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Senate Ways & Means Committee Hears Bills

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To meet the second major legislative deadline this Friday – to move fiscal related bills – the Senate Ways & Means Committee heard sixteen bills this afternoon.

Two bills heard by the Committee today, in particular, would directly impact higher education – Senate Bill 5616 and Senate Bill 5569.

Senate Bill 5616 requires all public high schools in the state to work toward the goal of offering a sufficient number of high school courses to give students the opportunity to earn the equivalent of one year’s worth of postsecondary credit and must inform students and their families about these opportunities.

In addition, the bill requires institutions of higher education to develop a master list of postsecondary courses that can be fulfilled, for lower division general education requirements, by achieving an agreed-upon score on Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or other recognized college-level proficiency exams or by meeting demonstrated competencies.

The Evergreen State College is working with staff to include similar language to that included in the House companion bill which would provide language to ensure institutions of higher education who provide an alternative approach to teaching and learning are encompassed.

Senate Bill 5569 would make changes to postretirement employment provisions for Plan 1 of the Teachers Retirement System (TRS 1). Specifically the postretirement employment provisions of Plan 1 of TRS 1 would apply when a retired member enters service with either an institution of higher education in an instructional capacity or any school or educational service district. Postretirement employment of in non-instructional position in an institutionof higher education are not restricted.

The Evergreen State College signed-in to support SB 5616 but did not testify. Evergreen took no position on SB 5569.

Fiscal Committees Move Legislation

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This Friday marks the second major deadline of the session. All bills referred to fiscal committees in both chambers must have moved to the floor by end of day on February 25.

In preparation for this looming deadline all of the appropriation committees in the Senate and the House were busy today hearing and moving bills forward in the process.

House Higher Education Appropriations

The House Higher Education Appropriations Committee took action on two bills that would impact higher education.

House Bill 1849 creates the Washington State Education Council (Council). The overall mission of th Council is to: provide strategic oversight and advocacy of public education, including early learning, K-12 education in the common schools, and postsecondary education; and recommend policies and strategies to make the public education system student-focused and able to provide seamless service delivery across all sectors.

The substitute bill passed by the Committee revises the mission of the Council to focus on recommending policies, strategies and a governance structure for the public education system and makes the Council temporary, expiring the provision on  June 30, 2013. 

 In addition, the substitute revises the Legislative intent that guides the Council’s Transition Plan: to establish a primary strategic oversight and advocacy board for the public education system and consolidate supervision over matters pertaining to the public education system within a primary state agency.

House Bill 1808 requires all public high schools in the state to work toward the goal of offering a sufficient number of high school courses to give students the opportunity to earn the equivalent of one year’s worth of postsecondary credit and must inform students and their families about these opportunities. In addition, the bill requires institutions of higher education to develop a master list of postsecondary courses that can be fulfilled, for lower division general education requirements, by achieving an agreed-upon score on Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or other recognized college-level proficiency exams or by meeting demonstrated competencies.

The substitute bill passed by the Committee clarifies language to include career and technical education and provides language to ensure institutions of higher education who provide an alternative approach to teaching and learning are encompassed.

Senate Ways & Means

The Senate Ways & Means Committee took action on two bills that would provide for regulatory relief for institutions of higher education.

Senate Bill 5268 would remove the exisiting requirement for approval by the Director of the Office of Financial Management with regard to meetings of members in any of the five classification groups associated with part-time boards and commissions affiliated with institutions of higher education. In addition, the bill would exempt institutions of higher education from the restrictions on personal service contracts, equipment acquisition, travel, and employment.

Senate Bill 5519 modifies public contracting limits and procedures.

Both Senate Bill 5519 and 5268 now move to Senate Rules.

2011 Legislative Session: Week 7

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This week the Legislature will turn its focus to the appropriation committees.

The appropriation committees in each chamber will hold public hearings and executive sessions as legislators turn their attention to acting on bills by a February 25th self-imposed deadline.

This week’s schedule includes conversations on postretirement issues; efficiency and regulatory relief bills; governance; and financial aid. Please see the links below for a list of all the hearings that may be of interest.

Governor Signs Supplemental Budget with Some Vetoes

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On Friday the Governor signed legislation that would reduce state funding and decrease the current shortfall in this fiscal year.  

Though the majority of the funding reductions sent to the Governor by the Legislature were approved, the Governor did veto a handful of items, worth about $6 million in cuts. 

In her veto letter, Governor Gregoire stated:

  • Percent Pay Reductions: The legisatively passed budget would reduce the pay of many non-represented state employees by 3 percent beginning April 1 for a savings of $3.4million in the state General Fund.  While the Governor’s 11-13 budget proposal includes an employee pay reduction for all state employees, the early implementation date in this bill is not achievable and would have unintended consequences.
  • Depart of Information Services, Prohibition on Expenditures to Equip the State Data Center: Budget language prohibits DIS from spending any funds for the purchase or installation of equipment for the new State Data Center. This prohibition will not save any money and will significantly delay Data Center operation and budget savings made possible by the consolidaiton of existing data centers.
  • Communications Staff Savings: The budget requires agencies to achieve $10 million of savings through reduction in communications functions in the executive branch. Given the importance of the work performed by these employees, ranging from providing information on real-time traffic to public health concerns to unemployment insuranced and licensed child care facilities and the budget, it is difficult to see how the public would be served through the sudden and dramatic elimination of these staff.
  • Management Efficiencies in the Department of Social and Health Services: The budget requires DSHS to achieve state General Fund savings of $1.7 million by reducting management staff and administration in addition to achieving other efficiencies. The proposed reductions would jeopardize the department’s ability to implement the program changes required in the budget.

Despite the passage of the supplemental budget the state remains in the red. In total, the budget slashes the estimated deficit by about $370 million, with about $242 million in cuts and $125 million in transfers.

The Office of Financial Management estimates that the remaining projected deficit for this current fiscal year is $226 million, adding in the money not saved from the vetoes. The fiscal year ends in June.

“The March forecast will provide remaining information to complete the final supplemental,” Gregoire said in a statement. “The Legislature now must turn its attention to the immediate challenge of addressing the 2011-13 budget. This will not get easier with time.”

Among some of the ideas to finish patching up the deficit to the current fiscal year is delaying state payments to school districts by one day, essentially kick up the payment to the next two-year budget.

Lawmakers have spent more than a month of the 105-day legislative session trying to come up with this agreement, and now, Gregoire and legislators will have to tackle an estimated $5 billion deficit in the next two-year budget, which is roughly $37 billion.

The Senate voted 37-10 and the House voted 55-41 to approve the package.

Washington Legislature Passes Supplemental

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The Washington Legislature passed the supplemental budget that would make reductions to the current fiscal budget this morning. The Governor is expected to sign the legislation this afternoon.

The supplemental budget reduces funds to the State Need Grant by $25.4 million and requires the public two-year and four-year institutions to use locally held funds to provide a commensurate amount of aid to eligible students who would have received state need grant payments. The reduction to Evergreen is an additional $368,000.

In addition,  funding reductions were made to Workforce Employment and Training (ESD) ($318,000) and the following HECB programs and services ($632,000): (1) College Readiness Program, (2) Health Sciences and Services Authority (HSSA), (3) student financial aid administration, and (4) the Technology Transformation Task Force.

First Deadline Passes and Next Deadline Nears in Legislature

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This week marked the  first deadline in the 2011 legislative session. All House policy committees must have moved bills either to an appropriations committee or the floor by end of Thursday.  The Senate’s first deadline is Monday, February 21.

House Higher Education Committee

This week the House Higher Education Committee passed several bills, including two bills that would impact higher education tuition, financial aid, and accountability policies.

The substitute to House Bill 1795 – Higher Education Opportunity Act – adds statements about the state’s commitment to public funding and provides for tuition-setting authority by four year institutions for all students for four years, academic years 2011 through 2014 with the caveat that if institutions exceed tuition levels as follows: UW, WSU and WWU – 11% per year and TESC, CWU and EWU – 9% per year, they must provide financial aid to middle income students with the express purpose of mitigating the increases in tuition.

The bill also adds the  NGA Complete to Compete metrics with the addition of graduate and professional degrees, STEM and participation and completion for underrepresented students in STEM. Finally the bill requires a dashboard be developed on the Office of Financial Management’s website, requires changes in current financial aid criteria, establishes the Baccalaureate Degree Innovation program, and repeals performance agreements.

The Committee also moved HB 1666 which includes the recommendations from the Governor’s Task Force. The substitute that passed out of committee includes several changes to the bill.

The substitute passed out of committee makes several key changes to the funding mechanism in the bill, including changing the the date for increased flexibility for tuition-setting authority for the public baccalaureate institutions to the 2011-2012 academic year rather than the 2013-2014 academic year and changing the operating budget baseline year for funding higher education to fiscal year 2008 rather than 2011.

Senate Higher Education

This week the Senate Higher Education & Workforce Committee passed several bills this week, including the bill that includes the Governor’s Task Force recommendations for higher education and legislation that would alter how higher education is structured in Washington.

Senate Bill 5182 would eliminate the Higher Education Coodinating Board  (HECB) and create the Council for Performance and Accountability in Higher Education. The Council membership includes the six four-year institution presidents, one private nonprofit president, the executive director of the SBCTC, and a community or technical college president, or their designees.

The purpose of the council is to develop performance-based measures and goals for each state university, regional university, and the state college, linked to the role, mission, and strategic plan of the institution of higher education including (a) indicators and goals that measure outcomes concerning cost, quality, and timeliness of student progress toward degrees and certifications; (b) benchmarks and goals for long-term degree production, including discrete benchmarks and goals in particular fields of study; (c) the level of resources necessary to meet the performance outcomes, benchmarks, and goals, subject to legislative appropriation; (d) indicators and goals that measure outcomes concerning recruitment, retention, and success of students from diverse, underrepresented communities; and (e) a system of consequences for exceeding or for failing to achieve the goals or benchmarks. In addition the Council would perform the essential state governance functions previously assigned to the HECB.

The bill also creates the Office of Student Financial Assistance (Office) that administers all state and federal financial aid and the advanced college tuition payment program. The Office is under the supervision of the Council.

The Committee also moved SB 5717 which includes the recommendations from the Governor’s Task Force.

The substitute that passed out of committee includes several changes to the bill. The primary change is the elimination of the Washington Pledge Scholarship provisions. In addition the proposed bill adds three new accountability factors; requires institutions of higher education to report enrollments, completion ratios, and market penetration; and requires the HECB to analyze performance data and reports eachinstitution’s performance improvement under the baccalaureate degree incentive program.

Next Steps

Next week the Legislature will focus on the appropriation committees in both chambers (i.e. Senate Ways & Means, House Ways & Mean, and House Education Appropriations). Appropriation committees must move bills out of committee and to the floor by Friday, February 25.

To find out the status of legislation introduced this session be sure to check out either the Washington Legislature’s website or Evergreen’s bill tracking.

Supplemental Budget Agreement Reached

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Late today the Washington Senate and House reached a tentative agreement on reductions to the current fiscal budget.

The  budget agreement reduces funds to the State Need Grant by $25.4 million and requires the public two-year and four-year institutions to use locally held funds to provide a commensurate amount of aid to eligible students who would have received state need grant payments. The reduction to Evergreen is $368,000.

In addition,  funding reductions were made to Workforce Employment and Training (ESD) ($318,000) and the following HECB programs and services ($632,000): (1) College Readiness Program, (2) Health Sciences and Services Authority (HSSA), (3) student financial aid administration, and (4) the Technology Transformation Task Force.

The agreement also:

  • Makes $242 million in reductions and $125 million in transfers
  • Maintains the Disability Lifeline cash grant at 50 percent of the current amount
  • Limits the Children’s Health Program eligibility to families at 200 percent of the federal poverty level, and allows families between 201 and 300 percent of FPL to buy in at full cost; does not freeze admittance
  • Limits Basic Health Plan eligibility to individuals eligible for a Medicaid waiver
  • Makes no transfer of local liquor profits

The supplemental budget  – HB 1086 – was referred to a Senate-House conference committee after the House chose not to go along with changes made by the Senate earlier this month. As a conference bill, it cannot be amended by either chamber prior to a vote, which could be as soon as Friday in the Senate

U.S. House Begins Debate on Bill to Reduce the Pell Grant

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Today the U.S. House of Representatives began debate on H.R. 1, a stop-gap spending bill that would fund the federal government for the rest of FY2011 after the current continuing resolution expires on March 4.

H.R. 1, introduced last week, would cut discretionary-funded maximum awards for the Pell Grant from $4,860 to $4,105.  When the mandatory funds ($690) are considered the 2011-12 maximum Pell Grant award would be $4,705. This is a 15% decrease from 2010-11.

In addition the bill provides no funding for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP). Both programs provide financial grants to students who qualify for financial aid.

The bill also reduces President Obama’s proposed FY11 budget request by $100 billion.

This week members of the U.S. House are introducing and debating amendments to H.R. 1.  To date nearly 400 amendments have been proposed, most of which call for greater reductions.  It is expected that the House could vote on the bill as early as this Thursday.

Senate Appropriations Committee Hears Higher Education Related Legislation

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This afternoon Senate Ways & Means heard a series of bills that would impact higher education.

Senate Bill 5758  streamlines the management of tuition and trust funds dedicated to maintenance and small capital projects at Central Washington, Eastern Washington, and Western Washington Universities, and The Evergreen State College.

Steve Trotter, Executive Director for Operational Planning and Budget for The Evergreen State College, testified in support of SB 5758 along with a representative for CWU, EWU, and WWU.  The Office of Financial Management testified with concerns.

In addition, the Committee heard SB 5304 and SB 5576.  Senate Bill 5304 would require the Caseload Forecast Council to  forecast the anticipated number of students eligible for the State Need Grant Program and the College Bound Scholarship Program who are also expected to attend an institution of higher education and to submit these forecasts to the Governor and the members of the legislative fiscal committees; and Senate Bill 5576 streamlines the management of tuition and trust funds dedicated to maintenance and small capital projects at the University of Washington and Washington State University.

The Evergreen State College signed-in, in support of both SB 5576 and SB 5304.

Finally, the Committee heard Senate Bill 5518 which would mandate that employees of state agencies or political subdivisions may only be paid by electronic transfer to an employee’s account at the employee’s designated financial institution. Each employee must designate such an account in order to receive payment. The Evergreen State College took no position on this bill.

Senate Higher Education Committee Hears Legislation

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This morning the Senate Higher Education & Workforce Development Committee considered several bills. 

The Committee held a public hearing on five bills ranging from the establishment of the University Center of North Puget Sound to the development of common course numbering for two- and four-year institutions.

Senate Bill 5654 would require the Higher Education Coordinating Board and the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges convene representatives from each of the institutions of higher education, to establish a single set of common course numbers and common course descriptions for all common lower division courses at all institutions of higher education.

Evergreen testified with concerns on SB 5654 because Evergreen does not offer courses and does not have course numbers. Instead, the College offers single, comprehensive programs rather than a series of separate courses.  In addition, we expressed concern that if directed to adopt courses and a numbering system, Evergreen would greatly restrict the transfer policy that is currently in place.

Senate Bill 5608  would require Western Washington University to coordinate and participate with Olympic College, Everett Community College, Skagit Valley College, Whatcom Community College, Bellingham Technical College, Northwest Indian College to provide a program that leverages the leadership of returning veterans. The Evergreen State College signed-in, in support of the bill.

Senate Bill 5719 would fix tuition for students who identify as individuals with disabilities under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Council of Presidents testified in opposition to SB 5719 with the primary concern being fiscal. The bill would reduce tuition revenues for institutions that would negatively impact the education and service  provided to all students.  The Evergreen State College signed-in opposed.

Finally the Committee held public hearings on two additional bills that Evergreen took no position on. Senate Bill 5674 would create the aerospace training student loan program.

Senate Bill 5636 would create the University Center of North Puget Sound. The bill assigns management and leadership of the University Center at Everett Community College to WSU to meet demands for baccalaureate and graduate degrees in Everrett, north Snohomish Island, and Skagit counties and Washington, particularly in high employer demand programs of study.