In what plaintiffs in a landmark school funding lawsuit called “a huge victory for Washington school children,” a King County Superior Court judge Thursday ruled the state in violation of its constitutionally mandated “paramount duty” to amply provide for the education of all children.
The court ordered the state to determine the actual costs of providing all children with the knowledge and skills set forth in the state’s high academic standards and to fully fund that actual cost with stable and dependable state sources.
The Bellevue School District, along with a number of others, originated the suit.
“This court is left with no doubt that under the State’s current financing system the state is failing in its constitutional duty,” Judge John Erlick said in his ruling, which followed a six-week trial that concluded in October. The trial included hundreds of documents and testimony from some 60 witnesses.
In the Bellevue School District, figures for the 2007-08 school year showed the district spent about $270 million on everything from school facilities, classroom teacher salaries and teaching materials, libraries, transportation, administration, utilities and money for capital building projects.
The figures show the state contribution was approximately