Substitute House Bill 1356 amends multiple existing statutes and adds new sections affecting K-12 funding law in Washington. It changes rules for enrichment levies and local effort assistance, revises special education funding and safety net procedures, requires new OSPI reporting and rulemaking, creates a temporary K-12 funding equity work group, and adds a new state-funded substitute day allocation for prototypical staff. Some sections have specified effective dates and expiration of the work group. On levy and property tax law, the bill modifies RCW 84.52.0531, RCW 28A.500.015, and RCW 84.55.005 to set the maximum enrichment levy as the lesser of $2.50 per $1,000 assessed value or a defined maximum per-pupil limit, establishes schedules for per-pupil limits through 2030 and a different limit beginning in 2031, defines inflation and "inflation enhancements" with specified schedules, requires districts to deposit enrichment levy revenues in a separate subfund and to obtain an approved expenditure plan before placing levy propositions on the ballot, and creates a state local effort assistance payment formula beginning in 2020 with special rules for state-tribal compact schools. The bill also specifies which inflation measures (BLS or BEA) apply in different statutes and revises limit-factor definitions for property tax calculations. The text provided omits the content of section 201 and an incomplete definition of "population change," so the full scope of some tax changes is unclear. For special education, the bill amends RCW 28A.150.390, 28A.150.392, and 28A.150.560 to affirm that students eligible for and receiving special education generate the full basic education allocation for the entire school day, to require OSPI to develop an allocation and cost-accounting methodology that shifts 30% of a district's defined base allocation for those students into the district special education program, and to require districts to use the remaining portion of that base allocation for special education before using other funding sources. It preserves that services must be consistent with a student's IEP and least restrictive environment. The bill specifies special education excess cost allocation formulas, safety net award rules and oversight, limits on indirect cost claims, Medicaid billing adjustments, eligibility thresholds for high-need students (starting 2023-24), OSPI rulemaking and consultations, survey and simplified application requirements for small districts (survey by Dec. 1, 2024; simplified application by Dec. 1, 2025), and OSPI reporting obligations (first report Jan. 1, 2024 and then every odd-numbered year). It also creates a time-limited K-12 funding equity work group with reporting due Nov. 1, 2025 and annually through 2027, and adds a new, funded substitute-day allocation beginning in 2028-29 (five teacher days at $200/day and two classified staff days at $150/day, each adjusted for inflation). Some referenced statutory language and the full text of certain amendments are not included in the extracted facts, so specific statutory wording and the full implementation details of section 201 and other amendments are uncertain.

If enacted, school districts will see several shifts in how local levy and special education dollars flow and are used. Local enrichment levies will be capped by per‑pupil limits that rise with inflation and scheduled enhancements, districts must have approved expenditure plans before asking voters, and levy receipts must be kept in a separate subfund. The state will provide local effort assistance each year to make up shortfalls where districts levy less than $1.50 per $1,000 assessed value and will pay a per‑student amount for state‑tribal compact schools, so some districts should receive more state money while voters and districts face tighter levy rules and earlier planning and reporting requirements. Special education funding is refocused: OSPI must budget for special education every odd‑numbered legislative session, safety‑net rules and eligibility thresholds are clarified, and districts must shift an accounting amount equal to 30% of the base allocation for special‑education students into their special education programs before tapping other funds if costs exceed state formula funding. OSPI also must run a K‑12 funding equity work group, develop simplified safety‑net applications, and report regularly to the Legislature. These changes most directly affect school districts (especially small vs. large districts), special education programs, OSPI, and state‑tribal compact schools through changes in available state aid, new administrative duties, tighter auditing and documentation requirements, and reduced local substitute cost exposure beginning in 2028‑29; however, key dollar amounts and some amendment details (including the revenue in section 201 and parts of several amended RCWs) are not provided here, so the exact fiscal impact and timing remain unclear.