Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Residential Private School Licensing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee hears 1-year delay to DCYF licensure of residential private schools
Summary
Senate Bill 5506 would postpone by one year the July 1, 2025 requirement for DCYF to license student living accommodations at residential private schools; supporters said the delay allows more time for negotiated rulemaking and coordination with accrediting bodies
Senate Bill 5506 would delay by one year the statutory requirement, enacted in 2023, that the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) license living accommodations at residential private schools. The existing law required DCYF to adopt minimum health and safety rules and to engage in negotiated rulemaking with the State Board of Education and other stakeholders to address non-instructional needs such as sleeping spaces, privacy, nutrition, cleanliness, and health accommodations.
Omera Harrington, staff counsel, summarized the bill and said a residential private school is exempt from the DCYF licensing requirement if accredited by a State Board of Education accrediting body that covers student living accommodations. "Senate Bill 5506 delays this licensing requirement by one year to 07/01/2026," Harrington said.
Senator Leonard Christian, sponsor of the measure, described the bill as a short technical delay to allow the department and stakeholders extra time for rulemaking. "This one is simply extending out a deadline for a year to accommodate some rulemaking for DCYF," Christian said, and asked the committee to pass the bill.
Susie Hanson, executive director of the Washington Federation of Independent Schools, testified remotely in support and said her group is working with State Board of Education accrediting organizations and DCYF to prepare for the licensing standard development; Hanson said additional time would "improve, dramatically" the process. Committee staff noted a minor inconsistency between the bill’s revised dates and a related reporting date; members asked the sponsor and staff to coordinate potential amendments to align report deadlines with the delayed effective date.
The committee allowed a single testifier on this bill, heard their testimony, and closed the public hearing. The committee did not vote on the bill at this hearing and asked staff and the sponsor to follow up on the report-date inconsistency before any further action.
