Five Strategies for Identifying Effective Incentives and Sanctions to Support Compliance with IDEA and Improve Student Outcomes

SEAs typically offer LEAs incentives to support the increased likelihood of compliant implementation and improved outcomes and will sanction LEAs following the occurrence of noncompliance or failure to improve toward targets over time. States often use incentives and sanctions (often on a continuum of increasing intensity) to influence LEA actions related to annual determinations, progress toward State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR) targets, the correction of noncompliance, response to monitoring findings, or the collection and analysis of data. States may also apply incentives and sanctions based on their state accountability system and related policies or regulations.
States have flexibility in creating a system of incentives and sanctions that is meaningful to their unique context. This brief includes five strategies to help guide state considerations and decision-making around the identification and use of effective incentives and sanctions that support LEA compliance with IDEA and improve student outcomes. The brief also provides a list of potential incentives and sanctions that states may consider.