McCleary roundup
Big day yesterday with the state Supreme Court “impos[ing] a $100,000 per day penalty on the State” for not producing a plan to achieve, by 2018, full state funding of basic education (as laid out in Article IX, Section 1 of Washington’s constitution – the famous “paramount duty” provision). The court ordered the amount of the […]
August 13 , 2015 - Emily Makings
WA Supreme Court finds that Legislature hasn't done enough on K-3 class size or compensation, imposes sanctions
The state Supreme Court has unanimously imposed sanctions on the Legislature for failing to comply with the Court’s order to submit a plan showing how the Legislature would fully fund basic education. (For background on the filings in the McCleary case since the end of the session, see here.) The Legislature will have to pay […]
August 06 , 2015 - Mary Strow
Manufacturing Jobs: Lots of openings, not enough skilled workers
The Puget Sound Business Journal recently brought together a panel of Puget Sound manufacturers to discuss the problem, verging on crisis, of finding skilled workers. In a nutshell: “Manufacturers can’t find workers to fill open positions.” And these are good-paying blue-collar positions. Things have gotten so bad that several manufacturers, tired of waiting for educators […]
August 04 , 2015 - Mary Strow
July 29 , 2015 - Mary Strow
July 28 , 2015 - Emily Makings
McCleary filings and the stubborn problem of I-1351
Last year the state Supreme Court found the Legislature in contempt for failure to provide a complete plan showing how it would comply with McCleary and implement its program of basic education. The Court held off on imposing sanctions until after the 2015 sessions. Yesterday the Legislature submitted its 2015 report to the Court on […]
July 23 , 2015 - Mary Strow
July 22 , 2015 - Mary Strow
InFocus: Employment numbers, I-1366, Legislature's McCleary report (July 21, 2015)
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/215936923” params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /] Today we’re talking about the June state employment report, Initiative 1366 (requiring the legislature to submit for voter approval a constitutional amendment requiring 2/3 legislative approval of tax increases), and lawmakers’ progress report to the state Supreme Court on the McCleary K-12 funding case. In this episode: June employment […]
July 14 , 2015 - Mary Strow
July 09 , 2015 - Emily Makings
Deal on I-1351 and science standards means end of session is in sight
Reportedly the Senate will vote today on delays of both Initiative 1351 and the biology graduation requirement. The 2015-17 operating budget does not fund I-1351. (For more on I-1351, see this policy brief.) Last week the House passed HB 2266 to delay implementation of the initiative until the 2019-2021 biennium, but the Senate failed to […]