BySenators Dozier, Braun, Gildon, Holy, Honeyford, King, Padden, Schoesler, Sefzik, Short, Wagoner, Warnick, J. Wilson, and L. Wilson

Read first time 01/13/22.Referred to Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education.

AN ACT Relating to establishing parents' bill of rights related to their child's public education; adding a new section to chapter 28A.150 RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 28A.345 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Parents and legal guardians with a child receiving a public education have the following rights in addition to any other rights provided by law:

(a) To know what their child is being taught in school including, but not limited to, curricula and instructional materials used within the curricula, and to have access to these materials for review either online or through an alternative method;

(b) To have information on who is teaching their child, including guest speakers and presenters who are not employed by the public school;

(c) To know the individuals, organizations, vendors, and other entities that have contracts with the school district or public school and are receiving public funding and to have access to this information for review online;

(d) To have access to and the ability to participate in school board of directors' meetings in accordance with the open public meetings act, chapter 42.30 RCW, and may include the elements described in section 2 of this act; and

(e) To be notified when there is a situation or incident affecting their child's health, safety, or well-being in school including, but not limited to, interactions with school employees.

(2) The office of the superintendent of public instruction and public schools must post these rights online.

(3) All the information that must be available online must be posted in a convenient place on each public school website and easy for parents and legal guardians to access and review.

(4) For the purposes of this section, "public school" has the same meaning as in RCW 28A.150.010.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28A.345 RCW to read as follows:

(1)(a) By September 1, 2022, the Washington state school directors' association must update a model policy and procedure regarding school board of directors meeting conduct, order of business, and quorum.

(i) Provide for increased public access and participation in board meetings through real-time telephonic, electronic, internet, or other readily available means of remote access to the meeting at no cost to members of the public;

(ii) Require an audio or video recording of, or to provide an online streaming option for, all regular board meetings; and

(iii) Make recordings of board meetings available online for a minimum of six months.

(c) The Washington state school directors' association must maintain the model policy and procedure on its website at no cost to school districts.

(2) School districts are encouraged to amend their policies and procedures to incorporate the elements of the updated model policy and procedure described in subsection (1) of this section.