AN ACT Relating to adult literacy; adding new sections to chapter 28A.03 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that:

(a) Over twenty-six million American adults are functionally illiterate or approximately one out of every five adults age eighteen or older nationally;

(b) An illiterate adult earns forty-two percent less than a literate high school graduate, resulting in an estimated eight billion dollars annual loss nationally in tax revenues;

(c) In Washington, it is estimated that more than four hundred sixty-five thousand adults, one out of every seven, are functionally illiterate and that at least two hundred fifty thousand state citizens age eighteen and above have educational skills at or below the eighth grade level;

(d) The 1980 census reported that twenty-two and four-tenths percent of the state's adult population did not graduate from high school;

(e) Functionally illiterate adults are prevented from participating more fully in the democratic process and society at large due to their lack of or underdeveloped reading and writing skills;

(f) The problem of adult illiteracy in Washington state may be more pervasive than current information reveals and indicates, and that adult illiteracy creates an adverse economic impact upon the state; and

(g) Current research and information indicates a diverse range of abilities among the adult illiterate population in Washington, that one-to-one tutoring instruction is effective for adults who read at or below the sixth grade level, and that diverse services are not coordinated effectively.

(2) Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature to initiate a program to provide for the effective coordination of a state-wide system of adult literacy volunteers. The program shall be implemented to support the goal of a fully literate workforce.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28A.03 RCW to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout sections 3 and 4 of this act.

(1) "Superintendent" means the superintendent of public instruction.

(2) "Coalition" means the Washington advisory coalition for adult literacy.

(3) "Coordinator" means the community volunteer coordinator.

(4) "Literacy program" means educational services designed to help adults remedy their inability to speak, read, or write the English language and thus enable them to meet their adult responsibilities better.

(5) "Adult" means any individual who is sixteen years of age or older.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28A.03 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall develop and administer, in conjunction with federal adult basic education programs, a state literacy program that provides for the delivery of services through a coordinated system of volunteers. The program shall have as a state-wide goal a literacy program in each community where there is a need for such a program. The superintendent of public instruction shall determine the number of coordinators needed state-wide to implement effectively the state-wide literacy program. The superintendent shall develop necessary rules under chapter 34.04 RCW to implement the program.

(2) The superintendent of public instruction shall provide for services under the literacy program. All public and private nonprofit organizations whose purpose is to increase adult literacy shall be eligible to apply to the superintendent of public instruction for state reimbursement for costs of providing adult literacy services under the literacy program established under this section. Such applications shall be prepared, submitted, and approved under rules adopted by the superintendent of public instruction in accordance with chapter 34.04 RCW. These rules shall provide for and require, if there are multiple adult literacy organizations in one community, that these organizations submit a joint application and that the program and services provided by the organizations under the programs established under this section be conducted jointly.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 28A.03 RCW to read as follows:

(1) There is established the Washington advisory coalition for adult literacy. The coalition shall advise the superintendent of public instruction and the governor on adult literacy issues. The coalition shall serve as a resource to the superintendent for purposes of implementing and monitoring the literacy program established under section 3 of this act and to help the superintendent find ways to fulfill the goal of a full literate workforce.

(2) The coalition shall be composed of:

(a) The superintendent of public instruction or the superintendent's designee;

(b) A representative of the office of the governor appointed by the governor;

(d) A representative of the department of social and health services appointed by the secretary of the department;

(e) A representative of the department of corrections appointed by the secretary of the department;

(f) A representative of the state library appointed by the state librarian;

(g) A representative of business appointed by the governor;

(h) A representative of labor appointed by the governor;

(i) Two citizens participating as volunteers in a local adult literacy program appointed by the governor; and

(j) A representative of a community-based organization involved professionally in promoting literacy in the state.

(3) The members of the coalition shall be reimbursed for travel expenses as provided in RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

(4) At the discretion of the superintendent of public instruction, up to eight percent of state funds appropriated to the superintendent for the literacy program created under section 3 of this act may be allocated to the Washington advisory coalition for adult literacy established under this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The superintendent of public instruction and the Washington coalition for adult literacy shall report to the governor and the legislature annually on the progress of the literacy program established under section 3 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The sum of five hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1987, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.