California State Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 98 into effect on June 29, 2020 which, among other things, provided some new guidance for students in special education. Keep in mind that absolutely nothing has been waived in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and it is still enforceable. SB 98 not only addresses funding, but also adds statutory guidance for the provision of distance learning to students eligible for individualized education programs (“IEPs”).
In addition to new distance learning requirements, Districts must meet a number of requirements, including implementation of special education, related services, and any other services required by a pupil’s IEP, including the requirements of newly amended Education Code section 56345 (described below), “with accommodations necessary to ensure that [the IEP] can be executed in a distance learning environment.” Newly amended Education Code section 56345 now includes subdivision (a)(9)(A), which requires an IEP to include:
A description of the means by which the individualized education program will be provided under emergency conditions, as described in Section 46392 [which enumerates emergency conditions such as fire, flood, and epidemics], in which instruction or services, or both, cannot be provided to the pupil either at the school or in person for more than 10 school days. The description shall include all of the following:
(i) Special education and related services.
(ii) Supplementary aids and services.
(iii) Transition services, as defined in Section 56345.1
(iv) Extended school year services pursuant to Section 300.106 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
The requirement to include these contents in an IEP applies to initial IEPs or “the next regularly scheduled revision of an individualized education program that has not already met [the above described] requirements.”
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