House waters down Senate’s big spending proposal for basic education

More cash for special education and school materials and operating costs passed both chambers, but is a fraction of what the Senate aimed to spend

Washington lawmakers advanced two key bills in both chambers to address the persistent shortfall in basic education spending, specifically around special education and school materials, supplies, and operating costs.

While both policies bring some progressive changes to how state money is directed to school districts to cover these costs, the spending plans that passed the House on Wednesday fell far short of the initial proposals requested by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and those passed by the Senate earlier this session. We unpack the dollars and sense behind the bills that made it out of the opposite chamber ahead of Wednesday’s cutoff.

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