Bill Summary for Selected Education Bills
2021 Legislative Session
Updated with information as of 02/01/2021
Scroll down for the bills.
“Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” — Demosthenes
CURE monitors all bills that go through the education committees and a few other selected bills that come to our attention. Only selected bills will be listed here.
Click on the bill number for more details.
S (substitute), E (engrossed), and/or a number in front of a bill number means that a bill has been changed from the original version. An ‘a’ after a bill number means the bill was amended by the opposite house. The changes can be small, technical matters or result in a complete overhaul of the bill, sometimes drastically altering its effect. When substantive changes occur, we will make note of it in the content summary. Bills numbered 1000 – 6999 originate in the House. Bills numbered 5000 – 8999 originate in the Senate. The designation HB (House Bill), HJR (House Joint Resolution), SB (Senate Bill), and SJR (Senate Joint Resolution) have been left off for space reasons.
TO ACT (DURING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION): Call the legislative hotline at 1-800-562-6000 (Toll free!). They will take messages on up to three bills. All you need to know is your address and the bill number. If you want to e-mail your legislator, e-mail lists are here:
If you are reading this at the start of session (January 11, 2021) these roster lists may not yet be updated with the current information.
Senate list: http://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Senators/Pages/default.aspx
House of Reps list: http://leg.wa.gov/house/representatives/Pages/default.aspx
Washington State Legislature district finder map: http://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/
See the Legislature’s cutoff calendar.
CCSS is “Common Core State Standards” (Federal standards) DEL is Department of Early Learning DCYF is Department of Children, Youth, and Families ECEAP is Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program FERPA is “Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act” OSPI is the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction; RCW is Revised Code of Washington (i.e. state laws) SBE is the State Board of Education SPI is the Superintendent of Public Instruction; STW is School-To-Work, i.e. gov’t-defined career tracks (not the same as traditional career exploration) .
Bill No. |
Summary |
Status |
Position |
| Generally, House hearings are held in the John L. O’Brien Bldg and Senate hearings are held in the J.A. Cherberg Bldg. | All hearing times are subject to change. |
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HB1113 |
By request of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Companion Bill is SB5153.
Concerning school attendance– allows schools to file a “petition for civil action” against a family after 5 unexcused absences in a month for student 8 years old and older. After 15 unexcused absences in a month, the District must file a civil action. Interventions and communications must be done in a culturally appropriate manner. |
House Education Committee | Oppose – Engaging students through remote learning is difficult. This bill is a heavy-handed approach.
|
HB1121 |
The State Board of Education may authorize districts to grant individual student emergency waivers of graduation requirements, while also working with the students to fulfill requirements. | Senate Early Learning/ K12 Committee | Support |
HB1215 |
Establishes a K12 education scholarship program | House Education Committee | Support with reservations. Concerns – how are recipients chosen? How is it funded? Do the gov’t funds bring gov’t mandates? Will private schools lose their independence? |
HB1225 |
Establishing a school-based health center program office within the department (presumably the Dept of Health) | House Healthcare & Wellness Committee | Oppose – Numerous state healthcare centers are already available where parents can bring their children. School-based health centers enable staff to treat children without the parents’ knowledge. |
HB1226 |
School district elections – allowing indebtedness to be incurred with a simple majority instead of the existing 3/5 requirement. | House Education Committee | Oppose – raising indebtedness should have a high bar. People who take on the debt may move, resulting in others paying for it, especially in high military personnel areas. |
HB1288 |
The bill proposes preferential treatment/recruitment for underserved groups in public employment, contracting, and education.. Basically, it repeals I-200, the equal treatment initiative. | House Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee | Oppose – all individuals should receive equal treatment. Washingtonians rejected unequal treatment through the initiative process. The Legislature should honor the peoples’ vote. |
HB1422 |
Postpones the dates for the implementation of the new Comprehensive Sexual Health program. | House Education Committee | Support |
HB1426 |
Specifying minimum continuing education requirements for administrator and teacher certificate renewals that focus on equity-based school and classroom practices. | House Education Committee | Oppose – we support equality, that is, equal opportunity and equal treatment. Equality is not the same as equity. Staff should see students as individuals, not as part of a racial, ethnic, or gender group. |
HJR4200 |
Amending the Constitution to allow a simple majority vote for school district bonds | House Education Committee | Oppose – raising indebtedness should have a high bar. People who take on the debt may move, resulting in others paying for it, especially in high military personnel areas. |
SB5030
|
Each school must develop a comprehensive school counseling program, which aligns with standards from a national organization representing school counselors. | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose – National counseling standards would impose one-size fits all standards. A grassroots local program is better in dealing with local problems and individual students. |
ESSB5044 |
Concerning professional learning, equity, cultural competency, and dismantling institutional racism in the public school system. | Senate Rules Committee | Oppose – Despite the flowery language, experience shows that these programs increase racism, not decrease it. |
SB5153 |
Companion bill is 1113. By request of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Concerning school attendance– allows schools to file a “petition for civil action” against a family after 5 unexcused absences in a month for student 8 years old and older. After 15 unexcused absences in a month, the District must file a civil action. Interventions and communications must be done in a culturally appropriate manner.
|
Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose -Engaging students through remote learning is difficult. This bill is a heavy-handed approach. |
SB5205 |
Establishing a K-12 education voucher program for every eligible child whose parent applies for a K-12 education voucher. Vouchers would be for at least $9000, to be adjusted annually, and would go from the OSPI to any voucher-redeeming school of the parents’ choice. (Home-based education is not affected.) | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose – regretfully. Gov’t funding always comes with gov’t strings attached. If a private school accepts the voucher, it will have to change to comply with gov’t standards. Most likely religious schools will not be allowed under the WA Constitution. See SB5257 for a possible better solution. |
SB5257 |
Exempting homeowners from the state and local enrichment property tax levies if their children attend private or home school. | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Support – Interesting idea. This method would allow private and religious schools to retain independence, and homeschoolers could receive aid. |
SB5340 |
Expands the eligibility criteria for school board directors to allow lawful permanent residents to qualify, rather than only United States citizens. Provides that a school board director does not need to be a registered voter to qualify, but still must be at least 18 years old and reside within the district | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose – School board candidates should be registered voters and US Citizens. This is another step toward eroding our election system. |
SB5374 |
Requiring students to study political systems and the negative effects of communism | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Support |
SB5386 |
Lowering the requirement for a district to pass bonds and levies to 55% instead of the current 60%. | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose- raising indebtedness should have a high bar. People who take on the debt may move, resulting in others paying for it, especially in high military personnel areas |
SB8204 |
Amending the Constitution to allow 55% of voters to authorize school district bonds | Senate Early Learning and K12 Education Committee | Oppose- raising indebtedness should have a high bar. People who take on the debt may move, resulting in others paying for it, especially in high military personnel areas |
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