High Court Sets Sept. 7 Hearing on Education Funding Case

OLYMPIA (AP) — The Washington Supreme Court has ordered a court hearing for Sept. 7 in order to get an update on the state's progress toward fulfilling its constitutional requirement to properly fund basic education.

In a four-page order issued Thursday, the court notes that the 2017 legislative session "presents the last opportunity for complying with the State's paramount duty."

The court unanimously ordered that the state and the coalition that sued it both appear. But the high court specifically asks the state to provide detailed answers to several questions, including the estimated costs for fully funding K-12 education.

The justices have held the state in contempt over the Legislature's failure to make a plan for resolving the remaining issues over paying the full costs of basic education, while ending its overreliance on local tax levies.