2009 Legislative Priority and Supported Issues Update for WSPTA Convention

April 28, 2009

 

This update describes the current status of bills related to our 2009 platform. It is specifically

tailored to help members evaluate the 2009 legislative session with regard to our current

priorities and prepare issue submittals for the WSPTA Legislative Assembly in October. The

issue and legislative principal submittal form is due on June 1. The form is available on our

website at http://www.wastatepta.org/legislation.htm

 

Please read about WSPTA platform development changes for this two year cycle in the next

paragraph.

 

WSPTA Platform Development Changes for 2008-10: WSPTA has begun implementing a two year legislative issue life cycle, to follow the state legislative cycle. 2009 is the first year of the two year cycle. Legislative issues that comprise the 2008-09 platform will remain on the

platform for the 2010 legislative session. For the 2009 Legislative Assembly, you may submit

amendments to the current issues and/or new issues. Issues that are amended will retain their

position on the platform. New issues will be added to the end of the supported platform in

rank order.

 

Legislative Update: The 2009 Washington State Legislature concluded its regular session on

April 26, 2009. The Governor has 20 days from the final day of session to sign or veto all or

portions of each bill. To supplement this initial report we will issue a final bill report, which will

include budget detail, at the end of the signing period. This report will be posted to our

website and announced on our legislative listservs.

 

Outlook for the 2010 Legislative Session:

So much will depend on whether or not the economy begins to recover! The trend for this

session was to cut back on existing commitments, reduce funding for programs, and eliminate

boards and commissions. In the education world, “flexibility bills” were introduced that

reduced the number of legislative mandates and requirements on school districts. A summary

of the provisions of the flexibility bill that passed the legislature is at the end of this report.

 

Few new policy initiatives that required funding passed the legislature this session. Despite the

particularly difficult challenges, WSPTA, working in coalition with other groups, was able to

achieve significant progress on our top priority issue. ESHB 2261 lays the framework for

education finance reform, addressing our top priority issue to redefine and fully fund basic

education. Although passage of this legislation is historic, in the end this bill reflected ongoing

pessimism about the economic outlook by removing the start date and extending the date for

full implementation from 2016 to 2018. The budget that was just passed covers the two year

biennium from 2009-2011. It is not expect that new resources will appear during this biennium

to backfill the cuts that have been made. The hope is that the economy will begin to improve

so that additional cuts will not be necessary next session.

 

For each issue, I have included the current issue statement wording, an analysis of what

occurred this session and the outlook for next session, if known. The online version of this

report, available on the WSPTA website main legislative page, includes lives links to the

complete bill text of each bill.

 

Top Five Priority Issues vs. Progress Achieved in the 2009 Legislative Session

 

1. Basic Education Funding: The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or

policies that strive to redefine and appropriately fund a new basic education system in accordance

with the demands of education reform and our global economy. 2. that support a new definition of

Basic Education focused on improving student outcomes, instead of inputs such as seat time. 3.

which focus on meeting the needs of all children according to their individual potential and in

alignment with their personal goals 4. that increase the transparency, flexibility, equity and

accountability of the entire system.

 

Big success in one session! ESHB 2261, complex education finance reform legislation addressing our top priority issue, passed the legislature and is expected to be signed by the Governor soon. This bill

provides a framework to phase in an expanded definition of basic education and new funding. One of

the key elements is that it also provides for ongoing reevaluation of education needs by the Quality

Education Council, so that we don’t wait another 35 years to update our system. Below are the major

elements of the bill.

 

• Redefines Basic Education to include the following: increased instructional hours, from the

current 1,000 to 1,080 for grades 7-12, the opportunity to complete 24 credits for high school

graduation, all-day kindergarten, highly capable programs, targeted early learning and a new

transportation funding formula. These new pieces will not be added all at once, but will be phased

in according to an implementation schedule to be developed by the Quality Council, with a

completion date of 2018.

 

• Implements a prototypical schools funding model. The model will create a “core” allocations using

easy to understand categories with enhancements for certain staffing categories, including highly

capable, career/technology, and AP/IB programs.

 

• Creates the Quality Education Council as an on-going oversight entity. The Council, comprised of

eight legislators, representatives from OSPI, the governor’s office, the State Board of Education,

the Professional Educator Standards Board and the Department of Early Learning, would

recommend and assist with the on-going implementation of an evolving program of Basic

Education and financing.

 

• Creates four work groups on: Finance (to develop recommended revenue sources);

Supplemental Funding (to develop recommendations on local levies and levy equalization);

Compensation (to develop new Salary Allocation Model recommendations); and Early Learning

(to develop recommendations for a new program of early learning as Basic Education).

 

• Establishes a K-12 Data Governance Group, within OSPI, to assist in the design and

implementation of a data improvement system for financial, student, and educator data.

 

• Directs the State Board of Education to create a system of accountability to identify schools for

recognition and additional support for schools and school districts.

 

• Directs the Professional Educator Standards Board to adopt performance standards for effective

teaching and recommend other modifications for educator certification.

 

Much work will need to be done to follow up on this bill! WSPTA will continue to work in

Coalition with all other education stakeholders during the “interim” or time in between legislative sessions.

 

Right away we are interested in advocating for strong leaders to be appointed to the groups which

will do the important follow up work. It will also be critical to continue to engage our membership

on this top priority issue through education, outreach and mobilization efforts.

 

Funding: Working to secure adequate funding sources will be a key to successful implementation!

 

There was no funding source identified in the bill. Previous versions had offered inadequate funding

sources, which the Governor would not accept as part of the bill. The challenge now is to put

together a funding source that adequately addresses the need, which is estimated to be at

approximately 2 billion more per year. We will be following the finance work group very closely.

We will also continue to explore financing strategies and options both independently and in

coalition with other organizations.

 

Accountability: WSPTA Executive Director, Bill Williams, is our representative to the State Board of

Education stakeholder group that is working on development of a new state accountability system,

which is referenced in this bill. The goal is to identify and support schools that show persistent lack

of progress towards meeting achievement goals. The state board is striving to create a better

system and will seek approval for it to replace the punitive No Child Left Behind system.

 

Achievement Gap Work Group: Legislation to address the achievement gap was passed separately

(2SSB 5973 Bill as Passed Legislature), but is significantly related to education reform efforts aimed at

helping all kids achieve their potential. This bill creates an achievement gap oversight and

accountability committee to follow up on the work of the achievement gap studies that were

released earlier this year and will annually recommend strategies for closing the gaps. OSPI is also

charged with increasing the categories of disaggregation to assist groups with progress monitoring.

The Professional Educator Standards Board is charged with identifying model standards for cultural

competency.

 

2. Strengthening Math and Science Curriculum and Education:

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that strengthen math and science education by 1) providing students access to curricula that has clear examples and explanations, aligns with the new WA math and science standards and national math panel recommendations which include a focused, coherent progression that emphasizes key topics to prepare students for success in authentic algebra and geometry and simultaneously develops conceptual understanding; computational fluency in basic number facts, standard algorithms, and fractions; and problem-solving skills. Parent

involvement in all phases of math/science curriculum adoption is critical. 2) implementing initiatives

to attract, train, and retain qualified math/science teachers 3) providing students who are able to

excel in math/science opportunities to advance quickly.

 

We have been involved in the ongoing work which has been assigned by the legislature to the State

Board of Education and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. During the past year new

math and science standards have been developed and approved for K-12. Work to review curriculum to

align with these standard has been completed in math and is soon to be completed in science. WSPTA

has participated throughout, by testifying at meetings, sponsoring parent information forums and

soliciting parent volunteers for curriculum review committees. For more information about this work,

see the “key initiatives” section of the State Board of Education website.

 

http://www.sbe.wa.gov/keyinitiatives.html

 

ESSB 5414, which has passed the legislature this session, stipulates that OSPI must work with the

State Board of Education to develop an implementation plan and strategies to ensure that all students

have the opportunity to learn the new science and math standards. We will continue to follow this

work. Part of the concern here is that without new funding, many districts will not have the money to

purchase new curriculum materials that more closely align with the new standards. This group will

study ways for schools to supplement current materials. It will also look at the feasibility of the current

timelines for requiring passage of state tests in math and science for graduation. Finally, it will consider

whether or not to recommend end of course assessments for science.

 

3. Washington State Assessment System Improvements -

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that improve the Washington State Assessment System to make it more efficient and focused on student learning, while preserving high standards. This shall be accomplished by requiring the assessment system to 1) provide nationally comparable individual student progress data, 2) provide diagnostic assessments to determine student needs, 3) measure individual student growth in a manner that is reliable and valid, 4) provide results quickly so that they can be used to guide instruction during the current school year. The assessment system must also be cost and time efficient, while continuing to meet education testing requirements from the

federal government.

 

Progress is being made to address this issue by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

(OSPI). State Superintendent Randy Dorn was sworn into office in January, promising to make

significant changes to the state test. Work is underway on a new test which will be shorter and less

expensive to score, while still meeting No Child Left Behind requirements to test our state’s standards.

WSPTA has appreciated working closely with the new team (which retained some key folks from the

previous administration) regarding both the assessment system and the education finance reform

efforts.

 

During the 2008 interim, a legislative work group studied our current assessment system and made

recommendations for improvements which also aligned with our issue. ESSB 5414 was the vehicle

for implementing the recommendations of the work group. The final version which passed the

legislature begins this process. It stipulates that end of course assessments will be implemented in

2010-11 for algebra I and geometry. Other pieces of this bill, related to improving outcomes for

students in math and science, were discussed with the math and science issue. We had hoped that

more progress could be made this session in the development of diagnostic testing, which would help

teachers adjust instruction to better meet the needs of individual students. Though originally included

in the bill, this piece was removed due to budget concerns. As indicated earlier, the outlook for this next

session for new initiatives that cost money is quite bleak without new sources of revenue. However, we

will continue to speak to the need for progress here.

 

4. Support State Board of Education CORE 24 Framework -

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that endorse the Core 24 framework proposed by the State Board of Education. This proposal is contingent upon the provision of adequate, sustainable, supplemental funding from the State.

 

Success! ESHB 2261 includes phasing in implementation of the Core 24 framework developed by the

State Board of Education. The timeframe for implementation will depend upon the schedule developed

by the Quality Education Council and, of course, funding.

 

5. Support Rational Approaches to Teacher Compensation -

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that 1. eliminate outdated inequities based on the grandfathering that occurred when the current salary schedule was adopted. 2. promote teacher compensation agreements that have sufficient resources and flexibility to recruit and retain highly qualified professionals 3. base realistic pay on comparables considering state labor market factors,

plus characteristics that have been demonstrated to contribute to improved student outcomes.

There is progress being made to address the inequities in the state salary allocations due to

grandfathering, because of a lawsuit. A plan to study possible teacher compensation changes was

included in ESHB 2261. Work is to be led by the Office of Financial Management and is to begin in July,

2011. Prior to this and perhaps necessary to provide the groundwork, the Professional Educator

Standards Board is charged with adopting a set of articulated teacher knowledge, skill and performance

standards for effective teaching that are evidence-based, measurable, meaningful, and documented in

high quality research as being associated with improved student learning. They are also asked to

provide recommendations for the timelines and qualifications needed for residency, professional and

master level certification. As this work moves forward, there is much work to do with education

stakeholders to address concerns about any proposed changes to the current system.

 

 

Other Supported Issues:

 

Creating a School Safety Zone

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that that increase the

penalties for felony or registered crimes committed against children within 1000 feet of public schools, and

within 100 feet of bus stops. Crimes to include Luring, Stalking, Communication with a Minor for Immoral

Purposes, Indecent Exposure with Sexual Intent to a Minor, and all sex crimes or violent crimes.

No progress made on this issue this session.

 

Autism Insurance Parity

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that phase in health

insurance coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders.

There was a bill introduced this session SHB 1412 that addressed this issue. The bill did not pass due to

increased costs to the state. It is expected that this bill will be introduced again during better economic

times. There is powerful evidence that there are savings to be achieved down the road with early

intervention.

 

School Emergency Preparedness

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that strengthen the level of

emergency preparedness in our schools by requiring hands-on emergency training for staff members, as well

as providing clear guidelines requiring schools to have on hand emergency supplies and equipment, as

recommended by the American Red Cross, FEMA, and other state and national Emergency Management

experts. Such legislation must include the funding necessary for schools to meet these requirements.

Funding for training and emergency supplies and equipment must be included.

 

We appear to be going backwards on this issue, at least for the next biennium. The current budget calls

for substantially less funding for OSPI Safety Center activities, which include collaboration with

statewide emergency service providers, training materials, classes, task forces for specific topics, such as

“Gangs in Schools” and a statewide computer database for school safety information.

 

School Traffic Safety

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that mandate the creation

of posted school speed zones on any highway, road, or street adjacent to a public school and shall require

counties and incorporated cities/towns to post standardized advance warning signs that must include the

word “School”. In addition, local government, not public school districts shall be required to pay for the

installation and maintenance of traffic safety devices for school zones.

 

No progress made on this issue this session. Since local governments have also had to cut back their

budgets, the outlook for this issue is not good for next session.

 

Training for School Nurses

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that seek to provide state

funding for regional training and support for school nurses through the regional Educational Service District

and School Nurse Corps infra- structure. School nurses have to practice independently in non-medical

settings. The practice is unique and complex. New school nurses need specific orientation and mentoring to

quickly and competently practice in schools. With the rapidity of change in school health services, all school

nurses across Washington State need ongoing training and support.

 

No progress made on this issue this session. The outlook for additional funding for training is not good

for the next session without additional sources of revenue.

 

Firearm Violence Prevention

The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that promote the safe

storage of firearms to help curb unsupervised access to firearms by children or adolescents and encourage firearm violence prevention in school health programs.

 

No progress made on this issue this session.

 

Conditional Scholarships

Issue Statement: The Washington State PTA shall initiate and/or support legislation and/or policies that

provide links between state conditional college scholarships and loan repayment with federal conditional

scholarship and loan repayment programs. Both programs provide scholarship and loan repayment in

exchange of teaching service in Washington State’s public K-12 schools in high-need areas – including highneed areas of teaching, such as special education, math, science and teachers with bilingual abilities and

high-need districts of the state. These two programs should be linked to maximize the benefit of state

dollars.

 

No progress made on this issue this session.

 

Update on some of the other bills that we have been following this session:

 

Flexibility Bill ESSB 5889

Sent to the Governor for signature, this bill is the end result of several that focused on reducing the

responsibilities of school districts to reflect a concern about the burden of unfunded mandates. Some

minor reporting requirements were changed or eliminated. Classroom based assessments will no longer

be required in social studies, the arts and health and fitness. Many other attempts to reduce programs

or requirements, such as PE requirements and vision screenings, were removed from the final bill.

Districts will continue to provide hearing and vision screenings. A new provision that passed will allow

professionals to donate their services to school districts to administer the screenings. The professional

volunteers are prohibited from follow up contact with the families of those screened. In addition, the

school may not refer families to the professional volunteers.

 

There were pieces of this bill that remain that WSPTA has consistently opposed. Several sections

remove the requirement that schools notify parents in writing about policies and procedures that relate

to students’ programs of education and options. Those sections that still remain in the bill that we

opposed include enrollment options, program opportunities, parent involvement opportunities, and

education pathways. If this bill is signed by the Governor, schools will have the option to provide this

information online and in writing by request. Our concern is that not all parents have online access.

Will schools make sure that all students and families have access to important program information?

 

Given this new trend and the likelihood that this bill will be signed, it will be more important than ever

that PTA units are vigilant and involved in communication and outreach efforts to all parents.

 

Success this session! Recess bill SSB 5551

This legislation follows up on a top priority issue from two years ago, when several districts shortened or

eliminated recess periods in order to devote more time to academics. Senator Rosa Franklin introduced

this bill, which asks WSPTA to work with OSPI to conduct a survey of both attitudes and practices with

regard to elementary school recess. A report is due to the legislature on December 1, 2009. It was

signed by the Governor last Thursday during a ceremony that included busloads of children from Walla

Walla. WSPTA members Ian King, his daughter and Kim Golding who had come to Olympia several times

to testify, also attended. WSPTA will develop a process for writing and reporting the data soon.

 

Online Learning SSB 5410

Though no WSPTA issue has addressed this subject, online learning is certainly a growing trend

statewide and is a business that is attracting attention from legislators due to concerns about the quality

of some programs. This bill, which has been sent to the Governor for signature, charges the Office of

the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education with developing and

implementing approval criteria and a process for approving multidistrict online providers; a process for

monitoring and if necessary rescinding the approval of courses or programs offered by an online course

provider; and an appeals process. These processes shall be adopted by rule by December 1, 2009.

Another section of this bill charges school district boards of directors with developing policies and

procedures regarding student access to online courses and online learning programs by August 31, 2010.

OSPI and WSSDA are to develop model policies to assist school districts with this requirement.

 

Graduating without a certificate HB 1562

This bill was rushed through the legislature and signed by the Governor before the end of session,

reassuring some high school seniors who were in limbo, that they could graduate this year. The bill

ended the requirement that students who fail the math WASL must continue to take the math WASL

every year until graduation. This does not change the requirement that they continue to take math

classes every year. The requirement to take the WASL was not well understood, so many were out of

compliance. Especially since passing the math WASL is not a requirement for any student right now, this

bill made good sense!

 

This report is subject to changes which may be made by the Governor for those bills that have not been

signed. There is also a possibility of reconvening the legislature for a special session to address a handful of

bills that the legislature could not agree on, but which have significant budget implications. I will continue to

send updates via the Legislative listserv and the Grassroots Connection.

By Kim Howard, WSPTA Government Relations 253-241-7187