Rude files high school financial education bill
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, December 12th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
OLYMPIA – Rep. Skyler Rude (R-Walla Walla) has pre-filed bipartisan legislation that would make financial education instruction a requirement for students to graduate from high school.
“My hope is that we can save some expensive mistakes for young people early on and then equip them to continue to make financially sound decisions moving forward,” Rude said.
House Bill 1915 would require public school students, beginning with the class of 2029, to earn no less than one-half credit of financial education instruction as a graduation prerequisite that can be provided in standalone courses or embedded into other course and subject areas.
Beginning in or before the 2026-27 school year, school districts would be required to provide financial education instruction for all public school elementary and middle school students.
The legislation also requires school districts to submit to the state board of education a plan and timeline by December 15, 2024, plus maximizes flexibility for school districts to implement financial education that recognizes their local circumstances without increasing the number of credits the state requires to graduate.
Rude said steps have already been taken by the Washington Legislature to support financial education in public schools. In 2004, the Financial Education Public-Private Partnership was established to improve financial education by providing school districts with teacher training and quality resources at no cost. In 2015, statewide financial education learning standards were adopted. In 2022, the Legislature funded grants from FEPPP to school districts to increase their financial education offerings, including for use in professional development.
House Bill 1915 and companion Senate Bill 5819 will be assigned to their respective committees and await public hearings with the Washington Legislature convenes the 2024 session on Jan. 8.
