AN ACT Relating to assessing and improving the public school system through survey information provided voluntarily by parents and guardians; amending RCW 28A.225.220; and adding a new section to chapter 28A.310 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 28A.310 RCW to read as follows:

(1)(a) In order to assist school districts and public schools in assessing and improving their education programs and services, the Washington school information processing cooperative shall establish, maintain, and promote to public schools a confidential online survey for voluntary use by parents or guardians of children enrolled in public schools that are: Transferring to a public or private school; or withdrawing to receive home-based instruction in accordance with chapter 28A.200 RCW. No parent or guardian may be required to complete the survey.

(b) The survey must be operational by September 1, 2025, and use the statewide student identifier for each student for which there is a survey response.

(2) The purpose of the survey is to:

(a) Collect data for public school officials, policymakers, and the public through voluntary responses from parents and guardians about the purposes and reasons that they transfer or withdraw students from public schools; and

(b) Identify, through the collected data, opportunities for improving the public school system to better meet the needs of students and their parents or guardians.

(3) Public schools are encouraged to notify parents or guardians of the survey and provide a link to the applicable website upon receiving a request from a parent or guardian to transfer or withdraw their student from a public school.

(4)(a) Beginning December 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the Washington school information processing cooperative shall provide a summary of the data received through the survey during the school year preceding the issuance of the report to:

(i) The public schools and school districts from which the survey responses from parents or guardians originated; and

(ii) The education and fiscal committees of the legislature, in compliance with RCW 43.01.036.

(b) The Washington school information processing cooperative shall annually post and maintain on its website an aggregate statewide summary of the data summaries required by (a) of this subsection.

(5) The Washington school information processing cooperative shall ensure that the implementation of this section occurs in conformity with requirements governing the privacy of student education records.

(6) For the purposes of this section:

(a) "Public schools" has the same meaning as in RCW 28A.150.010; and

(b) "Statewide student identifier" has the same meaning as in RCW 28B.10.041.

Sec. 2. RCW 28A.225.220 and 2013 2nd sp.s. c 18 s 510 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Any board of directors may make agreements with adults choosing to attend school, and may charge the adults reasonable tuition.

(2) A district is strongly encouraged to honor the request of a parent or guardian for his or her child to attend a school in another district or the request of a parent or guardian for his or her child to transfer as a student receiving home-based instruction.

(3) A district shall release a student to a nonresident district that agrees to accept the student if:

(a) A financial, educational, safety, or health condition affecting the student would likely be reasonably improved as a result of the transfer; or

(b) Attendance at the school in the nonresident district is more accessible to the parent's place of work or to the location of child care; or

(d) The purpose of the transfer is for the student to enroll in an online course or online school program offered by an online provider approved under RCW 28A.250.020.

(4) A district may deny the request of a resident student to transfer to a nonresident district if the release of the student would adversely affect the district's existing desegregation plan.

(5) For the purpose of helping a district assess the quality of its education program, a resident school district may, in addition to providing the parent or guardian with a link to the survey required by section 1 of this act, request an optional exit interview or questionnaire with the parents or guardians of a child transferring to another district. No parent or guardian may be forced to attend such an interview or complete the questionnaire.

(6) Beginning with the 1993-94 school year, school districts may not charge transfer fees or tuition for nonresident students enrolled under subsection (3) of this section and RCW 28A.225.225. Reimbursement of a high school district for cost of educating high school pupils of a nonhigh school district shall not be deemed a transfer fee as affecting the apportionment of current state school funds.

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