AN ACT Relating to educational service districts; and amending RCW 28A.21.090, 28A.21.310, 28A.21.086, and 28A.41.540.

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

Sec. 1. Section 9, chapter 176, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 3, chapter 56, Laws of 1983 and RCW 28A.21.090 are each amended to read as follows:

In addition to other powers and duties as provided by law, every educational service district board shall:

(1) Approve the budgets of the educational service district in accordance with the procedures provided for in this chapter.

(2) Meet regularly according to the schedule adopted at the organization meeting and in special session upon the call of the chairman or a majority of the board.

(3) Approve the selection of educational service district personnel and clerical staff as provided in RCW 28A.21.100, as now or hereafter amended.

(4) Fix the amount of and approve the bonds for those educational service district employees designated by the board as being in need of bonding.

(5) Keep in the educational service district office a full and correct transcript of the boundaries of each school district within the educational service district.

(6) Acquire by directly borrowing funds or by purchase, lease, devise, bequest, and gift and otherwise contract for real and personal property necessary for the operation of the educational service district and to the execution of the duties of the board and superintendent thereof and sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of that property not necessary for district purposes: PROVIDED, That no real property shall be acquired or alienated without the prior approval of the state board of education and the acquisition or alienation of all such property shall be subject to such provisions as the board may establish.

(7) Adopt such bylaws and rules and regulations for its own operation as it deems necessary or appropriate.

(8) Enter into contracts, including contracts with common and educational service districts for the joint financing of cooperative service programs conducted pursuant to RCW 28A.21.086(3), and employ consultants and legal counsel relating to any of the duties, functions, and powers of the educational service districts.

Sec. 2. Section 2, chapter 210, Laws of 1977 ex. sess. and RCW 28A.21.310 are each amended to read as follows:

The board of any educational service district may enter into contracts for their respective districts for periods not exceeding ((~~five~~)) twenty years in duration with public and private persons, organizations, and entities for the following purposes:

(1) To rent or lease building space, portable buildings, security systems, computers and other equipment; and

(2) To have maintained and repaired security systems, computers and other equipment.

The budget of each educational service district shall identify that portion of each contractual liability incurred pursuant to this section extending beyond the fiscal year by amount, duration, and nature of the contracted service and/or item in accordance with rules and regulations of the superintendent of public instruction adopted pursuant to RCW 28A.65.465 and 28A.21.135, as now or hereafter amended.

Sec. 3. Section 11, chapter 282, Laws of 1971 as last amended by section 1, chapter 46, Laws of 1982 and RCW 28A.21.086 are each amended to read as follows:

In addition to other powers and duties as provided by law, every educational service district board shall:

(1) Comply with rules or regulations of the state board of education and the superintendent of public instruction.

(2) If the district board deems necessary, establish and operate for the schools within the boundaries of the educational service district a depository and distribution center for films, tapes, charts, maps, and other instructional material as recommended by the school district superintendents within the service area of the educational service district: PROVIDED, That the district may also provide the services of the depository and distribution center to private schools within the district so long as such private schools pay such fees that reflect actual costs for services and the use of instructional materials as may be established by the educational service district board.

(3) Establish cooperative service programs for school districts within the educational service district and joint purchasing programs for schools within the educational service district pursuant to RCW 28A.58.107(3), as now or hereafter amended: PROVIDED, That on matters relating to cooperative service programs the board and superintendent of the educational service district shall seek the prior advice of the superintendents of local school districts within the educational service district.

(4) Establish direct student service programs for school districts within the educational service district including pupil transportation. However, for the provision of state-funded pupil transportation for special education cooperatives programs for special education conducted under chapter 28A.13 RCW, the educational service district, with the consent of the participating school districts, shall be entitled to receive directly state apportionment funds for that purpose: PROVIDED, That the board of directors and superintendent of a local school district request the educational service district to perform said service or services: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the educational service district board of directors and superintendents agree to provide the requested services: PROVIDED, FURTHER, That the provisions of chapter 39.34 RCW are strictly adhered to.

Sec. 4. Section 6, chapter 265, Laws of 1981 and RCW 28A.41.540 are each amended to read as follows:

The superintendent shall determine the vehicle acquisition allocation in the following manner:

(1) By May 1st of each year, the superintendent shall develop preliminary categories of student transportation vehicles to ensure adequate student transportation fleets for districts. The superintendent shall take into consideration the types of vehicles purchased by individual school districts in the state. The categories shall include, but not be limited to, variables such as vehicle capacity, type of chassis, type of fuel, engine and body type, special equipment, and life of vehicle. The categories shall be developed in conjunction with the local districts and shall be applicable to the following school year. The categories shall be designed to produce minimum long-range operating costs, including costs of equipment and all costs incurred in operating the vehicles. Each category description shall include the estimated state-determined purchase price, which shall be based on the actual costs of the vehicles purchased for that comparable category in the state during the preceding twelve months and the anticipated market price for the next school fiscal year. By June 15th of each year, the superintendent shall notify districts of the preliminary vehicle categories and state-determined purchase price for the ensuing school year. By October 15th of each year, the superintendent shall finalize the categories and the associated state-determined purchase price and shall notify districts of any changes. While it is the responsibility of each district to select each student transportation vehicle to be purchased by the district, each district shall be paid a sum based only on the amount of the state-determined purchase price and inflation as recognized by the reimbursement schedule established in this section as set by the superintendent for the category of vehicle purchased.

(2) The superintendent shall develop a reimbursement schedule to pay districts for the cost of student transportation vehicles purchased after September 1, 1982. The accumulated value of the payments and the potential investment return thereon shall be designed to be equal to the replacement value of the vehicle less its salvage value at the end of its anticipated lifetime. The superintendent shall revise at least annually the reimbursement payments based on the current and anticipated future cost of comparable categories of transportation equipment. Reimbursements to school districts for approved transportation equipment shall be placed in a separate vehicle transportation fund established for each school district under RCW 28A.58.428. However, educational service districts providing student transportation services pursuant to RCW 28A.21.086(4) and receiving moneys generated pursuant to this section shall establish and maintain a separate vehicle transportation account in the educational service district's general expense fund for the purposes and subject to the conditions under RCW 28A.58.428 and 28A.58.430.

(3) To the extent possible, districts shall operate vehicles acquired under this section not less than the number of years or useful lifetime now, or hereafter, assigned to the class of vehicles by the superintendent. School districts shall properly maintain the transportation equipment acquired under the provisions of this section, in accordance with rules established by the office of the superintendent of public instruction. If a district fails to follow generally accepted standards of maintenance and operation, the superintendent of public instruction shall penalize the district by deducting from future reimbursements under this section an amount equal to the original cost of the vehicle multiplied by the fraction of the useful lifetime or miles the vehicle failed to operate.

(4) The superintendent shall annually develop a depreciation schedule to recognize the cost of depreciation to districts contracting with private carriers for student transportation. Payments on this schedule shall be a straight line depreciation based on the original cost of the appropriate category of vehicle.