California Special Education Governance and Accountability Study: Report to the Chairs of the Relevant Policy Committees and Budget Subcommittees of the Legislature and the Department of Finance

California Senate Bill 74, Budget Act of 2020, required the California Department of Education (CDE) to conduct a study to examine the state's current governance and accountability structures that support California students with an individualized education program (IEP). The study was intended to focus on the end goals of improving outcomes for students with an IEP and increasing special education services provided in the least restrictive environment. For this study, governance is defined as education decision-making authority, along with the structures, policies, and tools through which an entity communicates its decisions and assigns authority and responsibility to other levels of the education system. Accountability is defined as education oversight -- including structures, policies, and tools -- created and implemented at federal, state, and local levels to evaluate and ensure compliance with legal requirements and to encourage implementation of recommended actions and best practices for improvement, all for the purpose of meeting established goals. The key study results include: (1) California's Governance and Accountability Structures; (2) Factors that Most Affected Outcomes for Students with an IEP; (3) Challenges and Opportunities for Improving California's Special Education Governance and Accountability Structures. Profiles of high-performing local educational agencies and recommendations to improve special education governance and accountability are also included. [Funded by the California Department of Education, Special Education Division.]