Down to the wire

Coming up this week – take action now! 

We’re in the race to the finish line now and educator voices have been critical to getting bills through committees and on to the floor before cutoff. April 12 is the deadline to pass in the second chamber. 

• Increased funding for Special Education (SB 5311) has a hearing in House Appropriations tomorrow. It increases funding for supports for students with disabilities and we continue to work to include more of what our students need. Sign in pro now! 
• The bill setting policies for school library programs (SSB 5102) is scheduled for hearing in House Appropriations on Saturday.  Sign in pro here. 
• The Senate already passed their budget and the House is expected to pass its on Monday, starting the conference process.  We’re working with allies to push for House approach to phased down regionalization, levy equalization, and experience mix and the Senate levels of funding for Special Education and pupil transportation.   

Updates on major bills 

What’s scheduled for a fiscal committee vote 

• Free school meals for K-12 students (HB 1238) is scheduled for exec in Senate Ways & Means on Tuesday. It would provide free meals to about 600,000 of our state’s 1,000,000 K-12 students.  
• The bill creating oversight and accountability for charter schools (ESHB 1744) is scheduled for exec on Tuesday in Senate Ways & Means. 
• Senators made amendments to the Transitional Kindergarten bill (HB 1550) that reflected educators’ concerns and the bill is now a promising way forward for early learning.  It is scheduled for exec in Ways & Means on Tuesday.  
• The bill preventing musculoskeletal injuries and disorders (ESSB 5217) that would allow L&I to adopt ergonomic rules awaits action today in House Appropriations.   
• HB 1701, the bill about education in institutional settings, is scheduled for exec on Tuesday in Senate Ways & Means. 

What awaits floor action 

• The bill providing privileged protection to communications between employees and their unions (HB 1187) passed in Senate Committee on Law & Justice on Tuesday and awaits floor action.   
• HB 1200 to ensure public employers share basic employee contact information with unions passed in Senate Labor and Commerce on Monday and awaits floor action.   
• The bill that exempts disclosure of personal information of state employees who are survivors of violence, assault, or harassment (HB 1533) passed in the Senate Committee on State Government & Elections with some compromises and a carve out for media entities this week and now awaits floor action. 
• Increasing access to PEBB retiree benefits for Plan 2 members (HB 1008) awaits a Senate floor vote. Legislation to provide a one-time Plan 1 COLA (HB 1057 & SB 5350) awaits floor action. These bills are currently assumed in House and Senate budgets. We will make one more big push to ensure this gets done.   

WEA leader Shannon McCann (Federal Way EA) testified this week on teacher workforce development.  If you provided testimony before the legislature, we’d like to do a shout-out about you! Please contact WEA Political Organizer Hillary Hunt. 

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