For school transportation professionals, Peggy Burns, an attorney and owner of consultant group Education Compliance, Inc., said this is likely to mean that more students will be entitled to more transportation services. This comes at a time when states and school districts are already reeling from budget cuts, and many education-related services are being scaled back or cut altogether. And it can cost several times more to bus a special needs student compared to their counterparts in regular educatoin programs.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities, specifically ensuring that children with disabilities has equal access to education. For the past three decades, it has been the basis for lawsuits and other legal actions over such disputes as lengths of bus rides and school districts reimbursing parents for transportation costs.

Burns added that school districts must evaluate students for eligibility under Section 504 on the basis of a different set of standards than has been in effect previously. Specifically, in determining whether a student has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits that student in a major life activity, school districts must not take into consideration any improvements in condition brought about by medication, coping behaviors, or a host of other means, to determine if a student comes within the protections of Section 504.