As the 2024 legislative session comes to a close, the Washington state Legislature has passed a pair of bills sponsored by Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, to provide additional funding for small school districts.
Senate Bill 6031 would allow school districts to use money for school transportation for vehicles other than school buses. Braun discovered the issue while observing a school bus with only two children on board.
After discussing the issue with local school officials, Braun learned that state money could only be used for buses rather than other vehicles that might be more efficient.
“It’s just common sense and good fiscal practice to allow school districts to use alternative vehicles, such as vans, when a school bus is not necessary,” Braun said in a statement. “The state is wasting resources by mandating that student transportation only be used for the more expensive buses, especially if they are transporting only two children.”
While the bill previously passed the Senate, the House of Representatives added an amendment to require the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to compare transportation funding formulas with alternative formulas. The bill will again return to the Senate for consideration.
“The intent of this bill is to allow school districts more flexibility,” Braun said in a statement. “If they save money as well, all the better.”
Additionally, both chambers have now passed Senate Bill 5852, which will streamline the application process for “safety-net” funding, which supports students with special education needs.
“One area where Washington has not done a good job funding basic education is in providing special-education services,” Braun said.
According to Braun, many districts don’t have dedicated staff members for applications, which leads to a fear their application will be rejected for reasons not relevant to student needs.
“As we work to increase and improve those services, we also need to make it easier for the children who need them to gain access,” Braun said. “Until now, one large barrier for rural school districts was the application process and the staffing level needed to properly complete the applications. I hate to think that students in rural areas may have been denied services because the schools didn’t have the resources necessary to navigate the application process. Schools who need that money to properly serve their students should have the support they need to deal with the bureaucracy, regardless of which community they serve.”
SB 5282 will now head to the governor’s desk. Unless it’s vetoed, the bill will become law 90 days after the Legislature adjourns on March 7.
