WA Families deserved better
This legislative session was a tough one for Washington families. Despite unprecedented needs in both our public education and youth justice systems, lawmakers left Olympia without passing critical reforms, while making cuts that will impact students in K-12 and higher ed.
For Governor Bob Ferguson, it was a first session marked by steep learning curves. Amid a $16 billion budget deficit, his early resistance to progressive revenue proposals shaped much of the session’s tone. While the final budget did include some new revenue streams, they came only after weeks of tension and delay—and some, such as an ability to raise school levies, will actually increase inequities between school districts long term. Ultimately, lawmakers still made about $7 billion in cuts, including to student-facing programs and higher education, while adding new spending to fund previously agreed-upon collective bargaining agreements and modestly increasing funding for special education and school operating costs.
Despite the many challenges of this session, all three of Stand for Children’s legislative priorities were passed—an important bright spot for youth across Washington. Lawmakers secured $1.5 million to maintain the Ninth Grade Success Initiative, maintained an important pilot effort around CTE Dual Credit, and strengthened youth diversion programs, including better data collection and reporting. These investments move us closer to a system that supports students’ success in school and life, especially those at greatest risk of being pushed out.
