UPDATE 2/9/12 @ 9:12 a.m.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- Gov. Steve Beshear and education department officials are applauding a decision by the federal government to grant the state a waiver from some parts of the Bush-era No Child Left Behind Law.

The Kentucky Department of Education announced the decision Thursday.

Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says the relief means the state can use its newly developed accountability model to report progress to the federal government.

Kentucky applied in November for the relief. Legislators in Washington have been attempting to rework the controversial law, but President Barack Obama bypassed Congress in allowing states to apply for waivers.

Kentucky education officials have been overhauling the state's public education system from top to bottom since the 2009 passage of Senate Bill 1, which mandated that every Kentucky public school student graduate prepared for higher education or a career.

A White House official says the states are Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oklahoma and Tennessee. The official says the only state that applied for but was denied the flexibility is New Mexico, which is working to get approval. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the states had not been announced.

The law requires all students to be proficient in reading and math by 2014. Obama's action strips away that requirement in exchange for a viable substitute plan.