Official Text and Analysis.

Replaces the proposed definition of "emergency" with an existing emergency management definition of "emergency or disaster" that means an event or set of circumstances that: (a) Demands immediate action to preserve public health, protect life, protect public property, or provide relief to any stricken community overtaken by such occurrences; or (b) reaches such a dimension or degree of destructiveness as to warrant the governor proclaiming a state of emergency. (2) Specifies that "emergency" may also include a national declaration of emergency by an authorized federal official.

Requires, rather than permits, the State Board of Education, in adopting rules to administer the emergency waiver program, to include provisions delineated in the underlying legislation, including provisions related to the application process, eligibility, waiver limits, and communication expectations for school districts.

Specifies that the term "emergency," as defined in the bill, must include a period of 30 or more scheduled school days between March 1 and June 30 during which students do not have access to the coursework, programs, or assessments needed to meet graduation credit and pathway requirements.

Requires the office of the superintendent of public instruction (OSPI) to annually summarize and report to the education committees of the legislature the student level emergency waiver data that is provided by school districts to the OSPI. Specifies that OSPI's obligation to annually summarize and report the emergency waiver data to the education committees of the legislature does not apply in school years in which no emergency waivers were issued.

Requires school districts that are granted emergency waiver authority to maintain records as necessary and as required by rule of the State Board of Education (SBE) to document compliance with the requirement that school districts demonstrate good faith efforts to support the individual student in meeting the graduation requirement before considering an emergency waiver.

Authorizes the State Board of Education to permit public and private schools to grant individual student emergency waivers from credit and subject area graduation requirements, graduation pathway requirements, or both, due to a significant disruption from a local, state, or national emergency.