District sues State of Washington, saying school finance system is unconstitutional
Federal Way School District has sued the State of Washington, saying the state’s formulas for school funding are unconstitutional and unfair. The lawsuit accuses the state of failing to fund schools in a uniform or equitable manner, as required by the state constitution. Federal Way school board member David Larson says the board decided to file the lawsuit after the Washington Learns task force last week made it clear that its final report would not address state tax support for schools. Sally McLean, the district’s chief financial officer, says other school districts have called Federal Way to discuss joining the lawsuit. She says the district isn’t looking for more plaintiffs but would welcome briefs from others. Federal Way was one of a dozen districts that sued the state two years ago, alleging inadequate funding of special education. That case recently went to trial.
Seattle Times
By Staff
[Full story]
[Editor’s Note: The legal complaint filed in the case is below. The school district is represented by COSA member Lester "Buzz" Porter Jr. of Dionne & Rorick in Seattle. Washington Learns, a task force headed by Governor Chris Gregoire, issued a report this month focusing on five major educational initiatives. The report is available on the Washington Learns website. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer editorial at the third link criticizes the report’s call for two more years to plan for stable, adequate financing, noting that "the legislation creating Washington Learns, which she signed, was largely intended to remedy the state's history of ducking finance reform." Closing arguments in the other lawsuit, School Districts' Alliance for Adequate Funding of Special Education v. Washington, are scheduled for today, according to Marilee Scarbrough, Director of Policy and Legal Services of the Washington State School Directors’ Association. Background on that case is posted at the last link.]
[Federal Way complaint]
[Washington Learns website]
[Seattle Post-Intelligencer editorial on Washington Learns]
[NSBA School Law pages on Alliance lawsuit]