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Advocacy & Legislation

AWSP provides a strong and respected voice on state and nationwide issues affecting K–12 schools and principals. We vigilantly monitor and research trends impacting our members’ profession, reputation, and practice. We value our members who travel to Olympia and Washington, D.C. to provide the principal’s perspective. 

We offer several ways to help you keep pace with the legislative arena, including Legislative Update (our a weekly e-newsletter during session), how to find your state legislator, how to track the status of bills and find out how your lawmaker voted, and practical tips for talking with legislators.

We focus our governmental relations efforts and legislative platform through a statewide, grassroots Legislation Committee. This collaboration identifies and prioritizes issues critical to our members, so we can work smarter on your behalf in Olympia and around the state.

Every voice matters, and it’s important for all of us to stay informed and connected.

2025 Legislative Platform



“It is difficult to envision a higher return on investment in K-12 education than the cultivation of high-quality school leadership.” ~ Wallace Foundation, 2021

The 2025 AWSP Legislative Platform focuses on leadership development, fully funding basic education, and increasing student support to ensure all students succeed, with priorities for principals and school staff.

photo of Erika Burden
Connecting with our legislators at both the local and national level is critical to ensure our legislators recognize the importance of supporting educators in their efforts to keep students safe and reach every student in their classrooms and buildings.
- Erika Burden, 2020 NASSP Advocacy Champion of the Year

Get Involved


Legislative News

Retirement & Health Benefits for January 15, 2021

Jan 15, 2021, 12:06 PM by Xenia Doualle
As the vaccines continue to make their presence felt to all, we still live in a COVID–19 world. The pandemic may well be on its way out, but until that time, the Washington State Legislature is operating in a “Zoom” world. This not only impacts how AWSP operates but also affects employers and present and future school retirees.
Retirement Blog

Health, Pension and Other Benefit Issues

As the vaccines continue to make their presence felt to all, we still live in a COVID–19 world. The pandemic may well be on its way out, but until that time, the Washington State Legislature is operating in a “Zoom” world. This not only impacts how AWSP operates but also affects employers and present and future school retirees.

Although the main task of the 2021 session is to create and adopt a new biennial budget for 2021–2023, many policy related bills have been introduced. And since money will be on the table, there will be much competition, so the Legislature will look elsewhere for funds. No surprise, but many of the proposed bills will fall on employers as unfunded mandates, saving the state dollars.

The need for AWSP and our members to be involved is even more critical than usual. The previous sessions where in-person and timely contact with legislators was the norm, this year the process has changed. (As an aside, there is concern that many pieces of legislation will be settled in back rooms and little, if any opportunity to modify said legislation will be available.)

Moving, here are some focus areas and goals.

Protect Retiree Healthcare Benefits.

  • The Legislature lowered the Medicare Healthcare Benefit from $183 to $150 in 2011. In 2018 and 2019 WSSRA successfully lobbied for increases back to $183 per month. Protecting the Medical Benefit at $183 per month is critical in helping to keep retiree medical premiums affordable. Legislators may feel the need to reduce and/or eliminate this benefit to help fund other areas in the budget.

Make the Actuarially Recommended Pension Payment.

  • During many past recessions, the Legislature had reduced their share of the pension payments. That increased the unfunded liability in the pension funds, incurring a 7.5% annual interest penalty for the state. This is far more costly in the long run but skipping or reducing the state’s pension contribution is a means to allow those dollars to be spent elsewhere.

Manage Covid–19 Risk in Schools by Reducing Early Retirement Penalties. (HB 1032)

  • Reducing early retirement penalties for older school employees will help protect our vulnerable older teachers and classified employees from health risks. As an example, school employees with 30 years and at age 62 can retire with full benefits. WSSRA proposes lowering the age to 60 until such time as the Governor’s proclamation of emergency is repealed. The penalty for early retirement for those with less than 30 years would also be reduced. If passed, this would allow older employees most at risk to the virus an option to retire earlier. If passed, it would also save district dollars by losing the higher paid employees. This bill is currently before the House Appropriations Committee awaiting a hearing.

Address the potential loss of years and service and pension calculation due to the furloughing of state employees. (SB 5021).

  • This bill attempts to correct the effect of expenditure reduction efforts on retirement benefits for public employees, including those participating in the shared work program. This bill is scheduled for a public hearing on 1/18/20 before the Senate Ways and Means Committee @ 4 PM.

Other Benefit Issues

There are also a number of bills proposed to expand or loosen the requirements for unemployment insurance, workman’s compensation, labor and industry claims and paid family and medical leave.

There is even a bill (SB 5169) that concerns provider reimbursement for personal protective equipment during the state of emergency related to Covid–19. Many of these could have fiscal impacts on districts. WASA and WASBO are tracking these bills. Stay tuned.

In conclusion, no one association is as effective as a legislator’s own constituent who tells his/her own story and the impact of selected legislation on one’s life or school. That is why member involvement is so valued and critical to any legislative success AWSP may have. Be informed, engaged, and passionate about this process.

Fred Yancey
The Nexus Group LLC

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Legislative Update E-Newsletter

Want updates on what's going on? Trying to understand the process and learn how to make an impact?  Follow us on social media, check out our blog or this page for the latest legislative news page, and read our Legislative Update email newsletter every Friday during session.

Questions? Reach out to Roz.

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Join Our PAC

School leaders in Washington state can take an active role in the political process by joining AWSP’s political action committee or PAC, the Washington School Principals Legislative Effectiveness Association.

AWSP-WSPLEA supports AWSP’s governmental relations efforts at both the state and national levels. It also raises and spends money to support candidates and issues that are important to the principalship and to K–12 education. Make a difference — join the PAC today!

School Funding Coalition

The School Funding Coalition represents the voices of nearly 8,000 school district leaders from our state’s 295 school districts. We bring a front-line understanding of school district financing and the education funding issues the Legislature continues to grapple with—especially as state budget decisions are contemplated in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Coalition includes AEA, AESD, AWSP, WASA, WASBO, WSPA, and WSSDA. We believe that each and every student needs stable support, safety, access to learning, and well-equipped staff. Learn more in our Immediate Student Needs document below.

2024 Legislative Priorities