HR5769-119

What This Bill Does

The 21st Century Dyslexia Act amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It adds dyslexia alongside specific learning disabilities in the child with a disability definition and separately defines dyslexia as an unexpected difficulty in reading for a person who has the intelligence to be a much better reader, most commonly caused by difficulty in phonological processing, affecting speaking, reading, and spelling. It also removes dyslexia from the older specific learning disability list because dyslexia becomes its own defined term. New section 608A requires local educational agencies and other agencies, when determining eligibility for or providing IDEA accommodations or services, to provide equal access to all eligible children, including children from low-income families, children from families with low socioeconomic status, and children who are limited English proficient.

Who Benefits and How

Students with dyslexia benefit because IDEA would name and define dyslexia directly rather than only treating it as an example of a specific learning disability. Low-income children with disabilities benefit from an equal-access rule for accommodations and services. Limited English proficient children with disabilities benefit because agencies must provide equal access during eligibility and service decisions. Parents seeking dyslexia services benefit from a statutory definition they can cite in IDEA evaluations and plans.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Local educational agencies must update IDEA eligibility, evaluation, accommodation, and service practices for dyslexia and equal access. Special education administrators must train staff and document equal access for low-income and limited-English-proficient children. State education agencies must align guidance, monitoring, and dispute-resolution practices with the new definition and section 608A. School psychologists and reading specialists must apply the statutory dyslexia definition in evaluations.

Key Provisions

• Adds dyslexia to the IDEA child with a disability definition.
• Defines dyslexia as unexpected reading difficulty most commonly tied to phonological processing.
• Provides that dyslexia affects speaking, reading, and spelling.
• Requires equal access to IDEA accommodations and services for eligible low-income, low-socioeconomic-status, and limited-English-proficient children.
• Requires local educational agencies and other agencies to apply the equal-access rule in eligibility and service decisions.