The state of Georgia discriminated against students with disabilities by funding public schools through a formula that encouraged schools to unnecessarily segregate students with disabilities to receive greater funding. The Department of Justice launched an investigation after the Southern Poverty Law Center filed a complaint with the department charging the state of Georgia and the Georgia Department of Education with violating the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The SPLC complaint, filed in November 2011, described how Georgia uses a school funding formula that encourages districts to unnecessarily segregate students with disabilities to receive more money. The system encourages schools to segregate students with disabilities even when they perform well in inclusive classrooms.
The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division completed its evaluation of the SPLC complaint and advised it will investigate discrimination against students with disabilities in the Georgia public school system.