Tag Archives: Capital Budget

House Capital Budget Moves to the Floor

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The House Capital Budget Committee held an executive session on the House’s proposed 2010 supplemental capital budget this afternoon.

In a concise and directed session, the House Capital Budget Committee moved House Bill 2836 to the floor.

No changes were made to higher education or Evergreen. 

The House Capital budget reduces bond appropriations for the College’s Laboratory and Art Annex Building by $727,000.

The bill was amended by the Committee as follows:

  • Made technical corrections
  • Increased the Department of Commerce’s Housing Trust Fund set aside for building low-income housing units in underserved communities and to concurrently develop capacity in the same communities from $5 million to $10 million.  There was no change in the total appropriation.
  • Added $600,000 to complete school mapping for the remaining community colleges. Reduced the Everett Community College Infrastructure project by $309,000. Increased the negative allotment for the Office of Financial Management by $42,291,000. As a result the State Building Construction Account is increased by $291,000.
  • Allowed for the 2009 capital budget appropriation for the Kittitas Groundwater Study to be used for the purchzse of water for domestic groundwater users in the Yakima Basin Water Resource Inventory Area 39 that have a groundwater right with a priority date later than May 10, 1905 and for all out-of-priority groundwater users in the Yakima Basin, pending an agreement between the Department, Ecology, and Kittitas County.  Created the Kititas County Domestic Groundwater Users Drought Preparedness Account. There was no change in the total appropriation.

Evergreen Testifies in House Capital Budget Committee on Budget Proposal

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Dr. John Hurley, Vice President for Finance and Administration, testified during an evening committee meeting on the Capital Budget proposed by the House of Representatives.

After conveying his appreciation for the hard work the committee did in drafting the budget proposal, Dr. Hurley expressed support for the $200 million appropriated to create jobs in the K-12 sector and conveyed the institution’s hope that the investment would eventually benefit higher education. He also mentioned the halting of capital projects on Evergreen’s campus, but assured the committee that the institution would do its best to handle the cut. Before closing, Dr. Hurley took the opportunity to remind the committee of the biomass gasification investment that Evergreen requested the legislature partner with students on.

House Releases 2010 Capital Budget Proposal

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Later this afternoon, the House released their proposed 2010 supplemental capital budget.  The Senate’s proposed capital budget is expected later this week.

Highlights of the proposed budget are below. Details regarding the specific impact to Evergreen will follow soon.

House Capital Budget Highlights

  • Avoids exceeding the 9 percent constitutional debt limit should general state revenues decline, interest rates rise, and potential emergencies occur.
  • Reduces the overall bond appropriations by $31 million.
  • Directs the Office of Financial Management to work with state agencies to achieve savings in the amount of $42 million by reducing allotments or by withholding allotment approval for those projects that have not demonstrated substantial progress towarwd contract execution by November 30, 20010.
  • Provides $200 million to create jobs through energy efficiency improvements in K-12 public schools.
  • Provides $100 million towards housing assistance.

Details of the House proposed 2010 capital budget can be found on the Washington State Legislative Evaluation & Accountability Program Committee Website.

     

Latest on State Budgets and Tuition Policy

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Tomorrow, Tuesday February 23 is a pivotal day for higher education in the 2010 supplemental legislative session.

In the morning, the Senate will release their proposed 2010 supplemental operating and capital budgets at a press conference. The press conference is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. in the Cherberg Building in Senate Hearing Room 4 and will be televised on TVW.

Following the release of the Senate proposed budgets, the House Higher Education Committee will hold a hearing on Senate Bill 6562 – the tuition policy bill.  The public hearing will take place beginning at 10:00 a.m. in Hearing Room A.

At lunch time, 12:15 p.m., the House will release their proposed 2010 supplemental operating budget in the John L. O’Brien Building in Hearing Room A.  The release of the House operating budget will also be televised on TVW.

In the afternoon, the House will release their proposed 2010 supplemental capital budget at 1:30. The budget will be released to media only but will be available along with the other proposed budgets on the Washington Legislature’s website.

Following the release of the Senate and House versions of the 2010 supplemental operating and capital budgets, public hearings will be held in the late afternoon and into the evening.

The Senate Ways & Means Committee will hold a public hearing on the Senate’s proposed operating and capital budgets in the late afternoon. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 4 of the Cherberg Building.

In the early evening, the House Ways & Means Committee will hold a public hearing on the House’s proposed 2010 operating budget. The public hearing will begin at 6:00 p.m. in Hearing Room A of the John L. O’Brien Building.

At the same time, the House Capital Budget will hold a public hearing on the House’s propsoed 2010 capital budget. The public hearing will begin at 6:00 pm. in the John L. O’Brien Building in Hearing Room C 

On Wednesday, February 24 the Senate Ways & Means Committee will hold another public hearing focused on the Senate’s proposed revenue package. The public hearing will begin at 3:30 p.m. in the Cherberg Building in Senate Hearing Room 4. 

The House, at this time, is not expected to release a revenue package along with its proposed budgets.

Policy Committees Continue Work

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Today, House and Senate policy committees continued to work bills from the opposite chamber through the legislative process.

The Legislature will experience a small break from the usual weekend work that has dominated their Saturdays and Sundays for the last couple of weeks. Most legislators are planning to travel to their districts and connect with their constituents.

Then Monday it will be back to the hard work of moving bills as policy committees in the House prepare for the deadline to consider policy bills from the Senate on February 23 and the Senate does the same by February 26.

Several bills of interest to Evergreen were heard by committees in both chambers. None of the bills listed below were moved out of committee today.

Washington House

This morning the  House Higher Education Committee held a public hearing  on Senate Bill 6467. SB 6467 allows institutions of higher educationo to award honorary degrees to individuals who were students at those institutions in 1942 but did not graduate because they were ordered into an internment camp.

In the afternoon, the House State Government and Tribal Affairs Committee held a public hearing on Senate Bill 6401. SB 6401 establishes an alternative selection process for selecting mechanical or electrical subcontractors for general contractor/construction manager projects. Evergreen has supported the development of an alternative process throughout the session.

Washington Senate

On the other side, the Senate Higher Education & Workforce Development Committee took up House Bill 2930 in the afternoon. HB 2930 directs the Higher Education Coordinating Board to give priority to selecting Future Teachers Scholarship recipients to those individuals who are seeking specialty endorsements in math as well as individuals who are uniquely qualified to help schools address the achievement gap. Evergreen has supported the legislation since its introduction and continues to encourage policymakers, through testimony, to keep in mind students seeking endorsements in English Language Learners and special education.  

Bills Move Quickly

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A familiar and quick-paced trend has appeared on The Hill. Bills are introduced, heard via a public hearing one day and the next are moved out of committee either to the floor or an appropriations committee.

This is to be expected as committee cut-off dates near (early next week) and the Legislature approaches the half-way mark in the session (4th week is next week).

So here is the latest news:

Evergreen Supported Legislation

The Senate Govenrment Operations & Elections held a public hearing and moved Senate Bill 5041. SB 5041 encourages agencies to contract and purchsefrom veteran-owned businesses. Evergreen supported the legislation which was reinforced with testimony in favor of the bill by The Council of Presidents.

The House Higher Education Committee held a public hearing on House Bill 2930. House Bill 2930 extends the Future Teacher Conditional Scholarships to students seeking a mathematics endorsement.

Evergreen testified in support of the bill and encouraged policymakers to work towards offering similar scholarship opportunities in the future to individuals seeking endorsements in special education and ELL. 

Legislation of Concern to Evergreen

The House Commerce & Labor Committee held a public hearing on House Bill 2805. House Bill 2805 requires contractors on public works projects (i.e. higher education capital projects) that are over $1 million to provide additional reporting. 

Evergreen expressed concerns with regard to additional reporting at a time of declining resources and the potential for increased costs to public works projects.

HB 2805 is expected to be moved out of committee later today.

Bills of Interest to Evergreen

The Senate Ways & Means Committee held a public hearing on Senate Bill 6572. Evergreen did not weigh in during the public hearing but is tracking this legislation as it moves through the process.

Senate Bill 6572 eliminates several inactive funds and accounts and transfers any remaining balances in these accounts to the General Fund. In addition, any balances in the School Construction Revolving Fund are transferred to the General Fund.

The accounts and funds to be eliminated include: City and County Advance Right-of-Way Revolving Account; Community and Technical College Fund for Innovation and Quality Account; Dairy Products Commission Facility Account; Data Processing Building Construction Account; Education Technology Account; Energy Efficiency Construction Account; Fruit Commission Facility Account; Geothermal Account; K-20 Technology Account; Morrill Account; Personal Health Services Account; Prescription Drug Purchasing Account;Regional Transportation Investment District Account; Purpose District Research Services Account; Two-year Student Child Care in Higher Education Account; Warren G. Magnuson Institute Trust Account; Washington Fruit Express Account; and Washington Service Corps Scholarship Account.

No further action has been scheduled on this bill.

Bills Moving to Floors for Action

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A handful of bills have moved to the House and Senate floor for action this week.

House Bill 2561, a.k.a the Jobs Creation bill, was passed by the House 57-41 on Wednesday.

House Bill 2561: (1) Authorizes the State Finance Committee to issue $861 million in general obligation bonds, to be known as Jobs Act Bonds (Act), for the purpose of creating jobs by constructing capital improvements that lead to energy-related cost savings in public schools, state colleges and universities, and other public facilities; (2) Appropriates funds for grants to public school districts, public higher education institutions, state and locally-owned facilities, and facilities owned by subdivisions of the state; and (3) Directs the Secretary of State to submit the short title, intent and bond authorization sections of the Act to the people for adoption and ratification or rejection in the next general election to be held in the state.

In addition, Senate Bill 2561, if enacted, would be a vehicle by which Evergreen could seek funding for the design and construction of the Biomass Gasification Project that the College is seeking funds for a feasibility study this session. Evergreen will continue to work to move this successfully move this bill through the Senate.

The House amended HB 2561 to correct the name  of the account that funds are drawn from to pay debt service and directs the State Treasurer to move funds to pay debt service to the bond retirement. In addition, changes were made to the time in which a project that does not use Energy Savings Performance Contracting must verify energy and operational savings for 10 years  or until the project has paid for itself, whichever is shorter.

Engrossed House Bill 2651 now moves to the Senate Ways & Means Committee for consideration.  

House Bill 2858 was passed by House Higher Education on Wednesday. House Bill 2858 provides institutions of higher education the authority to participate in group purchasing agreements.

Kathleen Haskett, Evergreen’s Purchasing & Contracts Manager, testified in support of HB 2858. She expanded on the changes the bill would provide for higher education purchasing policies and the potential costs savings to the institution.

More and more bills are expected to move to the floor and opposite chamber this week and next as the first cut-off date (February 2) looms for policy bills.

Senate Committee on Ways and Means Outlines Capital Budget

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Senate Ways & Means Capital Budget Coordinator Brian Sims presented an overview of the current state of Washington’s Capital Budget during Wednesdays’ committee hearing.

The Capital Budget is comprised of $3.3 billion dollars, half of which is money borrowed from investors in the form of bonds and other debt. The budget itself is the smallest of the three state budgets, which also include the large Operating Budget ($58.7 billion) and the Transportation Budget ($6.6 billion).

Sims pointed out during his presentation that the majority of funds disbursed from the Capital Budget go to parties other than state interests. This means that state funds are being used as grants for construction and maintenance of institutions other than the state’s own. Among the funds used to build and maintain state institutions’ interests, funding for public schools has grown the fastest. Most of these funds are not cash, however, and come in the form of bonding authority. Higher Education’s bond funds from the Capital Budget have grown, too, while other funds – including cash – have remained flat for a decade.

As the state deals with a budget crisis, another issue the legislature has to confront is the constitutionally-mandated debt limit. The debt limit, monitored by the State Treasurer, cannot exceed 9% of the average annual general revenue for the preceding three fiscal years. In addition, because the Capital Budget, unlike the Operating Budget, does not have an “ending fund balance,” a margin of 0.25% is set aside as an ending balance. According to Governor’s proposed Capital Budget, that 0.25% ending balance is maintained by cutting $375 million from the budget. The Governor’s budget also proposes an increase in bond spending of $86 million and a transfer of $147 million from the Capital to the Operating Budget, a short-term maneuver to create more liquidity in the Operating Budget.

What does this mean for Evergreen? The college has identified a need for an allocation of $125,000 from the Capital Budget to complete funding for a Biomass Gasification plant. TESC students and the college itself have each generated $125,000 to put toward a feasibility study for the project. As the Capital Budget writing process plays out, the college will be asking legislators to support the sustainable vision for a biomass plant, which would help the college realize its 2020 goal of carbon neutrality while providing synthetic gas to heat and potentially power the institution’s facilities.

Legislature Week 2: What is Happening

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Several work sessions and public hearings are scheduled on critical issues that impact higher education the second week of session. To learn more follow the links below.

This week the focus of the appropriations committees (i.e. Senate Ways & Means and House Ways & Means) will be a review of the Governor’s proposed supplemental budgets, both capital and operating.

In addition, the higher education policy committees (i.e. House Higher Education and Senate Higher Education & Workforce Development) plan to tackle several critical issues impacting Washington’s institutions of higher learning, including system design, tuition policy, and financial aid.

Budget, Budget, Budget

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Budget was the key word today at the Legislature. The House Ways & Means Committee held a public hearing on the Governor’s proposed 2010 supplemental budget. The House Education Appropriations Committee held a work session on the same issue. Finally, House Capital Budget held a public hearing on a jobs creation bill that would benefit education in Washington.

Governor Gregoire addressed the House Ways & Means Committee this afternoon. She shared the challenges posed in her all-cuts budget and hopes she has for restoration of some programs and services through additional state and federal revenues.

The Council of Presidents and representatives from each of the four-year public baccalaureate institutions testified before the House Committee. Evergreen focused testimony on the impact of the reductions to date and the impact of additional cuts on students, faculty, and the institution proposed in the Governor’s 2010 supplemental budget. Evergreen emphasized the impact of the proposed reductions and eliminations of state financial aid programs on Greeners.

On the capital front, The Evergreen State College provided testimony in support of House Bill 2561. Senate Bill 2561 would allow the State Finance Committee to issue $861 million in general obligation bonds, to be known as Jobs Act Bonds, for the purpose of creating jobs by constructing capital improvements that lead to energy-related cost savings in public schools, state colleges and universities, and other public facilities. House Bill 2561 establishes a competitive grant process for public schools and higher education institutions to attain the funds bonded in the bill.

Evergreen supports House Bill 2561 because of its focus on sustainable energy projects and education. In addition, HB 2561 provides the opportunity for Evergreen to discuss with legislators the value of investing in sustainability focused projects and programs, such as Evergreen’s Biomass Gasification Project.

Finally, The Evergreen State College attended a work session of the House Education Appropriations Committe focused on the impact to education of the Governor’s proposed 2010 supplemental budget.