HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 2662

             As Reported By House Committee On:

                          Education

Title:  An act relating to gathering and maintaining teacher education and experience information.

Brief Description:  Studying the feasibility of a central repository of teacher education and experience information.

Sponsors:  Representatives Haigh, Quall, Talcott, Keiser, Rockefeller and Santos.

Brief History:

  Committee Activity:

Education:  1/31/00, 2/3/00 [DP].

                 Brief Summary of Bill

$The Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee (LEAP) must convene a workgroup to explore the feasibility of a central repository for teacher education and experience information and  make recommendations for establishing a central repository.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Majority Report:  Do pass.  Signed by 14 members:  Representatives Quall, Democratic Co-Chair; Talcott, Republican Co-Chair; Haigh, Democratic Vice Chair; Schindler, Republican Vice Chair; Carlson; Cox; Keiser; Rockefeller; Santos; D. Schmidt; Schual-Berke; Stensen; Thomas and Wensman.

Staff:  Charlie Gavigan (786-7340).

Background:

Through the apportionment program, the state makes payments to school districts for certificated instructional staff salaries based on a state salary allocation schedule.  This state salary allocation schedule is used by the state to account for differences in the education and experience of each district's certificated instructional staff.  Typically, the greater the experience and education of such staff, the greater the allocation from the state for salary purposes.  Actual salaries are negotiated locally, within certain state established constraints.  There are eligibility criteria and limits regarding the educational credits school districts may count as having advanced the experience level of their certificated instructional staff.

Education credits include college quarter hour credits, equivalent credits for approved in-service, approved continuing education, or approved internship hours computed in accordance with current law.  Education and experience information typically is gathered, maintained, and audited on a district by district basis; some of the information is sent to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for apportionment and other purposes.

Summary of Bill:

The Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee (LEAP) must convene a workgroup to explore the feasibility of a central repository for teacher education and experience information.  The LEAP is to make recommendations for establishing a central repository.  The feasibility study is to analyze the costs and benefits of a central repository, including the likeliness of increased accuracy of the information, cost savings, teacher benefits, and more efficient audits.

The workgroup includes the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, the State Auditor, the Department of Information Services, and a representative from the following groups: teachers, a large school district, a small school district, educational service districts, and school administrators.  The LEAP may appoint others to the workgroup at its discretion.  Staffing is provided by the LEAP and the state agencies in the workgroup. 

The feasibility study and recommendations must be provided to the education and fiscal committees of the legislature by December 15, 2000.  The provisions in this bill expire on December 31, 2000.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Requested on January 27, 2000.

Effective Date:  The bill contains an emergency clause and takes effect immediately.

Testimony For:  Centralizing teacher education and experience information would save money, reduce errors, and be more efficient (rather than doing it district by district.)  The auditing of teacher education and experience data should be automated to eliminate redundancies and reduce the significant number of errors that now occur.  Administration of these records by the districts and teachers would be streamlined, saving time and money.  The feasibility study would bring together all interested parties to answer questions about how this should be done.

Testimony Against:  None.

Testified:  Representative Kathy Haigh, prime sponsor; Linda Long, State Auditors Office; Rosalie Bond, Ephrata School District; Mike Bigelow, Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction; Barbara Mertens, Washington Association of School Administrators; Karen Davis, Washington Education Association; and Dan Steele, Washington State School Directors Association.