Dear friends and neighbors,
We’re officially a quarter of the way through the 2025 legislative session! This week, the Senate passed its first bills of the session, and we continue to advance legislation that tackles the issues facing Washington families.
Removing arbitrary caps on special education funding
Funding for K-12 education, especially special education, is a top priority as we craft the 2025-27 state budget. In recent years, we’ve made real progress to improve funding for special education, but we can – and should – do more.
As special education enrollment grows more quickly, we must invest in our schools so teachers can give students the necessary support and services. That’s why I’m co-sponsoring Senate Bill 5263 to eliminate our state’s arbitrary caps on special education funding. This bipartisan legislation would also increase the funding allocation our schools receive for each student.
The bill was heard back in January and received unanimous support from the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee. It will be heard next in the Senate Ways & Means Committee at 4 p.m. on Feb. 11. You can watch the hearing here and track the bill’s progress and sign up to testify here.
This is just one of several essential steps we can take to ensure our local schools receive the full, constitutionally mandated funding needed to support our kids’ education.
Stay in touch
Your feedback and input are such an important part of the democratic process. Please do not hesitate to reach out to my office at Marko.Liias@leg.wa.gov, and we will be more than happy to get in touch with you! You can also stay up to date by following my official legislative social media accounts on X, Facebook and Instagram.
Talk soon!
Marko