To ensure that state and local public funds used for Early Intervention (EI) services are maintained to meet payor of last resort requirements, 34 CFR §303.225(b) of Part C of IDEA requires that states budget for the current year at least the same aggregate amount of State and local public funds spent in the most recent preceding fiscal year for which the information is available.
This is commonly referred to as the Maintenance of Effort (MOE) requirement. Under 34 CFR §303.225(a)(2), Part C funds are designed to “supplement the level of State and local funds”, and not supplant State and local funds.
Read the full document on the ECTA website.
Introduction
Under 34 CFR §303.120(b), the State Lead Agency (LA) must have a system in place to identify and coordinate all available Federal, State, local and private resources to support the provision of EI services. Further, under 34 CFR §303.510(a), federal IDEA Part C funds may not be used to satisfy a financial commitment for services that have otherwise been paid for by another public or private fund source.
Under Part C, the LA has the ultimate responsibility for ensuring MOE is met from year to year. To determine if the State meets MOE annually, the LA must have in place a process or methodology to collect, track and verify data on the expenditures and budgeting of state and local public funds. These data include State matching funds used to pull down federal dollars from various federal funding sources (e.g., Medicaid, TANF).
The purpose of this technical assistance document is to assist LAs in establishing a process for collecting and tracking the budgeting and expenditures of State and local funds each year to determine if MOE is met. It is strongly recommended that the Part C Coordinator, LA fiscal staff, LA Director or other designated staff, and a representative of the State Medicaid Office work collaboratively in developing the methodology to facilitate collection and use of these data. Once a process is in place for collecting MOE data, it is important that the LA determine if MOE is met on an annual basis and address any identified shortfalls as needed.
Due to wide variation in IDEA Part C State systems and the funding sources used to support Part C EI services, the methodology for collecting and tracking MOE data needs to be State-specific. Technical assistance is available through ECTA, CIFR, DaSy and ITCA to help the LA establish its methodology for calculating MOE. The LA is also encouraged to work with its OSEP State Lead to ensure the necessary state and local public funds have been identified and tracked to determine if the state meets MOE.
Continue Reading
Read the full document, including information and resources relating to IDEA Part C Fiscal Regulatory Requirements, Methodology for State Collection and Tracking of MOE Data, Critical Questions for Understanding the Implementation of MOE, and the Part C MOE Tracking Tool, on the ECTA website.
Published April 2026.