| Concerning the Washington state ferry system educational discount
Here's what the WAC
says:
"SCHOOL GROUPS - Passengers traveling in authorized school groups for
institution-sponsored activities will
be charged a flat rate of $1 per walk-on group or per vehicle
of students and/or advisors and staff. Starting September 1,
1999, all school groups require a letter of authorization.
Vehicles and drivers will be charged the fare applicable to
vehicle size. The special school rate is $2 on routes where
one-point toll systems are in effect. Due to space
limitations, authorized school groups will not be permitted to
use one of the passenger-only routes without prior WSF
approval." WAC 468-300-010
It seemed that
everyone we talked to had a different interpretation
of this. We went to the ferry system for a
definitive answer. Here is a paraphrase of what Cathy
Booth, the reimbursements officer, said.
The WAC that
allows for the school discounts specifically says "authorized
school groups." It could be argued forever where
homeschooling fits in that definition. The ferry system
has included homeschools in that definition, although it's not
exactly what the WAC says. WSF needs to make certain
they are compliant when the state auditors come through.
Therefore, their PREFERENCE is that the letter on
letterhead come from the local school district. That's
fine for those in Alt Ed programs. For many of us who
homeschool, it's not really a viable option. They
understand that. They have accepted letters from
homeschool associations. They have a very good and
long-standing relationship with WHO, and having
WHO generate a letter on their
letterhead is also an option. If your support group is
listed on WHO's pages, it will likely be an
easier call for them. She said that they key phrase in
the WAC is INSTITUTION-SPONSORED. The
letters must come from an institution, not a family.
If the letter is not coming from a public school
district, a public or private school, or a homeschool
association, it's important that the following be adhered
to. The discount is for school (and homeschool) GROUPS.
It is not a family discount. Many parents (homeschool
and otherwise) take their children on educational field
trips. They are not covered. This is not the
intent. The discount letter should not be signed by a parent
on the trip. The signature should come from someone on
the board of directors of the co-op, the president of the
homeschool group, or some other such official without an
immediate vested interest. The letter should be specific as to group, destination,
date, and sponsoring institution.
She seemed to be very open and trying to be accommodating
without compromising the WAC to a point where their audit
would raise red flags. She mentioned that there
have been some homeschoolers who have argued with ferry
personnel and become belligerent when the discount was not
extended. Additionally, she says that not everyone who
calls does so looking for an answer; some only want to
argue. Please, please, please... if you know someone
doing this, stop them! It gets us nowhere, and only
alienates those trying to help homeschoolers.
Use the discount as it was intended. And have
fun!
Would you like to see a sample letter
we've used? Click here
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