National Study of Special Education Spending
Federal, state, and local policymakers and education leaders need current, reliable information about special education spending to inform funding policies and budgeting.
The U.S. Department of Education’s National Study of Special Education Spending (NSSES) will provide up-to-date national estimates of spending on special education and related services for students with disabilities, and how states and districts pay for special education.
The most recent national estimates of special education spending are nearly 25 years old. Since then, there have been significant shifts in the number and characteristics of students with disabilities and in the policies and conditions under which students are identified and served.
The NSSES will address four overarching research questions:
- How much is spent to educate students with disabilities? How does this compare to spending on their peers who do not receive special education?
- To what extent do spending amounts reflect students’ needs versus where they live or go to school?
- What does special education spending pay for, and what role does IDEA play?
- To what extent is the federal contribution to special education funding meeting its target?
Study Design
A pilot study for the NSSES study will take place during the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. The pilot study’s findings will help inform the study design for the full-scale national study, which is planned for 2026/27 school year.
The timeline for the full study includes:
- Summer 2026: District recruitment
- Fall 2026: School recruitment within participating districts and sampling students within participating schools
- Winter/Spring 2027: Surveys of state, district, and school staff
- Summer/Fall 2027: District financial data collection
Information for Participants
The NSSES will collect information from states, districts, schools, and school staff about special education programs and spending and the services and resources used to educate students, and the sources of funding they used to pay for this spending.
Participating districts will be asked to provide student rosters used to select students for the study, complete surveys about their special education programs and finances, and provide financial and personnel data. Districts will also help connect the study team with participating schools.
Participating schools will identify a school coordinator to help organize study activities and identify staff who are knowledgeable about the services and resources provided to sampled students. These staff will complete surveys about the instruction and services those students receive.
Whenever possible, the study will use information that districts already maintain to minimize the burden of participation.
Districts, school coordinators, and survey respondents will receive payments for the time required to complete study activities and provide administrative data.
Reports prepared for the study will summarize findings and will not identify individual respondents, students, schools, or districts. Information collected for this study comes under the confidentiality and data protection requirements of the Institute of Education Sciences (Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, Title I, Part E, Section 183). Information may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed or used in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law (20 U.S.C. § 9573 and 6 U.S.C. § 151).
OMB approval: The study has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The OMB control number is 1850-1000, and the approval expiration date is July 31, 2029.
