State Senate unanimously passes bill to help relocating military families

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington State Senate unanimously passed a bill designed to help relocating military families on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 5603 would allow the children of service members who receive transfer orders to any base in Washington state to enroll in school before they have an address in the district.

“This is all about ensuring that the families that are serving us are served by the work we're doing for them," Sen. Emily Randall (D-Bremerton), the bill's sponsor, said in a news release. "It will be good for kids, for their families, and for their school districts."

The bill would establish a 14-day conditional enrollment period during which students can register for classes and schools can prepare to welcome new students.

"As we welcome the families connected to the USS Carl Vinson to Bremerton this year, we want to make sure that regardless of the makeup of your family or how soon you know that you're coming to our community, we've cleared the ground for you," Randall said.

SB 5603 is one of five bills Randall has introduced in the legislative session to help military families. The others include: SB 5571, SB 5713, SB 5755, and SB 5900.

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