BILL REQ. #:  H-1174.1 

Read first time 01/27/11.   Referred to Committee on Education.

     AN ACT Relating to changing the age of compulsory school attendance; and amending RCW 28A.225.010, 28A.225.015, 28A.225.035, and 28A.225.090.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 28A.225.010 and 1998 c 244 s 14 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) All parents in this state of any child ((eight)) seven years of age and under eighteen years of age shall cause such child to attend the public school of the district in which the child resides and such child shall have the responsibility to and therefore shall attend for the full time when such school may be in session unless:
     (a) The child is attending an approved private school for the same time or is enrolled in an extension program as provided in RCW 28A.195.010(4);
     (b) The child is receiving home-based instruction as provided in subsection (4) of this section;
     (c) The child is attending an education center as provided in chapter 28A.205 RCW;
     (d) The school district superintendent of the district in which the child resides shall have excused such child from attendance because the child is physically or mentally unable to attend school, is attending a residential school operated by the department of social and health services, is incarcerated in an adult correctional facility, or has been temporarily excused upon the request of his or her parents for purposes agreed upon by the school authorities and the parent: PROVIDED, That such excused absences shall not be permitted if deemed to cause a serious adverse effect upon the student's educational progress: PROVIDED FURTHER, That students excused for such temporary absences may be claimed as full time equivalent students to the extent they would otherwise have been so claimed for the purposes of RCW 28A.150.250 and 28A.150.260 and shall not affect school district compliance with the provisions of RCW 28A.150.220; or
     (e) The child is sixteen years of age or older and:
     (i) The child is regularly and lawfully employed and either the parent agrees that the child should not be required to attend school or the child is emancipated in accordance with chapter 13.64 RCW;
     (ii) The child has already met graduation requirements in accordance with state board of education rules and regulations; or
     (iii) The child has received a certificate of educational competence under rules and regulations established by the state board of education under RCW 28A.305.190.
     (2) A parent for the purpose of this chapter means a parent, guardian, or person having legal custody of a child.
     (3) An approved private school for the purposes of this chapter and chapter 28A.200 RCW shall be one approved under regulations established by the state board of education pursuant to RCW 28A.305.130.
     (4) For the purposes of this chapter and chapter 28A.200 RCW, instruction shall be home-based if it consists of planned and supervised instructional and related educational activities, including a curriculum and instruction in the basic skills of occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of an appreciation of art and music, provided for a number of hours equivalent to the total annual program hours per grade level established for approved private schools under RCW 28A.195.010 and 28A.195.040 and if such activities are:
     (a) Provided by a parent who is instructing his or her child only and are supervised by a certificated person. A certificated person for purposes of this chapter and chapter 28A.200 RCW shall be a person certified under chapter 28A.410 RCW. For purposes of this section, "supervised by a certificated person" means: The planning by the certificated person and the parent of objectives consistent with this subsection; a minimum each month of an average of one contact hour per week with the child being supervised by the certificated person; and evaluation of such child's progress by the certificated person. The number of children supervised by the certificated person shall not exceed thirty for purposes of this subsection; or
     (b) Provided by a parent who is instructing his or her child only and who has either earned forty-five college level quarter credit hours or its equivalent in semester hours or has completed a course in home-based instruction at a postsecondary institution or a vocational-technical institute; or
     (c) Provided by a parent who is deemed sufficiently qualified to provide home-based instruction by the superintendent of the local school district in which the child resides.
     (5) The legislature recognizes that home-based instruction is less structured and more experiential than the instruction normally provided in a classroom setting. Therefore, the provisions of subsection (4) of this section relating to the nature and quantity of instructional and related educational activities shall be liberally construed.

Sec. 2   RCW 28A.225.015 and 1999 c 319 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) If a parent enrolls a child who is six ((or seven)) years of age in a public school, the child is required to attend and that parent has the responsibility to ensure the child attends for the full time that school is in session. An exception shall be made to this requirement for children whose parents formally remove them from enrollment if the child is less than ((eight)) seven years old and a petition has not been filed against the parent under subsection (3) of this section. The requirement to attend school under this subsection does not apply to a child enrolled in a public school part-time for the purpose of receiving ancillary services. A child required to attend school under this subsection may be temporarily excused upon the request of his or her parent for purposes agreed upon by the school district and parent.
     (2) If a six ((or seven)) year-old child is required to attend public school under subsection (1) of this section and that child has unexcused absences, the public school in which the child is enrolled shall:
     (a) Inform the child's custodial parent, parents, or guardian by a notice in writing or by telephone whenever the child has failed to attend school after one unexcused absence within any month during the current school year;
     (b) Request a conference or conferences with the custodial parent, parents, or guardian and child at a time reasonably convenient for all persons included for the purpose of analyzing the causes of the child's absences after two unexcused absences within any month during the current school year. If a regularly scheduled parent-teacher conference day is to take place within thirty days of the second unexcused absence, then the school district may schedule this conference on that day; and
     (c) Take steps to eliminate or reduce the child's absences. These steps shall include, where appropriate, adjusting the child's school program or school or course assignment, providing more individualized or remedial instruction, offering assistance in enrolling the child in available alternative schools or programs, or assisting the parent or child to obtain supplementary services that may help eliminate or ameliorate the cause or causes for the absence from school.
     (3) If a child required to attend public school under subsection (1) of this section has seven unexcused absences in a month or ten unexcused absences in a school year, the school district shall file a petition for civil action as provided in RCW 28A.225.035 against the parent of the child.
     (4) This section does not require a six ((or seven)) year old child to enroll in a public or private school or to receive home-based instruction. This section only applies to six ((or seven)) year old children whose parents enroll them full time in public school and do not formally remove them from enrollment as provided in subsection (1) of this section.

Sec. 3   RCW 28A.225.035 and 2009 c 266 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) A petition for a civil action under RCW 28A.225.030 or 28A.225.015 shall consist of a written notification to the court alleging that:
     (a) The child has unexcused absences during the current school year;
     (b) Actions taken by the school district have not been successful in substantially reducing the child's absences from school; and
     (c) Court intervention and supervision are necessary to assist the school district or parent to reduce the child's absences from school.
     (2) The petition shall set forth the name, date of birth, school, address, gender, race, and ethnicity of the child and the names and addresses of the child's parents, and shall set forth whether the child and parent are fluent in English and whether there is an existing individualized education program.
     (3) The petition shall set forth facts that support the allegations in this section and shall generally request relief available under this chapter and provide information about what the court might order under RCW 28A.225.090.
     (4) When a petition is filed under RCW 28A.225.030 or 28A.225.015, the juvenile court shall schedule a hearing at which the court shall consider the petition, or if the court determines that a referral to an available community truancy board would substantially reduce the child's unexcused absences, the court may refer the case to a community truancy board under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.
     (5) If a referral is made to a community truancy board, the truancy board must meet with the child, a parent, and the school district representative and enter into an agreement with the petitioner and respondent regarding expectations and any actions necessary to address the child's truancy within twenty days of the referral. If the petition is based on RCW 28A.225.015, the child shall not be required to attend and the agreement under this subsection shall be between the truancy board, the school district, and the child's parent. The court may permit the truancy board or truancy prevention counselor to provide continued supervision over the student, or parent if the petition is based on RCW 28A.225.015.
     (6) If the truancy board fails to reach an agreement, or the parent or student does not comply with the agreement, the truancy board shall return the case to the juvenile court for a hearing.
     (7)(a) Notwithstanding the provisions in subsection (4) of this section, a hearing shall not be required if other actions by the court would substantially reduce the child's unexcused absences. When a juvenile court hearing is held, the court shall:
     (i) Separately notify the child, the parent of the child, and the school district of the hearing. If the parent is not fluent in English, the preferred practice is for notice to be provided in a language in which the parent is fluent;
     (ii) Notify the parent and the child of their rights to present evidence at the hearing; and
     (iii) Notify the parent and the child of the options and rights available under chapter 13.32A RCW.
     (b) If the child is not provided with counsel, the advisement of rights must take place in court by means of a colloquy between the court, the child if ((eight)) seven years old or older, and the parent.
     (8) The court may require the attendance of the child if ((eight)) seven years old or older, the parents, and the school district at any hearing on a petition filed under RCW 28A.225.030.
     (9) A school district is responsible for determining who shall represent the school district at hearings on a petition filed under RCW 28A.225.030 or 28A.225.015.
     (10) The court may permit the first hearing to be held without requiring that either party be represented by legal counsel, and to be held without a guardian ad litem for the child under RCW 4.08.050. At the request of the school district, the court shall permit a school district representative who is not an attorney to represent the school district at any future hearings.
     (11) If the child is in a special education program or has a diagnosed mental or emotional disorder, the court shall inquire as to what efforts the school district has made to assist the child in attending school.
     (12) If the allegations in the petition are established by a preponderance of the evidence, the court shall grant the petition and enter an order assuming jurisdiction to intervene for the period of time determined by the court, after considering the facts alleged in the petition and the circumstances of the juvenile, to most likely cause the juvenile to return to and remain in school while the juvenile is subject to this chapter. In no case may the order expire before the end of the school year in which it is entered.
     (13) If the court assumes jurisdiction, the school district shall regularly report to the court any additional unexcused absences by the child.
     (14) Community truancy boards and the courts shall coordinate, to the extent possible, proceedings and actions pertaining to children who are subject to truancy petitions and at-risk youth petitions in RCW 13.32A.191 or child in need of services petitions in RCW 13.32A.140.
     (15) If after a juvenile court assumes jurisdiction in one county the child relocates to another county, the juvenile court in the receiving county shall, upon the request of a school district or parent, assume jurisdiction of the petition filed in the previous county.

Sec. 4   RCW 28A.225.090 and 2009 c 266 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) A court may order a child subject to a petition under RCW 28A.225.035 to do one or more of the following:
     (a) Attend the child's current school, and set forth minimum attendance requirements, including suspensions;
     (b) If there is space available and the program can provide educational services appropriate for the child, order the child to attend another public school, an alternative education program, center, a skill center, dropout prevention program, or another public educational program;
     (c) Attend a private nonsectarian school or program including an education center. Before ordering a child to attend an approved or certified private nonsectarian school or program, the court shall: (i) Consider the public and private programs available; (ii) find that placement is in the best interest of the child; and (iii) find that the private school or program is willing to accept the child and will not charge any fees in addition to those established by contract with the student's school district. If the court orders the child to enroll in a private school or program, the child's school district shall contract with the school or program to provide educational services for the child. The school district shall not be required to contract for a weekly rate that exceeds the state general apportionment dollars calculated on a weekly basis generated by the child and received by the district. A school district shall not be required to enter into a contract that is longer than the remainder of the school year. A school district shall not be required to enter into or continue a contract if the child is no longer enrolled in the district;
     (d) Be referred to a community truancy board, if available; or
     (e) Submit to testing for the use of controlled substances or alcohol based on a determination that such testing is appropriate to the circumstances and behavior of the child and will facilitate the child's compliance with the mandatory attendance law and, if any test ordered under this subsection indicates the use of controlled substances or alcohol, order the minor to abstain from the unlawful consumption of controlled substances or alcohol and adhere to the recommendations of the drug assessment at no expense to the school.
     (2) If the child fails to comply with the court order, the court may order the child to be subject to detention, as provided in RCW 7.21.030(2)(e), or may impose alternatives to detention such as community restitution. Failure by a child to comply with an order issued under this subsection shall not be subject to detention for a period greater than that permitted pursuant to a civil contempt proceeding against a child under chapter 13.32A RCW. Detention ordered under this subsection may be for no longer than seven days. A warrant of arrest for a child under this subsection may not be served on a child inside of school during school hours in a location where other students are present.
     (3) Any parent violating any of the provisions of either RCW 28A.225.010, 28A.225.015, or 28A.225.080 shall be fined not more than twenty-five dollars for each day of unexcused absence from school. The court shall remit fifty percent of the fine collected under this section to the child's school district. It shall be a defense for a parent charged with violating RCW 28A.225.010 to show that he or she exercised reasonable diligence in attempting to cause a child in his or her custody to attend school or that the child's school did not perform its duties as required in RCW 28A.225.020. The court may order the parent to provide community restitution instead of imposing a fine. Any fine imposed pursuant to this section may be suspended upon the condition that a parent charged with violating RCW 28A.225.010 shall participate with the school and the child in a supervised plan for the child's attendance at school or upon condition that the parent attend a conference or conferences scheduled by a school for the purpose of analyzing the causes of a child's absence.
     (4) If a child continues to be truant after entering into a court-approved order with the truancy board under RCW 28A.225.035, the juvenile court shall find the child in contempt, and the court may order the child to be subject to detention, as provided in RCW 7.21.030(2)(e), or may impose alternatives to detention such as meaningful community restitution. Failure by a child to comply with an order issued under this subsection may not subject a child to detention for a period greater than that permitted under a civil contempt proceeding against a child under chapter 13.32A RCW.
     (5) Subsections (1), (2), and (4) of this section shall not apply to a six ((or seven)) year-old child required to attend public school under RCW 28A.225.015.