NYC is acting faster on special education legal orders but still misses most deadlines
New York City has long failed to quickly provide special education services even after families won legal orders for them, generating more than two decades of litigation. Three years ago, city officials embraced a federal court order requiring dozens of reforms to more…
New York City has made progress in providing special education services more swiftly, but the Education Department still frequently misses deadlines established by legal orders. In January, the city implemented services like speech therapy, counseling, and transportation on time in just over 36% of cases, up from 7.2% in early 2023, according to an independent audit.
This improvement comes after the city agreed to a series of reforms in response to a 2007 legal settlement, which required a 35-day compliance period for services like speech therapy, counseling, and transportation. However, many families still face delays, with Nilda Ferrer, a Bronx mom whose teenager has autism and anxiety, having to wait weeks for the city to arrange transportation for her daughter to attend a private school in New Jersey.
The city has yet to complete 21 out of 51 required reforms, including a technology overhaul of the special education case management system, which has missed its March launch date. Despite the progress, the city remains "nowhere near" full compliance, according to Rebecca Shore, the litigation director at Advocates for Children.
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