H-3078.1  _______________________________________________

                          HOUSE BILL 2356

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2002 Regular Session

By Representatives Kagi, McIntire, Santos, Dickerson, Tokuda, Darneille, Clements, Schual‑Berke and Wood

Read first time 01/15/2002.  Referred to Committee on Children & Family Services.

Requiring school age children in foster care to attend the same school after placement in foster care.

    AN ACT Relating to school placement for school age children in foster care; and adding a new section to chapter 74.13 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 74.13 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) A school age child in foster care fewer than sixty days shall, unless it is determined to be not in the best interest of the child, continue to attend school at the home school, notwithstanding the physical location of the child's principal abode.  The best interest of the child determination shall be made at the seventy-two hour shelter care hearing, and reviewed at any subsequent shelter care hearing.

    (2) The department, the home school, and the school that serves the child's foster home shall negotiate a plan for transporting the child to the home school.  This transportation plan shall assign responsibility to:

    (a) Transport the child; and

    (b) Pay the costs associated with the transportation.

    The department shall pay the transportation costs for no more than the first five school days of the foster care placement.  Thereafter, one or both of the affected schools shall pay the transportation costs.

    (3) If the department places a child in foster care, and the child does not continue to attend school at the home school, the department shall notify the home school.

    (4) For the purposes of this section, "home school" means the school where the child was enrolled before entering foster care.

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