[Filed May 7, 2025, 9:24 a.m., effective June 7, 2025]

Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.

Purpose: In alignment with 2SSB 5882, passed by the Washington state legislature in 2024, the office of superintendent of public instruction is adopting rule making to establish requirements for school districts to utilize allocated funding for the 2024-25 school year to support paraeducators, office support, and noninstructional aides. Additionally, consistent with legislative directive to collect data on the use of allocations, the rules would require local education agencies to provide reports that detail the uses of the allocations.

Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: New WAC 392-122-305.

Statutory Authority for Adoption: 2SSB 5882 (chapter 191, Laws of 2024); RCW 28A.150.260.

Adopted under notice filed as WSR 25-05-033 on February 11, 2025.

Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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: May 7, 2025.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction

PARAEDUCATOR, OFFICE SUPPORT, AND NONINSTRUCTIONAL AIDE

WAC 392-122-305Paraeducator, office support, and noninstructional aide compliance.

The 2024-25 school year allocations are provided because of the increase in staffing ratios between the 2022-23 and 2024-25 school years for paraeducators, including any aspect of education instructional services provided by classified employees, and office support and other noninstructional aides. Such allocations for the 2024-25 school year must be spent on one of the following purposes as defined below:

(1) Increased staffing as demonstrated by having a combined student-to-staff ratio across paraeducators, office support, and noninstructional aides that is less in the 2024-25 school year than in the 2023-24 school year.

(2) Preventing layoffs as demonstrated by having a combined student-to-staff ratio across paraeducators, office support, and noninstructional aides that is equal to or less in the 2024-25 school year than in the 2023-24 school year.

(3) Increased salaries in the 2024-25 school year demonstrated by new contract language that articulates a pay increase beyond the state-funded cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and beyond previously agreed-to salary steps or advancements.

Local education agencies must report no later than November 15, 2025, the use of the additional funds in alignment with one of the three purposes above in a format prescribed by the office of the superintendent of public instruction. The total revenue for increased staffing allocation for program 01 shall be identified in a separate apportionment report starting in school year 2024-25. Local education agencies are expected to report to the office of the superintendent of public instruction all expenditures of revenues identified in this apportionment report in the prescribed format.