Self-Determination Program (SDP)

Who's eligible

Any adult who is a client of the San Diego Regional Center (SDRC) — eligible under the Lanterman Act — can opt into the Self-Determination Program (SDP). SDP is open to people of all ages and all support levels, but the planning work is most often done by adults and their families together. The participant must complete an SDP orientation before opting in. Orientations are run by SDRC and by independent peer-led organizations. No additional income or asset test applies beyond Lanterman Act eligibility itself.

What it pays for

Anything that traditional Regional Center services would pay for, with far more flexibility on who delivers it and how it is structured

Community connectors, family-trained support workers, mentors

Technology — communication devices, smart-home tech, transportation apps

Custom day-program designs that mix work, classes, volunteering, and community time

Travel companions for trips to family events, conferences, vacations

Nontraditional therapies and supports, with prior approval through the spending plan

How to apply

Attend an SDP orientation. SDRC publishes the schedule; independent peer-led orientations are also available and often more useful.

Decide whether SDP is right for your family. SDP requires more participant and family work than traditional services, especially in the first year.

Sign up with SDRC. The service coordinator helps build a person-centered plan that becomes the foundation of the spending plan.

Choose a Financial Management Service (FMS). The FMS handles payroll, taxes, and bill payment for everyone you pay through SDP. There are several FMS providers operating in San Diego County.

Optionally, choose an Independent Facilitator. Independent Facilitators help with planning, hiring, and navigating the program. Some families do this themselves; others find an Independent Facilitator essential.

Build a spending plan tied to the person-centered plan. SDRC reviews and approves it.

Begin implementing — hire staff, sign vendor agreements, start services. The FMS pays them; you direct them.

Negotiating

The starting budget for an SDP plan is the amount the Regional Center would have spent on traditional services for that person. If the SDP budget feels lower than that, ask for the calculation in writing.

Build the spending plan from the person-centered plan, not from a list of services. The plan should answer "what life are we building?" and the spending follows.

Ask peer SDP participants for templates. Many families share their spending plans informally; San Diego SDP peer groups are active.

If you're denied

Spending-plan items can be denied. The denial is appealable through the same fair-hearing process as traditional Regional Center services - 30 days to file, free representation through the Office of Clients' Rights Advocacy (OCRA).

A common scenario is a spending-plan item being approved at a lower dollar amount. The fair-hearing process can address that as well.

Disability Rights California publishes SDP-specific appeal guides.

The Self-Determination Program (SDP) is the alternative to traditional Regional Center services. Instead of getting a menu of vendored services chosen by the Regional Center, your family gets a budget — calculated based on what traditional services would have cost — and you direct the spending. SDP exists because the family closest to a person knows the life they are trying to build, and the supports should be designed by the people who actually know that person.

What SDP changes

In traditional services:

The Regional Center authorizes services from vendored providers.
You can request specific vendors, but the menu is what the menu is.
Innovation is constrained by what the existing vendor system already does.

In SDP:

You design the supports.
You hire the people, with help from a Financial Management Service (FMS) that handles payroll.
You can pay for things traditional services do not pay for cleanly — a community connector, a travel companion, a tutor, a smart-home device, custom transportation.
You take on more of the planning and management work; an Independent Facilitator can help with this if you want one.

Who SDP works best for

SDP works best for families who:

Have specific, custom support needs that the existing vendor system does not match well.
Have time and energy to manage the program (or budget to pay an Independent Facilitator).
Want their loved one to have specific people in their life, not whoever an agency sends.
Are willing to learn a new system in the first year for a much better fit in years two and beyond.

SDP is not the right fit for every family — some families thrive in traditional services. The orientation is designed to help you decide.

What the spending plan looks like

The spending plan is the practical document that translates your loved one’s life goals into dollars. It might include:

Direct support staff hours, paid hourly, with people you choose.
A community connector, paid hourly or as a contractor, whose job is to help your loved one stay involved in community.
Transportation budget — could be ride-share credits, mileage to a family-trained driver, or a transportation pass.
Day-program participation, vendored or non-vendored.
Specific event tickets, class fees, or membership costs that support participation goals.
Technology — communication devices, calendar tools, safety devices.

Every line item ties back to a goal in the person-centered plan.

The first-year learning curve

SDP has real overhead in the first year. Hiring people, learning to work with the FMS, building a sustainable schedule. Most San Diego families who succeed at SDP credit two things:

An Independent Facilitator for the first year, even if you plan to do it yourself afterward.
A peer mentor — another family who is a year or two ahead in SDP. The peer-led SDP groups in San Diego County are warm and generous with their time.

When SDP shines

SDP shines for goals that traditional services struggle with:

A custom day program that mixes a part-time job, a class, and volunteering.
Travel and big new experiences.
Long-term relationships — keeping the same support staff over years.
Hobbies that require specific equipment, fees, or instruction.
Romance and partnership coaching.
The full menu of person-centered planning that the Lanterman Act intends but the vendor system rarely delivers cleanly.