(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall select school districts and cooperatives of school districts to receive grants for drug and alcohol abuse prevention and intervention programs for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade, from funds appropriated by the legislature for this purpose. The minimum annual grant amount per district or cooperative of districts shall be twenty thousand dollars. Factors to be used in selecting proposals for funding and in determining grant awards shall be developed in consultation with the substance abuse advisory committee appointed under RCW
28A.170.050, with the intent of targeting funding to districts with high-risk populations. These factors may include:
(a) Characteristics of the school attendance areas to be served, such as the number of students from low-income families, truancy rates, juvenile justice referrals, and social services caseloads;
(b) The total number of students who would have access to services; and
(c) Participation of community groups and law enforcement agencies in drug and alcohol abuse prevention and intervention activities.
(2) The application procedures for grants under this section shall include provisions for comprehensive planning, establishment of a school and community substance abuse advisory committee, and documentation of the district's needs assessment. Planning and application for grants under this section may be integrated with the development of other substance abuse awareness programs by school districts. School districts shall, to the maximum extent feasible, coordinate the use of grants provided under this section with other funding available for substance abuse awareness programs. School districts should allocate resources giving emphasis to drug and alcohol abuse intervention services for students in grades five through nine. Grants may be used to provide services for students who are enrolled in approved private schools.
(3) School districts receiving grants under this section shall be required to establish a means of accessing formal assessment services for determining treatment needs of students with drug and alcohol problems. The grant applications submitted by districts shall identify the districts' plan for meeting this requirement.
(4) School districts receiving grants under this section shall be required to perform biennial evaluations of their drug and alcohol abuse prevention and intervention programs, and to report on the results of these evaluations to the superintendent of public instruction.