ANCOR and National Disability Organizations Request Congressional Action on Restraints / Seclusion in Schools

As part of its work with the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD), ANCOR joined a coalition letter asking the U.S House of Representatives Education and Labor Committee’s Sub-Committee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education to support the Keeping All Students Safe Act (KASSA). ANCOR considers this action necessary to promote the use of positive behavioral supports for people with intellectual / developmental disabilities (I/DD).

As written in the letter:

“The CCD has advocated for many years that federal legislation is needed to establish national minimum standards to prohibit the use of seclusion and prevent the use of restraint in schools. Restraint and seclusion are dangerous practices that continue to cause children trauma, injury and death. We need more than the current patchwork of state laws to ensure that every child is afforded protection. Such legislation will strengthen protections in every state and ensure the safety of all students and school personnel.

[…]

These practices, in addition to being harmful and unnecessary, are costly. In 2018, research on a single behavioral healthcare facility showed that trauma-informed, less restrictive alternatives provided safer treatment for individuals with a variety of disabilities and saved over $16 million in lost staff time expenses, turnover costs, and workers compensation policy costs.

Our organizations want to work with Congress to move restraint and seclusion legislation forward. As such, we point to work conducted in previous Congresses to develop the Keeping All Students Safe Act (KASSA), legislation designed to protect our nation’s school children from seclusion and unnecessary use of restraint and to help states provide districts with resources and training for school personnel. Under your leadership, that bill can now be seriously considered in the House Education and Labor Committee.”

Members with questions about this legislation can send them to Sarah Meek, Director of Legislative Affairs, at [email protected].