WashingtonWashington keeps special education complaint decisions online for 20 years
Washington’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction must post final special education complaint decisions online for free, including the longest available history of older decisions.
What it does
Washington’s state education office must keep final special education complaint decisions online for free for 20 years after each complaint is finalized. For older decisions, it must post the longest history available.
Argument forFree access to past decisions could help families understand how the state handles special education complaints before they file their own.
Argument againstKeeping decisions freely accessible online for 20 years could require ongoing staff work to maintain the state’s online records.
More detail
Washington’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction must maintain a free public online record of complaint decisions. The requirement covers all final decisions on special education community complaints. If the office lacked a full 20-year history when the requirement took effect, it must post decisions for the longest period available. The law took effect June 11, 2026. The exception for incomplete historical records applies to records available when the requirement took effect.
Where do you stand?
Choose your position
Tell your reps
Take a position to see your representatives and ways to contact them.
Where it stands
- Introduced
- Passed Senate
- Passed House
- To Governor
- Became Law
Looking ahead
No hearings or votes scheduled.
History
- 2026
- Mar 17Effective date 6/11/2026.Latest
- Mar 17Chapter 88, 2026 Laws.Major
- Mar 17Governor Bob Ferguson signed.Became Law
- Mar 10Delivered to Governor.To Governor
- Mar 5Speaker signed.Passed House
- Mar 4President signed.Passed Senate
- Mar 3Third reading, passed; yeas, 93; nays, 0; absent, 0; excused, 5.Minor
- Vote recorded 3rd Reading & Final Passage (#8). Result: pass.Lower
- Mar 3Rules suspended. Placed on Third Reading.Minor
- Feb 27Rules Committee relieved of further consideration. Placed on second reading.Minor
- Feb 25Referred to Rules 2 Review.Minor
- Feb 23ED - Majority; do pass.Minor
- Feb 23Executive action taken in the House Committee on Education at 1:30 PM.
- Feb 18Public hearing in the House Committee on Education at 10:30 AM.
- Feb 14First reading, referred to Education.Minor
- Feb 11Third reading, passed; yeas, 49; nays, 0; absent, 0; excused, 0.Minor
- Vote recorded 3rd Reading & Final Passage (#7). Result: pass.Upper
- Feb 11Rules suspended. Placed on Third Reading.Minor
- Feb 111st substitute bill substituted (EDU 26).Major
- Feb 6Placed on second reading consent calendar.Minor
- Feb 4Passed to Rules Committee for second reading.
- Feb 4EDU - Majority; 1st substitute bill be substituted, do pass.Major
- Feb 4Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education at 10:30 AM.
- Jan 27Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education at 8:00 AM.
- Jan 21First reading, referred to Early Learning & K-12 Education.Introduced
EducationDisability Rights