Examination of racial/ethnic disproportionality of autism in California

•Racial/Ethnic disparities continue to exist for minoritized communities.•We analyzed risk ratio data for the special education category of autism and gathered caregiver perspectives.•White students were overrepresented in the autism category of special education in California.•All the districts in the sample had a large percentage of Latinx/Hispanic students.•English speaking parents were more likely to identify the early signs of autism.