Committee considers reinstating pupil transportation safety net funding for special passengers

Senate Bill 5858 would place the pupil transportation safety net program into statute while keeping it subject to appropriation and direct OSPI to award safety net funds to districts with convincingly demonstrated excess transportation costs attributable to ‘‘special passengers’’ (special education students requiring transportation as a related service, homeless students and foster students). Committee staff said the program is currently funded in the operating budget at $13,000,000 per year and that a fiscal note has been requested.

Tyler Monch of OSPI described the policy as a long-standing K–12 priority to target limited resources to students with the highest transportation needs and to make the state’s investments more equitable. Patrick Murphy, superintendent of Olympia School District, said his district provided specialized transportation for 509 students with disabilities and 21 students experiencing homelessness in the 2024–25 school year and described a roughly $250,000 annual local cost to serve homeless students; he urged the legislature to restore funding.

Multiple district leaders and associations provided data about unmet need. Michelle Scott (chief financial officer, Battle Ground School District) told the committee that last year 70 districts applied for safety net funding totaling $67.6 million in need while only $13 million was available, covering about 19 percent of requests; she said the shortfall forced districts to absorb costs or cut classroom supports. Advocates including the Washington State PTA and regional superintendents asked the committee to keep the program moving to Ways & Means for full funding consideration.

The committee heard the testimony and expressed bipartisan support for restoring the program; no formal vote was taken during the hearing.