In honor of Martin Luther King Day, many of us enjoyed Monday off. However, lawmakers in Olympia were hard at work. The House Education Committee held a public hearing on Monday, touching on topics ranging from firearm policy to expanding access of albuterol in public schools. The pace of the shorter sessions are striking, and the compressed time period results in a sort of frantic feel. In even years, out of necessity, legislators must get bills scheduled, heard and passed out of committee by the first cut-off date: Wednesday, February 4th. That means long hours for legislators and lots of behind-the-scenes work: crafting amendments and wrapping up negotiations. After that first cut off, policy committee members must hope that their fiscal counterparts will also see the import of their bill in order to keep it alive and moving steadily towards the governor’s desk.
On the supplemental budget front, Governor Ferguson is not getting much applause. According to Jerry Cornfield of the Washington State Standard, “In the course of six hours of public hearings over three days last week, dozens of people criticized the governor’s approach to closing a projected $2.3 billion shortfall.” The governor’s proposal to cap access to a coveted child care program and cut funding for public schools and colleges is leaving many in Olympia feeling low about what is to come. Jacqui Cain, president of the American Federation of Teachers in Washington, said across-the-board cuts would have “immediate consequences. Even modest cuts lead to hiring delays, fewer course offerings, and increased workloads.”
Committee Meetings Next Week on tvw.org
House Education Committee:
- Monday, January 26 @ 130pm
- Tuesday, January 27 @ 4pm
- Thursday, January 29 @ 8am
Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee:
- Tuesday, January 27 @ 8am
- Wednesday, January 28 @ 1030am
- Thursday, January 29 @ 1030am
New Bills this Week
HB 2534: which works to support the educational stability for children of military families. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27 at 4pm.
HB 2557: which would provide parental access to special education evaluation reports. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27 at 4pm.
HB 2551: which aims to maintain the financial solvency of school districts.
HB 2594: which would work to ensure that unhoused children and youths in Washington have equal access to free, appropriate public education. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27 at 4pm.
HB 2636: which requires reviews of the performance, operations, and funding of the state’s public education system.
SB 6192: which concerns intervention and instruction in reading and mathematics. Scheduled for public hearing on Thursday, January 29th at 10:30am.
SB 6222: which aims to support public school students by improving their access to surplus technology hardware. Scheduled for a public hearing on Wednesday, January 28th at 10:30am.
SB 6260: which aims to improve efficiencies and programming changes in public education. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27th at 8am.
SB 6261: which required signed declarations of intent of school enrollment or home-based instruction. Scheduled for a public hearing on Wednesday, January 28th at 10:30am.
SB 6268: which would create and maintain an online record of special education complaint decisions. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27th at 8am.
SB 6278: which concerns the ongoing review of approved teacher and principal preparation programs. Scheduled for a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27th at 8am.
House Bills We’re Following
SSHB 1634: which establishes a network of statewide and regional partners to provide school districts and public schools with the technical assistance, resources, and training necessary to coordinate comprehensive student supports across the behavioral health continuum (hearing time: 1:18:47). Testified in support: representatives from Washington Thriving, NCESD, WSPTA, WSASP, OSPI, North Thurston SD, several concerned citizens and a student from the Mercer Island SD. Testified in opposition: representatives from CCHR. The bill has passed out of committee.
HB 1795: this bill would prohibit specified interventions, including chemical and mechanical restraint, and prohibits the construction of isolation rooms, while allowing physical restraint and isolation of students under certain conditions. The bill would also prohibit the isolation of students in prekindergarten through fifth grade beginning August 1, 2027, except under specified conditions and modifies requirements for incident notification, review, and reporting, behavioral intervention planning; and policies and procedures. The bill has passed out of committee.
HB 2007: which would expand opportunities for competency-based assessments in graduation pathway options. Public hearing scheduled for Thursday, January 29th at 8am.
HB 2116: which deals with updating school enrichment funding on a proportional basis.
HB 2138: which aims to increase student performance in literacy through the hiring of reading coaches and would require OSPI to update teacher endorsement standards for reading and literacy.
HB 2160: which concerns eligibility for membership in the school employees’ benefits board programs during the second school year of employment.
HB 2246: which would allow school districts that discipline a student for a firearm-related violation to deny or limit the student’s return to the school and, or to prohibit/ limit the student’s participation in or attendance at extracurricular or other activities. This bill also gives the power to school boards regarding initial and final decisions regarding suspension or expulsion (hearing time: 3:10). Testifying as “other:” representatives from OSPI. Testifying in opposition: representatives from Teen Child.
HB 2282: which aims to support the implementation of transition to kindergarten programs.
HB 2360: which would expand access to albuterol in public and private schools (hearing time: 33:07).Testifying in support: representatives from WSNA, OSPI, and several concerned citizens. Testifying as “other:” a concerned citizen.
HB 2366: a companion bill to SB 5860, which would increase the compensation amount for school board directors from $50 per day, to $100 per day and would add child care costs as a type of expense to be paid when directors attend school board meetings.
HB 2369: which establishes the Washington Local Food for Schools Program (WLFSP) in the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to facilitate increased procurement and distribution of Washington-grown foods to participating school districts. (hearing time 22:04). Testifying in support: representatives from ESD 101, Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition, WCA, YLAC, WAF2Snetwork, Olympia SD and OSPI.
HB 2444: which seeks to require Washington state’s participation in the federal tax credit program for contributions of individuals to scholarship granting organizations in the effort to expand school choice.
Senate Bills We’re Following
SB 5574: which requires school districts to adopt a policy ensuring that instruction in Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Latino American, and Black American history is included in one or more required social studies courses when the district reviews or adopts its social studies curriculum during its regular review cycle (hearing time: 45:49). Testifying in support: representatives from the WEA, AWSP, Make Us Visible, SCPTSA, several concerned citizens, and a student at Bellevue HS. Testifying in opposition: a concerned citizen. The bill has passed out of committee and sent to the Senate Rules Committee.
SB 5841: which requires high school and beyond plans to contain evidence that the student has completed at least one state or federal financial aid application, or that their parent or legal guardian has opted the student out of this requirement.
SB 5849: which would make financial education a graduation requirement in Washington State.
SB 5859: which adds language regarding competency-based assessment to certain graduation pathways (hearing time 39:34). Testifying in support: representatives from Pearson and EDEXCEL. Testifying as “other:” representatives from AWSP and SBE.
SB 5860: which would increase the compensation amount for school board directors from $50 per day, to $100 per day and would add child care costs as a type of expense to be paid when directors attend school board meetings (hearing time: 16:47). Testifying in support: representatives from South Sound Superintendents. Testifying in opposition: representatives from Washington Citizens Against Unfair Taxes, and a concerned citizen. Testifying as “other:” representatives from WSSDA. The bill has passed out of committee and sent to the Senate Ways & Means Committee.
SB 5907: which would expand allowable enrollment in the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP), to children from a household with a parent who is a military member and has a family income under a specified threshold (hearing time: 58:24). Testifying in support: representatives of PSESD, Medical Lake SD, Children’ s Campaign Fund, WSA Head Start & ECEAP and the VLC.
SB 5918: which would increase allocations for materials, supplies, and operating costs by $100 per student or $100,000 per school district, whichever is greater, beginning in the 2026-27 school year (hearing time: 49:15). Testifying in support: representatives from the Renton Education Assoc, CAC, WASBO, WASA, WSSDA, WSPTA, Rural Ed Center, Shoreline PTA Council, Highline PS, Shoreline PS, Chewelah SD, LWSD, Olympia SD, PSE, Lake Chelan SD, OSPI and several concerned citizens. Testifying in opposition: representatives from WCAUT.
SB 5943: which allows expiring impact fees to be used to modernize school facilities to comply with state and federal laws regarding student safety, campus security, emergency response, and energy efficiency standards.
SB 5951: which requires the Secretary of Health to issue a statewide standing order to schools or school districts prescribing albuterol for any student or individual experiencing respiratory symptoms (hearing time: 1:15:46). Testifying in support: representatives from WSNA, and several concerned citizens.
SB 5952: which would direct WSSDA and OSPI to develop a standardized process, including a template form, for excusing individual high school students from participating in physical education in accordance with state law (hearing time: 59:09). Testifying in support: representatives from the SBE, several concerned citizens. Testifying in opposition: representatives from SHAPE WA, and a concerned citizen.
SB 5956: which prohibits certain decisions related to student discipline and school safety based on automated decision systems, school surveillance technology, biometric data, and facial recognition services. This bill would direct OSPI to update its guidance on artificial intelligence in K-12 education to address automated decision systems and school surveillance technologies (hearing time: 32:38). Testifying in support: representatives from the BESR and a concerned citizen. The bill has passed out of committee and was sent to the Senate Rules Committee.
SB 5961: a companion bill to HB 2371, this bill would transfer the imagination library program from the department of children, youth, and families to the office of the superintendent of public instruction (hearing time 1:23:40). Testifying in support: representatives from OSPI and the Imagination Library Program.
SB 5969: which would allow students with a required Individualized Education Program (IEP) transition plan to elect for their transition plan to fulfill the high school and beyond plan requirements (hearing time: 134:22). Testifying in support: representatives from the WEA, and the Communities of Schools in WA. Testifying as “other:” representatives from OSPI. Testifying in opposition: representatives from The Arc of King County, the SBE, LWSD, and a concerned citizen.
SB 5992: which would create a non-appropriated, youth development fund account and authorize the Superintendent of Public Instruction to distribute grant funding from the account to certain entities to support youth development programs (hearing time: 00:34). Testifying in support: representatives from the YDST, Girl on the Run PS, Justice for Girls Coalition, Mentor WA, CIS, Colville Tribes, Arts Corps, DNR and several high school students.
SB 6042: which would require all safe school plans to include school maps that are available to first responder agencies (hearing time: 1:26:38). Testifying in support: representatives from the Freeman SD, Gig Harbor Police Dept, Critical Response Group, GEOCON and a concerned citizen.
SB 6051: which would authorize school district boards of directors to grant waivers or partial waivers of state laws and rules to individual schools, within limits and according to a certain process (hearing time: 1:27 and 39:46). Testifying in support: a concerned citizen. Testifying as “other:” representatives from WASA and WSSDA. Testifying in opposition: representatives from the WEA, OSPI, and the SBE.
SB 6052: which would authorize the Washington School Information Processing Cooperative to develop a statewide digital transcript file standard and a secure, platform-independent environment for the exchange of transcript data between school districts, charter schools, state-tribal education compact schools, and postsecondary institutions (hearing time: 8:44).Testifying in support: representatives from EWU, The Council of Presidents, Independent Colleges of WA, OSPI, WSIPC, Edmonds SD, Auburn SD and a concerned citizen.
SB 6089: which aims to increase coordination and alignment among state agencies, educational institutions, and workforce partners across the education continuum (hearing time: 14:00). Testifying in support: representatives from LEV, WA STEM, Independent Colleges of WA, Communities in our Colleges, PSESD, WA Student Assoc. and The Children’s Alliance. Testifying as “other:” representatives of the WEA, OSPI and SBCTC.
SB 6118: a companion bill to HB 2549, which would require cardiac emergency response plans in schools. Public hearing scheduled for Wednesday, January 28th at 10:30am.
SB 6122: which would update the state’s distribution formula with the aim of increasing school district flexibility in expenditure of basic education funding.
SB 6125: which would provide enrollment stabilization funding. Public hearing scheduled for Wednesday, January 29th at 10:30am.
SB 6130: a companion bill to HB 2341, which would align Washington state with national civic engagement activities by celebrating national voter registration day. Public hearing scheduled on Tuesday, January 27th at 8am.
Odds and Ends
Time spent on phones during school continues to increase, a new study finds. From The Seattle Times’ Education Lab, UW Study Sheds Light on Student Phone Use During School.
Literacy and struggling secondary students. “What do I do when my student is three or four grade levels behind?” From EducationWeek, Secondary Students are Struggling with Reading Too. A Look at the Landscape.
CSTP’s Legislative Update Coordinator
Samantha Miller returns as CSTP’s Legislative Updates Coordinator for the 2026 legislative session. She writes weekly emails during the legislative session focusing on bills that impact Washington educators.
Samantha has degrees in both Political Science and History, as well as a Master’s in Teaching. Samantha has worked in Elementary Education for 8 years, most recently as a 3rd Grade general education teacher. The majority of her time is spent chasing around her two children who keep her very busy. Samantha enjoys running, working in her yard, listening to political podcasts, and spending time with her family.