Joint Administrative Rules Committee finds Charter School Commission used policy in place of a rule; sends notice to agency

The Joint Administrative Rules Committee voted 7-0 on July 31 to find that the Washington State Charter School Commission "is using a policy or interpretive statement in place of a rule," and that the policy "is not within the intent of the legislature as expressed by the statute which the rule implements." Representative Farvar, the committee chair, presided over the vote after presentations from staff, the petitioner and the Commission's executive director.

Connor Schiff, staff to the committee, described the immediate steps after the finding: "JARC will now send notice to the agency. The agency is required to file notice of a hearing on the committee's findings within 30 days of receiving that notice." He told members that within seven days after that hearing the agency must notify JARC of its intended action, and that JARC may then choose further actions (including objections to the agency's intended action or recommending suspension to standing committees). The roll call showed seven ayes, zero nays and two excused members; staff recorded the tally and explained the procedural thresholds for a majority finding.

The finding does not itself change agency practice; rather, it triggers the Administrative Procedures Act timelines for further procedure and establishes a public record for any subsequent hearings or legislative follow-up. The committee cited two central legal questions in its motion: whether the continuity process functions as a rule of general applicability under the APA, and whether that use exceeds the Commission's delegated authority under the statutory framework governing charter contracts.