A school district is suing Washington state over the state’s school funding formula, charging that education dollars are not distributed equitably among districts.
The 22,395-student Federal Way district, located between Seattle and Tacoma, declared in its lawsuit—filed Nov. 21 in King County Superior Court—that the formula violates the state constitutional requirement that the state create a “general and uniform” system of public schools.
The district argues not that the state isn’t contributing enough money to public education, but that the money isn’t distributed evenly among Washington’s 296 school districts. District officials say Federal Way ranks 263rd in per-pupil spending and has been forced to make $14 million in budget cuts since the 2002-03 school year.
Gov. Christine Gregoire had no comment on the lawsuit, according to a spokeswoman.
