House panel hears bill to make financial education a statewide high school graduation requirement

House Bill 1285, which would require students to meet state financial education learning standards to receive a high school diploma beginning with the graduating class of 2031, received a public hearing before the House Education Committee in Olympia on Monday.

The bill was briefed by Ethan Moreno, nonpartisan staff to the committee. Moreno told lawmakers that the state’s financial education learning standards were adopted in statute by reference in 2015 and that the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has developed standards that start in kindergarten and continue through grade 12. Under HB 1285, districts and charter schools must provide instruction in the state standards beginning in or before the 2027–28 school year and publicize the offering and new requirement to students and parents no later than the 2027–28 school year. The bill also requires data collection and an implementation plan: by Dec. 15 this year districts must submit course lists and implementation needs to the Financial Education Public‑Private Partnership (FEPP), and the…