Tuscarawas Valley, OH: District faces $2M shortfall in SPED

Oct 13, 2026, Your Ohio News: Tuscarawas Valley board urges Congress to boost IDEA funding

Board cites a more than $2 million annual special education funding shortfall in the district

The Tuscarawas Valley Local Board of Education approved a resolution Oct. 12 urging Congress to increase federal funding for special education, citing an annual funding shortfall exceeding $2 million in the district. File

The Tuscarawas Valley Local Board of Education approved a resolution Oct. 12 urging Congress to increase federal funding for special education, citing an annual funding shortfall exceeding $2 million in the district.

The resolution calls on Congress to fulfill its longstanding commitment to fund 40% of special education costs under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, known as IDEA.

According to the resolution, federal funding covers approximately 10% of those costs, leaving states, school districts and local taxpayers responsible for the difference.

The board said Ohio school districts collectively face a special education funding shortfall exceeding $750 million. It also cited an increase in the number of students served under IDEA, from 3.7 million in 1975 to approximately 8.3 million today. . . .