This bill amends RCW 28A.530.080 to allow school districts to contract indebtedness and issue bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness without a vote of the district’s qualified electors for the purposes referenced in RCW 28A.530.010 through subsection (5) or to purchase real or personal property or property rights related to district powers, subject to the indebtedness limits in RCW 39.36.020(3) and the section’s subsection (1). For indebtedness used for the purpose in RCW 28A.530.010(3), a district must (i) have voter approval to collect a levy under RCW 84.52.053 sufficient to fully repay the indebtedness, (ii) not have been on binding conditions under RCW 28A.505.110 during the three years before the contract date, and (iii) agree to delay receipt of state financial assistance for the project for two years under the state assistance provisions in RCW 28A.525.162–28A.525.180. Before issuing nonvoted bonds in excess of $250,000 the district must publish a notice of intent and hold a public hearing at a regular or special school board meeting; the notice must state the hearing details, purpose and amount of the indebtedness, the terms and conditions, means of repayment, and that any person may be heard. The notice must run at least once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the district (or county if none), with the last notice published no later than seven days before the hearing. The notice and hearing rules do not apply to refinancing or refunding of outstanding nonvoted or voted bonds. Issuance and sale of bonds must follow chapter 39.46 RCW and proceeds must be deposited in the capital projects fund, transportation vehicle fund, or general fund as applicable. This is a statutory amendment (modification of existing law) that creates a new procedural pathway and conditions for nonvoted school district indebtedness; it does not create a new crime or change criminal penalties. Relevant statutory references include RCW 28A.530.010, RCW 39.36.020(3), RCW 84.52.053, RCW 28A.505.110, RCW 28A.525.162–28A.525.180, and chapter 39.46 RCW. The bill was read first in the House on 02/03/25, passed the Senate on March 5, 2026, and passed the House on March 11, 2026. Some important context is missing from the provided text: the specific purposes listed in RCW 28A.530.010 (including subsection (3)) are not shown here, definitions for terms like “nonvoted bonds,” “binding conditions,” and the exact criteria for depositing proceeds into the listed funds are not provided, and the bill’s final filing or effective date is not visible.

If enacted, school boards would have clearer authority to borrow and sell bonds without putting each measure to a public vote for certain capital purposes and property purchases, subject to existing overall indebtedness limits and state bond sale rules; for any single issue over $250,000 the board must publish a two-week notice and hold a public hearing before voting to issue the debt. That gives districts faster access to borrowing for projects but increases their direct repayment responsibility, since proceeds must go into designated funds and, for one category of projects, districts must have a voter-approved levy to fully cover repayment. The people most affected are school district boards (more borrowing options and new notice duties), local taxpayers (who may fund repayment through levies), newspapers (required to publish notices), and state assistance programs (districts using this authority for certain projects must delay receiving state funds for two years); districts that were under binding state conditions within the prior three years cannot use the authority for those projects. Important implementation details are missing here—most notably the exact project types covered by the cited RCW subsection and the rules for which fund proceeds must be deposited into—so some practical effects depend on those undefined specifics.