(a) This chapter shall also apply to pupils attending the California School for the Blind and the two California Schools for the Deaf, which shall be referred to as the “state special schools.”

(b) Because the state special schools have a governance structure different from that of school districts, for the purposes of this section the following definitions shall apply:

(1) “Superintendent” means the appropriate principal of the state special school in which the pupil is enrolled, or the principal’s designee, for purposes of Sections 48900, 48900.2, 48900.3, 48900.4, 48900.5, 48900.7, and 48911, and subdivisions (a) and (j) of Section 48918.

(2) “Governing board of each school district,” “governing board of any school district,” or “each governing board of a school district” means the Superintendent of Public Instruction or his or her designee for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 48900.1, subdivision (b) of Section 48901, subdivision (b) of Section 48901.5, Section 48907, Section 48910, the first paragraph of Section 48918, and the first paragraph of Section 48918.5.

(3) “Governing board” means the Superintendent of the State Special School in which the pupil is enrolled for purposes of Section 48912, subdivision (d) of Section 48915, Section 48915.5, Section 48916, Section 48917, subdivisions (a), (c), (d), (f), (h), (i), (j), and (k) of Section 48918, and Sections 48921, 48922, 48923, and 48924.

(4) “Governing board” means the governing board of the district of residence of the expelled pupil for purposes of subdivision (f) of Section 48915 and Section 48916.1. In the case of an adult pupil expelled from a state special school, “governing board” means the governing board of the school district that referred the pupil to the state special school for purposes of the code section cited in this paragraph.

(5) “Superintendent of schools or the governing board” means the appropriate principal of the state special school in which the pupil is enrolled, or the principal’s designee, for the purposes of Section 48900.6.

(6) “School district” or “district” means the state special school in which the pupil is enrolled for purposes of Section 48900.8, subdivision (b) of Section 48903, Section 48905, Section 48909, Section 48914, paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) of Section 48916.1, subdivision (c) of Section 48918.5, Section 48919, Section 48920, and Section 48921.

(7) “County board of education” or “county board” means the Superintendent of Public Instruction or his or her designee for purposes of Sections 48920, 48921, 48922, 48923, and 48924.

(8) “Local educational agency” includes a state special school for purposes of Section 48902 and Section 48915.5.

(9) “A change in placement” for purposes of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 48915.5 means a referral by the state special school to the pupil’s school district of residence for placement in an appropriate interim alternative educational setting.

(10) “Individualized education program team” means the individualized education program team of the pupil’s school district of residence with appropriate representation from the state special school in which the pupil is enrolled for purposes of subdivision (a) of Section 48915.5.2.

(11) “Individualized education program team” means the individualized education program team of the state special school in which the pupil is enrolled with appropriate representation from the pupil’s school district of residence for purposes of subdivisions (b), (c), and (d) of Section 48915.5.3.

(c) Subdivision (b) of this section shall be deemed to provide the same due process procedural protections to pupils in the state special schools as afforded to pupils in the public school districts of the state.

(Amended by Stats. 2003, Ch. 62, Sec. 56.5. Effective January 1, 2004.)