The Echo

The state of Washington isn't fully paying for basic public education, a violation of its constitutional duty, a King County judge ruled Thursday in a lawsuit brought by a coalition of school districts, parents and teachers.

The decision from Superior Court Judge John Erlick came after nearly two months of testimony in the case. School districts, community leaders and others participating in the suit said the state was leaving school districts to rely on local levies, donations and PTA fundraisers to educate students.

The state disagreed, saying it does meet its constitutional duty.

Erlick acknowledged the state's efforts at reforming the way its pays for education and encouraged lawmakers to continue that. But he said he based his decision on a state Supreme Court ruling from 30 years ago which found the state must amply provide for basic education. Relying so heavily on local levies fails that standard, he said.

The state doesn't provide enough money to give every child a chance to meet the state's essential learning requirements, the judge said. Instead, the state depends on funding formulas that don't correlate with the actual cost to teach the state's 1 million children, he wrote.

"The court is left with no doubt that under the State's current financing system the State is failing in its constitutional duty to make ample provision for the education of all children," the judge wrote in his decision. "This court is convinced that basic education is not being funded by a stable and dependable source of funds provided by the state."

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