Connecticut NCLB Lawsuit Still Alive

[Bob Schaeffer <bobschaeffer@earthlink.net>]

STATE'S "NO CHILD" LAWSUIT STILL ALIVE
A FEDERAL JUDGE DISMISSES 3 OF CONNECTICUT'S 5 COMPLAINTS AGAINST THE 
LAW'S COST,
BUT LEAVES ROOM FOR THE CASE TO PROCEED
Hartford Courant -- September 28, 2006
by Robert A. Frahm

A federal judge Wednesday dismissed much of Connecticut's argument for 
challenging a controversial U.S. government school reform law but left 
open one avenue for the state's lawsuit to continue.

U.S. District Judge Mark R. Kravitz dismissed three of the four counts 
in Connecticut's complaint that the 4-year-old No Child Left Behind Act 
unfairly costs state and local taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.

While Wednesday's ruling in New Haven does not address the merits of the 
arguments made by the two sides, it sharply limits the scope of the 
federal court's jurisdiction on technical grounds.

A key portion of the ruling is that the court does not have jurisdiction 
over U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings' denial of 
Connecticut's request to waive parts of the law. Spellings denied the 
state's request to waive a requirement to test all students in grades 3 
through 8. The state's previous testing program was limited to grades 4, 
6 and 8.

However, Kravitz also ruled that the court will be able to review a 
fourth count in the state's argument - an allegation that Spellings 
violated administrative procedures and acted arbitrarily in rejecting 
amendments sought by Connecticut with regard to the testing of some 
groups of children, including those who speak little or no English.

State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said that leaves open the 
opportunity to pursue the state's central argument that the No Child 
Left Behind law promises adequate funding but has failed to provide it.

"The denial of those amendments, we say, was wrong because the secretary 
misinterpreted the unfunded mandates provision" of the law, he said.

The state's lawsuit challenges the cost - but not the substance - of the 
law, the centerpiece of President Bush's education agenda. The law calls 
for a broad expansion of testing and a shake-up of schools that fail to 
make adequate academic progress for all groups of students, including 
low-income children, members of racial minorities, non-English-speaking 
children and students with disabilities.

Both sides put a positive spin on Wednesday's split ruling.

"Our case ... is alive and well," Blumenthal said in a hastily called 
press conference late Wednesday afternoon.

He said the state plans to appeal the dismissal of the three counts.

"We believe as strongly as ever this fight is about resources necessary 
to educate our children and hold the United States government 
accountable to its promise," said Blumenthal, who filed the lawsuit a 
year ago.

Katherine McLane, press secretary for the U.S. Department of Education, 
said the department is pleased that the judge dismissed three of 
Connecticut's claims.

"The goal of No Child Left Behind is nothing more than what parents 
deserve and are demanding - that their children read and do math at 
grade level," she said. "Importantly, the judge agreed that the 
secretary has discretion to deny a waiver request and that her decision 
is not reviewable by a court. The remaining issues in this case have 
been reserved for another day."

In dismissing portions of the state's complaint, Kravitz said some of 
the state's requests for judicial review were premature because there 
had been no actual violation of the law by state officials and, 
therefore, no federal enforcement action on which to rule.

   http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-ctnclb0928.artsep28,0,5944315.story