September 2026
| TO: | BOCES District Superintendents School District Superintendents Superintendents of Special Act School Superintendents of State-Operated Superintendents of State-Supported Public School Administrators Charter School Leaders Special Education Directors Chairpersons of Committees on Special Education Chairpersons of Committees on Preschool Special Education Administrators of Nonpublic Schools with Approved Special Education Programs Preschool Providers of Special Education Programs and Services Organizations, Parents, and Individuals Interested in Special Education |
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| FROM: | Christopher Suriano, Deputy Commissioner, Office of Special Education and Adult Career and Continuing Education Services (OSEA) Nell Brady, Director, STAC/Medicaid, Rate Setting, and Contract Administration Units |
| SUBJECT: | Provision of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) as a Related Service
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This memorandum provides both fiscal and programmatic guidance on the provision of ABA as a related service on an individualized education program (IEP). Please note, the Committee on Preschool Education (CPSE)/Committee on Special Education (CSE) may be referring to ABA practices on IEPs or in reimbursement requests as "behavior intervention services” (BIS). This guidance applies to services identified as ABA or BIS and is subject to the same fiscal and programmatic standards outlined in this memorandum.
Licensure Requirements
Generally, to practice ABA in New York State, a person must be a Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA) or Certified Behavior Analyst Assistant (CBAA) (New York State Education Law Article 167). However, the law provides exemption to the licensure requirement for those employed by a school district, Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), charter school, school-age approved special education program, chartered elementary school or secondary school or degree granting institution and to certified teachers and teaching assistants in approved preschool special education programs (Education Law §8807[2]).
Therefore, non-licensed individuals (i.e., classroom teacher, teaching assistant or, other members of a multi-disciplinary team) are permitted to implement behavioral supports and instructional strategies that may contain aspects of ABA as part of a classroom methodology. Such behavioral supports and strategies could include but are not limited to: token economy systems, explicit instruction, behavior tracking and data collection, functional behavioral assessments (FBA) and behavioral intervention plans (BIP). However, this exemption does not allow non-licensed individuals to deliver and seek reimbursement for ABA as a related service.
ABA as a Related Service
Related services are developmental, corrective, and other supportive services that are required to assist a student with a disability and must be provided by individuals with appropriate certification or licensure (8 NYCRR 200.1[qq], 200.6[b][3]). Therefore, only licensed individuals are authorized to deliver ABA as a related service.
If the CPSE/CSE is recommending that a student receive the statutory clinical definition1 of ABA (i.e. delivered by an LBA or CBAA) it must be appropriately documented on the student’s IEP as a related service. Related services are designed to help a student benefit from their special education program and/or access the general education curriculum and must be designed to support and not replace a student’s primary instruction. The student must be assigned a teacher of record and cannot receive related services as their sole educational program (i.e. ABA cannot be provided for the entirety of the school day in lieu of specially designed instruction).
STAC Reimbursement- Licensed Individuals Providing ABA Related Services
When ABA is documented on an IEP and provided as a related service, school districts can only claim reimbursement through the New York State Education Department’s (NYSED) System to Track and Account for Children (STAC) when ABA is provided by a licensed individual. The STAC Unit reserves the right to request licensure verification prior to processing a claim. The CPSE/CSE must ensure that when ABA is provided as a related service, it is appropriately documented as a related service on the IEP (including the frequency, duration, and location of such services). Municipalities are expected to establish section 4410 preschool program rates for ABA as a related service that will be provided by LBAs or CBAAs. For school age students receiving extended school year specially designed instruction and/or related services, ABA will be reimbursed in accordance with the regional half-hour unit rate. For purposes of public excess cost aid claims, school districts cannot seek additional reimbursement for ABA or other behavioral supports delivered by a classroom teacher, teaching assistant, or other non-licensed individual as part of an all-day classroom methodology (as those expenses are already assumed within the traditional funding streams available to the educational program).
STAC Reimbursement – Licensed Individuals Conducting FBAs, Developing BIPs, and/or Providing Consultation Services
If a licensed ABA provider conducts an FBA and/or develops a BIP, the time to conduct the evaluation and develop, implement and monitor the BIP is reimbursable through the STAC process. This can include training non-ABA licensed classroom staff to implement the BIP. However, non-ABA licensed individuals cannot seek reimbursement through the STAC process for implementing a BIP. Consultations between the licensed ABA provider and classroom staff are also eligible for STAC reimbursement. ABA consultation must be documented on a student’s IEP under the “Supports for School Personnel on Behalf of the Student” section. In addition, if ABA or other behavioral supports outside of the BIP are delivered throughout the day by a non-licensed individual, this would not be reimbursable through the STAC process (as it would be assumed within the expenses of operating the instructional program and reimbursed within the traditional funding streams available to the educational program).
STAC Reimbursement - One-to-One (1:1) and Shared Teacher Aides and Teaching Assistants
If the CPSE/CSE determines that a student needs a 1:1 teacher aide/teaching assistant or a shared teacher aide/teaching assistant, this must be documented on the student's IEP under the “Supplementary Aids and Service and Program Modification” section as a 1:1 aide, not as a related service. The “Supplementary Aids and Service and Program Modification” section of the IEP does not need to specify the type of support provided by the 1:1 teacher aide/teaching assistant (e.g., that the 1:1 is providing behavioral support or identifying the 1:1 as a “ABA/BIS one-to-one aide”). Instead, the IEP would identify the student’s individual needs under the “Present Levels of Performance” section describing the additional adult assistance needed.
Please see NYSED’s webpage, Guidelines for Determining a Student with a Disability’s Need for a One-to-One Aide, for more information. While 1:1 and shared teacher aides/teaching assistants may implement behavioral strategies in a student’s BIP and assist with data collection, they are reimbursed solely at the 1:1 aide rate. No additional ABA reimbursement is permitted for services provided by a teacher aide or teaching assistant.
STAC Reimbursement - IEP Documentation
As described in this memorandum, the manner in which ABA is reflected on the IEP will impact how the service will be reimbursed through state aid. Although the requirements outlined are effective for the 2026-2027 school year, it is not mandatory to hold a new CPSE/CSE meeting to change existing IEPs at this time. If an existing IEP reflects ABA related services and/or consultation services but these ABA services are not identified on the IEP as directed in this memorandum, during the 2026-2027 school year STAC will reimburse these services as a related service and/or consultation service upon verification of appropriate licensure (regardless of where these services appear on the IEP). Any newly developed IEPs for the 2026-2027 school year and thereafter must fully align with all requirements of this guidance.
Questions
- For specific reimbursement questions, please contact the STAC and Medicaid Unit at OMSSTAC@nysed.gov or (518) 474-7116.
- General questions regarding this memorandum may be directed to the Office of Special Education Policy Unit at SPECED@nysed.gov or (518) 473-2878.
- Student specific questions may be directed to the Special Education Quality Assurance Unit in your region or SEQA@nysed.gov.
| Central Regional Unit | (315) 428-4556 |
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| Eastern Regional Unit | (518) 486-6366 |
| Hudson Valley Regional Unit | (518) 473-1185 |
| Long Island Regional Unit | (631) 952-3352 |
| New York City Regional Unit | (718) 722-4544 |
| Nondistrict Unit | (518) 473-1185 |
| Western Regional Unit | (585) 344-2002 |