United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 3 D · 2 R cosponsors

S 745 — Empowering Families in Special Education Act

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 26, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 40% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 5 sponsors

    1 primary, 4 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (3 D · 2 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

The bill requires schools to notify parents about their rights regarding IEP team members.

This bill mandates that local educational agencies inform parents about their right to include individuals with expertise on their child's IEP team. This aims to enhance parental involvement in the special education process.

What this means for you
  • Families: This means you will be informed about your right to include knowledgeable individuals in your child's educational planning.

Summary

Empowering Families in Special Education ActThis bill establishes a notification requirement related to an individualized education program (IEP). (Generally, IEPs are individualized plans to ensure that a child with a disability receives a free appropriate public education.)Under current law, states and local educational agencies (LEAs) must convene a team to develop an IEP. The composition of the team that develops the IEP is outlined in current law and allows for other individuals who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child (including related services personnel, as appropriate) to participate in this team. This bill requires the LEA that serves the child to notify the child's parents of their right to include these other individuals with knowledge or special expertise on the child's IEP team.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

1 sponsors · 4 co-sponsors · 542 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (4)

Not signed on (542)

542 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 542 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 745 do?
Empowering Families in Special Education ActThis bill establishes a notification requirement related to an individualized education program (IEP). (Generally, IEPs are individualized plans to ensure that a child with a disability receives a free appropriate public education.)Under current law, states and local educational agencies (LEAs) must convene a team to develop an IEP. The composition of the team that develops the IEP is outlined in current law and allows for other individuals who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child (including related services personnel, as appropriate) to participate in this team. This bill requires the LEA that serves the child to notify the child's parents of their right to include these other individuals with knowledge or special expertise on the child's IEP team.
Who sponsors S 745?
S 745 is sponsored by Schmitt, Eric (Republican), Shaheen, Jeanne (Democratic), Padilla, Alex (Democratic), Sheehy, Tim (Republican), and Warnock, Raphael G. (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 745?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 26, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 745?
Track S 745 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on S 745

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of S 745

Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →