BILL REQ. #:  H-2451.2 

Read first time 04/18/13.   Referred to Committee on Appropriations.

     AN ACT Relating to implementation of basic education expenditures; amending RCW 28A.150.220, 28A.150.260, 28A.150.315, 28A.150.390, 28A.180.030, 28A.180.040, 28A.230.090, 28A.160.192, and 43.135.025; adding a new section to chapter 28A.150 RCW; creating new sections; and providing effective dates.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The legislature intends to enact a plan of incremental implementation to fund and carry out the reforms enacted in chapter 548, Laws of 2009, chapter 236, Laws of 2010, and this act.
     (2) The legislature confirms its intent to review and revise as necessary the funding formulas that support the program of basic education.
     (3) The revised definition of the program of basic education adopted in 2009 includes the expectation that students will have the opportunity to complete twenty-four credits for high school graduation. The revised definition of basic education also requires an increase in minimum instructional hours for secondary school students, with the implementation date to be determined by the legislature.
     (4) After further review, including considering the recommendations of the quality education council and the joint task force on education finance, the legislature finds that increasing instructional hours for secondary students is a necessary but not sufficient expansion of the education program to provide all students the opportunity to complete career and college ready graduation requirements.
     (5) Therefore, the legislature intends to formally authorize, and provide sufficient resources for, implementation of the opportunity for students to complete twenty-four credits for graduation through a comprehensive approach that includes increased instructional hours, expansion of the learning assistance program and transitional bilingual instructional program, and resources to support additional family engagement and counseling.
     (6) The legislature further finds that the 2015-16 school year targets for increased minimum allocations for materials, supplies, and operating costs established under chapter 236, laws of 2010, were based on a reasonable estimate that relied on a survey of school districts of their expenditures from basic education dollars in the 2007-08 school year. In the course of reviewing and revising education funding formulas pursuant to chapter 548, Laws of 2009, the legislature has determined that more accurate expenditure information from the 2011-12 school year is now available. The legislature finds that this expenditure data, which has been generated from all school districts rather than a sample and is based on audited actual expenditures rather than estimates from a survey, warrants adjustment to the 2015-16 school year targets for minimum allocations for materials, supplies, and operating costs.
     (7) To ensure the state's ability to support the Article IX program of basic education, the legislature intends to make a temporary revision to the state expenditure limit laws during the period of incremental implementation of basic education funding reforms. By temporarily suspending the "rebasing" that would otherwise occur under the limit calculation, the legislature will preserve the ability to fund these basic education enhancements during the transition to full funding of the formula.

Sec. 2   RCW 28A.150.220 and 2011 1st sp.s. c 27 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) In order for students to have the opportunity to develop the basic education knowledge and skills under RCW 28A.150.210, school districts must provide instruction of sufficient quantity and quality and give students the opportunity to complete graduation requirements that are intended to prepare them for postsecondary education, gainful employment, and citizenship. The program established under this section shall be the minimum instructional program of basic education offered by school districts.
     (2) Each school district shall make available to students the following minimum instructional offering each school year:
     (a) For students enrolled in grades one through twelve, at least a district-wide annual average of one thousand hours, which shall be increased district-wide to ((at least one thousand eighty instructional hours for students enrolled in each of grades seven through twelve and)) at least one thousand instructional hours for students in each of grades one through six ((according to an implementation schedule adopted by the legislature, but not before)) beginning with the ((2014-15)) 2017-18 school year((;)), and increased district-wide for students in each of grades seven through twelve according to the following implementation schedule:

       Minimum instructional
       hours for grades 7-12
2014-15 school year . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,020
2015-16 school year . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,040
2016-17 school year . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,060
2017-18 school year and thereafter . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,080

     (b) For students enrolled in kindergarten, at least four hundred fifty instructional hours, which shall be increased to at least one thousand instructional hours according to the implementation schedule under RCW 28A.150.315.
     (3) The instructional program of basic education provided by each school district shall include:
     (a) Instruction in the essential academic learning requirements under RCW 28A.655.070;
     (b) Instruction that provides students the opportunity to complete twenty-four credits for high school graduation, ((subject to a phased-in implementation of the twenty-four credits as established by the legislature)) beginning with the graduating class of 2018. Course distribution requirements may be established by the state board of education under RCW 28A.230.090;
     (c) If the essential academic learning requirements include a requirement of languages other than English, the requirement may be met by students receiving instruction in one or more American Indian languages;
     (d) Supplemental instruction and services for underachieving students through the learning assistance program under RCW 28A.165.005 through 28A.165.065;
     (e) Supplemental instruction and services for eligible and enrolled students whose primary language is other than English through the transitional bilingual instruction program under RCW 28A.180.010 through 28A.180.080;
     (f) The opportunity for an appropriate education at public expense as defined by RCW 28A.155.020 for all eligible students with disabilities as defined in RCW 28A.155.020; and
     (g) Programs for highly capable students under RCW 28A.185.010 through 28A.185.030.
     (4) Nothing contained in 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.225.160, and less than twenty-one years of age and shall consist of a minimum of one hundred eighty school days per school year in such grades as are conducted by a school district, and one hundred eighty half-days of instruction, or equivalent, in kindergarten, to be increased to a minimum of one hundred eighty school days per school year according to the implementation schedule under RCW 28A.150.315. However, effective May 1, 1979, a school district may schedule the last five school days of the one hundred and eighty 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.150.250 and 28A.150.260.
     (6) Nothing in this section precludes a school district from enriching the instructional program of basic education, such as offering additional instruction or providing additional services, programs, or activities that the school district determines to be appropriate for the education of the school district's students.
     (7) The state board of education shall adopt rules to implement and ensure compliance with the program requirements imposed by this section, RCW 28A.150.250 and 28A.150.260, and such related supplemental program approval requirements as the state board may establish.

Sec. 3   RCW 28A.150.260 and 2011 1st sp.s. c 27 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     The purpose of this section is to provide for the allocation of state funding that the legislature deems necessary to support school districts in offering the minimum instructional program of basic education under RCW 28A.150.220. The allocation shall be determined as follows:
     (1) The governor shall and the superintendent of public instruction may recommend to the legislature a formula for the distribution of a basic education instructional allocation for each common school district.
     (2) The distribution formula under this section shall be for allocation purposes only. Except as may be required under chapter 28A.155, 28A.165, 28A.180, or 28A.185 RCW, or federal laws and regulations, nothing in this section requires school districts to use basic education instructional funds to implement a particular instructional approach or service. Nothing in this section requires school districts to maintain a particular classroom teacher-to-student ratio or other staff-to-student ratio or to use allocated funds to pay for particular types or classifications of staff. Nothing in this section entitles an individual teacher to a particular teacher planning period.
     (3)(a) To the extent the technical details of the formula have been adopted by the legislature and except when specifically provided as a school district allocation, the distribution formula for the basic education instructional allocation shall be based on minimum staffing and nonstaff costs the legislature deems necessary to support instruction and operations in prototypical schools serving high, middle, and elementary school students as provided in this section. The use of prototypical schools for the distribution formula does not constitute legislative intent that schools should be operated or structured in a similar fashion as the prototypes. Prototypical schools illustrate the level of resources needed to operate a school of a particular size with particular types and grade levels of students using commonly understood terms and inputs, such as class size, hours of instruction, and various categories of school staff. It is the intent that the funding allocations to school districts be adjusted from the school prototypes based on the actual number of annual average full-time equivalent students in each grade level at each school in the district and not based on the grade-level configuration of the school to the extent that data is available. The allocations shall be further adjusted from the school prototypes with minimum allocations for small schools and to reflect other factors identified in the omnibus appropriations act.
     (b) For the purposes of this section, prototypical schools are defined as follows:
     (i) A prototypical high school has six hundred average annual full-time equivalent students in grades nine through twelve;
     (ii) A prototypical middle school has four hundred thirty-two average annual full-time equivalent students in grades seven and eight; and
     (iii) A prototypical elementary school has four hundred average annual full-time equivalent students in grades kindergarten through six.
     (4)(a) The minimum allocation for each level of prototypical school shall be based on the number of full-time equivalent classroom teachers needed to provide instruction over the minimum required annual instructional hours under RCW 28A.150.220 and provide at least one teacher planning period per school day, and based on the following general education average class size of full-time equivalent students per teacher:

       General education
       average
       class size
Grades K-3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.23
Grade 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Grades 5-6 . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Grades 7-8 . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.53
Grades 9-12 . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.74

     (b) ((During the 2011-2013 biennium and beginning with schools with the highest percentage of students eligible for free and reduced-price meals in the prior)) Beginning with allocations for the 2013-14 school year, the general education average class size for grades K-3 shall be reduced in equal annual increments from the allocation levels in (a) of this subsection, and the general education average class size for grades K-3 in high poverty schools where more than fifty percent of the students were eligible for free and reduced-price meals in the prior school year shall be reduced in equal annual increments from the 2012-13 school year allocation levels, until the average class size funded under this subsection (4) in all prototypical elementary schools is no more than 17.0 full-time equivalent students per teacher ((beginning)) in the 2017-18 school year and thereafter.
     (c) The minimum allocation for each prototypical middle and high school shall also provide for full-time equivalent classroom teachers based on the following number of full-time equivalent students per teacher in career and technical education:

       Career and technical
       education average
       class size
Approved career and technical education offered at
the middle school and high school level . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.57
Skill center programs meeting the standards established
by the office of the superintendent of public
instruction . . . . . . . . . . . . 22.76

     (d) In addition, the omnibus appropriations act shall at a minimum specify:
     (i) A high-poverty average class size in schools where more than fifty percent of the students are eligible for free and reduced-price meals, which may be in addition to the class size specified for grades K-3 under (b) of this subsection; and
     (ii) A specialty average class size for laboratory science, advanced placement, and international baccalaureate courses.
     (e) To support the increase in instructional hours required under RCW 28A.150.220(2)(a), beginning with the 2013-14 school year, the minimum allocation for each prototypical middle school and high school shall provide resources to provide an additional 0.4444 hours of instruction per week per annual average full-time equivalent student enrolled in grades seven through twelve, based on the general education average class sizes specified in (a) of this subsection, which shall be increased in equal annual increments until an additional 2.2222 hours of instruction is provided in the 2017-18 school year and thereafter.
     (5)(a) The minimum allocation for each level of prototypical school shall include allocations for the following types of staff in addition to classroom teachers:

Sec. 4   RCW 28A.150.315 and 2012 c 51 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Beginning with the 2007-08 school year, funding for voluntary all-day kindergarten programs shall be phased-in beginning with schools with the highest poverty levels, defined as those schools with the highest percentages of students qualifying for free and reduced-price lunch support in the prior school year. ((During the 2011-2013 biennium, funding shall continue to be phased-in each year)) Beginning with the 2013-14 school year, funds shall be allocated to increase the proportion of full-time equivalent kindergarten students in state-funded all-day kindergarten programs in equal annual increments until full statewide implementation of all-day kindergarten is achieved in the 2017-18 school year. Once a school receives funding for the all-day kindergarten program, that school shall remain eligible for funding in subsequent school years regardless of changes in the school's percentage of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunches as long as other program requirements are fulfilled. Additionally, schools receiving all-day kindergarten program support shall agree to the following conditions:
     (a) Provide at least a one thousand-hour instructional program;
     (b) Provide a curriculum that offers a rich, varied set of experiences that assist students in:
     (i) Developing initial skills in the academic areas of reading, mathematics, and writing;
     (ii) Developing a variety of communication skills;
     (iii) Providing experiences in science, social studies, arts, health and physical education, and a world language other than English;
     (iv) Acquiring large and small motor skills;
     (v) Acquiring social and emotional skills including successful participation in learning activities as an individual and as part of a group; and
     (vi) Learning through hands-on experiences;
     (c) Establish learning environments that are developmentally appropriate and promote creativity;
     (d) Demonstrate strong connections and communication with early learning community providers; and
     (e) Participate in kindergarten program readiness activities with early learning providers and parents.
     (2)(a) It is the intent of the legislature that administration of the Washington kindergarten inventory of developing skills as required in this subsection (2) and RCW 28A.655.080 replace administration of other assessments being required by school districts or that other assessments only be administered if they seek to obtain information not covered by the Washington kindergarten inventory of developing skills.
     (b) In addition to the requirements in subsection (1) of this section and to the extent funds are available, beginning with the 2011-12 school year on a voluntary basis, schools must identify the skills, knowledge, and characteristics of kindergarten students at the beginning of the school year in order to support social-emotional, physical, and cognitive growth and development of individual children; support early learning provider and parent involvement; and inform instruction. Kindergarten teachers shall administer the Washington kindergarten inventory of developing skills, as directed by the superintendent of public instruction in consultation with the department of early learning and in collaboration with the nongovernmental private-public partnership designated in RCW 43.215.070, and report the results to the superintendent. The superintendent shall share the results with the director of the department of early learning.
     (c) School districts shall provide an opportunity for parents and guardians to excuse their children from participation in the Washington kindergarten inventory of developing skills.
     (3) Subject to funds appropriated for this purpose, the superintendent of public instruction shall designate one or more school districts to serve as resources and examples of best practices in designing and operating a high-quality all-day kindergarten program. Designated school districts shall serve as lighthouse programs and provide technical assistance to other school districts in the initial stages of implementing an all-day kindergarten program. Examples of topics addressed by the technical assistance include strategic planning, developing the instructional program and curriculum, working with early learning providers to identify students and communicate with parents, and developing kindergarten program readiness activities.

Sec. 5   RCW 28A.150.390 and 2010 c 236 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The superintendent of public instruction shall submit to each regular session of the legislature during an odd-numbered year a programmed budget request for special education programs for students with disabilities. Funding for programs operated by local school districts shall be on an excess cost basis from appropriations provided by the legislature for special education programs for students with disabilities and shall take account of state funds accruing through RCW 28A.150.260 (4)(a) ((and)), (b), and (e), (5), (6), and (8).
     (2) The excess cost allocation to school districts shall be based on the following:
     (a) A district's annual average headcount enrollment of students ages birth through four and those five year olds not yet enrolled in kindergarten who are eligible for and enrolled in special education, multiplied by the district's base allocation per full-time equivalent student, multiplied by 1.15; and
     (b) A district's annual average full-time equivalent basic education enrollment, multiplied by the district's funded enrollment percent, multiplied by the district's base allocation per full-time equivalent student, multiplied by 0.9309.
     (3) As used in this section:
     (a) "Base allocation" means the total state allocation to all schools in the district generated by the distribution formula under RCW 28A.150.260 (4)(a) ((and)), (b), and (e), (5), (6), and (8), to be divided by the district's full-time equivalent enrollment.
     (b) "Basic education enrollment" means enrollment of resident students including nonresident students enrolled under RCW 28A.225.225 and students from nonhigh districts enrolled under RCW 28A.225.210 and excluding students residing in another district enrolled as part of an interdistrict cooperative program under RCW 28A.225.250.
     (c) "Enrollment percent" means the district's resident special education annual average enrollment, excluding students ages birth through four and those five year olds not yet enrolled in kindergarten, as a percent of the district's annual average full-time equivalent basic education enrollment.
     (d) "Funded enrollment percent" means the lesser of the district's actual enrollment percent or twelve and seven-tenths percent.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   A new section is added to chapter 28A.150 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Minimum salary allocations for state-funded classified and certificated administrative staff positions allocated under RCW 28A.150.260 shall be calculated as provided in this section.
     (2)(a) Beginning with the 2013-14 school year, the minimum standard salary allocation for classified staff shall be increased in equal biennial increments until an allocation equal to the market rate salary for classified staff, adjusted by inflation from the 2010-11 school year, is provided in the 2017-18 school year and thereafter.
     (b) Beginning with the 2013-14 school year, the minimum standard salary allocation for certificated administrative staff shall be increased in equal biennial increments until an allocation equal to the market rate salary for certificated administrative staff, adjusted by inflation from the 2010-11 school year, is provided in the 2017-18 school year and thereafter.
     (3) School districts whose grandfathered salary allocation exceeds the standard salary allocation in any year shall receive the greater of their grandfathered salary allocation or the standard salary allocation as provided under this section.
     (4) The salary allocations calculated under this section are minimum allocations and do not include any salary increases provided under RCW 28A.400.205. The salaries calculated under this section are for allocation purposes only.
     (5) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this section.
     (a) "Grandfathered salary allocation" means a state salary allocation rate for classified or certificated administrative staff provided to a school district that exceeds the standard salary allocation.
     (b) "Inflation" means the change in the consumer price index--Seattle for urban wage earners and clerical workers, all items, compiled by the bureau of labor statistics, United States department of labor.
     (c) "Market rate salary for classified staff" means the 2010 state average predicted salary for comparable occupations to classified staff, identified through a wage analysis submitted in April 2012 to the compensation technical working group convened under chapter 548, laws of 2009, weighted by the distribution of school staff among the occupational groupings considered in the analysis.
     (d) "Market rate salary for certificated administrative staff" means the 2010 state average prevailing salary for managerial occupations comparable to school district administrators, identified through a wage analysis submitted in April 2012 to the compensation technical working group convened under chapter 548, laws of 2009.
     (e) "Standard salary allocation" means the state salary allocation rate for classified or certificated administrative staff provided to the majority of school districts.

Sec. 7   RCW 28A.180.030 and 2001 1st sp.s. c 6 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     As used throughout this chapter, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
     (1) "Transitional bilingual instruction" means:
     (a) A system of instruction which uses two languages, one of which is English, as a means of instruction to build upon and expand language skills to enable the pupil to achieve competency in English. Concepts and information are introduced in the primary language and reinforced in the second language: PROVIDED, That the program shall include testing in the subject matter in English; or
     (b) In those cases in which the use of two languages is not practicable as established by the superintendent of public instruction and unless otherwise prohibited by law, an alternative system of instruction which may include English as a second language and is designed to enable the pupil to achieve competency in English.
     (2) "Primary language" means the language most often used by the student for communication in his/her home.
     (3) "Eligible pupil" means any enrollee of the school district whose primary language is other than English and whose English language skills are sufficiently deficient or absent to impair learning.
     (4) "Exited pupil" means a student previously enrolled in the transitional bilingual instruction program who is no longer eligible for the program based on his or her performance on an English proficiency assessment approved by the superintendent of public instruction.

Sec. 8   RCW 28A.180.040 and 2009 c 380 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Every school district board of directors shall:
     (a) Make available to each eligible pupil transitional bilingual instruction to achieve competency in English, in accord with rules of the superintendent of public instruction;
     (b) Wherever feasible, ensure that communications to parents emanating from the schools shall be appropriately bilingual for those parents of pupils in the bilingual instruction program;
     (c) Determine, by administration of an English test approved by the superintendent of public instruction the number of eligible pupils enrolled in the school district at the beginning of a school year and thereafter during the year as necessary in individual cases;
     (d) Ensure that a student who is a child of a military family in transition and who has been assessed as in need of, or enrolled in, a bilingual instruction program, the receiving school shall initially honor placement of the student into a like program.
     (i) The receiving school shall determine whether the district's program is a like program when compared to the sending school's program; and
     (ii) The receiving school may conduct subsequent assessments pursuant to RCW 28A.180.090 to determine appropriate placement and continued enrollment in the program;
     (e) Before the conclusion of each school year, measure each eligible pupil's improvement in learning the English language by means of a test approved by the superintendent of public instruction; ((and))
     (f) Provide in-service training for teachers, counselors, and other staff, who are involved in the district's transitional bilingual program. Such training shall include appropriate instructional strategies for children of culturally different backgrounds, use of curriculum materials, and program models; and
     (g) Make available a program of instructional support for up to two years immediately after pupils exit from the program, for exited pupils who need assistance in reaching grade-level performance in academic subjects even though they have achieved English proficiency for purposes of the transitional bilingual instructional program.
     (2) The definitions in Article II of RCW 28A.705.010 apply to subsection (1)(d) of this section.

Sec. 9   RCW 28A.230.090 and 2011 c 203 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The state board of education shall establish high school graduation requirements or equivalencies for students, except as provided in RCW 28A.230.122 and except those equivalencies established by local high schools or school districts under RCW 28A.230.097. The purpose of a high school diploma is to declare that a student is ready for success in postsecondary education, gainful employment, and citizenship, and is equipped with the skills to be a lifelong learner.
     (a) Any course in Washington state history and government used to fulfill high school graduation requirements shall consider including information on the culture, history, and government of the American Indian peoples who were the first inhabitants of the state.
     (b) The certificate of academic achievement requirements under RCW 28A.655.061 or the certificate of individual achievement requirements under RCW 28A.155.045 are required for graduation from a public high school but are not the only requirements for graduation.
     (c) Any decision on whether a student has met the state board's high school graduation requirements for a high school and beyond plan shall remain at the local level.
     (2)(a) In recognition of the statutory authority of the state board of education to establish and enforce minimum high school graduation requirements, the state board shall periodically reevaluate the graduation requirements and shall report such findings to the legislature in a timely manner as determined by the state board.
     (b) The state board shall reevaluate the graduation requirements for students enrolled in vocationally intensive and rigorous career and technical education programs, particularly those programs that lead to a certificate or credential that is state or nationally recognized. The purpose of the evaluation is to ensure that students enrolled in these programs have sufficient opportunity to earn a certificate of academic achievement, complete the program and earn the program's certificate or credential, and complete other state and local graduation requirements.
     (c) The state board shall forward any proposed changes to the high school graduation requirements to the education committees of the legislature for review and to the quality education council established under RCW 28A.290.010. The legislature shall have the opportunity to act during a regular legislative session before the changes are adopted through administrative rule by the state board. Changes that have a fiscal impact on school districts, as identified by a fiscal analysis prepared by the office of the superintendent of public instruction, shall take effect only if formally authorized and funded by the legislature through the omnibus appropriations act or other enacted legislation.
     (d) The state board of education shall adopt rules to implement the career and college ready graduation requirement proposal adopted under board resolution on November 10, 2010, to take effect beginning with the graduating class of 2018. The provisions of chapter . . ., Laws of 2013 (this act) and the increased funding allocated under RCW 28A.150.260 as amended by chapter . . ., Laws of 2013 (this act) constitute the funding by the legislature required under this section to implement the proposal.
     (3) Pursuant to any requirement for instruction in languages other than English established by the state board of education or a local school district, or both, for purposes of high school graduation, students who receive instruction in American sign language or one or more American Indian languages shall be considered to have satisfied the state or local school district graduation requirement for instruction in one or more languages other than English.
     (4) If requested by the student and his or her family, a student who has completed high school courses before attending high school shall be given high school credit which shall be applied to fulfilling high school graduation requirements if:
     (a) The course was taken with high school students, if the academic level of the course exceeds the requirements for seventh and eighth grade classes, and the student has successfully passed by completing the same course requirements and examinations as the high school students enrolled in the class; or
     (b) The academic level of the course exceeds the requirements for seventh and eighth grade classes and the course would qualify for high school credit, because the course is similar or equivalent to a course offered at a high school in the district as determined by the school district board of directors.
     (5) Students who have taken and successfully completed high school courses under the circumstances in subsection (4) of this section shall not be required to take an additional competency examination or perform any other additional assignment to receive credit.
     (6) At the college or university level, five quarter or three semester hours equals one high school credit.

Sec. 10   RCW 28A.160.192 and 2011 1st sp.s. c 27 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) ((The superintendent of public instruction shall phase-in the implementation of)) The distribution formula under this chapter for allocating state funds to school districts for the transportation of students to and from school((. The phase-in shall begin no later than the 2011-2013 biennium and be fully implemented by the 2013-2015 biennium.)) must:
     (a) ((The formula must)) Be developed and revised on an ongoing basis using the major cost factors in student transportation, including basic and special student loads, school district land area, average distance to school, roadway miles, and number of locations served. Factors must include all those site characteristics that are statistically significant after analysis of the data required by the revised reporting process.
     (b) ((The formula must)) Allocate funds to school districts based on the average predicted costs of transporting students to and from school, using a regression analysis. Only factors that are statistically significant shall be used in the regression analysis. Employee compensation costs included in the allowable transportation expenditures used for the purpose of establishing each ((school district's independent)) variable in the regression analysis shall be limited to the base salary or hourly wage rates, fringe benefit rates, and ((applicable health care)) the insurance benefit allocation rate((s)) provided in the omnibus appropriations act.
     (2) ((During the phase-in period,)) Funding provided to school districts for student transportation operations shall be distributed on the following basis:
     (a) Annually, each school district shall receive the lesser of the ((previous school year's pupil transportation operations allocation)) expected cost as predicted by the regression analysis under subsection (1)(b) of this section, or the total of allowable pupil transportation expenditures identified on the previous school year's final expenditure report to the state plus district indirect expenses using the federal restricted indirect rate as calculated in the district annual financial report;
     (b) Annually, the amount identified in (a) of this subsection shall be adjusted for any budgeted ((increases)) changes provided in the omnibus appropriations act for salaries ((or)), fringe benefits, and the insurance benefit allocation rate; and
     (c) ((Annually, any funds appropriated by the legislature in excess of the maintenance level funding amount for student transportation shall be distributed among school districts on a prorated basis using the difference between the amount identified in (a) adjusted by (b) of this subsection and the amount determined under the formula in RCW 28A.160.180; and
     (d))) Allocations provided to recognize the cost of depreciation to districts contracting with private carriers for student transportation shall be deducted from the allowable transportation expenditures in (a) of this subsection.

Sec. 11   RCW 43.135.025 and 2009 c 479 s 35 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The state shall not expend from the general fund during any fiscal year state moneys in excess of the state expenditure limit established under this chapter.
     (2) Except pursuant to a declaration of emergency under RCW 43.135.035 or pursuant to an appropriation under RCW 43.135.045(2), the state treasurer shall not issue or redeem any check, warrant, or voucher that will result in a state general fund expenditure for any fiscal year in excess of the state expenditure limit established under this chapter. A violation of this subsection constitutes a violation of RCW 43.88.290 and shall subject the state treasurer to the penalties provided in RCW 43.88.300.
     (3) The state expenditure limit for any fiscal year shall be the previous fiscal year's state expenditure limit increased by a percentage rate that equals the fiscal growth factor.
     (4) For purposes of computing the state expenditure limit for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2009, the phrase "the previous fiscal year's state expenditure limit" means the total state expenditures from the state general fund, the public safety and education account, the health services account, the violence reduction and drug enforcement account, the student achievement fund, the water quality account, and the equal justice subaccount, not including federal funds, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2008, plus the fiscal growth factor.
     (5) A state expenditure limit committee is established for the purpose of determining and adjusting the state expenditure limit as provided in this chapter. The members of the state expenditure limit committee are the director of financial management, the attorney general or the attorney general's designee, and the chairs and ranking minority members of the senate committee on ways and means and the house of representatives committee on ways and means. All actions of the state expenditure limit committee taken pursuant to this chapter require an affirmative vote of at least four members.
     (6) Each November, the state expenditure limit committee shall adjust the expenditure limit for the preceding fiscal year based on actual expenditures and known changes in the fiscal growth factor and then project an expenditure limit for the next two fiscal years. However, to facilitate incremental implementation of basic education formula enhancements under chapter 548, Laws of 2009, chapter 236, Laws of 2010, and sections 2 through 10 of this act, when calculating the expenditure limit for fiscal years 2014 through and including fiscal year 2018, the state expenditure limit committee must adjust the limit as otherwise required by this chapter but may not rebase the limit by adjusting the limit for the preceding fiscal year based on actual expenditures. If, by November 30th, the state expenditure limit committee has not adopted the expenditure limit adjustment and projected expenditure limit as provided in subsection (5) of this section, the attorney general or his or her designee shall adjust or project the expenditure limit, as necessary.
     (7) "Fiscal growth factor" means the average growth in state personal income for the prior ten fiscal years.
     (8) "General fund" means the state general fund.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   (1) The legislature finds that for too long, there has been a perception that career readiness and college readiness represent two separate and unequal tracks. The importance of providing high quality opportunities for applied learning, cross-disciplinary curriculum, and career and technical equivalence often appears subsumed by an emphasis on theoretical academics. The legislature intends to create a vision for the integration of career education alongside academic education.
     (2)(a) A legislative task force on career education opportunities is established with the following members:
     (i) Two members from each of the largest caucuses of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
     (ii) Two members from each of the largest caucuses of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate;
     (iii) The superintendent of public instruction or a designee; and
     (iv) One representative each from the workforce training and education coordinating board, the student achievement council, and the Washington association of career and technical education.
     (b) The task force shall be cochaired by one house and one senate member, selected by the members of the task force.
     (3) The purpose of the task force is to identify strategies to improve the integration of career education into secondary education opportunities for all students. The strategies to be considered by the task force include state laws and policies, graduation requirements, and state funding for instructional programs and capital facilities. The task force must examine the barriers, incentives and disincentives, costs, and cost-effectiveness of current policies and practices.
     (4) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall identify a recommended list of course equivalencies for career and technical education courses and submit the list to the task force under this section by September 1, 2013.
     (5) A report from the task force is due December 15, 2013, to include at least the following:
     (a) An analysis of the career and college ready graduation requirements proposed by the state board of education and any recommendations regarding graduation requirements;
     (b) Recommended policies that both support and provide appropriate state oversight and strategic planning for career and technical education offered in middle schools, comprehensive high schools, and skill centers;
     (c) Recommendations for how to maximize statewide use of the list of career and technical education course equivalencies identified by the office of the superintendent of public instruction; and
     (d) Analysis of the feasibility of establishing technical high schools as an alternative delivery model for integrated secondary career and academic education.
     (6) Staff support for the task force must be provided by senate committee services and the house of representatives office of program research, with assistance from the office of the superintendent of public instruction, the student achievement council, and the workforce training and education coordinating board as necessary.
     (7) Legislative members of the task force may be reimbursed for travel expenses in accordance with RCW 44.04.120. The expenses of the task force must be paid jointly by the senate and the house of representatives. Task force expenditures are subject to approval by the senate facilities and operations committee and the house of representatives executive rules committee.
     (8) The task force expires December 31, 2013.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13   Sections 2 through 8 of this act take effect September 1, 2013.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 14   Section 10 of this act takes effect September 1, 2014.