H-4302.1 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 2811
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 55th Legislature 1998 Regular Session
By Representatives Johnson, Cole, Talcott, Keiser and Quall
Read first time 01/20/98. Referred to Committee on Education.
AN ACT Relating to notification of nonrenewal of educational employees' contracts; and amending RCW 28A.405.210.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 28A.405.210 and 1996 c 201 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
No teacher, principal, supervisor, superintendent, or other certificated employee, holding a position as such with a school district, hereinafter referred to as "employee", shall be employed except by written order of a majority of the directors of the district at a regular or special meeting thereof, nor unless he or she is the holder of an effective teacher's certificate or other certificate required by law or the state board of education for the position for which the employee is employed.
The board shall make with each employee employed by it a written contract, which shall be in conformity with the laws of this state, and except as otherwise provided by law, limited to a term of not more than one year. Every such contract shall be made in duplicate, one copy to be retained by the school district superintendent or secretary and one copy to be delivered to the employee. No contract shall be offered by any board for the employment of any employee who has previously signed an employment contract for that same term in another school district of the state of Washington unless such employee shall have been released from his or her obligations under such previous contract by the board of directors of the school district to which he or she was obligated. Any contract signed in violation of this provision shall be void.
In
the event it is determined that there is probable cause or causes that the
employment contract of an employee should not be renewed by the district for
the next ensuing term such employee shall be notified in writing on or before
((May 15th)) June 30th preceding the commencement of such term of
that determination((,)) or ((if the omnibus appropriations act has
not passed the legislature by May 15th, then notification shall be)) no
later than ((June 1st)) thirty days after the governor signs the
omnibus appropriations act, whichever is later, which notification shall
specify the cause or causes for nonrenewal of contract. Such determination of
probable cause for certificated employees, other than the superintendent, shall
be made by the superintendent. Such notice shall be served upon the employee
personally, or by certified or registered mail, or by leaving a copy of the
notice at the house of his or her usual abode with some person of suitable age
and discretion then resident therein. Every such employee so notified, at his
or her request made in writing and filed with the president, chair or secretary
of the board of directors of the district within ten days after receiving such
notice, shall be granted opportunity for hearing pursuant to RCW 28A.405.310 to
determine whether there is sufficient cause or causes for nonrenewal of
contract: PROVIDED, That any employee receiving notice of nonrenewal of
contract due to an enrollment decline or loss of revenue may, in his or her
request for a hearing, stipulate that initiation of the arrangements for a
hearing officer as provided for by RCW 28A.405.310(4) shall occur within ten
days following July 15 rather than the day that the employee submits the
request for a hearing. If any such notification or opportunity for hearing is
not timely given, the employee entitled thereto shall be conclusively presumed
to have been reemployed by the district for the next ensuing term upon
contractual terms identical with those which would have prevailed if his or her
employment had actually been renewed by the board of directors for such ensuing
term.
This section shall not be applicable to "provisional employees" as so designated in RCW 28A.405.220; transfer to a subordinate certificated position as that procedure is set forth in RCW 28A.405.230 shall not be construed as a nonrenewal of contract for the purposes of this section.
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