2005 California Education Code Sections 56020-56035 Article 2. Definitions

56020.  As used in this part, the definitions prescribed by this
article apply unless the context otherwise requires.
56020.5.  "Assistive technology device," as provided in paragraph
(1) of Section 1401 of Title 20 of the United States Code, means any
item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired
commercially without the need for modification, modified, or
customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional
capabilities of an individual with exceptional needs. The term does
not include a medical device that is surgically implanted, or the
replacement of that device.
56021.  "Board" means the State Board of Education.
56021.1.  "Consent," as provided in subsection (b) of Section
300.500 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, means all of
the following:
   (a) The parent or guardian has been fully informed of all
information relevant to the activity for which consent is sought, in
his or her native language, or other mode of communication.
   (b) The parent or guardian understands and agrees in writing to
the carrying out of the activity for which his or her consent is
sought; and the consent describes that activity and lists the
records, if any, that will be released and to whom.
   (c) The parent or guardian understands that the granting of
consent is voluntary on the part of the parent or guardian and may be
revoked at any time.  If a parent or guardian revokes consent, that
revocation is not retroactive to negate an action that has occurred
after the consent was given and before the consent was revoked.
56022.  "County office" means office of the county superintendent of
schools.
56023.  "Day" means a calendar day.
56024.  "Department" means the Department of Education.
56025.  "District" means school district.
56026.  "Individuals with exceptional needs" means those persons who
satisfy all the following:
   (a) Identified by an individualized education program team as a
child with a disability, as that phrase is defined in subparagraph
(A) of paragraph (3) of Section 1401 of Title 20 of the United States
Code.
   (b) Their impairment, as described by subdivision (a), requires
instruction, services, or both, which cannot be provided with
modification of the regular school program.
   (c) Come within one of the following age categories:
   (1) Younger than three years of age and identified by the
district, the special education local plan area, or the county office
as requiring intensive special education and services, as defined by
the State Board of Education.
   (2) Between the ages of three to five years, inclusive, and
identified by the district, the special education local plan area, or
the county office pursuant to Section 56441.11.
   (3) Between the ages of five and 18 years, inclusive.
   (4) Between the ages of 19 and 21 years, inclusive; enrolled in or
eligible for a program under this part or other special education
program prior to his or her 19th birthday; and has not yet completed
his or her prescribed course of study or who has not met proficiency
standards  or has not graduated from high school with a regular high
school diploma.
   (A) Any person who becomes 22 years of age during the months of
January to June, inclusive, while participating in a program under
this part may continue his or her participation in the program for
the remainder of the current fiscal year, including any extended
school year program for individuals with exceptional needs
established pursuant to regulations adopted by the State Board of
Education, pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 56100) of
Chapter 2.
   (B) Any person otherwise eligible to participate in a program
under this part shall not be allowed to begin a new fiscal year in a
program if he or she becomes 22 years of age in July, August, or
September of that new fiscal year.  However, if a person is in a
year-round school program and is completing his or her individualized
education program in a term that extends into the new fiscal year,
then the person may complete that term.
   (C) Any person who becomes 22 years of age during the months of
October, November, or December while participating in a program under
this act shall be terminated from the program on December 31 of the
current fiscal year, unless the person would otherwise complete his
or her individualized education program at the end of the current
fiscal year.
   (D) No school district, special education local plan area, or
county office of education may develop an individualized education
program that extends these eligibility dates, and in no event may a
pupil be required or allowed to attend school under the provisions of
this part beyond these eligibility dates solely on the basis that
the individual has not met his or her goals or objectives.
   (d) Meet eligibility criteria set forth in regulations adopted by
the board, including, but not limited to, those adopted pursuant to
Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 56333) of Chapter 4.
   (e) Unless disabled within the meaning of subdivisions (a) to (d),
inclusive, pupils whose educational needs are due primarily to
limited English proficiency; a lack of instruction in reading or
mathematics; temporary physical disabilities; social maladjustment;
or environmental, cultural, or economic factors are not individuals
with exceptional needs.
56026.1.  (a)  As provided in clause (i) of paragraph (3) of
subsection (a) of Section 300.122 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, an individual with exceptional needs who graduates from
high school with a regular high school diploma is no longer eligible
for special education and related services.
   (b) For purposes of this section and Section 56026, a "regular
high school diploma" means a diploma conferred on a pupil who has
completed a prescribed course of study and has met the standards of
proficiency in basic skills prescribed by the governing board of the
school district.
56026.2.  "Language mode" means the method of communication used by
hard-of-hearing and deaf children that may include the use of sign
language to send or receive messages or the use of spoken language,
with or without visual signs or cues.
56026.3.  "Local educational agency" means a school district, a
county office of education, a charter school participating as a
member of a special education local plan area, or a special education
local plan area.
56026.5.  "Low incidence disability" means a severe disabling
condition with an expected incidence rate of less than one percent of
the total statewide enrollment in kindergarten through grade 12.
For purposes of this definition, severe disabling conditions are
hearing impairments, vision impairments, and severe orthopedic
impairments, or any combination thereof.  For purposes of this
definition, vision impairments do not include disabilities within the
function of vision specified in Section 56338.
56027.  "Local plan" means a plan that meets the requirements of
Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 56205) and that is submitted by a
school district, special education local plan area, or county office.
56028.  (a) "Parent," includes any of the following:
   (1) A person having legal custody of a child.
   (2) Any adult pupil for whom no guardian or conservator has been
appointed.
   (3) A person acting in the place of a natural or adoptive parent,
including a grandparent, stepparent, or other relative with whom the
child lives. "Parent" also includes a parent surrogate.
   (4) A foster parent if the authority of a parent to make
educational decisions on the child's behalf has been specifically
limited by court order in accordance with subsection (b) of Section
300.20 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
   (b) "Parent" does not include the state or any political
subdivision of government.
56028.5.  "Public agency" means a school district, county office of
education, special education local plan area, charter school, or any
other public agency under the auspices of the state or any political
subdivisions of the state providing special education or related
services to individuals with exceptional needs. For purposes of this
part, "public agency," means all of the public agencies listed in
Section 300.22 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
56029.  "Referral for assessment" means any written request for
assessment to identify an individual with exceptional needs made by
any of the following:
   (a) A parent or guardian of the individual.
   (b) A teacher or other service provider of the individual.
   (c) A foster parent of the individual, consistent with the
limitations contained in federal law.
56030.  "Responsible local agency" means the school district or
county office designated  in the local plan as the entity whose
duties shall include, but are not limited to, receiving and
distributing regionalized services funds, providing administrative
support, and coordinating the implementation of the plan.
56030.5.  "Severely disabled" means individuals with exceptional
needs who require intensive instruction and training in programs
serving pupils with the following profound disabilities:  autism,
blindness, deafness, severe orthopedic impairments, serious emotional
disturbances, severe mental retardation, and those individuals who
would have been eligible for enrollment in a development center for
handicapped pupils under Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 56800) of
this part, as it read on January 1, 1980.
56031.  "Special education" means specially designed instruction, at
no cost to the parent, to meet the unique needs of individuals with
exceptional needs, whose educational needs cannot be met with
modification of the regular instruction program, and related
services, at no cost to the parent, that may be needed to assist
these individuals to benefit from specially designed instruction.
   Special education is an integral part of the total public
education system and provides education in a manner that promotes
maximum interaction between children or youth with disabilities and
children or youth who are not disabled, in a manner that is
appropriate to the needs of both.
   Special education provides a full continuum of program options,
including instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in
hospitals and institutions, and in other settings; and instruction in
physical education, to meet the educational and service needs of
individuals with exceptional needs in the least restrictive
environment.
   Individuals with exceptional needs shall be grouped for
instructional purposes according to their instructional needs.
56032.  "Individualized education program" means a written document
described in Sections 56345 and 56345.1 for an individual with
exceptional needs that is developed, reviewed, and revised in a
meeting in accordance with Sections 300.340 to 300.350, inclusive, of
Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations and this part.  It also
means "individualized family service plan" as described in Section
1436 of Title 20 of the United States Code if the individualized
education program pertains to an individual with exceptional needs
younger than three years of age.
56033.  "Superintendent" means the Superintendent of Public
Instruction.
56033.5.  "Supplementary aids and services," as provided in
paragraph (33) of Section 1401 of Title 20 of the United States Code,
means aids, services, and other supports that are provided in
regular education classes or other education-related settings to
enable individuals with exceptional needs to be educated with
nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate in accordance
with paragraph (5) of subsection (a) of Section 1412 of Title 20 of
the United States Code.
56034.  "Nonpublic, nonsectarian school" means a private,
nonsectarian school that enrolls individuals with exceptional needs
pursuant to an individualized education program and is certified by
the department. It does not include an organization or agency that
operates as a public agency or offers public service, including, but
not limited to, a state or local agency, an affiliate of a state or
local agency, including a private, nonprofit corporation established
or operated by a state or local agency, or a public university or
college. A nonpublic, nonsectarian school also shall meet standards
as prescribed by the Superintendent and board.
56035.  "Nonpublic, nonsectarian agency" means a private,
nonsectarian establishment or individual that provides related
services necessary for an individual with exceptional needs to
benefit educationally from the pupils' educational program pursuant
to an individualized education program and that is certified by the
department.  It does not include an organization or agency that
operates as a public agency or offers public service, including, but
not limited to, a state or local agency, an affiliate of a state or
local agency, including a private, nonprofit corporation established
or operated by a state or local agency, a public university or
college, or a public hospital.  The nonpublic, nonsectarian agency
shall also meet standards as prescribed by the superintendent and
board.