H-1181.1 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 1688
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State of Washington 57th Legislature 2001 Regular Session
By Representatives Pflug, Quall, Talcott, McDermott, Anderson, Jarrett, Cairnes, Keiser, Ericksen, Edwards, Conway and Santos
Read first time 01/31/2001. Referred to Committee on Education.
AN ACT Relating to providing a housing supplement to the salaries of certain teachers and instructional staff; and creating new sections.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. It is the intent of the legislature to ensure that the common schools have adequate numbers of classroom teachers and other certificated instructional staff. The legislature finds there are significant disparities in living costs among regions within the state. The legislature finds that the largest component of these disparities is the cost of housing, which is significantly higher in certain areas of the state than in other areas of the state. The legislature finds that the percentage of salary required to procure housing in these areas is significantly greater for classroom teachers and other certificated instructional staff in these areas than in other areas of the state. The legislature further finds that the cost of housing in these areas in relation to salary compensation levels has contributed significantly to hardship among school districts in these areas in ensuring an adequate supply of well-qualified classroom teachers and other certificated instructional staff. Therefore, the legislature finds that there is a need to provide a housing supplement to the salaries of classroom teachers and other certificated instructional staff in areas of the state that are most affected by housing affordability concerns, and intends to provide such a housing supplement for the purposes stated. The legislature further intends that such a housing supplement in any year is subject to funding by the legislature, and that the housing supplement shall not be considered as within the definition of basic education for the purposes of chapter 28A.150 RCW.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The Washington state institute for public policy, in consultation with the office of the superintendent of public instruction, shall develop recommendations for a methodology for the state to use to provide supplements to the salaries of certificated instructional staff in common schools, for the purpose of reducing disparities in the purchasing power of salary compensation among different areas of the state and increasing the number of qualified teaching staff in areas with high housing costs.
(1) In developing its recommendations, the institute shall consider, but not be limited to:
(a) The identification of the most valid and reliable indices of housing affordability from one geographic location in the state to another;
(b) The most appropriate means of relating such indices of housing affordability by geographic location to employment in the individual school districts of the state;
(c) Alternative options for distributing housing supplements among certificated instructional staff through such an index;
(d) Means for allocating funds to school districts for the purpose of providing such housing supplements to certificated instructional staff, in a manner most consistent with the findings and intent of this act;
(e) Related issues as found necessary to the development of an efficient and equitable system of providing housing supplements to the salaries of certificated instructional staff.
(2) The Washington state institute for public policy shall make a report of its recommendations pursuant to subsection (1) of this section to the governor and the education and fiscal committees of the legislature no later than July 1, 2002.
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