. Participants heard from state colleagues about their experiences with these allocations and about monitoring charter schools’ compliance with the IDEA fiscal requirements.
