A questionnaire was developed in order to discover the aspects of P.L. 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975) that prove both most and least problematic for rural special education cooperatives. A cooperative was defined as any interdistrict administrative arrangement that provides specific services to member school districts. A total of 157 rural cooperatives was identified in 10 southern and midwestern states, and the director of each cooperative was included in the survey. Questionnaire items were generated from manuals used to monitor the states for compliance with the mandates of P.L. 94-142. According to survey responses, the items that proved most difficult for rural cooperatives in complying with the federal mandates were issues related to personnel knowledge regarding special education, the timelines specified by the law, and parental attendance at meetings to discuss the Individual Education Plan (IEP). The least difficult mandates related to parental rights, assessment issues, and writing the IEP. These findings have policy implications for teacher training institutions, teacher certification boards, and for legislators determining funding formulas. The appendix includes the questionnaire, initial cover letter, and follow-up letters to non-respondents. (JHZ)