OLYMPIA — The state House of Representatives on Thursday passed an updated version of a bill that would temporarily eliminate the need to pass a science test for graduation, but as previously, it is likely to stall in the Senate.
House Bill 2214, which previously passed the chamber last month during the first special session, passed on a bipartisan 83-6 vote Thursday. It now heads across the rotunda, where Republican Sen. Steve Litzow, the chairman of the Senate Education Committee, said he does not plan to hold a hearing on the bill or advance it.
The measure would also simplify the state testing system, getting rid of complicated alternatives to passing high school exams. Instead, students who do not pass the statewide tests in high school would be required to take more classes in those subject areas in order to graduate.
Sponsor Rep. Chris Reykdal, D-Tumwater, said that the state is on the cusp of telling 2,000 students that they won’t get a diploma.