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Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal wants a big ramp up in spending on Washington public schools in the next state budget.
How big? Try $2.9 billion.
A third of those new dollars would go to fully fund special education . Another $695 million to add and retain classified staff with higher pay. And $350 million is sought to cover inflationary costs of materials and supplies.
Those are the largest sums in the 2025-27 budget request Reykdal sent to Gov. Jay Inslee, who will consider it as he pens the spending plan he’ll put out in December. That document will be a template for the next governor and budget writers in the state Legislature in the 2025 session.
“No matter how you look at the numbers, Washington currently underfunds K–12 education by around $4 billion per year,” Reykdal wrote Inslee on Monday . “I know that you and lawmakers will have some very difficult decisions to make, but our students and families need the state to step up and affirm the importance of public education.”