(1)(a) A joint select committee on the early achievers program is established with members as provided in this subsection.

(i) Chair and ranking minority member of the house of representatives appropriations committee, or his or her designee who must be a member of the house of representatives appropriations committee;

(ii) Chair and ranking minority member of the senate ways and means committee, or his or her designee who must be a member of the senate ways and means committee;

(iii) Chair and ranking minority member of the house of representatives early learning and human services committee, or his or her designee who must be a member of the house of representatives early learning and human services committee; and

(iv) Chair and ranking minority member of the senate early learning and K-12 education committee, or his or her designee who must be a member of the senate early learning and K-12 education committee.

(b) The committee shall choose its chair or cochairs from among its legislative membership. The chair of the house of representatives early learning and human services committee, or his or her designee, and the chair of the senate early learning and K-12 education committee, or his or her designee, shall convene the initial meeting of the committee.

(2) Between July 1, 2018, and December 1, 2018, the early achievers joint select committee shall review the demand and availability of licensed or certified child care family homes and centers, approved early childhood education and assistance programs, head start programs, and family, friend, and neighbor caregivers by geographic region, including rural and low-income neighborhoods. This review shall specifically look at the following:

(a) The geographic distribution of these child care programs by type of program, programs that accept state subsidy, enrollment in the early achievers program, and early achievers rating levels; and

(b) The demand and availability of these child care programs for major ethnic populations.

(3) By December 1, 2018, the early achievers joint select committee shall make recommendations to the legislature on the following:

(a) The sufficiency of funding provided for the early achievers program;

(b) The need for targeted funding for specific geographic regions or major ethnic populations; and

(c) Whether to modify the deadlines established in RCW 43.215.135 for purposes of the early achievers program mandate established in RCW 43.215.100.

(4) Staff support for the committee must be provided by the senate committee services and the house of representatives office of program research.

(5) Legislative members of the committee must be reimbursed for travel expenses in accordance with RCW 44.04.120.

(6) The expenses of the committee must be paid jointly by the senate and the house of representatives. Committee expenditures are subject to approval by the senate facilities and operations committee and the house of representatives executive rules committee, or their successor committees.

(7) The committee shall report its findings and recommendations to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2018.

(8) This section expires December 1, 2019.

[2015 3rd sp.s. c 7 § 20.]

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