Nearly everyone in the education community agrees that the time has come to end, or seriously repair, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB); however, the process of doing so has become drawn out and contentious. With Congress not moving quickly enough to reauthorize the law, President Obama has announced a way to help states get around NCLB's requirements. His 2011 Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Flexibility plan grants certain states waivers from NCLB accountability requirements if they agree to a series of preset conditions, including adopting challenging academic standards, developing educator evaluation systems, and improving the lowest-performing schools. Although many states are enthusiastic about obtaining this relief, the waiver plan poses several notable risks. Legally, it remains to be seen whether the executive branch has the authority to craft national education policy without the approval of Congress. Politically, support for waivers may wane as states begin to implement the administration's favored policies, particularly upon implementing the challenging Common Core standards. And logistically, the creation of two wholly different federal accountability regimes--waiver states and NCLB states--poses an incredible challenge for federal oversight. (Contains 19 notes.)