Information on ESHB 2261 and ESB 6048

These are the two education bills currently being considered by the 2009 Washington State Legislature. We will update this page as more information becomes available.

Read the bills:
ESHB 2261 pdf
ESB 6048 pdf

These are long documents, but you can hit control 'f' to search within the bill language for a certain subject. We're happy to field your questions to our Legislative friends and policy experts we've come to know in Olympia. Email us at

The bills compared:
Overview of ESHB 2261 and ESB 6048 pdf
Comparison of ESHB 2261 and ESB 6048 pdf

In terms of school library programs, the House Bill 2261 includes the exact language we fought so hard for the Joint Task Force to recommend, while the Senate Bill 6048 directs the question to a workgroup for recommendations. Cuts are being proposed to libraries in every single region of the state; if libraries were hemorrhaging before the $4MM life support, you can make your own inference as to what punting will mean.

PLEASE take a look at the differences and understand why we think the spirit and intent of 2261 is the way to proceed.

It’s important to note that we’ve learned that much of the process now happens behind closed doors; what we see on the outside as ‘bad’ or ‘good’ are calculated moves playing out because of other variables that we are simply not privy to. Last year when the House didn’t hear either library bill, and the bills died their deaths, it didn’t make the House an enemy. If you remember, we all tried to make sure Speaker Chopp knew about this issue being important. The process is a mysterious one and we must accept that. The important part is to take positive action and let the legislators know what you’d like to see be made into law.