SB 5952 Washington Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Standardizing the process for waiving physical education requirements for high school students.

SB 5952 standardizes the process for recognizing physical education (PE) waivers when high school students transfer between school districts in Washington State. The bill requires all school districts to accept PE waivers granted by another district under existing criteria, eliminating inconsistent local policies that previously caused confusion for transferring students. It does not change the eligibility for waivers (which still require meeting health/fitness concepts or alternative activity options), but ensures consistency across districts. The law amends existing statutes to mandate this recognition, applying to all public and charter schools. This primarily affects high school students who have been excused from PE requirements and move to a new district.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Dec 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Dec 29, 2025 Last action Feb 26, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Bill Substitute Bill · 4 edits
MODERATE
The bill was amended to shift its primary goal from creating a new statewide standardized waiver process to simply requiring school districts to recognize waiver decisions made by other districts. This change removes the mandate for the state to develop a uniform template and timeline for waivers, focusing instead on ensuring that a student's waiver status follows them when they transfer schools.
Scope change
The bill's scope changed from establishing a new state-run administrative process for waivers to enforcing the portability of existing local waiver decisions across district lines.
REQUIREMENT

Removed the requirement for the Washington State School Directors' Association to develop a standardized waiver process and template form by December 1, 2026.

Added a specific mandate that if a high school student transfers districts, their new district must recognize any valid waiver decision made by their previous district.

TIMELINE

Removed the deadline for school districts to adopt a standardized waiver process by August 1, 2027.

SCOPE

Changed the legislative intent from standardizing the waiver process to requiring the recognition of existing district decisions.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
9
Key actions
4
Committee
4
Jan 21, 2026
Upper · Passed
Minority; without recommendation.
upper
Jan 21, 2026
Upper · Passed
Minority; do not pass.
upper
Jan 21, 2026
Upper · Passed
Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education at 10:30 AM.
upper
Jan 15, 2026
Upper · Passed
Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education at 10:30 AM.
upper
1 primary · 2 co-sponsors

Sponsors