A government watchdog is warning that families of students with disabilities need better information about their rights under federal special education law when deciding whether or not to take part in school choice programs. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that 83 percent of students with disabilities are given little to no information about how their rights to a free, appropriate public education under the IDEA Act would be affected by transitioning from a public school to a private school.