Cal. Codes » Education Code / TITLE 2. ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION / DIVISION 4. INSTRUCTION AND SERVICES / PART 30. SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS / CHAPTER 4. Identification and Referral, Assessment, Instructional Planning, Implementation,and Review / ARTICLE 4. Implementation
California Codes

Cal. Education Code § 56365 (2026)

Implementation

✓ current as of May 2026
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(a)Services provided by nonpublic, nonsectarian schools, as defined pursuant to Section 56034, and nonpublic, nonsectarian agencies, as defined pursuant to Section 56035, shall be made available. These services shall be provided pursuant to Section 56366, and in accordance with Section 300.146 of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, under contract with the local educational agency to provide the appropriate special educational facilities, special education, or designated instruction and services required by the individual with exceptional needs if no appropriate public education program is available.

(b)Pupils enrolled in nonpublic, nonsectarian schools and agencies under this section shall be deemed to be enrolled in public schools for all purposes of Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 41600) of Part 24 of Division 3 and Section 42238.02. The local educational agency shall be eligible to receive allowances under Articles 3 (commencing with Section 56836.165) and 4 (commencing with Section 56836.20) of Chapter 7.2 for services that are provided to individuals with exceptional needs pursuant to the contract.

(c)If the state participates in the federal program of assistance for state-operated or state-supported programs for individuals with exceptional needs (Public Law 89-313, Sec. 6), pupils enrolled in nonpublic, nonsectarian schools shall be deemed to be enrolled in state-supported institutions for all purposes of that program and shall be eligible to receive allowances under Chapter 7.2 (commencing with Section 56836) for supplemental services provided to individuals with exceptional needs pursuant to a contract with a local educational agency. In order to participate in the federal program, the state shall find that participation will not result in any additional expenditures from the General Fund.

(d)The local educational agency shall pay to the nonpublic, nonsectarian school the full amount of the tuition or to the nonpublic, nonsectarian agency fees, as applicable, for individuals with exceptional needs that are enrolled in programs or receiving services provided by the nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency pursuant to the contract.

(e)Before contracting with a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency outside of this state, the local educational agency shall document its efforts to use public schools or to locate an appropriate nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency program, or both, within the state.

(f)If a local educational agency places a pupil with a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency outside of this state, the pupil’s individualized education program team shall submit a report to the Superintendent within 15 days of the placement decision. The report shall include information about the special education and related services provided by the out-of-state program placement and the costs of the special education and related services provided, and shall indicate the efforts of the local educational agency to locate an appropriate public school or nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency, or a combination thereof, within the state. The Superintendent shall submit a report to the board on all placements made outside of this state.

(g)If a local educational agency decides to place a pupil with a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency outside of this state, that local educational agency shall indicate the anticipated date for the return of the pupil to a public or nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency placement, or a combination thereof, located in the state and shall document efforts during the previous placement year to return the pupil.

(h)In addition to meeting the requirements of Section 56366.1, a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency that operates a program outside of this state shall be certified or licensed by that state to provide, respectively, special education and related services and designated instruction and related services to pupils under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1400 et seq.).

(i)A nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency that is located outside of this state is eligible for certification pursuant to Section 56366.1 only if a pupil is enrolled in a program operated by that school or agency pursuant to the recommendation of an individualized education program team in California, and if that pupil’s parents or guardians reside in California.

(j)In accordance with Section 300.147(b) and (c) of Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the department shall disseminate copies of applicable standards to each nonpublic, nonsectarian school and nonpublic, nonsectarian agency to which a local educational agency has referred or placed an individual with exceptional needs and shall provide an opportunity for those nonpublic, nonsectarian schools and nonpublic, nonsectarian agencies to participate in the development and revision of state standards that apply to those entities.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1982–2025 · leading case: Chaya Loffman v. California Dep't of Educ., 119 F.4th 1147 (9th Cir. 2024).
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Chaya Loffman v. California Dep't of Educ., 119 F.4th 1147 (9th Cir. 2024). · cites it 3× “§ 1412 (a)(1); Cal. Educ. Code § 56365 (a). By statute, California requires that these “nonpublic schools” (“NPSs”) be “nonsectarian.”
Newport-Mesa Unified Sch. Dist. v. Hubert, 132 Cal. App. 3d 724 (Cal. Ct. App. 1982). · cites it 3× “§ 1413 (a)(4)(B); Ed. Code, § 56365.) The private school need not be in California for a California school district to be responsible for the cost.”
Bertolucci v. San Carlos Elementary Sch. Dist., 721 F. Supp. 1150 (N.D. Cal. 1989). “Cal.Edu.Code § 56365(a). Plaintiffs’ complaint alleges that Angelo has been denied his right to a free and appropriate public education.”
Byrnes v. Riles, 157 Cal. App. 3d 1170 (Cal. Ct. App. 1984). “) The California provisions are analogous to the EAHCA and share the same general goal of assuring all handicapped children the right to a free appropriate public education. (See Ed. Code, § 56000.) Like the EAHCA, California law requires a public school to pay for an…”
C.R. v. Elk Grove Unified Sch. Dist. (E.D. Cal. 2025). · cites it 4× “” Cal. Educ. Code § 56365 (a). Students with 1 The court cites to page numbers here according to those applied at the top right corner of the page by the CM/ECF system, with the exception of the deposition of Ira Ross.”
J.B. v. Tuolumne Cnty. Superintendent of Schs. (E.D. Cal. 2020). · cites it 2× “See Cal. Ed. Code § 56365 (i). The CDE then has 120 19 days from the date of the NPS’s application to decide certification, and if the NPS is approved, 20 and meets all requirements, certification is retroactively effective to the application date.”
Cal. Education Code § 56365(a): 1 case
Bertolucci v. San Carlos Elementary Sch. Dist., 721 F. Supp. 1150 (N.D. Cal. 1989). “Cal.Edu.Code § 56365(a). Plaintiffs’ complaint alleges that Angelo has been denied his right to a free and appropriate public education.”
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