Special Education
Laws & News
Across the States
CA: Special education has become a flash point in negotiations with teachers
EdSource
When more than 90% of San Diego Unified School District teachers voted to authorize a strike, it wasn’t just about pay increases or health care benefits — it was about special education caseloads that some teachers say are pushing them out of the profession. Salary and health care are still central at the bargaining table, but the working conditions of special education teachers have become a major point of friction in labor negotiations with teachers this school year. It was also a sticking point for high-profile teacher strikes in West Contra Costa and San Francisco. The role of special education at the bargaining table is different in every district in California, said Naj Alikhan, senior director of marketing and communications for the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA).“While issues at the table are different around the state, it is fair to say that the cost of serving our students with special needs is a cost pressure that is impacting everyone,” said Alikhan.
N.J. education challenges 2026: What Sherrill must address
nj.com
Special education advocates also say Sherrill’s administration needs to consider making major changes to how funding is distributed for students with disabilities. The special education portion of the formula sends too much money to some districts and not enough to others, said Peg Kinsell, director of public policy at SPAN Parent Advocacy Network, an organization that supports families of students in special education. There are almost 250,000 students with disabilities in New Jersey schools. Rather than look at each district’s enrollment numbers for this group, the state’s school funding formula uses a statewide average based on Census data. Last year, Gov. Phil Murphy’s budget used special education enrollment numbers instead of the average to determine how much money to send to each district. But this change is not permanent or part of the law and Kinsell said it didn’t go far enough.
NC: A tool meant to support students could be delaying needed special education services
WUNC News
For families whose kids need special education services, the system they have to pass through can sometimes be an obstacle instead of a help. Starting in 2020, all North Carolina schools were required to use a framework called Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, or MTSS, to help identify struggling students. But some families and advocates say the system is creating delays for children who need special education services. In 2015, teachers in Greene County Schools told Antonio and Lynne Blow that their son, Walker, was struggling with reading comprehension. The Blows thought Walker would receive the academic interventions he needed to get back on track. “We were hearing from the schools that there were some concerns,” Antonio Blow said. “So we were hoping that they would have the answers to how to move him forward.” Walker was in first grade then. In second grade, his parents sought special education services but were denied. Instead, they say the school spent years providing interventions that fell just short of special education through a tiered system that eventually became known as MTSS, with little improvement.
TN: State lawmaker hopes to pass bill requiring training for special education students
WZTV
House Bill 0448, which Glynn first introduced last year, would require all teachers to receive specialized training in de-escalation and conflict resolution for special education students. “And so what this bill does is give them those few things or few tools they need to ensure that they are ready and able to handle that child, so that it doesn’t create a harmful situation for the child,” says Rep. Glynn. Glynn says that while every teacher currently gets general training, they lack focused instruction for students with special needs. He’s proposing three to four classes that cover those crucial first moments with a child, when the right approach can prevent harm. “When you think about a child who has special needs, it is that first initial contact and what we do in that first moment that really can determine how that situation turns out. So yes, by giving the teachers that tool, I think we can alleviate incidents where teachers are unfortunately in situations that they’re not equipped for.”
WV: Legislation would change school funding framework, but not for another three years
WV MetroNews
The House of Delegates will consider legislation that will change funding for local school systems, although it wouldn’t kick in until three years from now. “I support this bill, and I will continue to support this bill,” said Delegate Clay Riley, vice chairman of the House Finance Committee, although he said more work might need to continue on the specifics. HB 5453 is a significant revision of the current public school funding formula to make it simpler, more transparent, and more aligned with student needs — especially special education — while moving away from the current step-based, multi-schedule formula.
The House Finance Committee discussed and advanced a revised version of the legislation on Friday afternoon.
AZ: Bill aims to improve Arizona’s complaint process for students with disabilities
Arizona Capitol Times
As the federal office investigating and resolving discrimination cases involving students with disabilities dissolves, advocates are turning to the Legislature to bolster and peer deeper into the state complaint system. The Office of Civil Rights, housed in the U.S. Department of Education, previously stood as advocates’ first recommended stop for students with disabilities denied a free appropriate public education. But in the past year, the Trump administration halved the office’s staff and closed more than half of its regional offices, leaving the vast majority of complaints either dismissed or unresolved.
Arizona is required by federal law to offer a state-level complaint system, too. But advocates say the mechanism in place now falls short, leading to a push to require the Arizona Department of Education to offer greater assistance to parents navigating the process and to publicly report the outcomes of prior and ongoing investigations.
“How well is this system working in Arizona?” Karla Philip-Krivickas, chief policy and strategy officer for Champions for Kids, said. “Well, we don’t know.”
DC: DC judge allows lawsuit over special education bus service to move forward
WUSA
A D.C. Superior Court judge has ruled that a class-action lawsuit accusing the District of failing to provide reliable transportation for students with disabilities can move forward, marking a significant step in a case that has been ongoing for more than two years. The lawsuit was first filed in 2024 by six parents, including Elizabeth Daggett, who alleged that the District’s Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) failed to provide safe, reliable, and effective transportation to and from school for children with disabilities. The case has since expanded to include nearly 4,000 students.
FL: Lawsuit against Florida voucher funding organization seeks ‘reform’, attorney says
WUSF
The group of private school owners suing the organization in charge of handling half a million student vouchers in Florida are seeking amendments to improve the private school choice movement in Florida, their attorney said on Friday. This comes after state audits into the funding organization and Florida’s Department of Education revealed that funds disbursed to families through the organization, Step Up For Students, have been mismanaged and the program has been plagued with inconsistencies and accountability issues that have resulted in many cases of voucher payment delays — and frozen funds — to students and schools. At the press conference in Jacksonville, the schools’ attorney, Lamont Carter, explained the reason for the lawsuit against Step Up For Students. “We’re pushing for transparency, accountability, standard operating procedures and sound fiduciary responsibility,” he told media. “It’s not only monetary… we’re, once again, looking for reform.”
IA: Iowa house panel votes to require cameras in special education classrooms
kcrg
In their final meeting before the first deadline of the 2026 legislative session, the House Education Committee moved forward with measures on Wednesday requiring cameras to be installed in special education classrooms and allowing firearms on school premises, among other topics. House File 2218, approved in a 14-9 vote, would require public and charter schools install video recording systems in each special education classroom at school facilities. The bill requires these systems and recordings created “must be consistent” with state and federal privacy laws, and states the cost of installing these would be paid for by school districts from state School Foundation Aid.
MI: Vitti wants change to special education certification in Michigan
Bridge Detroit
As the Detroit school district continues to experience special education teacher shortages, its superintendent is proposing ways for more teachers to enter the field. Nikolai Vitti, superintendent of Detroit Public Schools Community District, said due to the increase in children being diagnosed with autism statewide, he wants the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) to expand access to special education programs and offer incentives to bring in more people to the profession. “That’s the challenge we’re facing here (in DPSCD), but this is a statewide challenge,” Vitti said during a school board meeting last month. “There’s just so few teachers that are generally going into the profession, but especially special