HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 3030

             As Reported By House Committee On:

                          Education

Title:  An act relating to school district boundaries.

Brief Description:  Changing provisions relating to school district boundaries.

Sponsors:  Representatives Talcott, Smith and Bush.

Brief History:

  Committee Activity:

Education:  2/3/98, 2/5/98 [DPS].

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  Signed by 11 members:  Representatives Johnson, Chairman; Hickel, Vice Chairman; Cole, Ranking Minority Member; Keiser, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Linville; Quall; Smith; Sterk; Sump; Talcott and Veloria.

Staff:  Charlie Gavigan (786-7340).

Background:  The Legislature enacted the Acity or town districts@ statute in 1909, primarily to ensure that each city or town is served by a single school district.  Over the years, the Legislature has added several procedural requirements to change school district boundaries in response to city or town boundary changes.

Summary of Substitute Bill:  When school boundary changes are made, the State Board of Education may authorize up to a three-year transition period to implement the boundary changes to avoid undue hardship provide for an efficient transition.  This phase-in period applies to transferring operational responsibility for the education and transportation of students living within the territory transferred. The appropriate educational service district superintendent must prepare a boundary change implementation plan.

Substitute Bill Compared to Original Bill:  The substitute bill removes provisions changing the regional committees and removes the study.  The transition period for boundary changes is retained and clarified to apply to phasing-in operational changes.  Three statutes are changed to make them consistent with the provisions allowing a phase-in period.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Available.

Effective Date of Substitute Bill:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  The bill should just provide a transition period when school boundary changes are made; the rest of the bill should be removed.  A transition period to transfer operational responsibility resulting from school district boundary changes would be very helpful to make the process more efficient and cause fewer problems.

Testimony Against:  None (if amended to just provide a transition period).

Testified:  Representative Talcott, prime sponsor; Larry Davis and Linda Carpenter, State Board of Education (pro with amendment); Linda Bird, city of University Place (pro with amendment); Debbie Klosowski, Mayor, city of University Place (pro with amendment); John Davis, Clover Park School District (pro with amendment); Terry Lindquist, Puget Sound Educational Service District (pro with amendment); and Shiela Englehardt, Parents for Future Neighborhood Schools (pro with amendment).