Filter Articles

This Week in Olympia

02/26/2016
Back to Blog
2016_Lobby_Day_PSUC

Week 7

February 22-26

The big news this week is that the House and Senate both released their budget proposals. And let’s give credit to our member lobbyists who came to the capitol on Wednesday to advocate for addressing the educator shortage by making pay more competitive and supporting beginning teachers with mentors, allowing retirees work as substitutes, and to argue against charter school legislation and a bad version of a paraeducators certification bill. They had some success!

First, budget updates:

The House focused its supplemental budget on emergent issues, including teacher shortages, mental health and homelessness. The Senate’s supplemental budget is more concerned with containing government and avoiding tax increases. 

The House adds new expenses and proposes to cover them by using reserve funds and closing tax loopholes. In terms of K-12 education, it adds about $99 million to recruit and retain educators, $90 million to stabilize district funding against the upcoming levy cliff, and about $7.5 million for other improvements.

In contrast, the Senate budget provides $6 million to bail out charter schools, and only $1.9 million for K-12 public education, directed to alternative routes for teacher certification and to create new certification requirements for paraeducators.

In higher education, the general story is that the House invests more on students (need grants) while the Senate tends to prioritize spending to backfill the institutions’ budgets against loss from last year’s tuition cut policy. Both are important and lawmakers should combine the two proposals rather than pick among them.

The House has proposed in a couple bills to add over $240 million in construction funds, with the bulk of that going for classrooms for full day K and K-3 class sizes. The Senate provides about $74 million, half of which goes for K-3 class sizes.

Please contact your lawmakers and tell them to support the House budget proposals.

In other news . . .

Paraeducators

SB 6408, was completely re-written in the House Education Committee with amendments offered by WEA member Rep. Steve Bergquist. His proposal would create and fund a PD system for paraeducators, and calls for a report on credentialing.  

WEA supports this new bill. It now moves to House Appropriations Committee for a hearing. The House budget has $3 million for this bill, the Senate $900,000. We expect this bill to see a wild ride before a final version is either approved or defeated.

Teacher shortage

The House budget prioritizes efforts to begin addressing the teacher shortage.  It funds raises for new teachers, bonuses for certificated staff with professional certification, adds a new step at the top of the salary schedule for veteran teachers and provides a one percent increase for classified staff.

There are a number of bills still alive that would allow teachers who retired with 2008 Early Reduction Factors to work as substitute teachers (SB 6455, HB 2743, HB 1737). Some are even adding on extra hours beyond the 630 originally defined. SB 6455 also includes tuition waivers for state and education employees.

WEA supports efforts to reduce the teacher shortage if they maintain high standards. We believe that increasing pay and respect for educators are critical to effectively addressing the shortages.

Charter Schools  

SB 6194, so far, the House Education Committee has resisted calls to hold a vote on the Senate’s charter schools bill. In part, we can give credit to our members who used lobby day to remind lawmakers of their paramount duty to the state’s 1.1 public school students. We continue to oppose the charters legislation.

Higher Education

SHB 2615, creating a strategic plan to convert a limited number of part time to full time faculty positions in our community and technical colleges was heard in the Senate Higher Education committee this week but failed to be passed out before policy cutoff.  So, while the bill is technically dead, there is still a possibility that something could move forward in budget negotiations. The bill passed out of the House and was funded in the House budget. 

Look ahead

The House and Senate have each approved their own budgets, opening the door for negotiations, arm-wrestling and horse trading to begin. Given how far apart they are, they have lots of work to do between now and the end of session.  You can encourage them to act quickly by supporting the House budget proposals. Contact your legislators now.  

Back to Blog

Subscribe to our Blog

Subscribe to stay informed.

Filter Blog Posts

Apply Filter

Archives

Related Posts