Graduation Requirements. To graduate from high school, Washington students must complete 24 credits in various subject areas, meet the requirements of at least one graduation pathway, complete a High School and Beyond Plan, and satisfy any local requirements.

Learning Standards. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) is required to develop state learning standards based on the statutory goals of basic education. The fourth goal addresses the importance of work and finance and how performance, effort, and decisions directly affect future career and educational opportunities.

At the Legislature's direction, OSPI adopted financial education learning standards in 2016. The financial education learning standards are:

• spending and saving;
• credit and debt;
• employment and income;
• investing;
• risk management and insurance; and
• financial decision-making.

Beginning in or before the 2029-30 school year, school districts must provide all high school students with financial education instruction consistent with the state financial education learning standards.  Starting with the graduating class of 2033, or earlier if recommended by the State Board of Education (SBE), all students must meet high school learning standards related to financial education in order to graduate from high school. Principals may waive this requirement for students in grade 12 who have been unable to meet this requirement because of previous residence outside of Washington.

SBE is directed to recommend adjustments to graduation requirements and other educational offerings in order to ensure students have adequate opportunity to meet the financial education graduation requirement. In developing these recommendations, the SBE must:

• consult with the financial education public-private partnership, students, parents and legal guardians, educators, K-12 education partners, postsecondary partners, employers, and community members;
• consider how students may meet financial education learning standards and develop other skills and knowledge in the state's profile of a graduate; and
• consider how to incorporate the financial education graduation requirement into the existing framework of graduation requirements, including credit and competency-based options.

The SBE must report these recommendations to the Governor and Legislature by December 31, 2026. School districts must begin publicizing financial education instruction opportunities and the associated graduation requirement no later than the 2027-28 school year.

The SBE must review and monitor financial education offerings to ensure district compliance. By January 10, 2029, the SBE must submit a summary of this information for the 2027-28 and 2028-29 school years to the Legislature. 

These requirements apply to charter schools and state-tribal education compact schools to the same extent as school districts.

PRO: Significant financial decisions begin immediately after high school graduation, such as taking student or auto loans, understanding employment contracts and benefits, or signing a lease. This bill addresses a critical and growing gap at a time of generational wealth transition. Many young people do not understand what to do with their W2, how to file taxes, or how to sign a lease. If something is necessary for adulthood, delaying or gatekeeping it doesn't reduce pressure.

It is necessary for this education to be a requirement that can be integrated into other courses; many students aren't interested in financial literacy electives or don't have room in their schedules to take them. As of 2025, only Alaska, Wyoming, and Washington lack a financial education requirement.

Learning standards are generally broad and give teachers latitude to embed those standards in an existing course. This bill is aligned with the State Board of Education's FutureReady initiative.

CON: Financial resources and instructional time are already limited and the trend over time has been for the Legislature to add requirements to schools without taking anything away. It is already difficult for the Legislature to fund special education, MSOC, and special education and schools are spreading their resources thin to fill that gap.

OTHER: This is a slam dunk idea but it is also an unfunded mandate, burdensome for schools to implement.

PRO: Senator Adrian Cortes, Prime Sponsor; Conrad Krol, Westbank Financials; Cassie Clayton, Northwest Progressive Institute; Rajan Parhar; Fedor Stepanyuk; Ben Olson; Natalie Vega O’Neil, Junior Achievement of Washington; Keshav Gopinath; Sherry Krainick, Washington Bankers Association; Alessandra Chavez; Matthew Bainter; Christy Johnson, Artemis Connection, Inc.; Sorbilig Ochir, Highschool Student; Preston Tucker, Washington Youth Alliance; Madi Branch, Washington youth alliance; Katie Fure, Washington youth alliance; Diego Garcia, Washington Youth Alliance; Lizbeth Frutos, Washington youth alliance; Leyla Manjares, Washington Youth Alliance.