Florida sues Cardona, claims college accreditation rules threaten state’s federal funding

TAMPA, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference Thursday morning in Ybor City to announce a lawsuit filed in federal court pitting the state against U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and others over Florida’s free choice, or lack thereof, regarding college accreditation agencies.

Invoking the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) — Florida’s post-secondary accreditation agency, what DeSantis called an “accreditation cartel” — the governor characterized the commission as one trying to “stick their beak” in Florida’s business and as being on some precipice of restricting Florida’s federal education funding on ideological grounds, presenting rhetorical arguments of agenda vs. agenda.

“The (U.S.) Department of Education approves whoever they want to be an accreditor, and then under their theory, the accreditor can serve as a veto against the entire state of Florida, that if our Legislature passes, you know, reasonable reforms, governor signs it, that they somehow get a veto of that process, and I read the state and federal Constitutions a lot and I don’t recall seeing that clause in either of those constitutions, and so we reject the idea that a totally unaccountable, unappointed, unelected accrediting agency can trump what the state of Florida is doing,” DeSantis said.

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The lawsuit, entered on the docket Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, requested the following relief in addition to costs and attorney’s fees:

• That Florida be absolved of provisions in U.S. Code (20 U.S.C. § 1001(a) and § 1099c(a)) that stipulate institutions of higher education be accredited and which hold the U.S. Education Secretary to determine such aspects as an institution’s ability to do well with finances. Also, that such provisions are declared unconstitutional.
• That the defendants have no further power to enforce accreditation requirements in Florida.
• That more U.S. Code (20 U.S.C. § 1099b(h)) is declared unconstitutional and inapplicable to Florida as it relates to how the U.S. Education Secretary is upheld to not recognize the accreditation status of a higher-education institution in the process of changing its accrediting agency without certain steps followed.
• If nothing else, that so-called “guidance documents” issued in July 2022 under the American Psychological Association — seeking to describe “the procedures institutions must follow to change or add an accrediting agency” — are declared unlawful and set aside.

As it’s mentioned in the lawsuit, the state alleges SACSCOC “routinely wields (its) power to interfere with the sovereign prerogatives of Florida and other states,” claiming “the current accreditation scheme” at large violates the Appointments Clause, Spending Clause and Non-Delegation Doctrine of the U.S. Constitution.

DeSantis said that the Constitution was being violated as such due to accreditors’ private nature, as well as how he believes federal spending should be determined by Congress.

“So, they’re pursuing their agenda, and the question is, ‘Whose agenda should ultimately govern? The people’s agenda?’” DeSantis said. “...We’ve talked about education a lot over the last four years, made the decision and then here we go doing it, and should that ultimately be the agenda that governs, or should it be an agenda from some random accrediting body that none of us know, none of us have any impact over? They’re just kind of out there floating around on their high horse doing whatever they want to do.”

The event at Hillsborough Community College’s Ybor City Campus also featured Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. and State University System of Florida Chancellor Ray Rodrigues.

“Today is just a reflection of we the people ensuring that it is us, we, that is running government, that is having a say in these practices. All post-secondary educational institutions must — it’s not voluntary — you must be accredited by a private accrediting agency to be eligible for federal funding. Congress cannot delegate this authority to a private institution that’s not accountable to the people,” Moody said.

SACSCOC on June 16, 2021, signed onto a joint statement declaring its and other groups’ “firm opposition to a spate of legislative proposals being introduced across the country that target academic lessons, presentations, and discussions of racism and related issues in American history in schools, colleges and universities.”

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