Tag Archives: Capital Budget

Obama Signs Appropriations Legislation.

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Earlier this year President Obama signed into law the omnibus appropriations bills for FY14.  The bill increased funding for the U.S. Department of Education by $1.6 billion over FY13.

While the increase did not fully restore the reductions in discretionary funding from sequestration, the budget does provide much needed investments for the entire education continuum.

Specific to higher education the act provides $75 million for the First in the World initiative aimed at college access and affordability.

The President will release a summary of his FY 2015 budget proposal on March 4.

Morning on The Hill Busy for Higher Education

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This morning higher education was busy on The Hill with a hearing in House Capital Budget and a work session before the House Higher Education Committee.

House Capital Budget

This morning began early with the House Capital Budget scheduled for a public hearing on Governor Inslee’s proposed 2014 supplemental capital budget.

Evergreen, along with other higher education stakeholders, testified to the impact of the supplemental budget on institutions and students.

Evergreen thanked the Legislature for providing the College with the authority to enter into a certificate of participation, through the Office of the State Treasurer, to purchase the building the College currently leases for Evergreen’s Tacoma program. Evergreen noted that the certificate of participation would allow the College to establish a permanent site for the program, which has been in existence for over 30 years, by redirecting the current lease rate toward the purchase of a permanent location for the program. The impact of this action would be to create equity in an owned existing building and provide Evergreen and its students with certainty with regard to the future of the program, benefiting not only the College but the State.

Evergreen also asked the Committee to work with the College to provide funds to meet a gap in resources to implement a microturbine project on campus. The project which is supported by the Washington Department of Commerce, Evergreen students, and Puget Sound Energy would replace existing failing infrastructure, deploy state of the art technology, generate energy savings, reduce the college’s carbon footprint and provide a great return on investment. The College is asking for $499,000

In mid-December Governor Inslee released his proposed 2014 Supplemental Capital budget.

The Governor provided funding for a small number of projects across higher education. This includes authority for Evergreen to enter into a certificate of participation to purchase the existing facility in Tacoma for the College’s Tacoma program; $2 million to remove, clean and dispose of two underground diesel oil tanks at Central Washington University; and $5 to renovate the Carver Academic Center at Western Washington University.

House Higher Education

The Council of Presidents along with representatives from the Office of Financial Management and the Education Research Data Center presented as a panel on the public, baccalaureate incentive funding model task force.

The panel provided an overview of the proviso language that established the task force in the biennial budget, the data used as the source for the metrics included in the report, and the task force’s  eight recommendations if incentive funding (i.e. performance funding) were established in Washington for the public baccalaureate institutions.

The eight recommendations include:

  • Support “Washington-specific” statewide achievement goals based on college access and completion, which represent the state’s greatest need.
  • Identify institution-specific metrics based on institutional mission.
  • Provide new, up-front state performance funding investment in conjunction with the state budget processes.
  • Establish a simple, on-going system for monitoring and funding institution-specific metrics that aligns with the biennial budgeting process.
  • Start the timeline for performance funding now and renew on a biennial basis going forward.
  • Pursue baseline funding objectives through adequate maintenance level funding, institution-level policy investments, and performance incentive funding.
  • Use increased state funding over time to pursue a 50/50 balance between tuition and state support.
  • Repeal and replace other statutory statewide performance goals and processes.

The institutions will present on institutional metrics before the House Higher Education Committee tomorrow and in the Senate on Thursday.

 

Governor Inslee Releases Supplemental Budgets

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Today Governor Inslee released a proposed 2014 Supplemental Operating and Capital budget.

The Governor’s  proposal would boost the state’s $33.6 billion dollar budget by approximately $200 million. The majority of the increase goes to maintaining current services. The major changes to maintenance level include mandatory caseload and K-12 enrollment adjustments, College Bound Scholarship program adjustments, and funds to cover wildlife costs, prison capacity problems, and a legal settlement requiring the state to significantly expand mental health services for children.

The budget also makes a handful of investments across state programs.

Higher Education

The supplemental budget proposed by Governor Inslee supports the investment made in higher education in the 2013-15 biennial budget.

The budget makes a handful of investments in higher education including $7.2 million to accommodate higher costs for the College Bound Scholarship program and $1 million to support advanced manufacturing programs and research at the University of Washington and Washington State University.

The budget also maintains the ability for public baccalaureate institutions to raise tuition beyond appropriated tuition levels for the 2014-15 academic year. The budget includes clarifying language that underscores the requirement that institutions that raise tuition beyond appropriated levels must mitigate the impact to students with additional financial aid.

Capital Budget

The Governor also proposed a supplemental capital budget for higher education. The Governor provided funding for a small number of projects across higher education. This includes authority for Evergreen to enter into a certificate of participation to purchase the existing facility in Tacoma for the College’s Tacoma program; $2 million to remove, clean and dispose of two underground diesel oil tanks at Central Washington University; and $5 million to renovate the Carver Academic Center at Western Washington University.

Washington Legislature Kicks Off November Assembly Days

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This Thursday and Friday the Washington Legislature meets for Assembly Days to focus on the issues they will face in January during the 2014 supplemental session.

Several work sessions will be held that center around the 2014 supplemental operating and capital budgets as well as the impacts of legislation passed during the 2013 regular session.

Higher education kicked off the week early with the convening of the Joint Higher Education Committee yesterday. Committee members engaged with members of the Washington Student Achievement Council on the launch of the Councils’ Ten-Year Roadmap.

On Thursday the Senate Higher Education Committee and the House Subcommittee on Education Appropriations will meet. The Senate Higher Education Committee will hold a work session on meeting Washington’s workforce demands with a focus on the workforce skills gap, higher education efforts to meet employer needs, and using data to measure success in meeting workforce demand. The House will focus on the Guaranteed Education Tuitin (GET) program and an update on the College Bound Scholarship program.

In the afternoon the Senate Ways & Means Committee will receive an update on the 2014 supplemental capital and operating budgets, most recent revenue forecast and collective bargaining agreements. In addition members will hear from the Council of Presidents regarding the Higher Education Performance Funding Task Force.

The House Appropriations Committee will also convene to receive updates regarding Lean management savings, the higher education budget, and the Affordable Care Act.

On Friday the House Higher Education Committee will meet to learn more about the 2014 legislative agendas for the Washington Student Achievement Council, the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, and the Council of Presidents.

House Republicans Name New Ranking Member to Capital Committee

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This week the Washington House Republicans announced that Rep. Richard DeBolt would join the membership of the House Capital Budget Committee as the new ranking Republican member.

DeBolt stepped aside as the House Republican leader earlier this year. DeBolt will take on the role formerly held by Rep. Judy Warnick.

Warnick was named caucus chair earlier this year.

Governor Inslee Signs Biennial Capital Budget

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This afternoon Governor Inslee signed into law the 2013-15 biennial capital budget (SB 5035) with a single veto.

The Governor vetoed language that would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to create an interagency agreement with Evergreen’s Washington State Institute for Public Policy to analyze the relationship between school design and student performance and to develop recommendations for the school construction assistance program.

The language was vetoed based on the reasoning that it was deemed overly broad and an unnecessary expense.

The biennial capital budget signed by the Governor provides $15.280 million for Evergreen’s capital program.

Over the next biennium Evergreen receives funding for three projects: (1) Science Lab I – Basement Renovation ($1.805 million), (2) Science Lab II – Second Floor Renovation ($4.694 million), and (3) Lecture Hall Renovation – Design ($1.308 million).

In addition the budget includes funding for minor works preservation and preventative maintenance.

WA Legislature Passes Biennial Capital Budget; Governor to Sign on Sunday

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Today the Washington Legislature took action on a biennial capital budget.  The Governor is expected to sign the capital budget along with the operating budget on Sunday.

The biennial capital budget passed by the Senate and the House provides $15.267 million for Evergreen’s capital program. This level of funding was below the budget originally passed by the Senate but above the budget passed by the House.

Over the next biennium Evergreen receives funding for three projects: (1) Science Lab I – Basement Renovation ($1.805 million), (2) Science Lab II – Second Floor Renovation ($4.694 million), and (3) Lecture Hall Renovation – Design ($1.308 million).

In addition the budget includes funding for minor works preservation and preventative maintenance.

Though the final capital budget represents approximately half of what Evergreen requested for the biennium, the funding provided allows the College to continue to move forward on critical capital projects over the next two years.

Capital Budgets Galore

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Today the House released its proposed biennial 2013-15 capital budget and the Senate held a pubic hearing on its biennial proposal.

The Washington House’s proposed capital budget provides funding for a number of projects across higher education. This includes funding for two projects at Evergreen – the renovation of the Science Lab 1 Basement and the Science Lab 2 second floor.

In addition the budget includes funding for minor works preservation and preventative maintenance. Though the  House’s budget does provide some funding for minor works preservation it does not fully fund the College’s request.

The proposed budget does not fund the design phase of the Lecture Hall Renovation, the predesign for the renovation of Seminar I, and the acquisition of land and design for the Tacoma Campus.

Next Steps

The Senate Ways & Means Committee is scheduled to hold an executive session on their proposal on Thursday. The House expected to do the same on their proposal on Friday morning.

Senate Releases Biennial Capital Budget

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This afternoon, with little fanfare, the Washington Senate released a proposed biennial capital budget.

The Senate’s proposal provides funding for a small number of projects across higher education. This includes funding for two projects at Evergreen – the renovation of the Science Lab 1 Basement and the Science Lab 2 second floor.

In addition the budget includes funding for minor works preservation and preventative maintenance. Though the  Senator’s budget does provide some funding for minor works preservation it does not fully fund the College’s request. The Senate’s proposal is approximately $1 million less than the budget proposed by Governor Gregoire in December.

The proposed budget does not fund the design phase of the Lecture Hall Renovation, the predesign for the renovation of Seminar I, and the acquisition of land and design for the Tacoma Campus.

The proposed capital budget is scheduled for a public hearing tomorrow in Senate Ways & Means.

Washington Legislature Ends 2012 Supplemental Session

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The first special session of 2012 ended last night as of midnight. Though close the Washington Legislature did not complete business by this deadline and Governor Gregoire called the Legislature back for a second special session. After nearly eight straight hours of work from midnight to early this morning, the Legislature passed a balanced budget, jobs act, and a handful of policy reform bills.

Operating Budget

 The 2012 supplemental operating budget passed 64-34 in the House and 44-2 in the Senate and was delivered to the Governor for her consideration early this morning. The operating budget makes no reductions to K-12 and higher education.  Some of the highlights of the budget include $238 million to the general fund as a result of the state temporarily claiming control of local sales taxes before they are redistributed back to jurisdictions at their usual time, an increase in taxes raising about $14.5 million by eliminating a tax deduction for some large banks, additional revenue to the state through changing rules on roll-your-own cigarettes, and at the end a reserve fund of $320 million.

Impact to Higher Education

The operating budget as passed by the Legislature does not reduce general fund support for higher education, this includes further eductions to institutions and financial aid. The budget however does include some provisos and policy changes.

  • Bellevue College is authorized to offer baccalaureate degrees. Prior to the passage of this bill the College could only offer applied baccalaureate degrees.
  • The two and four year institutions are required to conduct a comprehensive review of institutional tuition waiver policies.
  • Evergreen is required to reallocate $276,000 for FY2013 for an expansion in enrollments in STEM as defined in HB 1795. This definition includes bachelor and advanced degree programs in the sciences, which includes agriculture and natural resources, biology and biomedical sciences, computer and information sciences, engineering and engineering technologies, health professions and clinical sciences, mathematics and statistics, and physical sciences and science technologies, including participation and degree completion rates for students from traditionally underrepresented populations.
  • The Washington State Institute for Public Policy is required to conduct a longitudinal study of the state need grant program ($100,000).
  • The two and four year institutions are not permitted to use state appropriated funds to support intercollegiate athletic programs
  • Changes state payments for public employee health benefits from $850 to $800 per month

Capital Budget and Jobs Act

The 2012  capital budget made no changes to Evergreen’s biennial capital budget. The Jobs Acts  which includes a new bonds bill and the traditional capital budget  are estimated to have an economic impact of $1.1 billion in construction work over the next 14 months.  

Reform Bills

As critical to the process as balancing the budget were efforts to pass reform bills to provide for greater long-term sustainability in the state budget. Among the policy bills passed by the Legislature three were critical to finally ending the 2012 supplemental session.

Pension

SB 6378 addresses early retirement benefits for future state employees.. Under law changes in 2000 and 2007, an employee with 30 years’ service could retire at age 62 with no reduction in benefits, and at age 55 with only a 20 percent reduction. Under the new law, retirement at age 62 will lower the benefit by 15 percent and age 55 by 50 percent. The savings will go to the state’s general fund.

 K-12 Healthcare

SB 5940 attempts to equalize health-insurance benefits for full-time and part-time school district employees and their families. The bill requires school districts to meet certain requirements, including making all employees pay a share of premiums, offering a high-deductible health plan and tying the price of individual and family benefits.

Balanced Budget

SB 6636 requires the state’s two-year budget to be in line with anticipated revenue over a four-year period or 4.5% growth per year, whichever is greater.   Growth has met or exceeded 4.5 percent in half of the past 16 years.