Ten years ago, Congress passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA,) which helped local school districts give disabled children a quality education. Since its passage in 1990, IDEA has helped millions of children receive educational accommodations unavailable a decade ago. An avid supporter of both public and private education, Congressman Zach Wamp joined the Republican majority in raising the funding levels of IDEA for fiscal year 2001.

"Every child deserves the best education possible regardless of his or her physical or mental limitations. By supporting this program we help all children maximize their God-given potential to the fullest extent. The IDEA program shows that we have confidence in a student's ability by giving them every opportunity to succeed. As proof of our commitment to education, Republicans in Congress exceeded President Clinton's funding request by $202 million. We raised the level for IDEA to an unprecedented $6.3 billion, the largest amount ever given to this program," said Wamp.

"IDEA is an investment that yields tremendous returns in the long run. In the past few months, we've seen a renewed interest in caring for our nation's youth by improving education. IDEA is but one more way to ensure that no child is left behind."