---
type: "Bill"
title: "Promoting efficient administration of state education agencies."
description: "Promoting efficient administration of state education agencies."
jurisdiction: "us/states/wa"
legislature: "Washington Legislature"
session: "2025-2026"
identifier: "HB 1609"
citation: "Washington HB 1609 (2025-2026)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Waters"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 24
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2025-01-27"
last_action: "2025-04-21"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/58c77b04-c15b-4e0e-b907-e4f6cc4b6824"
source_url: "https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary/?BillNumber=1609&Year=2025&Initiative=false"
source_hash: "c4953b7f2ae7258ea5cc308caafdfb29a206a66d993eb3fd4a59bf60b454ad2b"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-wa"]
---

# Washington HB 1609 (2025-2026) — Promoting efficient administration of state education agencies.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Bill** (committee substitute) — [source](http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/Biennium/2025-26/Htm/Bills/House%20Bills/1609.htm)
2. **Engrossed Bill** (committee substitute) — [source](http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/Biennium/2025-26/Htm/Bills/House%20Bills/1609.E.htm)
3. **Passed Legislature** (committee substitute) — [source](http://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/Biennium/2025-26/Htm/Bills/House%20Passed%20Legislature/1609.PL.htm)

## Votes

- 3rd Reading & Final Passage (#6) — **49–0** (pass) · upper
- 3rd Reading & Final Passage (#26) — **78–17** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Waters — primary (person)
- Mena — cosponsor (person)
- Mena — cosponsor (person)
- Nance — cosponsor (person)
- Nance — cosponsor (person)
- Reed — cosponsor (person)
- Reed — cosponsor (person)
- Waters — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2025-01-27** First reading, referred to Agriculture & Natural Resources. `reading-1`
- **2025-02-14** Public hearing in the House Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources at 10:30 AM.
- **2025-02-18** Executive action taken in the House Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources at 10:30 AM.
- **2025-02-18** AGNR - Majority; do pass. `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2025-02-18** Minority; without recommendation. `committee-passage-unfavorable`
- **2025-02-20** Referred to Rules 2 Review. `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-04** Rules Committee relieved of further consideration. Placed on second reading. `reading-2`
- **2025-03-11** Floor amendment(s) adopted.
- **2025-03-11** Rules suspended. Placed on Third Reading. `reading-3`
- **2025-03-11** Third reading, passed; yeas, 78; nays, 17; absent, 0; excused, 3. `reading-3`
- **2025-03-13** First reading, referred to Agriculture & Natural Resources. `reading-1`
- **2025-03-20** Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources at 1:30 PM.
- **2025-03-24** Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources at 1:30 PM.
- **2025-03-24** ANR - Majority; do pass. `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2025-03-25** Passed to Rules Committee for second reading.
- **2025-04-07** Placed on second reading by Rules Committee. `reading-2`
- **2025-04-11** Rules suspended. Placed on Third Reading. `reading-3`
- **2025-04-11** Third reading, passed; yeas, 49; nays, 0; absent, 0; excused, 0. `reading-3`
- **2025-04-11** Speaker signed. `passage`
- **2025-04-14** President signed. `passage`
- **2025-04-16** Delivered to Governor. `executive-receipt`
- **2025-04-21** Governor signed. `executive-signature`
- **2025-04-21** Chapter 94, 2025 Laws. `became-law`
- **2025-04-21** Effective date 7/27/2025. `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/58c77b04-c15b-4e0e-b907-e4f6cc4b6824`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Washington legislature records).