BILL REQ. #:  H-3711.1 

Read first time 01/19/2004.   Referred to Committee on Education.

     AN ACT Relating to transfer students; amending RCW 28A.225.225; and adding a new section to chapter 28A.150 RCW.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 28A.225.225 and 2003 c 36 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except for students who reside out-of-state, a district ((shall)) must accept applications from nonresident students who are the children of full-time certificated and classified school employees, and those children ((shall be)) are permitted to enroll:
     (a) At the school to which the employee is assigned; or
     (b) At a school forming the district's K through 12 continuum which includes the school to which the employee is assigned.
     (2) A district also must accept applications from nonresident students who are transferring under section 2 of this act and permit those children to enroll and attend school for the duration of the school calendar year during which a strike or work stoppage occurs.
     (3) A district may reject applications under this section if:
     (a) The student's disciplinary records indicate a history of convictions for offenses or crimes, violent or disruptive behavior, or gang membership;
     (b) The student has been expelled or suspended from a public school for more than ten consecutive days. Any policy allowing for readmission of expelled or suspended students under this subsection (((2))) (3)(b) must apply uniformly to both resident and nonresident applicants; or
     (c) Enrollment of a child under subsection (1) of this section would displace a child who is a resident of the district, except that if a child is admitted under subsection (1) of this section, that child ((shall be)) is permitted to remain enrolled at that school, or in that district's kindergarten through twelfth grade continuum, until he or she has completed his or her schooling.
     (((3))) (4) Except as provided in subsections (1) and (2) of this section, all districts accepting applications from nonresident students or from students receiving home-based instruction for admission to the district's schools ((shall)) must consider equally all applications received. Each school district ((shall)) must adopt a policy establishing rational, fair, and equitable standards for ((acceptance and rejection of)) accepting and rejecting applications by June 30, 1990. The policy may include ((rejection of)) rejecting a nonresident student if:
     (a) ((Acceptance of)) Accepting a nonresident student would result in the district experiencing a financial hardship;
     (b) The student's disciplinary records indicate a history of convictions for offenses or crimes, violent or disruptive behavior, or gang membership; or
     (c) The student has been expelled or suspended from a public school for more than ten consecutive days. Any policy allowing for readmission of expelled or suspended students under this subsection (((3))) (4)(c) must apply uniformly to both resident and nonresident applicants.
     For purposes of subsections (((2))) (3)(a) and (((3))) (4)(b) of this section, "gang" means a group ((which)) that: (i) Consists of three or more persons; (ii) has identifiable leadership; and (iii) on an ongoing basis, regularly conspires and acts in concert mainly for criminal purposes.
     (((4))) (5) The district ((shall)) must provide to applicants written notification of ((the approval or denial of)) accepting or rejecting the application in a timely manner. If the application is rejected, the notification ((shall)) must include the reason or reasons for denial and a statement of the right to appeal under RCW 28A.225.230(3).

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) If a concerted work stoppage or strike by teachers in a school district continues for one or more regularly scheduled school days, the students residing in and currently enrolled in that district are eligible to enroll in another district or a private school approved under chapter 28A.195 RCW. Students seeking to enroll in an approved private school are subject to the limitations and restrictions of the private school.
     (2) For each student who enrolls under this section in a private school approved under chapter 28A.195 RCW, the superintendent of public instruction must provide prompt and timely funding to private schools through the apportionment funding formulas in amounts the student would have generated if the student was enrolled in a public school in the district in which the private school is located, except that a private school is not eligible for small school assistance or remote and necessary assistance. Funding for private schools:
     (a) Continues until the end of the school year in which the strike occurred or until the student is no longer enrolled in the school, whichever occurs first;
     (b) Includes regular apportionment, categorical, student achievement, and other nonbasic education moneys, as appropriate; and
     (c) Is based on enrollment, staffing, and other financial information submitted by the district in which the private school is located to the superintendent as required to determine state apportionment amounts.
     Private schools may be required to provide additional necessary information to the superintendent to be eligible for funding.
     Allocations to private schools that are included in RCW 84.52.0531(3) (a) through (c) must be included in the levy base of the district in which the private school is located.
     (3) To be eligible to receive state categorical program funding, an approved private school must serve students who would be eligible for program funding if served by the school district in which the private school is located, and must actually provide the program for which funding is received.
     (4) Approved private schools receiving moneys under this section must submit, by November 1st of each year, to the office of the superintendent of public instruction annual year-end financial information, as prescribed by the superintendent.