School district mandates

AN ACT Relating to relieving school districts of certain 1
requirements; amending RCW 19.27A.210, 28A.210.420, 28A.300.475, 2
28A.320.123, 28A.320.124, and 28A.320.125; and creating new sections.3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that expanding 5
expectations for school districts increases compliance and 6
operational workloads for teachers, administrators, and staff 7
throughout the state. School districts frequently must rely on local 8
levy enrichment funding to meet the requirements of continually more 9
burdensome laws. When mandates are implemented without additional 10
state basic education funding, it places a burden on school districts 11
to choose between compliance and flexibility to fund core 12
instructional priorities.13
The legislature intends to relieve burdensome mandated 14
requirements on school districts. The legislature finds that schools 15
are in the best position to determine their funding priorities within 16
the framework provided by the law. 17
Sec. 2. RCW 19.27A.210 and 2025 c 264 s 4 are each amended to 18
read as follows: 19
S-4155.1
SENATE BILL 6285
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Senators Braun, Christian, Fortunato, King, Muzzall, Wagoner, and
J. Wilson
Read first time 01/22/26. Referred to Committee on Early Learning &
K-12 Education.
p. 1 SB 6285
(1)(a) By November 1, 2020, the department must establish by rule 1
a state energy performance standard for covered buildings.2
(b) In developing energy performance standards, the department 3
shall seek to maximize reductions of greenhouse gas emissions from 4
the building sector. The standard must include energy use intensity 5
targets by building type and methods of conditional compliance that 6
include an energy management plan, operations and maintenance 7
program, energy efficiency audits, and investment in energy 8
efficiency measures designed to meet the targets. The department 9
shall use ANSI/ASHRAE/IES standard 100-2018 as an initial model for 10
standard development. The department may adopt by rule subsequent 11
versions of standard 100 as its model for standard development. The 12
department must update the standard by July 1, 2029, and every five 13
years thereafter. Prior to the adoption or update of the standard, 14
the department must identify the sources of information it relied 15
upon, including peer-reviewed science. 16
(2) In establishing the standard under subsection (1) of this 17
section, the department: 18
(a) Must develop energy use intensity targets that are no greater 19
than the average energy use intensity for the covered building 20
occupancy type with adjustments for unique energy using features. The 21
department must also develop energy use intensity targets for 22
additional property types eligible for incentives in RCW 19.27A.220. 23
The department may also develop targets for alternative metrics 24
related to energy use and greenhouse gas emissions if alternative 25
metrics are included in standard 100-2018 or subsequent versions. The 26
department must consider regional and local building energy 27
utilization data, such as existing energy star benchmarking data, in 28
establishing targets for the standard. Energy use intensity targets 29
or alternative metrics must be developed for two or more climate 30
zones and be representative of energy use in a normal weather year;31
(b) May consider building occupancy classifications from ANSI/32
ASHRAE/IES standard 100 and the United States environmental 33
protection agency's energy star portfolio manager when developing 34
energy use intensity targets; 35
(c) May implement lower energy use intensity targets or 36
alternative metrics for more recently built covered buildings based 37
on the state energy code in place when the buildings were 38
constructed; 39
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(d)(i) Must adopt a conditional compliance method that ensures 1
that covered buildings that do not meet the specified energy use 2
intensity targets or alternative metrics are taking action to achieve 3
reduction in energy use, including investment criteria for 4
conditional compliance that ensure that energy efficiency measures 5
identified by energy audits are implemented to achieve a covered 6
building's energy use intensity target or alternative metric. The 7
investment criteria must require that a building owner adopt an 8
implementation plan to meet the energy intensity target or 9
alternative metric or implement an optimized bundle of energy 10
efficiency measures that provides maximum energy savings without 11
resulting in a savings-to-investment ratio of less than 1.0, except 12
as exempted in (d)(ii) of this subsection. The implementation plan 13
must be based on an investment grade energy audit and a life-cycle 14
cost analysis that accounts for the period during which a bundle of 15
measures will provide savings. The building owner's cost for 16
implementing energy efficiency measures must reflect net cost, 17
excluding any costs covered by utility or government grants. The 18
implementation plan may exclude measures that do not pay for 19
themselves over the useful life of the measure and measures excluded 20
under (d)(ii) of this subsection. The implementation plan may include 21
phased implementation such that the building owner is not required to 22
replace a system or equipment before the end of the system or 23
equipment's useful life; 24
(ii) For those buildings or structures that are listed in the 25
state or national register of historic places; designated as a 26
historic property under local or state designation law or survey; 27
certified as a contributing resource with a national register listed 28
or locally designated historic district; or with an opinion or 29
certification that the property is eligible to be listed on the 30
national or state registers of historic places either individually or 31
as a contributing building to a historic district by the state 32
historic preservation officer or the keeper of the national register 33
of historic places, no individual energy efficiency requirement need 34
be met that would compromise the historical integrity of a building 35
or part of a building; 36
(e) Must provide an alternative compliance pathway for an owner 37
of a state campus district energy system, in accordance with RCW 38
19.27A.260, and more broadly for the owner of any campus district 39
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energy system that is approved by the department to opt-in in 1
accordance with RCW 19.27A.260(6); 2
(f) Must guarantee that the owner of a state campus district 3
energy system is not required to implement more than one energy 4
management plan and more than one operations and maintenance plan for 5
the campus; 6
(g) Must guarantee that a state campus district energy system, as 7
defined in RCW 19.27A.260, and all buildings connected to a state 8
campus district energy system, are in compliance with any 9
requirements for campus buildings to implement energy efficiency 10
measures identified by an energy audit if: 11
(i) The energy audit demonstrates the energy savings from the 12
state campus district energy system energy efficiency measures will 13
be greater than the energy efficiency measures identified for the 14
campus buildings; and 15
(ii) The state campus district energy system implements the 16
energy efficiency measures; and 17
(h) May adopt additional compliance pathways for covered building 18
owners to comply with the standard by meeting alternative metrics.19
(3) Based on records obtained from each county assessor and other 20
available information sources, the department must create a database 21
of covered buildings and building owners required to comply with the 22
standard established in accordance with this section.23
(4) By July 1, 2021, the department must provide the owners of 24
covered buildings with notification of compliance requirements.25
(5) The department must develop a method for administering 26
compliance reports from building owners. 27
(6) The department must provide a customer support program to 28
building owners including, but not limited to, outreach and 29
informational material, periodic training, phone and email support, 30
and other technical assistance. 31
(7)(a) The building owner of a covered building must report the 32
building owner's compliance with the standard to the department in 33
accordance with the schedule established under subsection (8) of this 34
section and every five years thereafter. For each reporting date, the 35
building owner must submit documentation to demonstrate that:36
(i) The weather normalized energy use intensity of the covered 37
building measured in the previous calendar year is less than or equal 38
to the energy use intensity target or equal to the alternative 39
metric; 40
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(ii) The covered building has received conditional compliance 1
from the department based on energy efficiency actions prescribed by 2
the standard; or 3
(iii) The covered building is exempt from the standard by 4
demonstrating that the building meets one, or combination of multiple 5
partial exemptions affecting more than 50 percent of building square 6
footage as established by the department by rule, of the following 7
criteria: 8
(A) The building did not have a certificate of occupancy or 9
temporary certificate of occupancy for all 12 months of the calendar 10
year prior to the building owner compliance schedule established 11
under subsection (8) of this section; 12
(B) The building did not have an average physical occupancy of at 13
least 50 percent throughout the calendar year prior to the building 14
owner compliance schedule established under subsection (8) of this 15
section; 16
(C) The sum of the building's gross floor area minus 17
unconditioned and semiconditioned spaces, as defined in the 18
Washington state energy code, is less than 50,000 square feet;19
(D) The primary use of the building is manufacturing or other 20
industrial purposes, as defined under the following use designations 21
of the international building code: (I) Factory group F; or (II) high 22
hazard group H, including spaces with nonexempt occupancy 23
classifications that are within the manufacturing or industrial 24
building, not to include tenant spaces that are not associated with 25
the primary manufacturing or industrial use of the building;26
(E) The building is an agricultural structure;27
(F) The building is a K-12 school building and the building owner 28
or building tenant is a public school as defined in RCW 28A.150.010, 29
a private school subject to chapter 28A.195 RCW, or a school 30
district. If state funding has been provided in an amount sufficient 31
to improve a K-12 school building to meet the standard, this 32
exemption does not apply.33
(G) The building meets at least one of the following conditions 34
of financial hardship: (I) The building had arrears of property taxes 35
or water or wastewater charges that resulted in the building's 36
inclusion, within the prior two years, on a city's or county's annual 37
tax lien sale list; (II) the building has a court appointed receiver 38
in control of the asset due to financial distress; (III) the building 39
is owned by a financial institution through default by a borrower; 40
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(IV) the building has been acquired by a deed in lieu of foreclosure 1
within the previous 24 months; (V) the building has a senior mortgage 2
subject to a notice of default; (VI) ((the building is a K-12 school 3
building in a school district or a private school that has financial 4
hardships related to capital construction or improvements including, 5
but not limited to, a failed bond and/or levy, limited school 6
district debt capacity, and/or the building is actively correcting a 7
violation of state board of health rules; (VII))) the building is a 8
public hospital in a public hospital district that lacks the debt 9
capacity to cover the cost of compliance; or (((VIII))) (VII) other 10
conditions of financial hardship identified by the department by 11
rule; or 12
(((G))) (H) Extenuating conditions exist, as approved by the 13
department prior to the reporting date including, but not limited to:14
(I) Buildings for which meeting the standard would impair the 15
historic integrity of the building including, but not limited to, 16
properties listed in the national register of historic places, the 17
Washington heritage register, or local registers of historic places;18
(II) Buildings for which meeting the standard would impair 19
national security interests; 20
(III) Buildings that have had significant losses in assessed 21
value since the COVID-19 pandemic which ((prevents [prevent] )) 22
prevent building owners from securing capital in the form of loans 23
against equity in the covered building; or 24
(IV) Other extenuating circumstances identified by the department 25
by rule that may still require benchmarking, operations and 26
maintenance programs, and energy management plan reporting.27
(b) The covered building owner may apply to the department for an 28
extension to its compliance date. Requests for extension must be 29
received by the department no sooner than six months prior to and up 30
to six months after the applicable compliance date in order to be 31
processed by the department. The department may approve extension 32
requests for conditions including, but not limited to, conditions 33
beyond the control of the building owner. An extension granted 34
pursuant to this subsection is valid for two years beyond the covered 35
building's compliance date after which the covered building owner may 36
apply to the department for an extension renewal or file for an 37
exemption. 38
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(8) A building owner of a tier 1 covered building must meet the 1
following reporting schedule for complying with the standard 2
established under this section: 3
(a) For a building with more than 220,000 gross square feet, June 4
1, 2026; 5
(b) For a building with more than 90,000 gross square feet but 6
less than 220,001 gross square feet, June 1, 2027; and7
(c) For a building with more than 50,000 gross square feet but 8
less than 90,001 square feet, June 1, 2028. 9
(9)(a) The department may issue a notice of violation to a 10
building owner for noncompliance with the requirements of this 11
section. A determination of noncompliance may be made for any of the 12
following reasons: 13
(i) Failure to submit a compliance report in the form and manner 14
prescribed by the department; 15
(ii) Failure to meet an energy use intensity target or 16
alternative metric, or failure to receive conditional compliance 17
approval; 18
(iii) Failure to provide accurate reporting consistent with the 19
requirements of the standard established under this section; and20
(iv) Failure to provide a valid exemption certificate.21
(b) In order to create consistency with the implementation of the 22
standard and rules adopted under this section, the department must 23
reply and cite the section of law, code, or standard in a notice of 24
violation for noncompliance with the requirements of this section 25
when requested to do so by the building owner or the building owner's 26
agent. 27
(10) The department is authorized to impose an administrative 28
penalty upon a building owner for failing to submit documentation 29
demonstrating compliance with the requirements of this section. The 30
penalty may not exceed an amount equal to $5,000 plus an amount based 31
on the duration of any continuing violation. The additional amount 32
for a continuing violation may not exceed a daily amount equal to $1 33
per year per gross square foot of floor area. The department may by 34
rule increase the maximum penalty rates to adjust for the effects of 35
inflation. Penalties incurred from noncompliance may not be passed 36
along to tenants, so long as tenants are providing access to utility 37
usage data, physical spaces in the buildings, and being responsive to 38
needs from building owners to facilitate compliance with the 39
standard. 40
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(11) Administrative penalties collected under this section must 1
be deposited into the low-income weatherization and structural 2
rehabilitation assistance account created in RCW 70A.35.030.3
(12) The department must adopt rules as necessary to implement 4
this section, including but not limited to: 5
(a) Rules necessary to ensure timely, accurate, and complete 6
reporting of building energy performance for all covered buildings;7
(b) Rules necessary to enforce the standard established under 8
this section; and 9
(c) Rules that provide a mechanism for appeal of any 10
administrative penalty imposed by the department under this section.11
(13) Upon request by the department, each county assessor must 12
provide property data from existing records to the department as 13
necessary to implement this section. 14
(14) By January 15, 2022, and each year thereafter through 2029, 15
the department must submit a report to the governor and the 16
appropriate committees of the legislature on the implementation of 17
the state energy performance standard established under this section. 18
The report must include information regarding the adoption of the 19
ANSI/ASHRAE/IES standard 100-2018 as an initial model, the financial 20
impact to building owners required to comply with the standard, the 21
amount of incentives provided under RCW 19.27A.220 and 19.27A.230, 22
and any other significant information associated with the 23
implementation of this section. 24
Sec. 3. RCW 28A.210.420 and 2021 c 163 s 1 are each amended to 25
read as follows: 26
(1) ((By the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, school 27
districts and private schools must )) School districts, charter 28
schools, state-tribal education compact schools, and private schools 29
are encouraged to make menstrual hygiene products available at no 30
cost in all gender-neutral bathrooms and bathrooms designated for 31
female students located in schools that serve students in any of 32
grades six through twelve. If a school building serving grades six 33
through twelve does not have a gender-neutral bathroom, then the 34
products ((must)) may also be available in at least one bathroom 35
accessible to male students or in a school health room accessible to 36
all students. For schools that serve students in grades three through 37
five, school districts and private schools ((must)) may make 38
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menstrual hygiene products available in a school health room or other 1
location as designated by the school principal. 2
(2) Menstrual hygiene products ((must)) may include sanitary 3
napkins, tampons, or similar items. 4
(3) ((School districts and private )) If school districts, charter 5
schools, state-tribal education compact schools, or private schools 6
offer menstrual hygiene products, these schools must bear the cost of 7
supplying menstrual hygiene products. School districts and private 8
schools may seek grants or partner with nonprofit or community-based 9
organizations to fulfill this obligation. 10
(((4) This section governs school operation and management under 11
RCW 28A.710.040 and 28A.715.020 and applies to charter schools 12
established under chapter 28A.710 RCW and state-tribal compact 13
schools established under chapter 28A.715 RCW.))14
Sec. 4. RCW 28A.300.475 and 2020 c 188 s 1 are each amended to 15
read as follows: 16
(1)(a)(i) ((In accordance with the requirements of this section, 17
every)) Every public school ((shall)) choosing to provide 18
comprehensive sexual health education ((to each student by the 19
2022-23 school year)) must meet the requirements in this section . The 20
curriculum, instruction, and materials used to provide ((the)) 21
comprehensive sexual health education must be medically and 22
scientifically accurate, age-appropriate, and inclusive of all 23
students, regardless of their protected class status under chapter 24
49.60 RCW, and must include information about abstinence and other 25
methods of preventing unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted 26
diseases. Abstinence may not be taught to the exclusion of other 27
materials and instruction on contraceptives and disease prevention.28
(ii)(((A) Beginning in the 2020-21 school year, any )) Any public 29
school that provides comprehensive sexual health education must 30
ensure that the curriculum, instruction, and materials include 31
information about affirmative consent and bystander training.32
(((B) The school district boards of directors of one or more 33
public schools that are not providing comprehensive sexual health 34
education in either the 2019-20 school year, the 2020-21 school year, 35
or both, must prepare for incorporating information about affirmative 36
consent and bystander training into the comprehensive sexual health 37
education curriculum, instruction, and materials required by this 38
section. In satisfying the requirements of this subsection 39
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(1)(a)(ii)(B), school district boards of directors must also, no 1
later than the 2020-21 school year, consult with parents and 2
guardians of students, local communities, and the Washington state 3
school directors' association.))4
(b) A public school may choose to use separate, outside speakers 5
or prepared curriculum to teach different content areas or units 6
within its comprehensive sexual health education program if all 7
speakers, curriculum, and materials used are in compliance with this 8
section. 9
(c) Comprehensive sexual health education must be consistent with 10
the Washington state health and physical education K-12 learning 11
standards and the January 2005 guidelines for sexual health 12
information and disease prevention developed by the department of 13
health and the office of the superintendent of public instruction.14
(2)(((a) Beginning in the 2021-22 school year, comprehensive 15
sexual health education must be provided to all public school 16
students in grades six through twelve.17
(b) Beginning in the 2022-23 school year, comprehensive sexual 18
health education must be provided to all public school students.19
(c) The provision of comprehensive sexual health education to 20
public school students as required by (a) and (b) of this subsection 21
(2) must be provided no less than:22
(i) Once to students in kindergarten through grade three;23
(ii) Once to students in grades four through five;24
(iii) Twice to students in grades six through eight; and25
(iv) Twice to students in grades nine through twelve.26
(3))) The office of the superintendent of public instruction and 27
the department of health shall make the Washington state health and 28
physical education K-12 learning standards and the January 2005 29
guidelines for sexual health information and disease prevention 30
available to public schools, teachers, and guest speakers on their 31
websites. Within available resources, the office of the 32
superintendent of public instruction and the department of health 33
shall also, and to the extent permitted by applicable federal law, 34
make any related information, model policies, curricula, or other 35
resources available on their websites. 36
(((4))) (3) The office of the superintendent of public 37
instruction, in consultation with the department of health, shall 38
develop a list of comprehensive sexual health education curricula 39
that are consistent with the 2005 guidelines for sexual health 40
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information and disease prevention, the Washington state health and 1
physical education K-12 learning standards, and this section. This 2
list, which may serve as a resource for schools, teachers, or any 3
other organization or community group, must be updated at least 4
annually, and must be made available on the websites of the office of 5
the superintendent of public instruction and the department of 6
health. 7
(((5))) (4) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated 8
for this specific purpose, the office of the superintendent of public 9
instruction shall periodically review and revise, as necessary, 10
training materials, which may be in an electronic format, for 11
classroom teachers and principals to implement the applicable 12
requirements of this section. ((The initial review required by this 13
subsection (5) must be completed by March 1, 2021.14
(6))) (5)(a) Public schools are encouraged to review their 15
comprehensive sexual health education curricula and choose a 16
curriculum from the list developed under subsection (((4))) (3) of 17
this section. Any public school may identify, choose, or develop any 18
other curriculum if it complies with the requirements of this 19
section. 20
(b) If a public school chooses a curriculum that is not from the 21
list developed under subsection (((4))) (3) of this section, the 22
public school or applicable school district, in consultation with the 23
office of the superintendent of public instruction, must conduct a 24
review of the selected or developed curriculum to ensure compliance 25
with the requirements of this section using a comprehensive sexual 26
health education curriculum analysis tool of the office of the 27
superintendent of public instruction. 28
(c) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall 29
provide technical assistance to public schools and school districts 30
that is consistent with the curricula review, selection, and 31
development provisions in (a) and (b) of this subsection (((6))) (5).32
(((7))) (6)(a) Any parent or legal guardian who wishes to have 33
his or her child excused from any planned instruction in 34
comprehensive sexual health education may do so upon filing a written 35
request with the school district board of directors or its designee, 36
or the principal of the school his or her child attends, or the 37
principal's designee. The person or entity to whom the request is 38
directed must grant the written request to have the student excused 39
from this instruction in accordance with this subsection. In 40
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addition, any parent or legal guardian may review the comprehensive 1
sexual health education curriculum provided in his or her child's 2
school by filing a written request with the school district board of 3
directors, the principal of the school his or her child attends, or 4
the principal's designee. 5
(b) At the beginning of ((the 2021-22 )) each school year, each 6
school providing comprehensive sexual health education must notify 7
parents and guardians, in writing or in accordance with the methods 8
the school finds most effective in communicating with parents, that 9
the school will be providing comprehensive sexual health education 10
during the school year. The notice must include, or provide a means 11
for electronic access to, all course materials, by grade, that will 12
be used at the school during the instruction. 13
(((8))) (7)(a) Public schools shall annually, by September 1st, 14
identify to the office of the superintendent of public instruction 15
any curricula used by the school to provide comprehensive sexual 16
health education as required by this section. Materials provided by 17
schools under this subsection (((8))) (7)(a) must also describe how 18
the provided classroom instruction aligns with the requirements of 19
this section. 20
(b) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall 21
summarize and, in accordance with RCW 43.01.036, report the results 22
provided under (a) of this subsection (((8))) (7) to the education 23
committees of the house of representatives and the senate biennially, 24
beginning after the 2022-23 school year. 25
(((9))) (8) RCW 28A.600.480(2), which encourages school 26
employees, students, and volunteers to report harassment, 27
intimidation, or bullying, applies to this section.28
(((10))) (9) Nothing in this section expresses legislative intent 29
to require that comprehensive sexual health education, or components 30
of comprehensive sexual health education, be integrated into 31
curriculum, materials, or instruction in unrelated subject matters or 32
courses. 33
(((11))) (10) For the purposes of this section:34
(a) "Affirmative consent" means a conscious and voluntary 35
agreement to engage in sexual activity as a requirement before sexual 36
activity; 37
(b) "Comprehensive sexual health education" means recurring 38
instruction in human development and reproduction that is age-39
appropriate and inclusive of all students, regardless of their 40
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protected class status under chapter 49.60 RCW. All curriculum, 1
instruction, and materials used in providing comprehensive sexual 2
health education must be medically and scientifically accurate and 3
must use language and strategies that recognize all members of 4
protected classes under chapter 49.60 RCW. Comprehensive sexual 5
health education for students in kindergarten through grade three 6
must be instruction in social-emotional learning that is consistent 7
with learning standards and benchmarks adopted by the office of the 8
superintendent of public instruction under RCW 28A.300.478. 9
Comprehensive sexual health education for students in grades four 10
through twelve must include information about: 11
(i) The physiological, psychological, and sociological 12
developmental processes experienced by an individual;13
(ii) The development of intrapersonal and interpersonal skills to 14
communicate, respectfully and effectively, to reduce health risks, 15
and choose healthy behaviors and relationships that are based on 16
mutual respect and affection, and are free from violence, coercion, 17
and intimidation; 18
(iii) Health care and prevention resources; 19
(iv) The development of meaningful relationships and avoidance of 20
exploitative relationships; 21
(v) Understanding the influences of family, peers, community, and 22
the media throughout life on healthy sexual relationships; and23
(vi) Affirmative consent and recognizing and responding safely 24
and effectively when violence, or a risk of violence, is or may be 25
present with strategies that include bystander training;26
(c) "Medically and scientifically accurate" means information 27
that is verified or supported by research in compliance with 28
scientific methods, is published in peer-reviewed journals, where 29
appropriate, and is recognized as accurate and objective by 30
professional organizations and agencies with expertise in the field 31
of sexual health including but not limited to the American college of 32
obstetricians and gynecologists, the Washington state department of 33
health, and the federal centers for disease control and prevention; 34
and 35
(d) "Public schools" has the same meaning as in RCW 28A.150.010.36
Sec. 5. RCW 28A.320.123 and 2019 c 333 s 5 are each amended to 37
read as follows: 38
(1) At a minimum, a school-based threat assessment program must:39
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(a) Provide for timely and methodical school-based threat 1
assessment and management; 2
(b) Be prompted by the behavior of a student rather than some 3
combination of a student's demographic and personal characteristics;4
(c) Convene a multidisciplinary, multiagency team, including 5
special education teachers and practicing educational staff 6
associates, to: 7
(i) Identify and assess the behavior of a student that is 8
threatening, or potentially threatening, to self, other students, 9
staff, school visitors, or school property; 10
(ii) Gather and analyze information about the student's behavior 11
to determine a level of concern for the threat that focuses on 12
situational variables, rather than the student's demographic or 13
personal characteristics; 14
(iii) Depending on the determined level of concern, develop and 15
implement intervention strategies to manage the student's behavior in 16
ways that promote a safe, supportive teaching and learning 17
environment, without excluding the student from the school; and18
(iv) In the case of the threatening, or potentially threatening, 19
behavior of a student with disabilities, align intervention 20
strategies with the student's individualized education program or 21
plan developed under section 504 of the rehabilitation act of 1973 by 22
coordinating with the student's individualized education program or 23
section 504 plan team; 24
(d) Create guidelines for each threat assessment team to collect, 25
report, and review quantitative data on its activities; and26
(e) Prohibit suspension or expulsion based merely on threat 27
assessment referral or performance. 28
(2) ((By the beginning of the 2020-21 school year, each school 29
district shall)) Each school district is encouraged to adopt a policy 30
and procedure to establish a school-based threat assessment program 31
that meets the requirements of subsection (1) of this section. The 32
school district policy and procedure ((must)) may be consistent with 33
the model policy and procedure developed under RCW 28A.300.640, and 34
with other school district policies, procedures, and plans addressing 35
safe and supportive learning environments. 36
(3) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 37
section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.38
(a) "School-based threat assessment" means the formal process, 39
established by a school district, of evaluating the threatening, or 40
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potentially threatening, behavior of a student, and the circumstances 1
surrounding the threat, to uncover any facts or evidence that the 2
threat is likely to be carried out. 3
(b) "School-based threat management" means the development and 4
implementation of a plan to manage or reduce the threatening, or 5
potentially threatening, behavior of a student in a way that 6
increases the physical and psychological safety of students, staff, 7
and visitors, while providing for the education of all students.8
Sec. 6. RCW 28A.320.124 and 2021 c 38 s 5 are each amended to 9
read as follows: 10
(1) ((By the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, school )) 11
School districts that have safety and security staff working on 12
school property when students are expected to be present ((must)) are 13
encouraged to adopt, and periodically update, a policy and procedure 14
that: 15
(a) Includes a clear statement regarding safety and security 16
staff duties and responsibilities related to student behavior and 17
discipline that: 18
(i) Prohibits a school resource officer from becoming involved in 19
formal school discipline situations that are the responsibility of 20
school administrators; and 21
(ii) Recognizes that trained safety and security staff know when 22
to informally interact with students to reinforce school rules and 23
when to enforce the law; 24
(b) Clarifies the circumstances under which teachers and school 25
administrators may ask safety and security staff to intervene with a 26
student; 27
(c) Explains how safety and security staff will be engaged in 28
creating a positive school climate and positive relationships with 29
students; and 30
(d) Describes the process for families to file complaints with 31
the school and, when applicable, the local law enforcement agency or 32
the company that provides the safety and security staff on contract 33
related to safety and security staff and a process for investigating 34
and responding to complaints. 35
(2) At the beginning of each school year, school districts that 36
have safety and security staff working on school property ((must)) 37
are encouraged to present to and discuss with students, and 38
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distribute to students' families, information about the role and 1
responsibilities of safety and security staff. 2
(3) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 3
section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.4
(a) "Safety and security staff" means a school resource officer, 5
a school security officer, a campus security officer, and any other 6
commissioned or noncommissioned employee or contractor, whose primary 7
job duty is to provide safety or security services for a public 8
school, as defined in RCW 28A.150.010. 9
(b) "School resource officer" means a commissioned law 10
enforcement officer in the state of Washington with sworn authority 11
to make arrests, deployed in community-oriented policing, and 12
assigned by the employing police department or sheriff's office to 13
work in schools to build positive relationships with students and 14
address crime and disorder problems, gangs, and drug activities 15
affecting or occurring in or around K-12 schools. School resource 16
officers should focus on keeping students out of the criminal justice 17
system when possible and should not be used to attempt to impose 18
criminal sanctions in matters that are more appropriately handled 19
within the educational system. 20
Sec. 7. RCW 28A.320.125 and 2024 c 21 s 1 are each amended to 21
read as follows: 22
(1) The legislature considers it to be a matter of public safety 23
for public schools and staff to have current safe school plans and 24
procedures in place, fully consistent with federal law. The 25
legislature further finds and intends, by requiring safe school plans 26
to be in place, that school districts will become eligible for 27
federal assistance. The legislature further finds that schools are in 28
a position to serve the community in the event of an emergency 29
resulting from natural disasters or human-induced disasters.30
(2) Schools and school districts shall consider the guidance and 31
resources provided by the state school safety center, established 32
under RCW 28A.300.630, and the regional school safety centers, 33
established under RCW 28A.310.510, when developing their own 34
individual comprehensive safe school plans. Each school district 35
shall adopt and implement a safe school plan. The plan shall:36
(a) Include required school safety policies and procedures;37
(b) Address emergency mitigation, preparedness, response, and 38
recovery; 39
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(c) Include provisions for assisting and communicating with 1
students and staff, including those with special needs or 2
disabilities; 3
(d) Include a family-student reunification plan, including 4
procedures for communicating the reunification plan to staff, 5
students, families, and emergency responders; 6
(e) Use the training guidance provided by the Washington 7
emergency management division of the state military department in 8
collaboration with the state school safety center in the office of 9
the superintendent of public instruction, established under RCW 10
28A.300.630, and the school safety and student well-being advisory 11
committee, established under RCW 28A.300.635; 12
(f) Require the building principal to be certified on the 13
incident command system; 14
(g) Take into account the manner in which the school facilities 15
may be used as a community asset in the event of a community-wide 16
emergency; 17
(h) Set guidelines for requesting city or county law enforcement 18
agencies, local fire departments, emergency service providers, and 19
county emergency management agencies to meet with school districts 20
and participate in safety-related drills; and 21
(i) Include how substitute teachers and other temporary employees 22
receive necessary information about safe school plans, including 23
school safety policies and procedures and the three basic functional 24
drill responses described in subsection (5) of this section.25
(3) To the extent funds are available, school districts shall 26
annually: 27
(a) Review and update safe school plans in collaboration with 28
local emergency response agencies; 29
(b) Conduct an inventory of all hazardous materials;30
(c) Update information to reflect current plans, including:31
(i) Identifying all staff members who are trained on the national 32
incident management system, trained on the incident command system, 33
or are certified on the incident command system; and34
(ii) Identifying school transportation procedures for evacuation, 35
to include bus staging areas, evacuation routes, communication 36
systems, parent-student reunification sites, and secondary 37
transportation agreements; and 38
(d) Provide information to all staff on the use of emergency 39
supplies and notification and alert procedures. 40
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(4) School districts are encouraged to work with local emergency 1
management agencies and other emergency responders to conduct one 2
tabletop exercise, one functional exercise, and two full-scale 3
exercises within a four-year period. 4
(5)(a) Due to geographic location, schools have unique safety 5
challenges. It is the responsibility of school principals and 6
administrators to assess the threats and hazards most likely to 7
impact their school, and to practice three basic functional drills, 8
shelter-in-place, lockdown, and evacuation, as these drills relate to 9
those threats and hazards. Some threats or hazards may require the 10
use of more than one basic functional drill. 11
(b) Schools ((shall)) are encouraged to conduct at least one 12
safety-related drill per month, including summer months when school 13
is in session with students but must conduct at least three safety-14
related drills per school year . These drills must teach students 15
three basic functional drill responses: 16
(i) "Shelter-in-place," used to limit the exposure of students 17
and staff to hazardous materials, such as chemical, biological, or 18
radiological contaminants, released into the environment by isolating 19
the inside environment from the outside; 20
(ii) "Lockdown," used to isolate students and staff from threats 21
of violence, such as suspicious trespassers or armed intruders, that 22
may occur in a school or in the vicinity of a school. Lockdown drills 23
may not include live simulations of or reenactments of active shooter 24
scenarios that are not trauma-informed and age and developmentally 25
appropriate; and 26
(iii) "Evacuation," used to move students and staff away from 27
threats, such as fires, oil train spills, lahars, or tsunamis.28
(c) The drills described in (b) of this subsection must 29
incorporate the following requirements: 30
(i) A pedestrian evacuation drill for schools in mapped lahars or 31
tsunami hazard zones; and 32
(ii) An earthquake drill using the state-approved earthquake 33
safety technique "drop, cover, and hold." 34
(d) Schools shall document the date, time, and type (shelter-in-35
place, lockdown, or evacuate) of each drill required under this 36
subsection (5), and maintain the documentation in the school office.37
(e) This subsection (5) is intended to satisfy all federal 38
requirements for comprehensive school emergency drills and 39
evacuations. 40
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(6) Educational service districts are encouraged to apply for 1
federal emergency response and crisis management grants with the 2
assistance of the superintendent of public instruction and the 3
Washington emergency management division of the state military 4
department. 5
(7) The superintendent of public instruction may adopt rules to 6
implement provisions of this section. These rules may include, but 7
are not limited to, provisions for evacuations, lockdowns, or other 8
components of a comprehensive safe school plan. 9
(8)(a) Whenever a first responder agency notifies a school of a 10
situation that may necessitate an evacuation or lockdown, the agency 11
must determine if other known schools in the vicinity are similarly 12
threatened. The first responder agency must notify every other known 13
school in the vicinity for which an evacuation or lockdown appears 14
reasonably necessary to the agency's incident commander unless the 15
agency is unable to notify schools due to duties directly tied to 16
responding to the incident occurring. For purposes of this 17
subsection, "school" includes a private school under chapter 28A.195 18
RCW. 19
(b) A first responder agency and its officers, agents, and 20
employees are not liable for any act, or failure to act, under this 21
subsection unless a first responder agency and its officers, agents, 22
and employees acted with willful disregard. 23
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. If any part of this act is found to be in 24
conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed condition to 25
the allocation of federal funds to the state, the conflicting part of 26
this act is inoperative solely to the extent of the conflict and with 27
respect to the agencies directly affected, and this finding does not 28
affect the operation of the remainder of this act in its application 29
to the agencies concerned. Rules adopted under this act must meet 30
federal requirements that are a necessary condition to the receipt of 31
federal funds by the state.32
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