Guide to Legislative and Public Policy Websites

for Families of Children with Special Health Care Needs/Disabilities

Laws Affecting Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs/Disabilities

There are many laws that have an impact on the quality of life for children with special health care needs/disabilities. This page contains a partial listing of major federal and state laws that govern the delivery of services to children with disabilities. The links below will lead you to information about the legislation or to the text of the legislation itself.

ADA / IDEA / No Child Left Behind / Section 504 /
Lanterman Act / Hughes Bill / AB 3632 / Perkins Vocational

American with Disabilities Act (ADA)

ADA Home Page
http://www.ada.gov

The Americans with Disabilities Act protects the rights of individuals with disabilities. It is the major civil rights law that protects citizens with disabilities. This is their home page. The link to their publications page provides a lot of information about ADA and disability law.

Guide to Disability Rights Laws
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/cguide.htm

This site presents the Department of Justice's guide to disability rights laws. It does not include all of the laws that affect children with disabilities, but it's good if you would like to familiarize yourself with the laws in general.

An Overview of ADA, IDEA and Section 504. Update 2001.
http://www.ericdigests.org/2002-1/ada.html

This Eric digest provides a side-by-side comparison chart of these three laws. Eric is a clearinghouse on information about education for children with special health care needs/disabilities.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

California Department of Education (CDE)--Special Education Division--Special Ed Laws and Regulations
http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/lr/ideareathztn.asp

This site provides information about how IDEA 2004 affects California Education law.

IDEA 2004 -- The Law
http://www.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/idea/idea2004.html

This is the US Department of Education-Office of Special Education & Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) webpage.

IDEA Partnership
http://www.ideapartnership.org/

IDEA Partnership has posted helpful summaries created by OSEP, that feature the statutory changes implemented by IDEA 2004.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

This new legislation will have an impact on children with disabilities. Try these sites to get an idea of some of the issues. The first is from the US Department of Education; the second from the California Department of Education (CDE); the third is a side-by-side comparison of NCLB and its implications for special education produced by the Council of Exceptional Children, and the last is a list of resources for families interested in NCLB from Reed Martin, a special education attorney and advocate..

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Policy Documents Affecting the Education of Infants, Toddlers, Children and Youth with Disabilities
http://www.ed.gov/policy/speced/guid/nclb/index.html

CDE Local Education Agency Plan
http://www.cde.ca.gov/

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: Implications for Special Education Policy and Practice
http://www.cec.sped.org/pp/NCLBside-by-side.pdf

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

The Rehabilitation Act
http://www.ed.gov/

You can link to the text of the Rehabilitation Act on this site, sponsored by the US Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, Rehabilitation Services Administration.

Lanterman Act

The Lanterman Act is the law that protects the rights of people with developmental disabilities in California to services and supports that will allow them to live as independently as possible.

The Act
http://www.dds.ca.gov/

A link to the text of the Lanterman Act.

Department of Developmental Services (DDS) Consumer's Guide to the Lanterman Act
http://www.dds.cahwnet.gov/

This guide is designed for consumers of DDS services. It is very simply and clearly written and provides good basic information about the Lanterman Act.

Rights Under the Lanterman Act
http://www.pai-ca.org/

This is a Disability Rights California (formerly Protection and Advocacy (PAI)) publication and is a comprehensive guide to the Lanterman Act. You may also want to visit their site to see what other resources and publications they offer.

The Hughes Bill

The Hughes Bill is meant to ensure that special education students have the right to positive behavioral intervention plans.

Hughes Bill
http://www.csusm.edu/thousand/501hughesbill.html

Questions and answers about the Hughes Bill, adapted from Chapter 8 of the Protection and Advocacy (PAI) and Community Alliance for Special Education (CASE) manual, Special Education Rights and Responsibilities, revised 1997.

Parent Handbook for Special Education (West Contra Costa Unified School District)
http://www.wccusd.k12.ca.us/

This handbook does not deal only with the Hughes Bill, but it gives some background, and discusses other special education issues, too. It was produced by the Community Advisory Committee for Special Education of the West Contra Costa Unified School District. Information on the Hughes Bill begins on page 24 of the handbook.

Disability Rights California (formerly Protection and Advocacy) Information Letter on Behavior Intervention in School Settings
http://www.pai-ca.org/

This Information Letter describes behavior intervention plans and practices in California schools and as such is an outcome of the Hughes Bill.

AB 3632

Bill AB 3632 -- The Interagency Responsibility for Related Services California Assembly Bill -- requires that local education agencies (LEA) arrange with other agencies to provide related services for special education students. These services can include education services to students in hospitals/developmental centers, occupational or physical therapy and mental health assessments and services.

United Advocates for Children of California (UACC)
http://www.uacc4families.org/

UACC is a family organization working on behalf of children and youth with serious emotional disturbances and their families. They provide facts sheets about AB 3632. If mental health issues are of concern to you, it might be worth the time to start with their home page and browse the entire site.

Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act

Carl Perkins Voication and Technical Education of 1998
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/CTE/legis.html

This page is featured of the US Department of Education site, provides background information at the Perkins Act and a link to the a summary or the legislation itself.

The resources on these pages are for your information. These listings are not necessarily comprehensive, nor are they an endorsement. If you find that any information is incorrect, if you would like to offer feedback or if you know of additional resources that may be helpful to include, please contact us.

This page was last updated: October 29, 2009