Title: An act relating to school district substitute teacher and substitute educational aide contracts.

Brief Description: Permitting certain school district substitute employee contracts.

Sponsors: House Committee on Local Government (originally sponsored by Representatives Buri, Sump and Haler).

Brief History: Passed House: 2/14/06, 95-1.

Committee Activity: Early Learning, K-12 & Higher Education: 2/22/06 [DP].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EARLY LEARNING, K-12 & HIGHER EDUCATION

Majority Report: Do pass.Signed by Senators McAuliffe, Chair; Schmidt, Ranking Minority Member; Berkey, Carrell, Delvin, Eide, Kohl-Welles, Pflug, Rasmussen, Rockefeller, Schoesler and Shin.

Staff: Susan Mielke (786-7422)

Background: Current law prohibits school officers and other municipal officials from benefitting from contracts entered into through their official capacity. This provision applies to most hiring decisions made by school districts with a number of limited exceptions for small school districts or very specific circumstances.

Summary of Bill: An exception is added permitting a school officer of a school district that has fewer than 200 students to be employed as a substitute teacher or substitute educational aide, if the terms of the contract are commensurate with the pay plan or collective bargaining agreement of the school district. Additionally, the school board must determine that there is a shortage of substitute teachers in the school district.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Not requested.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: In very small communities, there is often a shortage of substitute teachers or
instructional aides and also a shortage of qualified people to serve as school directors.
Because of the current restrictions in law, we often have to make a difficult choice when the
same person in the community may be able to fill both of those positions but he or she is not
allowed to do so.

Testimony Against: None.

Who Testified: PRO: Representative Buri, prime sponsor.