The percentage of students with disabilities served by California schools has increased 4 percentage points in the last decade — even as overall enrollment has declined — making up a total of roughly 15 percent of the population (more than 880,000 students) in 2025–26, according to the Public Policy Institute of California’s (PPIC) October fact sheet on the subject.
In academic settings, disabilities can impact a student’s capacity to learn or participate in school and special education supports those with learning, developmental and physical disabilities as well as speech and language delays. Parents or school staff typically initiate identification processes, which include a formal evaluation.
Individualized education programs (IEPs) are developed by schools for qualifying learners. Of students with an IEP, in 2025–26, 31 percent had a learning disability, 23 percent had autism (the quickest growing category, up 5 percentage points since 2022–23) and 21 percent had a speech or language impairment, according to the fact sheet.
“Special education services must be provided at no cost and in the least restrictive environment, allowing students to learn alongside their peers without disabilities whenever appropriate,” the fact sheet explains.
State data shows that 61 percent of students with disabilities spent 80 percent or more of the school day in a regular classroom setting, although there is significant variation by disability type. Those with a speech or language impairment spent 82 percent of the day in a regular class, followed by students with a specific learning disability like dyslexia (74 percent) or another health impairment (70 percent). Students with intellectual disabilities and autism were more likely to spend time outside their regular class or to be in a separate school.
“States are required to monitor racial and ethnic disparities in special education identification, reflecting a long-documented national pattern of over- and under-representation,” the fact sheet notes.
By demographic, foster youth (35 percent), Black (22 percent), non-binary (22 percent), Native American (20 percent), male (19 percent) and English learner (19 percent) students were the groups with the highest shares of students with disabilities.
During the 2024–25 academic year, more than 17 percent of school spending (almost $24 billion) went toward serving students with disabilities — a nearly 46 percent increase from a decade prior ($16 billion).
“Some spending is covered by state (22 percent) and federal (6 percent) support, with school districts obligated to fund the remainder. The district share rose from 63 percent in 2015 to 71 percent in 2025,” according to the fact sheet. “State funding for special education is based on overall enrollment rather than the number of students with disabilities, to avoid creating financial incentives to identify students for services. Given overall enrollment declines and rising counts of students with disabilities, district budgets have faced increased pressure.”
Seventy-three percent of special education funding is for specialized instruction and much of the rest is used for services such as speech therapy and counseling.
Districts have historically faced challenges with staffing teachers who have special education credentials.
The fact sheet also explores gaps in academic outcomes, which is “substantial and persistent” for California students with disabilities.
On the Smarter Balanced assessments, which most students with disabilities participate in, roughly 17 percent of students with disabilities met state standards for English compared to 54 percent of students without disabilities in 2025, and 13 percent met math standards versus 41 percent of their peers.
Gaps in graduation rates are also apparent at 76 percent compared to 89 percent, respectively, in spring 2025.
As for post-secondary outcomes, the fact sheet notes that “when students with disabilities begin high school, their IEP must outline a transition plan, including postsecondary goals for education, employment, and independent living. In the most recent data, about half of students with disabilities who graduated high school enrolled in college within 12 months.”
Read the fact sheet here.
