2026 Regular Session

BySenators Hunt, Krishnadasan, Conway, Hasegawa, Liias, Nobles, Saldaña, Shewmake, Valdez, and C. Wilson

Read first time 01/20/26.Referred to Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education.

AN ACT Relating to supporting public school students by improving their access to surplus technology hardware; reenacting and amending RCW 28A.335.180; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature acknowledges that requirements in state law governing surplus computer laptops, tablets, and other electronic devices or equipment from education settings can be improved to better support students and families.

(2) The legislature intends to allow school districts and other public education agencies the option to prioritize selling these electronic devices or equipment at depreciated cost to public school students or grant these electronic devices or equipment at no cost to qualifying public school students.

(3) The legislature believes these changes will reduce barriers for students to accessing these devices and equipment, which will help improve education outcomes, access to information, and career and workforce development.

Sec. 2. RCW 28A.335.180 and 1997 c 264 s 1 and 1997 c 104 s 1 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, school districts, educational service districts, or any other state or local governmental agency concerned with education, when declaring texts and other books, equipment, materials or relocatable facilities as surplus, shall, prior to other disposal thereof, serve notice in writing in a newspaper of general circulation in the school district and to any public school district or private school in Washington state annually requesting such a notice, that the same is available for sale, rent, or lease to public school districts or approved private schools, at depreciated cost or fair market value, whichever is greater: PROVIDED, That students wishing to purchase texts pursuant to RCW 28A.320.230(((2)))(1)(b) shall have priority as to such texts. The notice requirement in this section does not apply to the sale or transfer of assistive devices under RCW 28A.335.205 or chapter 72.40 RCW. Such districts or agencies shall not otherwise sell, rent or lease such surplus property to any person, firm, organization, or nongovernmental agency for at least thirty days following publication of notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the school district.

(2) In lieu of complying with subsection (1) of this section, school districts and educational service districts may elect to ((grant)):

(a) Grant surplus personal property to a federal, state, or local governmental entity, or to indigent persons, at no cost on the condition the property be used for preschool through twelfth grade educational purposes((, or elect to loan));

(b) Loan surplus personal property to a nonreligious, nonsectarian private entity on the condition the property be used for the preschool through twelfth grade education of members of the public on a nondiscriminatory basis; or

(c) Sell or grant surplus technology hardware at depreciated cost to public school students. The sale or grant must be recorded in an agreement between the parties that indicates the surplus technology hardware's depreciated cost, if any.

(3) School districts that sell or grant surplus technology hardware under this section should prioritize the receipt of items to students they have reasonably determined to have the greatest need. In making determinations under this subsection (3), school districts may consider, among other factors, whether a student's family qualifies for free or reduced-price meals or has an income at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty level at the time of the sale or grant.

(4) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(a) "Public school students" include recent graduates and persons who were enrolled in a public school at any time during the 12 months preceding a sale or grant under subsection (2)(c) of this section; and

(b) "Surplus technology hardware" means computer laptops, tablets, and other electronic devices or equipment issued by the public school to students for their use during a school year.