EMERGENCY RULES
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION
Effective Date of Rule: Immediately.
Purpose: Where a school district resides in a county which was declared a state of emergency proclamation by the governor and a district-wide closure exists, the superintendent may consider school district application to have met the "reasonable effort" test by providing at least the district-wide annual average total instruction hour offerings (1000 hours).
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 28A.41.170(2).
Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.
Reasons for this Finding: Under the amendment, when the governor has declared a state of emergency school districts that were forced to close in counties where the emergency was declared may not have to make up the days related to that closure. Under current rules, districts must always make up the first three days of any closure incident, and can apply for a waiver of the remaining days of that incident. And even when the three-day makeup requirement is waived in declared emergencies, districts will still have to provide students with the required 1,000-hour minimum for instructional hours. The change should come as a particular relief to districts that were not only hit hard by the floods and windstorms but also now face a new round of days to make up thanks to the recent snow.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 1, Amended 1, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Date Adopted: January 17, 2007.
Terry Bergeson
Superintendent of
Public Instruction
OTS-9498.1
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending Order 22, filed 12/20/89,
effective 1/20/90)
WAC 392-129-105
Definition -- Reasonable effort.
As used
in this chapter, "reasonable effort" means the:
(1) Extension of the school year to and through June 14th; and
(2) Use of scheduled vacation days and foreseeable school
closure days, to attain the minimum number of school days and
((program hour offerings, teacher contact hours, and course
mix and percentages)) district-wide annual average total
instruction hour offerings required by law. In no case,
except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, shall a
school district be considered to have made a reasonable effort
unless at least three school days, per incident, and ((program
hour offerings, teacher contact hours, and course mix
percentage)) district-wide annual average total instruction
hour offerings which have been lost have in fact been made up.
(3) Where a school district resides in a county which was declared a state of emergency proclamation by the governor due to fire, flood, explosion, storm, earthquake, epidemic, or volcanic eruption, and the emergency impacted district-wide facilities or operations, the superintendent may consider school district applications to have met the "reasonable effort" test by providing at least the district-wide annual average total instruction hour offerings.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 28A.41.170(2). 90-01-141 (Order 22), § 392-129-105, filed 12/20/89, effective 1/20/90.]