U.S. Department of Education Announces Elimination of Unnecessary Burdens on Career and Technical Education Programs

Today, the U.S. Department of Education's (the Department's) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a significant deregulatory action, taking an important step to reduce unnecessary red tape and burdensome administrative requirements for states and schools. The Department's final rule eliminates the Methods of Administrations program (MOA) from the regulations implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), which has long imposed unnecessary federal requirements on Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs.

Established in 1979, the MOA program requires states to conduct burdensome and duplicative compliance reviews to ensure CTE programs adhere to federal civil rights laws. This review requirement is imposed only on CTE programs, despite the lack of recent evidence that CTE programs are more likely to violate civil rights laws than other education programs. These redundant, bureaucratic requirements are unnecessary, and the resources required to comply with them can be used in other ways to better serve students.

State agencies may still conduct these reviews as they see fit, but the Department no longer mandates this extra layer of oversight. The Department continues to enforce federal civil rights laws across the sector and will hold CTE programs, administrators, and recipients accountable for their compliance.

"Today's announcement is a win-win for state agencies and schools that administer CTE programs - reducing unnecessary burdens on states while ensuring that critical civil rights protections remain firmly in place. For too long, the Department has imposed burdensome and proactive compliance requirements on CTE programs that are duplicative of OCR's existing compliance structure. These requirements pull resources away from states as they work to invest in students' success and improve outcomes for students," said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey. "By eliminating the redundant MOA program, the Department is cutting red tape, continuing to ensure the compliance of CTE programs with federal law, and empowering states to focus more attention and resources on their students."

Background

The Department has rescinded Appendix B to Title 34, Part 100 of the Code of Federal Regulations - the regulations pertaining to the enforcement of Title VI.

The elimination of the MOA program does not affect the obligations of institutions that receive federal financial assistance to comply with federal civil rights laws. Recipients that administer CTE programs are still required to comply with all laws enforced by OCR. The regulations articulating these substantive obligations, as well as OCR's investigative and enforcement authorities, remain unchanged.

Students, parents, and advocates who believe they have been discriminated or retaliated against may file an electronic complaint, accessible on ED-OCR's website.