Education Week
Published online February 1, 2008
by The Associated Press

The U.S. Department of Education said Friday it will ask a federal appeals court to reconsider a ruling in a lawsuit related to No Child Left Behind Act funding.

School districts in three states including Michigan and the nation's largest teachers' union have sued the federal government, arguing that schools should not have to comply with requirements of the education law that aren't funded by the federal government.

On Jan. 7, a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sided with the plaintiffs by a 2-1 decision.

The appeals court majority said No Child Left Behind fails to provide clear notice as to who bears the additional costs of compliance. The court majority said statutes enacted under the spending clause of the U.S. Constitution must provide clear notice to the states of their liabilities if they accept federal funding under those statutes.

The U.S. Department of Education is asking all active judges on 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the case.

Spellings said that if the appeals court decision were to stand, it could undermine efforts to improve education.

Plaintiffs include the Pontiac, Mich., school district and eight districts in Texas and Vermont, along with National Education Association affiliates in several states.

They claim federal funding is not keeping pace with additional mandates required by No Child Left Behind, requiring schools to pay from local and state sources to keep up.