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On page 24 of the Budget Summary it states "For fiscal year 2026, the Request would consolidate the Parent Information Centers program into the Grants to States Program, which would combine IDEA Part B formula grant programs and IDEA Part D competitive grant programs authorized by the IDEA into a single State formula grant program. Funding under the Grants to States program would continue to be allocated to States and LEAs in accordance with Section 611, and States would receive additional flexibility to reserve funds for State-level activities, including those currently supported under the Parent Information Center program. States would continue to meet key IDEA accountability and reporting requirements aimed at ensuring a free appropriate public education is available to all students with disabilities and protecting the rights of those students and their families."
Here’s some of what they’re proposing to eliminate as stand-alone grants that could impact ECAC:
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Parent Training and Information Centers (PTIs) – this is ECAC’s core funding source.
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State Personnel Development Grants (SPDG) – ECAC has a state contract whose funds come from this.
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Technical Assistance & Dissemination (TA&D) – ECAC has two contracts (one regional, one state) whose funds comes from this.
The proposal would combine several programs into a single grant provided to states, allowing each state to determine how those funds are used. While Parent Training and Information Centers (PTIs) are included in IDEA law, this change would shift how they’re funded, and introduces some uncertainty about what support may look like in the future. Questions remain about the long-term stability of programs like ours and whether services will be consistently available across states. Our current PTI grant is fully funded through September 30, 2025.
On top of this, Family to Family Health Information Centers across the country, including ECAC, are experiencing delays in receiving their official federal Notifications of Award (NOA). No NOA means no access to funds, even if the grant has technically been approved.
If your head is spinning trying to make sense of it all? Same. 🙃
Amid all the uncertainty, we do have some good and certain news! We’re excited to share that ECAC has been awarded a new 3-year Innovative Approaches 2.0 contract from the NC Division of Child and Family Well-Being, effective June 1, 2025. This project will support system change efforts in Catawba, Cleveland, Gaston, and Lincoln counties to better meet the needs of children and youth with special health care needs. Over the next three years, we’ll focus on two important areas: helping youth with disabilities and special health care needs transition from pediatric to adult health care, and making sure families are better prepared for emergencies. We’re looking forward to sharing more details soon.
While I try to keep these messages lighthearted, please know this: I feel the weight of what these proposed changes could mean for our team, our partners, our mission, and most of all, for the families and youth with disabilities we serve.
Whatever happens, we’re going to keep showing up. With you. For you. Because of you.
With gratitude (and vacation-mode on the horizon),
Aimee Combs
Executive Director
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