AN ACT Relating to educational restructuring; adding new sections to Title 28A RCW; creating new sections; making appropriations; providing an expiration date; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature believes it shares in the public obligation to foster and sustain a professional educational environment that is not limited to but has the following characteristics:

(a) Attracts individuals to the teaching profession;

(b) Encourages creativity and cooperation among teachers and other certificated and classified staff;

(d) Enhances the intrinsic rewards certificated instructional staff gain from helping students learn; and

(e) Provides certificated instructional staff with compensation that takes into account job performance but is also commensurate with public expectations for both professional educators and the public education system.

(2) The legislature believes that a new approach to educational restructuring is necessary. The approach suggested under sections 101 through 114 of this act is intended to encourage parents and students, instructional, administrative and classified staff, school directors, business and labor, and citizens to become involved with individual school buildings. The approach is intended to foster state-wide educational improvement and restructuring by having individual buildings compete against themselves and measure the success of their efforts against performance goals tailored to the respective learning communities of each building.

(3) The legislature finds that accountability and compensation are critical variables affecting the success of the education system. To foster educational restructuring efforts in Washington, it is the intent of the legislature to initiate a three-part plan to link educational productivity more closely with compensation and to provide and maintain a level of compensation for professional educators that is:

(a) Commensurate with public expectations;

(b) Comparable to other professions requiring similar educational experience; and

PART I

BUILDING-BASED PRODUCTIVITY INCENTIVE GRANT PROGRAM

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NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. Reflecting upon RCW 28A.58.081(1), it is the intent of the legislature in sections 102 through 114 of this act to provide additional support to schools and school districts for educational restructuring efforts that focus on the school building as the central educational environment for change.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) From funds appropriated by the legislature, the superintendent of public instruction shall establish a voluntary, building-based productivity incentive grant program to assist school districts in educational restructuring efforts.

(2) The building-based productivity incentive projects may be conducted for up to six years, if funds are so provided. Subject to task force approval and continued state funding, projects initially funded for two years may be extended for a total period not to exceed six years. Future funding shall be conditioned on a positive evaluation of the project by the task force.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) There is hereby established a productivity task force comprised of sixteen members as follows:

(a) Three members representing the business community appointed by the chief executive or administrative officer of the private sector organization representing the largest businesses in the state;

(b) Two members representing classroom teachers appointed by the president of the largest education association in the state representing classroom teachers;

(c) One member representing building principals appointed by the chief executive officer of the state education association representing school principals;

(d) One member representing school district superintendents appointed by the chief executive officer of the state education association representing superintendents;

(e) One member representing school directors appointed by the executive director of the Washington state school directors' association;

(f) One member representing the state's public and private teacher education programs appointed by the president of the organization representing the deans of the colleges of teacher education;

(g) Two members representing parents appointed by the chief executive officer of the organization representing local parent- teacher associations;

(h) Four legislators with two appointed by the president of the senate, one from each caucus, and two appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, one from each caucus; and

(i) The superintendent of public instruction who shall be a nonvoting member of the task force but who shall serve as the chair of the task force.

(2) All members of the task force shall have full voting privileges except for the chair.

(3) All members shall be appointed within thirty days of the effective date of this section. Designated representatives may attend meetings of the appointed members.

(4) Nonlegislative members shall be reimbursed for travel expenses under RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060. Legislative members shall be reimbursed for travel expenses under RCW 44.04.120.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) The productivity task force shall have sole responsibility for:

(a) Selecting project applicants for grant awards;

(b) Establishing an initial maximum level for performance bonuses paid to individual building staff pursuant to section 109(4) of this act. The minimum level shall be not less than one thousand dollars; and

(2) The task force may:

(a) Recommend to the superintendent of public instruction grant amounts for the selected projects; and

(b) Recommend to the superintendent of public instruction possible additional grant application criteria.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. (1) The superintendent of public instruction may adjust the amounts of the grant awards recommended by the task force to assure that the sum total of all grants awarded does not exceed the amount appropriated by the legislature for the building-based productivity incentive grant program.

(2)(a) The superintendent of public instruction shall award grants in two phases. The first grant shall be awarded to districts for planning activities relating to implementation of the local incentive grant project, including use of grant funds for necessary in-service and staff development training and for development of new assessment measures.

(b) The second grant shall be awarded to districts after an evaluation by the task force of how well the projects in the district achieved performance goals pursuant to section 106(2)(e) of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. (1) Schools or school districts interested in implementing or enhancing a building-based productivity incentive project shall submit a grant application to the superintendent of public instruction. An application for a project not involving the entire district shall be submitted by the district's board of directors. Applicants are encouraged to conduct or link their application procedures to the self-study provisions of RCW 28A.58.085.

(2) Grant applications shall include:

(a) Documentation that the district held at least one public hearing on its proposed building-based productivity incentive project. The public hearing required under this subsection, and such other public hearings as may be held, may be held as part of the public hearings required pursuant to chapter 28A.65 RCW;

(b) Documentation that the school building held at least one public hearing on its proposed building-based productivity incentive project;

(d) A description of how the incentive grant funds will be expended, including budgeted expenditures for the project. Applications shall indicate how the grant funds will be expended on an annual basis. The expenditure plan may be included as part of the district's annual budget required under chapter 28A.65 RCW;

(e) A restructuring component relating to:

(i) Curriculum and instruction;

(ii) Authority and decision-making;

(iii) New staff roles;

(iv) Accountability systems; or

(v) Any combination of the components listed in (f)(i) through (iv) of this subsection;

(f)(i) Identification of the evaluation and accountability procedures and activities to be used to measure school-wide student and staff performance and to assess the overall effectiveness of the project. Particular weight shall be given to applications that include measures to assess students' ability to read, write, think, speak, and listen critically;

(ii) Specific performance goals and indicators of progress made toward achieving the goals. Goals relating to parent, student, and teacher support and morale, and student and teacher attendance shall be included in the grant application. In addition, performance goals for at least two subject areas shall also be included, one of which shall be in reading;

(g) A written statement that school directors and administrators are willing to exempt the incentive grant schools from specifically identified local rules, as needed;

(h) A written statement that the school directors and the local bargaining agents will modify those portions of their local agreements as applicable for the incentive grant schools; and

(i) Written statements of support from the district's board of directors, the district superintendent, and the principal and staff of the building requesting to become an incentive grant school, and statements of support, willingness to participate, or concerns from any interested parent, business, or community organization.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Grant applications may be submitted jointly by two or more school districts or by an educational service district on behalf of one or more school districts. An application may include a proposal for two or more school buildings to implement jointly a building-based productivity incentive grant project.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Applications for participation in the building-based productivity incentive grant program shall be subject to chapter 41.59 RCW. Pursuant to section 106(2)(h) of this act, this requirement shall not be applicable if there is a written agreement between the district board of directors and the exclusive bargaining representatives in the district to waive the provisions of chapter 41.59 RCW for purposes of applying for the incentive grant program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Pursuant to section 105 of this act, grant funds may be used for the following purposes:

(1) Planning;

(2) In-service and staff development training;

(3) Purchase of instructional materials, supplies, and resources;

(4) Performance bonus stipends or salary and compensation increases for certificated or classified staff under RCW 28A.58.0951(4) based on the school's level of achieving the identified performance goals for the year, or based on differentiated staff responsibilities in meeting the identified performance goals;

(5) Funding a compensation model that is characterized by:

(a) Differentiated levels of employment classification for certificated instructional staff;

(b) Differentiated responsibilities for each level of employment classification;

(c) Differentiated compensation for each level of employment classification which shall be based on at least one factor other than years of experience and level of educational attainment;

(d) An evaluation component with particular but not exclusive focus on formative evaluation; and

(e) An in-service/staff development component; or

(6) Any combination of the above.

It is the responsibility of the school staff to determine how the grant funds will be used and to determine, if applicable to the project, how much each staff member will receive.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. Use of incentive grant funds for the purpose of section 109(4) of this act shall not be deemed an increase in salary or compensation for the purposes of RCW 28A.58.0951, nor shall such compensation be applied to the district's salary schedule or be provided in a manner that would increase the state's basic education funding obligation.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. (1) Each school district shall report to the superintendent of public instruction by November 1, 1991, and by November 1 of each subsequent even-numbered calendar year, the following information:

(a) The educational restructuring activities and related purposes, if any, for which the incentive grant funds were expended; and

(b) The means and the results of evaluating the educational benefits received by students, building staff, and parents resulting from the implementation of the local building-based productivity incentive grant project.

(2) By December 1, 1991, and by December 1 of each subsequent even-numbered calendar year, the superintendent of public instruction shall provide the legislature and the governor a report on the building-based productivity incentive grant program.

(3) In the report due December 1, 1994, the superintendent shall include recommendations on the feasibility and advisability of implementing performance goals state-wide and how such goals might be recognized as part of the salary schedule developed by the legislative evaluation and accountability program committee.

(4) The superintendent of public instruction shall submit a final report to the legislature and the governor not later than December 1, 1996.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. The task force shall establish the initial maximum level for performance bonuses paid to individual building staff pursuant to section 109(4) of this act by not later than April 30, 1990. Pursuant to section 113 of this act, the superintendent of public instruction shall adopt the performance bonus level set by the task force.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. (1) The superintendent of public instruction shall adopt rules as necessary under chapter 34.05 RCW to implement sections 101 through 112 of this act. The rules shall be adopted not later than June 15, 1990. The superintendent may not adopt any rule that supersedes or otherwise infringes upon the responsibilities of the task force under sections 104 and 112 of this act.

(2) The rules shall include the following dates to govern administration of the grant program:

(a) Initial applications must be received by the superintendent of public instruction not later than September 15, 1990;

(b) The task force shall review the applications and make its selections by November 15, 1990;

(d) The initial building-based productivity incentive grant projects shall commence during the 1991 calendar year of the 1990-91 school year.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. (1) Sections 101 through 113 of this act do not prohibit a school district from incorporating a building-based productivity incentive project as part of a schools for the twenty-first century pilot program.

(2) Pursuant to RCW 28A.100.038(6), no project under the schools for the twenty-first century program is precluded from implementing a staff incentive pay system that may be part of a building-based productivity incentive grant project established under sections 102 through 113 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. Sections 101 through 114 of this act are each added to Title 28A RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. Sections 101 through 115 of this act shall expire December 31, 1996.

PART II

COMPENSATION IMPROVEMENT PLAN

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NEW SECTION. Sec. 18. (1) The superintendent of public instruction, in consultation with teachers, administrators, school directors, business, labor, parents, and legislators shall conduct a study of compensation for professional educators in Washington. The study shall include, but is not limited to, a review of the relationship between compensation for certificated instructional staff, and:

(a) Salaries paid:

(i) In other professions requiring comparable educational experience and preparation;

(ii) To teachers in other states; and

(iii) To teachers in other countries;

(b) The in-service training act of 1977, RCW 28A.71.200 and 28A.71.210;

(c) In-service/staff development opportunities sponsored by school districts, educational service districts, or other providers of in-service/staff development programs;

(d) The provisions of RCW 28A.71.110 that allow credit on the salary schedule developed by the legislative evaluation and accountability program committee for approved in-service and continuing education;

(e) The state board of education's continuing education requirement for certificated instructional staff with continuing certificates;

(f) The length of the school year for contracted certificated employees;

(g) The teacher assistance program under RCW 28A.67.240;

(h) The self-study program under RCW 28A.58.085;

(i) The schools for the twenty-first century program under RCW 28A.100.030 through 28A.100.068;

(j) The evaluation of certificated employees under RCW 28A.67.065;

(k) State board of education teacher assignment and certificate endorsement policies;

(l) Certification requirements under chapter 28A.70 RCW;

(m) The Washington award for excellence in education program under RCW 28A.03.523 through 28A.03.538, and particularly the Christa McAuliffe award under that program under RCW 28A.03.526;

(n) Local education program enhancement funds; and

(o) The results of the studies by the state board of education on internships under RCW 28A.04.170 and alternative certification under RCW 28A.04.174.

(2) The superintendent of public instruction is encouraged to follow up on any offer by a public or private entity to conduct a study of teachers' salaries.

(3) Based on the results of the study findings, the superintendent shall submit to the legislature and the governor not later than December 1, 1990, a plan to bring professional educator salaries to a level that places Washington in the top ten states by the beginning of the 1996-97 school year.

PART III

COMPENSATION MAINTENANCE PLAN

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NEW SECTION. Sec. 19. The superintendent of public instruction, in consultation with teachers, administrators, school directors, business, labor, parents, and legislators shall study and recommend to the legislature and the governor not later than December 1, 1991, a plan to maintain salaries for professional educators in Washington at the levels to be established under section 201(2) of this act. The plan may include the use of peer states.

PART IV

MISCELLANEOUS

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NEW SECTION. Sec. 20. (1) The sum of thirty-four million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the purposes of sections 101 through 113 of this act.

(2) Not more than twenty-five thousand dollars of the appropriation under subsection (1) of this section shall be allocated to support the activities of the task force established under section 103 of this act.

(3) Not more than one hundred thousand dollars of the appropriation under subsection (1) of this section shall be expended by the superintendent for administrative activities related to implementing sections 101 through 113 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 21. The sum of one hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the purposes of sections 201 and 301 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 22. 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.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 23. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.