AN ACT Relating to the omnibus education reform act; amending RCW 28A.01.025, 28A.41.130, 28A.41.170, 28A.58.075, 28A.58.754, 28A.58.772, 28A.59.180, 28A.41.110, and 28A.41.140; reenacting and amending RCW 28A.02.201 and 28A.58.099; adding a new section to chapter 28A.57 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.58 RCW; creating new sections; making an appropriation; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The Constitution of the state of Washington requires the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within the state and to provide a general and uniform system of public schools. The legislature finds that this constitutional mandate is not being met. Far too many students in our public schools are unable to read, to communicate, or to reason effectively.

The legislature finds that as a result of the failure to adequately educate the children of this state, these young people lack the ability to assume future roles as workers, parents, consumers, or home managers. It is the intent of the legislature to improve the public school system by requiring competency in a core curriculum, limiting the number of students assigned per teacher, increase the funding to urban schools that are inundated with problems, and permitting the intervention of the state in local schools when necessary.

Sec. 2. Section 28A.01.025, chapter 223, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. and RCW 28A.01.025 are each amended to read as follows:

The school year for all matters pertaining to teacher certification or for computing experience in teaching shall consist of not fewer than ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred school days.

Sec. 3. Section 2, chapter 92, Laws of 1974 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 16, Laws of 1985 and by section 4, chapter 441, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28A.02.201 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

The legislature hereby recognizes that private schools should be subject only to those minimum state controls necessary to insure the health and safety of all the students in the state and to insure a sufficient basic education to meet usual graduation requirements. The state, any agency or official thereof, shall not restrict or dictate any specific educational or other programs for private schools except as hereinafter in this section provided.

Principals of private schools or superintendents of private school districts shall file each year with the state superintendent of public instruction a statement certifying that the minimum requirements hereinafter set forth are being met, noting any deviations. After review of the statement, the state superintendent will notify schools or school districts of those deviations which must be corrected. In case of major deviations, the school or school district may request and the state board of education may grant provisional status for one year in order that the school or school district may take action to meet the requirements. Minimum requirements shall be as follows:

(1) The minimum school year for instructional purposes shall consist of no less than ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred school days or the equivalent in annual minimum program hour offerings as prescribed in RCW 28A.58.754.

(2) The school day shall be the same as that required in RCW 28A.01.010 and 28A.58.754, each as now or hereafter amended, except that the percentages of total program hour offerings as prescribed in RCW 28A.58.754 for basic skills, work skills, and optional subjects and activities shall not apply to private schools or private sectarian schools.

(3) All classroom teachers shall hold appropriate Washington state certification except as follows:

(a) Teachers for religious courses or courses for which no counterpart exists in public schools shall not be required to obtain a state certificate to teach those courses.

(b) In exceptional cases, people of unusual competence but without certification may teach students so long as a certified person exercises general supervision. Annual written statements shall be submitted to the office of the superintendent of public instruction reporting and explaining such circumstances.

(4) An approved private school may operate an extension program for parents, guardians, or persons having legal custody of a child to teach children in their custody. The extension program shall require at a minimum that:

(a) The parent, guardian, or custodian be under the supervision of an employee of the approved private school who is certified under chapter 28A.70 RCW;

(b) The planning by the certified person and the parent, guardian, or person having legal custody include objectives consistent with this subsection and subsections (1), (2), (5), (6), and (7) of this section;

(c) The certified person spend a minimum average each month of one contact hour per week with each student under his or her supervision who is enrolled in the approved private school extension program;

(d) Each student's progress be evaluated by the certified person; and

(e) The certified employee shall not supervise more than thirty students enrolled in the approved private school's extension program.

(5) Appropriate measures shall be taken to safeguard all permanent records against loss or damage.

(6) The physical facilities of the school or district shall be adequate to meet the program offered by the school or district: PROVIDED, That each school building shall meet reasonable health and fire safety requirements. A residential dwelling of the parent, guardian, or custodian shall be deemed to be an adequate physical facility when a parent, guardian, or person having legal custody is instructing his or her child under subsection (4) of this section.

(7) Private school curriculum shall include instruction of the basic skills of occupational education, science, mathematics, language, social studies, history, health, reading, writing, spelling, and the development of appreciation of art and music, all in sufficient units for meeting state board of education graduation requirements.

(8) Each school or school district shall be required to maintain up-to-date policy statements related to the administration and operation of the school or school district.

All decisions of policy, philosophy, selection of books, teaching material, curriculum, except as in subsection (7) above provided, school rules and administration, or other matters not specifically referred to in this section, shall be the responsibility of the administration and administrators of the particular private school involved.

Sec. 4. Section 2, chapter 46, Laws of 1973 as last amended by section 201, chapter 2, Laws of 1987 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28A.41.130 are each amended to read as follows:

From those funds made available by the legislature for the current use of the common schools, the superintendent of public instruction shall distribute annually as provided in RCW 28A.48.010 to each school district of the state operating a program approved by the state board of education an amount which, when combined with an appropriate portion of such locally available revenues, other than receipts from federal forest revenues distributed to school districts pursuant to RCW 28A.02.300 and 28A.02.310, as the superintendent of public instruction may deem appropriate for consideration in computing state equalization support, excluding excess property tax levies, will constitute a basic education allocation in dollars for each annual average full time equivalent student enrolled, based upon one full school year of ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred days, except that for kindergartens one full school year shall be ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred half days of instruction, or the equivalent as provided in RCW 28A.58.754, as now or hereafter amended.

Basic education shall be considered to be fully funded by those amounts of dollars appropriated by the legislature pursuant to RCW 28A.41.130 and 28A.41.140 to fund those program requirements identified in RCW 28A.58.754 in accordance with the formula and ratios provided in RCW 28A.41.140 and those amounts of dollars appropriated by the legislature to fund the salary requirements of RCW 28A.41.110 and 28A.41.112.

Operation of a program approved by the state board of education, for the purposes of this section, shall include a finding that the ratio of students per classroom teacher in grades kindergarten through three is not greater than the ratio of students per classroom teacher in grades four and above for such district: PROVIDED, That for the purposes of this section, "classroom teacher" shall be defined as an instructional employee possessing at least a provisional certificate, but not necessarily employed as a certificated employee, whose primary duty is the daily educational instruction of students: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the state board of education shall adopt rules and regulations to insure compliance with the student/teacher ratio provisions of this section, and such rules and regulations shall allow for exemptions for those special programs and/or school districts which may be deemed unable to practicably meet the student/teacher ratio requirements of this section by virtue of a small number of students.

If a school district's basic education program fails to meet the basic education requirements enumerated in RCW 28A.41.130, 28A.41.140 and 28A.58.754, the state board of education shall require the superintendent of public instruction to withhold state funds in whole or in part for the basic education allocation until program compliance is assured: PROVIDED, That the state board of education may waive this requirement in the event of substantial lack of classroom space.

Sec. 5. Section 28A.41.170, chapter 223, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 285, Laws of 1981 and RCW 28A.41.170 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall have the power and duty to make such rules and regulations as are necessary for the proper administration of this chapter not inconsistent with the provisions thereof, and in addition to require such reports as may be necessary to carry out his duties under this chapter.

(2) The superintendent of public instruction shall have the authority to make rules and regulations which establish the terms and conditions for allowing school districts to receive state basic education moneys as provided in RCW 28A.41.130 when said districts are unable to fulfill for one or more schools as officially scheduled the requirement of a full school year of ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred days or the total program hour offering, teacher contact hour, or course mix and percentage requirements imposed by RCW 28A.58.754 and 28A.41.140 due to one or more of the following conditions:

(a) An unforeseen natural event, including, but not necessarily limited to, a fire, flood, explosion, storm, earthquake, epidemic, or volcanic eruption that has the direct or indirect effect of rendering one or more school district facilities unsafe, unhealthy, inaccessible, or inoperable; and

(b) An unforeseen mechanical failure or an unforeseen action or inaction by one or more persons, including negligence and threats, that (i) is beyond the control of both a school district board of directors and its employees and (ii) has the direct or indirect effect of rendering one or more school district facilities unsafe, unhealthy, inaccessible, or inoperable. Such actions, inactions or mechanical failures may include, but are not necessarily limited to, arson, vandalism, riots, insurrections, bomb threats, bombings, delays in the scheduled completion of construction projects, and the discontinuance or disruption of utilities such as heating, lighting and water: PROVIDED, That an unforeseen action or inaction shall not include any labor dispute between a school district board of directors and any employee of the school district.

A condition is foreseeable for the purposes of this subsection to the extent a reasonably prudent person would have anticipated prior to August first of the preceding school year that the condition probably would occur during the ensuing school year because of the occurrence of an event or a circumstance which existed during such preceding school year or a prior school year. A board of directors of a school district is deemed for the purposes of this subsection to have knowledge of events and circumstances which are a matter of common knowledge within the school district and of those events and circumstances which can be discovered upon prudent inquiry or inspection.

(3) The superintendent of public instruction shall make every effort to reduce the amount of paperwork required in administration of this chapter; to simplify the application, monitoring and evaluation processes used; to eliminate all duplicative requests for information from local school districts; and to make every effort to integrate and standardize information requests for other state education acts and federal aid to education acts administered by the superintendent of public instruction so as to reduce paperwork requirements and duplicative information requests.

Sec. 6. Section 12, chapter 130, Laws of 1969 and RCW 28A.58.075 are each amended to read as follows:

Any school district may cooperate with one or more school districts in the following:

(1) The joint financing, planning, construction, equipping and operating of any educational facility otherwise authorized by law: PROVIDED, That any cooperative financing plan involving the construction of school plant facilities must be approved by the state board of education pursuant to such rules as may now or hereafter be promulgated relating to state approval of school construction.

(2) The joint maintenance and operation of educational programs or services (a) either as a part of the operation of a joint facility or otherwise, (b) either on a full or part time attendance basis, and (c) either on a regular ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred day school year or extended school year: PROVIDED, That any such joint program or service must be operated pursuant to a written agreement approved by the superintendent of public instruction pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated therefor. In establishing rules and regulations the state superintendent shall consider, among such other factors as he deems appropriate, the economic feasibility of said services and programs, the educational and administrative scope of said agreement and the need for said programs or services.

Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, the state superintendent of public instruction shall establish rules and regulations for the apportionment of attendance credits for such students as are enrolled in a jointly operated facility or program, including apportionment for approved part time and extended school year attendance.

Sec. 7. Section 3, chapter 275, Laws of 1983 as amended by section 1, chapter 46, Laws of 1985 and by section 1, chapter 210, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28A.58.099 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

Every board of directors, unless otherwise specially provided by law, shall:

(1) Employ for not more than one year, and for sufficient cause discharge all certificated and noncertificated employees;

(2) Adopt written policies granting leaves to persons under contracts of employment with the school district(s) in positions requiring either certification or noncertification qualifications, including but not limited to leaves for attendance at official or private institutes and conferences and sabbatical leaves for employees in positions requiring certification qualification, and leaves for illness, injury, bereavement and, emergencies for both certificated and noncertificated employees, and with such compensation as the board of directors prescribe: PROVIDED, That the board of directors shall adopt written policies granting to such persons annual leave with compensation for illness, injury and emergencies as follows:

(a) For such persons under contract with the school district for a full year, at least ten days;

(b) For such persons under contract with the school district as part time employees, at least that portion of ten days as the total number of days contracted for bears to ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred days;

(c) For certificated and noncertificated employees, annual leave with compensation for illness, injury, and emergencies shall be granted and accrue at a rate not to exceed twelve days per year; provisions of any contract in force on June 12, 1980, which conflict with requirements of this subsection shall continue in effect until contract expiration; after expiration, any new contract executed between the parties shall be consistent with this subsection;

(d) Compensation for leave for illness or injury actually taken shall be the same as the compensation such person would have received had such person not taken the leave provided in this proviso;

(e) Leave provided in this proviso not taken shall accumulate from year to year up to a maximum of ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred days for the purposes of RCW 28A.58.096 and 28A.58.098, and for leave purposes up to a maximum of the number of contract days agreed to in a given contract, but not greater than one year. Such accumulated time may be taken at any time during the school year or up to twelve days per year may be used for the purpose of payments for unused sick leave.

(f) Sick leave heretofore accumulated under section 1, chapter 195, Laws of 1959 (former RCW 28.58.430) and sick leave accumulated under administrative practice of school districts prior to the effective date of section 1, chapter 195, Laws of 1959 (former RCW 28.58.430) is hereby declared valid, and shall be added to leave for illness or injury accumulated under this proviso;

(g) Any leave for injury or illness accumulated up to a maximum of forty-five days shall be creditable as service rendered for the purpose of determining the time at which an employee is eligible to retire, if such leave is taken it may not be compensated under the provisions of RCW 28A.58.096 and 28A.21.360;

(h) Accumulated leave under this proviso shall be transferred to and from one district to another, the office of superintendent of public instruction and offices of educational service district superintendents and boards, to and from such districts and such offices;

(i) Leave accumulated by a person in a district prior to leaving said district may, under rules and regulations of the board, be granted to such person when he returns to the employment of the district.

When any certificated or classified employee leaves one school district within the state and commences employment with another school district within the state, he shall retain the same seniority, leave benefits and other benefits that he had in his previous position: PROVIDED, That classified employees who transfer between districts after July 28, 1985, shall not retain any seniority rights other than longevity when leaving one school district and beginning employment with another. If the school district to which the person transfers has a different system for computing seniority, leave benefits, and other benefits, then the employee shall be granted the same seniority, leave benefits and other benefits as a person in that district who has similar occupational status and total years of service.

Sec. 8. Section 3, chapter 359, Laws of 1977 ex. sess. as last amended by section 1, chapter 158, Laws of 1982 and RCW 28A.58.754 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) For the purposes of this section and RCW 28A.41.130 and 28A.41.140, each as now or hereafter amended:

(a) The term "total program hour offering" shall mean those hours when students are provided the opportunity to engage in educational activity planned by and under the direction of school district staff, as directed by the administration and board of directors of the district, inclusive of intermissions for class changes, recess and teacher/parent-guardian conferences which are planned and scheduled by the district for the purpose of discussing students' educational needs or progress, and exclusive of time actually spent for meals.

(b) "Instruction in work skills" shall include instruction in one or more of the following areas: Industrial arts, home and family life education, business and office education, distributive education, agricultural education, health occupations education, vocational education, trade and industrial education, technical education and career education.

(2) Satisfaction of the basic education goal identified in RCW 28A.58.752 shall be considered to be implemented by the following program requirements:

(a) Each school district shall make available to students in kindergarten at least a total program offering of four hundred fifty hours. The program shall include reading, arithmetic, language skills and such other subjects and such activities as the school district shall determine to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students enrolled in such program;

(b) Each school district shall make available to students in grades one through three, at least a total program hour offering of two thousand seven hundred hours. A minimum of ninety-five percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the basic skills areas of reading/language arts (which may include foreign languages), mathematics, social studies, science, music, art, health and physical education. The remaining five percent of the total program hour offerings may include such subjects and activities as the school district shall determine to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students in such grades;

(c) Each school district shall make available to students in grades four through six at least a total program hour offering of two thousand nine hundred seventy hours. A minimum of ninety percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the basic skills areas of reading/language arts (which may include foreign languages), mathematics, social studies, science, music, art, health and physical education. The remaining ten percent of the total program hour offerings may include such subjects and activities as the school district shall determine to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students in such grades;

(d) Each school district shall make available to students in grades seven through eight, at least a total program hour offering of one thousand nine hundred eighty hours. A minimum of eighty-five percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the basic skills areas of reading/language arts (which may include foreign languages), mathematics, social studies, science, music, art, health and physical education. A minimum of ten percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the area of work skills. The remaining five percent of the total program hour offerings may include such subjects and activities as the school district shall determine to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students in such grades;

(e) Each school district shall make available to students in grades nine through twelve at least a total program hour offering of four thousand three hundred twenty hours. A minimum of sixty percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the basic skills areas of language arts, foreign language, mathematics, social studies, science, music, art, health and physical education. A minimum of twenty percent of the total program hour offerings shall be in the area of work skills. The remaining twenty percent of the total program hour offerings may include traffic safety or such subjects and activities as the school district shall determine to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students in such grades, with not less than one-half thereof in basic skills and/or work skills: PROVIDED, That each school district shall have the option of including grade nine within the program hour offering requirements of grades seven and eight so long as such requirements for grades seven through nine are increased to two thousand nine hundred seventy hours and such requirements for grades ten through twelve are decreased to three thousand two hundred forty hours.

(3) In order to provide flexibility to the local school districts in the setting of their curricula, and in order to maintain the intent of this legislation, which is to stress the instruction of basic skills and work skills, any local school district may establish minimum course mix percentages that deviate by up to five percentage points above or below those minimums required by subsection (2) of this section, so long as the total program hour requirement is still met.

(4) Nothing contained in subsection (2) of this section shall be construed to require individual students to attend school for any particular number of hours per day or to take any particular courses.

(5) Each school district's kindergarten through twelfth grade basic educational program shall be accessible to all students who are five years of age, as provided by RCW 28A.58.190, and less than twenty-one years of age and shall consist of a minimum of ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred school days per school year in such grades as are conducted by a school district, and ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred half-days of instruction, or equivalent, in kindergarten: PROVIDED, That effective May 1, 1979, a school district may schedule the last five school days of the ((~~one hundred and eighty~~)) two hundred day school year for noninstructional purposes in the case of students who are graduating from high school, including, but not limited to, the observance of graduation and early release from school upon the request of a student, and all such students may be claimed as a full time equivalent student to the extent they could otherwise have been so claimed for the purposes of RCW 28A.41.130 and 28A.41.140, each as now or hereafter amended.

(6) The state board of education shall adopt rules to implement and ensure compliance with the program requirements imposed by this section, RCW 28A.41.130 and 28A.41.140, each as now or hereafter amended, and such related supplemental program approval requirements as the state board may establish: PROVIDED, That each school district board of directors shall establish the basis and means for determining and monitoring the district's compliance with the basic skills and work skills percentage and course requirements of this section. The certification of the board of directors and the superintendent of a school district that the district is in compliance with such basic skills and work skills requirements may be accepted by the superintendent of public instruction and the state board of education.

(7) Handicapped education programs, vocational-technical institute programs, state institution and state residential school programs, all of which programs are conducted for the common school age, kindergarten through secondary school program students encompassed by this section, shall be exempt from the basic skills and work skills percentage and course requirements of this section in order that the unique needs, abilities or limitations of such students may be met.

(8) Any school district may petition the state board of education for a reduction in the total program hour offering requirements for one or more of the grade level groupings specified in this section. The state board of education shall grant all such petitions that are accompanied by an assurance that the minimum total program hour offering requirements in one or more other grade level groupings will be exceeded concurrently by no less than the number of hours of the reduction.

Sec. 9. Section 2, chapter 217, Laws of 1979 ex. sess. as last amended by section 13, chapter 341, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28A.58.772 are each amended to read as follows:

Each school district within which there is located a residential school shall, singly or in concert with another school district pursuant to RCW 28A.58.075 and 28A.58.245 or pursuant to chapter 39.34 RCW, each as now or hereafter amended, conduct a program of education, including related student activities, for residents of the residential school. Except as otherwise provided for by contract pursuant to RCW 28A.58.776, as now or hereafter amended, the duties and authority of a school district and its employees to conduct such a program shall be limited to the following:

(1) The employment, supervision and control of administrators, teachers, specialized personnel and other persons, deemed necessary by the school district for the conduct of the program of education;

(2) The purchase, lease or rental and provision of textbooks, maps, audio-visual equipment, paper, writing instruments, physical education equipment and other instructional equipment, materials and supplies, deemed necessary by the school district for the conduct of the program of education;

(3) The development and implementation, in consultation with the superintendent or chief administrator of the residential school or his or her designee, of the curriculum;

(4) The conduct of a program of education, including related student activities, for residents who are three years of age and less than twenty-one years of age, and have not met high school graduation requirements as now or hereafter established by the state board of education and the school district which includes:

(a) Not less than ((~~one hundred and eighty~~)) two hundred school days each school year;

(b) Special education pursuant to chapter 28A.13 RCW, as now or hereafter amended, and vocational education, as necessary to address the unique needs and limitations of residents; and

(c) Such courses of instruction and school related student activities as are provided by the school district for nonresidential school students to the extent it is practical and judged appropriate for the residents by the school district after consultation with the superintendent or chief administrator of the residential school: PROVIDED, That a preschool special education program may be provided for handicapped residential school students;

(5) The control of students while participating in a program of education conducted pursuant to this section and the discipline, suspension or expulsion of students for violation of reasonable rules of conduct adopted by the school district; and

(6) The expenditure of funds for the direct and indirect costs of maintaining and operating the program of education that are appropriated by the legislature and allocated by the superintendent of public instruction for the exclusive purpose of maintaining and operating residential school programs of education, and funds from federal and private grants, bequests and gifts made for the purpose of maintaining and operating the program of education.

Sec. 10. Section 7, chapter 2, Laws of 1983 and RCW 28A.59.180 are each amended to read as follows:

Every board of directors of a school district of the first class, in addition to the general powers for directors enumerated in chapter 28A.58 RCW or elsewhere in this title, shall have the power:

(1) To employ for a term of not exceeding three years a superintendent of schools of the district, and for cause to dismiss him; and to fix his duties and compensation.

(2) To employ, and for cause dismiss one or more assistant superintendents and to define their duties and fix their compensation.

(3) To employ a business manager, attorneys, architects, inspectors of construction, superintendents of buildings and a superintendent of supplies, all of whom shall serve at the board's pleasure, and to prescribe their duties and fix their compensation.

(4) To employ, and for cause dismiss, supervisors of instruction and to define their duties and fix their compensation.

(5) To prescribe a course of study and a program of exercises which shall be consistent with the course of study prepared by the state board of education for the use of the common schools of this state.

(6) To, in addition to the minimum requirements imposed by Title 28A RCW, as now or hereafter amended, establish and maintain such grades and departments, including night, high, kindergarten, vocational training and, except as otherwise provided by law, industrial schools, and schools and departments for the education and training of any class or classes of handicapped youth, as in the judgment of the board, best shall promote the interests of education in the district.

(7) To determine the length of time over and above ((~~one hundred eighty~~)) two hundred days that school shall be maintained: PROVIDED, That for purposes of apportionment no district shall be credited with more than ((~~one hundred and eighty-three~~)) two hundred three days' attendance in any school year; and to fix the time for annual opening and closing of schools and for the daily dismissal of pupils before the regular time for closing schools.

(8) To maintain a shop and repair department, and to employ, and for cause dismiss, a foreman and the necessary help for the maintenance and conduct thereof.

(9) To provide free textbooks and supplies for all children attending school, when so ordered by a vote of the electors; or if the free textbooks are not voted by the electors, to provide books for children of indigent parents, on the written statement of the city superintendent that the parents of such children are not able to purchase them.

(10) To require of the officers or employees of the district to give a bond for the honest performance of their duties in such penal sum as may be fixed by the board with good and sufficient surety, and to cause the premium for all bonds required of all such officers or employees to be paid by the district: PROVIDED, That the board may, by written policy, allow that such bonds may include a deductible proviso not to exceed two percent of the officer's or employee's annual salary.

(11) To prohibit all secret fraternities and sororities among the students in any of the schools of the said districts.

(12) To appoint a practicing physician, resident of the school district, who shall be known as the school district medical inspector, and whose duty it shall be to decide for the board of directors all questions of sanitation and health affecting the safety and welfare of the public schools of the district who shall serve at the board's pleasure; he or authorized deputies shall make monthly inspections of each school in the district and report the condition of the same to the board of education and board of health: PROVIDED, That children shall not be required to submit to vaccination against the will of their parents or guardian.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. A new section is added to chapter 28A.58 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The board of directors of each school district shall prepare and administer a standardized state-wide high school core competency achievement test to measure acquisition of the competencies described in local district student learning objectives. Students may take the test at any point, until passed, in their high school program or until graduation. Experiences for which testing is not appropriate may be demonstrated by successful completion of relevant course work. Students with special educational needs may participate in this program to the extent of their capabilities.

(2) The state board of education shall require a diagnostic test to be given to each high school student who scores below the twenty-fifth percentile in nationally standardized tests in the eighth or tenth grades or who has not passed the test under subsection (1) of this section. The diagnostic tests shall be used to identify students who need help to remedy deficiencies and the type of assistance required before those students graduate from high school.

Sec. 12. Section 203, chapter 2, Laws of 1987 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28A.41.110 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) For the purposes of this section and RCW 28A.41.112 and 28A.58.0951, "basic education certificated instructional staff" shall mean all full time equivalent certificated instructional staff in the following programs as defined for state-wide school district accounting purposes: Basic education, secondary vocational education, general instructional support, and general supportive services.

(2) In the 1988-89 school year and thereafter, each school district shall maintain a ratio of at least ((~~forty-six~~)) fifty-five basic education certificated instructional staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students.

Sec. 13. Section 14, chapter 244, Laws of 1969 ex. sess. as last amended by section 202, chapter 2, Laws of 1987 1st ex. sess. and RCW 28A.41.140 are each amended to read as follows:

The basic education allocation for each annual average full time equivalent student shall be determined in accordance with the following procedures:

(1) The governor shall and the superintendent of public instruction may recommend to the legislature a formula based on a ratio of students to staff for the distribution of a basic education allocation for each annual average full time equivalent student enrolled in a common school. The distribution formula shall have the primary objective of equalizing educational opportunities and shall provide appropriate recognition of the following costs among the various districts within the state:

(a) Certificated instructional staff and their related costs;

(b) Certificated administrative staff and their related costs;

(d) Nonsalary costs;

(e) Extraordinary costs of remote and necessary schools and small high schools, including costs of additional certificated and classified staff; and

(f) The attendance of students pursuant to RCW 28A.58.075 and 28A.58.245, each as now or hereafter amended, who do not reside within the servicing school district.

(2) (a) This formula for distribution of basic education funds shall be reviewed biennially by the superintendent and governor. The recommended formula shall be subject to approval, amendment or rejection by the legislature. The formula shall be for allocation purposes only. While the legislature intends that the allocations for additional instructional staff be used to increase the ratio of such staff to students, nothing in this section shall require districts to reduce the number of administrative staff below existing levels.

(b) ((The formula adopted by the legislature for the 1987-88 school year shall reflect the following ratios at a minimum: (i) Forty-eight certificated instructional staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades kindergarten through three; (ii) forty-six certificated instructional staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades four through twelve; (iii) four certificated administrative staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades kindergarten through twelve; and (iv) sixteen and sixty-seven one-hundredths classified personnel to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades kindergarten through twelve.

~~(c) Commencing with the 1988-89 school year,~~)) The formula adopted by the legislature shall reflect the following ratios at a minimum: (i) ((~~Forty-nine~~)) Fifty-three certificated instructional staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades kindergarten through three; (ii) ((~~forty-six~~)) fifty-one certificated instructional staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students in grades four through twelve; (iii) four certificated administrative staff to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students in grades kindergarten through twelve; and (iv) sixteen and sixty-seven one-hundredths classified personnel to one thousand annual average full time equivalent students enrolled in grades kindergarten through twelve.

((~~(d)~~)) (c) In the event the legislature rejects the distribution formula recommended by the governor, without adopting a new distribution formula, the distribution formula for the previous school year shall remain in effect: PROVIDED, That the distribution formula developed pursuant to this section shall be for state apportionment and equalization purposes only and shall not be construed as mandating specific operational functions of local school districts other than those program requirements identified in RCW 28A.58.754 and 28A.41.110. The enrollment of any district shall be the annual average number of full time equivalent students and part time students as provided in RCW 28A.41.145, as now or hereafter amended, enrolled on the first school day of each month and shall exclude full time equivalent handicapped students recognized for the purposes of allocation of state funds for programs under chapter 28A.13 RCW. The definition of full time equivalent student shall be determined by rules and regulations of the superintendent of public instruction: PROVIDED, That the definition shall be included as part of the superintendent's biennial budget request: PROVIDED, FURTHER, That any revision of the present definition shall not take effect until approved by the house appropriations committee and the senate ways and means committee: PROVIDED, FURTHER, That the office of financial management shall make a monthly review of the superintendent's reported full time equivalent students in the common schools in conjunction with RCW 43.62.050.

(3) (a) Certificated instructional staff shall include those persons employed by a school district who are nonsupervisory employees within the meaning of RCW 41.59.020(8): PROVIDED, That in exceptional cases, people of unusual competence but without certification may teach students so long as a certificated person exercises general supervision: PROVIDED, FURTHER, That the hiring of such noncertificated people shall not occur during a labor dispute and such noncertificated people shall not be hired to replace certificated employees during a labor dispute.

(b) Certificated administrative staff shall include all those persons who are chief executive officers, chief administrative officers, confidential employees, supervisors, principals, or assistant principals within the meaning of RCW 41.59.020(4).

(4) Each annual average full time equivalent certificated classroom teacher's direct classroom contact hours shall average at least twenty-five hours per week. Direct classroom contact hours shall be exclusive of time required to be spent for preparation, conferences, or any other nonclassroom instruction duties. Up to two hundred minutes per week may be deducted from the twenty-five contact hour requirement, at the discretion of the school district board of directors, to accommodate authorized teacher/parent-guardian conferences, recess, passing time between classes, and informal instructional activity. Implementing rules to be adopted by the state board of education pursuant to RCW 28A.58.754(6) shall provide that compliance with the direct contact hour requirement shall be based upon teachers' normally assigned weekly instructional schedules, as assigned by the district administration. Additional record-keeping by classroom teachers as a means of accounting for contact hours shall not be required. However, upon request from the board of directors of any school district, the provisions relating to direct classroom contact hours for individual teachers in that district may be waived by the state board of education if the waiver is necessary to implement a locally approved plan for educational excellence and the waiver is limited to those individual teachers approved in the local plan for educational excellence. The state board of education shall develop criteria to evaluate the need for the waiver. Granting of the waiver shall depend upon verification that: (a) The students' classroom instructional time will not be reduced; and (b) the teacher's expertise is critical to the success of the local plan for excellence.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. A new section is added to chapter 28A.57 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall develop an investigation and evaluation system to identify school districts that have deficiencies severe enough to preclude an adequate education for the children in those districts. Based on the investigation, the superintendent of public instruction shall issue a report documenting any irregularities.

(2) If the superintendent of public instruction determines that a local school district has failed to assure a thorough and efficient system of education, the superintendent of public instruction may issue an order suspending the powers of the school district board of directors for up to three years and creating a state-operated school district for that term.

(3) The superintendent of public instruction shall appoint a state district superintendent for each state-operated school district who shall serve for the term of the state-operated school district. The individual selected shall be qualified by training and experience appropriate for the particular district.

(4) Within four months after the establishment of a state- operated school district, the state district superintendent for that district shall present a corrective action plan and timetable developed for that district. At least once each year the state district superintendent shall report to the superintendent of public instruction on the progress made in implementing the corrective action plan and the prospects for return of the district to local control.

(5) If a state-operated school district has not met the requirements of the corrective action plan by the time the district is to be returned to local control, the superintendent of public instruction shall order an additional term of up to three years for the state-operated school district.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. (1) The temporary joint select committee on basic education funding formula is created to review the legislative funding formula for basic education in the state of Washington. The committee shall consist of sixteen voting members. The speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate shall each appoint four members from each major political caucus in his or her respective branch of the legislature.

(2) The joint select committee shall review and evaluate the legislative funding formula for basic education and shall report its findings to the full legislature in a written report not later than January 1, 1991.

(3) Staff support services shall be provided by the senate committee services and the office of program research as mutually agreed by the cochairs of the joint select committee. The cochairs shall be designated by the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate.

(4) This section shall expire on June 30, 1991.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. The sum of _____ dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, from the general fund to the superintendent of public instruction for the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.