The legal requirement for providing special education to students with disabilities is found primarily in a federal law entitled, "Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act" also referred to as  IDEA '04. There are a variety of other federal and state laws that address the entitlement of students with disabilities to a free, appropriate, public education.

Pennsylvania has a State Board of Education.  This board has the authority to create and revise regulations, including those which protect the rights of children with disabilities to receive a free and appropriate public education.  These regulations are referred to as "Chapter 14" or, 22 PA Code Chapter 14.  Chapter 14 includes regulations that are specific to special education in Pennsylvania.  Chapter 14 also adopts by reference, the IDEA '04 regulations.  Both sets of regulations create the basis for the provision of special education in the commonwealth public school system.

In addition to these laws, various administrative and judicial bodies have issued decisions explaining and interpreting these special education laws. All these legal resources are described for your reference in this section.