Special Education-Grants for Infants and Families

CFDA 84.181 Active Formula Grants
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Program Funding

Annual program obligations reported to SAM.gov.

Latest annual funding (estimated)
$545M FY2025
$458.6M
FY16
$458.6M
FY17
$470M
FY18
$470M
FY19
$477M
FY20
$481.9M
FY21
$496.3M
FY22
$540M
FY23
$540M
FY24*
$545M
FY25*
* estimated

Program Objective

To provide grants to States to assist them to implement and maintain a Statewide, comprehensive, coordinated, multidisciplinary, interagency system to make available early intervention services to infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families.

Eligibility

Eligible Applicants

  • State

Eligible applicants are the following 57 entities: the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Bureau of Indian Education within the U.S. Department of the Interior and the following four outlying area jurisdictions: Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Beneficiaries

  • 11
  • 45
  • 47
  • 51
  • 53

The beneficiaries are infants and toddlers with disabilities aged birth through 2 and their families and at the State's option, children with disabilities ages three through five and their families.

How to Apply

Application Procedure

Specific application procedures are provided in the application form for the program. The State lead agencies, the applicants for this program, are designated by the Governor.

Award Procedure

Once the State application is approved, a grant award representing the total State allocation is forwarded to the State lead agency.

The time for reviewing the State’s application is determined by the Education Department General Administrative Regulations or EDGAR (in 34 CFR §76.703) (which requires that States have as much time to prepare the application as Education has to review the application) and generally ranges from 45 to 90 days.

Program details & compliance

Use of Funds

Allowed Uses

Funds are used to assist States in implementing and maintaining their Statewide systems of early intervention services. Funding may also be used to provide direct services for eligible infants and toddlers with disabilities aged birth through 2 and their families that are not otherwise paid for by other public or private sources, to expand and improve services for infants and toddlers with disabilities that are otherwise available and to provide a free appropriate public education, in accordance with Part B of IDEA, to children with disabilities from their third birthday to the beginning of the following school year. States also have the discretion to provide services to infants and toddlers who are at risk of having substantial developmental delays if they do not receive appropriate early intervention services. At their discretion, States may continue to serve children with disabilities under this program beyond age three until the school year following the child's third, fourth, or fifth birthday or until such children enter or are eligible to enter kindergarten or elementary school, if such children are otherwise eligible for services under the Preschool Grants Program (84.173), and previously received services under the Part C program. 20 U.S.C. 1432(5) and 34 CFR §303.211

Required Documentation

In general, each State or jurisdiction must submit an application, including certifications, methods such as interagency agreements (if applicable), policies and procedures, descriptions, and statement of assurances to receive IDEA Part C funds. Each State lead agency must be designated by the Governor of that State or jurisdiction.

Reporting & Compliance

Audit Required
Yes

Applicable 2 CFR 200 Subparts

  • Subpart B — General Provisions
  • Subpart C — Pre-Federal Award Requirements
  • Subpart D — Post-Federal Award Requirements
  • Subpart E — Cost Principles
  • Subpart F — Audit Requirements

Formula

Awards are based on each State applicant's proportionate share of children, aged birth through two years, in the general population, based on the most recent satisfactory data available from the United States Bureau of the Census. No State may receive less than 0.5 percent of the total funds available for all States. The Department of Interior receives 1.25 percent of the amount available to States. The Outlying Areas combined receive up to 1 percent of the funds appropriated. 20 U.S.C. 1443. This program has nonsupplanting requirements, which are further clarified in regulations to include a maintenance of effort requirement. 20 U.S.C. 1437(b)(5) and 34 CFR §303.225(b).

Contacts

Gregg Corr
(202) 245-7309
Division Director, Monitoring and State Improvement Planning, Office of Special Education Programs, Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20202
Data from SAM.gov Federal Assistance Listings. Source published: 2024-11-15. Spec v1.0. Last synced: 2026-06-01 05:55:13.