BySenate Early Learning & K-12 Education (originally sponsored by Senators Braun, Darneille, Hasegawa, O'Ban, Rolfes, Short, and Wilson, C.)

AN ACT Relating to assessing the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences in middle and high school students to inform decision making and improve services; adding a new section to chapter 28A.300 RCW; and creating a new section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature stated in RCW 70.305.005 that "adverse childhood experiences are a powerful common determinant of a child's ability to be successful at school and, as an adult, to be successful at work, to avoid behavioral and chronic physical health conditions, and to build healthy relationships."

(2) The legislature recognizes that the healthy youth survey is a voluntary and anonymous survey administered every two years to students in sixth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth grades.

(3) The legislature intends to include questions related to adverse childhood experiences in the healthy youth survey to help assess the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences throughout the state. The legislature further intends for this data to help inform school district and community decision making and improve services for students.

(1)(a) The health care authority, in collaboration with the office of the superintendent of public instruction, the department of health, and the liquor and cannabis board, must incorporate questions related to adverse childhood experiences into the healthy youth survey that are validated for children and would allow reporting of adverse childhood experiences during childhood to be included in frequency reports. The questions must be administered for two cycles of the healthy youth survey and then evaluated by the agencies for any needed changes.

(c) The aggregated student responses to the adverse childhood experiences questions must be published by state, educational service district, county, and school district if the district has more than twenty students. The aggregated student responses to the adverse childhood experiences questions must be available to school buildings and school districts with twenty or fewer students.

(2) School districts are encouraged to use the information about adverse childhood experiences in their decision making and to help improve services for students.