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HB461 • 2026

Special education; certain educational settings, student age range restriction.

An Act to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 22.1-217.5, relating to special education; student age range restrictions in educational settings.

Education
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Cohen
Last action
2026-04-13
Official status
Acts of Assembly Chapter
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Special Education Age Limits for Young Students

This law sets rules about which grade levels young students with disabilities can be placed in when they need special help.

What This Bill Does

  • Sets a rule that kids with disabilities from kindergarten to sixth grade cannot usually go into classes where the oldest kids are more than four years older unless their teachers and other school staff say it's okay for them.
  • Requires schools to write down why an exception is needed if they put young students in these bigger age range classes.
  • Adds a new part to Virginia’s education laws about this rule.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Students with disabilities from kindergarten through sixth grade
  • Schools and teachers who make decisions about where kids go for special help

Terms To Know

Individualized Education Program (IEP)
A plan made by schools to help students with disabilities learn in the best way possible.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law starts working on July 1, 2027.
  • It does not say what happens if a school breaks this rule.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HB461AHC1

2026-02-09

Education Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes the age limit for certain special education settings from three to four years old.

  • Changes 'three' to 'four' in the bill text at line 14 and line 16, affecting the age range of students eligible for specific educational settings.
  • The exact nature of the special education settings affected by this change is not specified in the provided amendment text.
  • It's unclear what specific provisions or restrictions are being altered beyond changing the numerical value from 'three' to 'four'.
HB461AHC2

2026-02-10 • Committee

K-12 Subcommittee Subcommittee Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes specific numbers and adds a new provision to make certain parts of the bill about special education settings more precise.

  • Changes 'three' to 'four' in line 14.
  • Adds the word 'regularly' after line 15.
  • Changes 'three' to 'four' in line 16.
  • Inserts a new provision at the end, stating that the bill's provisions will take effect on July 1, 2027.
  • The amendment text does not provide context for what these numbers and words refer to, so their exact impact is unclear without additional information about the original bill.
HB461ASC1

2026-02-26

Education and Health Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes the placement of students with special education needs by altering how they are assigned to certain educational settings.

  • Removes 'regularly placed in' and replaces it with 'assigned to', changing how students are designated for specific educational settings.
  • The amendment text is incomplete, making it difficult to fully understand the extent of changes beyond the specified wording alteration.
HB461AS1

2026-03-05 • Committee

Education and Health Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes the wording of a bill about special education settings by replacing 'placed in' with 'assigned to'.

  • Replaces the phrase 'placed in' with 'assigned to' when referring to educational settings for students.
  • The exact impact and context of this change are not fully explained, making it hard to understand how it will affect special education policies.
HB461EDOC

2026-03-10 • Senate

Senate Amendment

Plain English: The amendment changes the wording of a bill about special education settings by replacing 'placed in' with 'assigned to'.

  • Replaces the phrase 'placed in' with 'assigned to' when referring to educational settings for students.
  • The exact impact and context of this change are not fully explained, making it hard to understand how it will affect special education policies.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-13 Governor

    Approved by Governor-Chapter 617 (effective 7/1/2026)

  2. 2026-04-13 Governor

    Approved by Governor-Chapter 617 (Effective 7/1/2027)

  3. 2026-04-13 Governor

    Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0617)

  4. 2026-03-31 House

    Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026

  5. 2026-03-31 Governor

    Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026

  6. 2026-03-31 House

    Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026

  7. 2026-03-31 Governor

    Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026

  8. 2026-03-31 House

    Signed by Speaker

  9. 2026-03-31 House

    Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026

  10. 2026-03-31 Governor

    Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026

  11. 2026-03-31 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB461)

  12. 2026-03-30 Senate

    Signed by President

  13. 2026-03-30 House

    Enrolled

  14. 2026-03-30 House

    Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB461ER)

  15. 2026-03-11 House

    Senate amendment agreed to by House (71-Y 28-N 0-A)

  16. 2026-03-10 Senate

    Read third time

  17. 2026-03-10 Senate

    Read third time

  18. 2026-03-10 Senate

    Read third time

  19. 2026-03-10 Senate

    Engrossed by Senate as amended

  20. 2026-03-10 Education and Health

    Education and Health Amendment agreed to

  21. 2026-03-10 Senate

    Passed Senate with amendment (21-Y 19-N 0-A)

  22. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Read third time

  23. 2026-03-09 Senate

    Passed by for the day

  24. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Rules suspended

  25. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Passed by for the day

  26. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A)

  27. 2026-03-06 Senate

    Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)

  28. 2026-03-05 Education and Health

    Reported from Education and Health with amendment (9-Y 6-N)

  29. 2026-02-26 Public Education

    Assigned Education sub: Public Education

  30. 2026-02-26 Public Education

    Senate subcommittee offered

  31. 2026-02-18 Senate

    Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading)

  32. 2026-02-18 Education and Health

    Referred to Committee on Education and Health

  33. 2026-02-17 House

    Read third time and passed House (69-Y 28-N 0-A)

  34. 2026-02-16 House

    Read second time

  35. 2026-02-16 House

    committee substitute agreed to

  36. 2026-02-16 House

    Engrossed by House - committee substitute

  37. 2026-02-13 House

    Read first time

  38. 2026-02-11 House

    House committee offered

  39. 2026-02-11 Education

    Reported from Education with substitute (16-Y 5-N)

  40. 2026-02-11 Education

    Committee substitute printed 26107653D-H1

  41. 2026-02-11 Education

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB461)

  42. 2026-02-10 K-12 Subcommittee

    Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (9-Y 1-N)

  43. 2026-02-09 K-12 Subcommittee

    House subcommittee offered

  44. 2026-02-05 K-12 Subcommittee

    Assigned HED sub: K-12 Subcommittee

  45. 2026-02-02 House

    Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB461)

  46. 2026-01-12 House

    Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101364D

  47. 2026-01-12 Education

    Referred to Committee on Education

Official Summary Text

Special education; student age range restrictions in educational settings.
Prohibits any student with a disability in grades kindergarten through six from being regularly assigned to any educational setting, including any specialized educational setting, in which the maximum age range exceeds four years unless the student's individualized education program (IEP) team determines that an exception is appropriate and justifies such exception in the student's IEP. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
An Act to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered
22.1-217.5
, relating to special education; student age range restrictions in educational settings.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered
22.1-217.5
as follows:
§
22.1-217.5
. Student age range restrictions in educational settings.
No student with a disability in grades kindergarten through six shall be regularly assigned to any educational setting, including any nongeneral educational setting, in which the maximum age range exceeds four years unless the student's individualized education program (IEP) team determines that an exception is appropriate and justifies such exception in the student's IEP.
2. That the provisions of this act shall become effective on July 1, 2027.