Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act seems to be stuck in neutral, with even the administration expressing frustration with the pace of negotiations.

Now the National School Boards Association and the American Association of School Administrators have launched a petition calling on members of Congress to please support regulatory relief. The U.S. Department of Education would ultimately be responsible for regulatory relief.

Specifically, the two groups would like the law’s timetable of sanctions essentially to be put on pause for a year. That would mean schools that have already failed to make progress towards the goal of having all students meet proficiency targets by 2013 wouldn’t be subject to further interventions and no new schools would be labeled as “in need of improvement.”

It’s important to note that the groups want straight-up regulatory relief, meaning a change to the way the law is implemented. They don’t want just individual waivers granted by the administration for specific states and districts. Waivers often come with “additional requirements or conditions,” the groups say.

The push for regulatory relief is not new. Both NSBA and AASA, as well as the National Education Association, made a plea for it late last year.