Governor Says No to Federal Position

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 Governor Gregoire will not be moving to D.C. anytime soon. 

This afternoon the spokeswoman for Governor Gregoire announced that the Governor informed the White House that she did not want to be considered for the job of solicitor general. 

“She (the Governor) explained that she does not want to be considered. She mentioned it is not the right time for here and it is not the right time for the state”, stated Karina Shagren, spokeswoman for the Governor.

It was announced earlier this summer that Governor Greogire was on a list of individuals to be considered for the position of solicitor general which was vacated by Elean Kagan upon her appointment to the Supreme Court last week.

Senate Committee Moves Veterans’ Education Legislation

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Yesterday the U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved S. 3447 to expand benefits in the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

The bill would increase the number of people who could receive benefits and expand the list of programs/training for which veterans could use the aid.

In addition, the bill changes how allowances for textbooks and housing are calculated and provides in-state tuition/fees at public colleges or up to $20,000 adjusted annually and based on the national average cost.

In the U.S. House similar legislation is scheduled to be considered on September 16.

State’s Budget Gap Shrinks Thanks to Federal Funds

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Today, the U.S. Senate took the necessary final vote to provide $26 billion to states for Medicaid and education.

The bill extends programs enacted in last year’s stimulus law to help preserve the jobs of teachers and other public employees and provides an extension of federal Medicaid funds to states.

The U.S. House will return from their August recess to take a vote on the bill next Tuesday.

Once the House passes the bill and the legislation is signed by the President, Washington is expected to receive $530 million. The state will receive $320 million for Medicaid and $208 million to pay salaries for 3,000 teachers who were in line to lose their jobs.  

The influx of federal dollars does stave off a special session for now. However, Washington policymakers are now focused on the latest revenue forecasts, expected August 10, to gauge the health of the state budget.

Special Session Unlikely

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It is unlikely that Washington will experience another special session this year. Early this week, Democratic leaders in the Washington Senate and House ruled out holding a sepcial legislative session to fill budget gaps related to a lack of federal aid and declining state revenues.

Governor Gregoire had set a noon deadline on Monday for Democratic leaders to determine whether or not they could bring their caucuses for a short special session to remedy the looming budget gap.

Though the spokeswoman for the Governor did not announce how the budget gap will be bridged, the alternative is to require across-the-board cuts of up to 4 percent to solve the budget gap.

The question of whether to hold a special session or implement across-the-board cuts would be eliminated if Congress acts. The U.S. Senate is considering an extension of $16.1 billion in federal medical assistance funding and $10 billion in aid for schools to avert teacher layoffs for states.

Action on the added funding was delayed from Monday to tomorrow (Wednesday). Even if the Senate approves the funding it is required to go to the U.S. House for final approval.

Committee to Transfrom Budget Holds Last Public Hearing

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Last night the Governor and members of the recently formed Committee on Transforming Washington’s  Budget held the last of four public hearings in Spokane.

The hearings mimicked many of the same messages that the Governor and committee members have heard over the last month in Tacoma, Everett, and Vancouver– spare services and reduce taxes.

Among the requests from the 43 people who testified: Don’t cut money that pays to educate our youth; Don’t cut jobs of parole officers who keep an eye on violent offenders; and Don’t cut money that keeps the elderly in their own homes.

Though the statewide hearings are over, the Governor and the Committee are still collecting input through the website launched to gather thoughts regarding what government should and should not fund.

U.S. Senate Committee Passes Education Spending Bill

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Yesterday the full U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved a $169.6 billion appropriations bill for FY11 funding for the Department of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

The bill as passed by the Senate Committee maintains a level discretionary funding base for the Federal Pell Grant program of $4,860. This amount combined with a mandatory add-on from the Healthcare and Education Reconciliation Act provides a maximum award of $5,550 in the 2011-12 year.

The bill passed out of Committee, however, did not include the $5.7 billion to fill an estimated Pell Grant shortfall in the 2011-12 year.  Senate Democrats on the committee stated that addressing the shortfall will have to wait until the bill is either considered by the full Senate or during conference committee with the House.

In addition, the bill maintains level funding for the majority of other student aid programs. This includes Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Federal Work-Study, and Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnerships.

Finally, funding for TRIO would increase by $15 million and Perkins cancellations would receive no funding.

The bill now goes to the full Senate for consideration.

Statewide Budget Hearings Conclude in Spokane

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Over the last two weeks the Governor and members of the Committee on Transforming Washington’s Budget have held three public hearings on the 2011-13 biennial budget with a fourth and final hearing to be completed this evening in Spokane.

In early July, the Governor and the Task Force traveled to Tacoma to listen to concerns and ideas regarding the 2011-13 biennial budget.

Last week the Governor held the second of four public hearings in Everett. Approximately 400 people showed up at Everett Community College to listen to the fiscal context facing Washington and share their ideas for reducing the state budget.

Nearly 50 people shared their views with the Governor and committee members. Ideas included reducing state employee salaries, selling off the state ferry system, and privatizing port districts. Others argued for funding for a variety of public services and the impact of failing to do so.

Advocacy for public services and programs dominated the third of four public hearings in Vancouver. Approximately 400 people arrived at the WSU-Vancouver campus to hear about the budget and share their ideas.

Special Session Decision Expected Early August

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Today Governor Gregoire announced she will decide whether or not to call a special session or make across-the-board cuts in early August.

A special session or across-the-board cuts would be required to reduce the $300 million budget shortfall if federal aid for Medicaid dollars falls through.

Not a fan of the across-the-board cuts, Governor Gregoire estimates that the cuts would reduce all state-funded programs by an additional 3.5-4.0 percent. The only exceptions to the reduction would be basic education, debt payments, and pensions.

Compromise Veterans’ Education Bill to be Introduced

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Late this week, a compromise veterans’ education bill is expected to be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Sponsored by Rep. Minnick (D-ID), the bill is an agreement between major veterans’ service organizations and the Veterans Affairs Department on ways to fix, improve or otherwise modify the benefits program that was launched in August 2009.

The changes proposed in the bill would not take effect until 2011.

  • Tuition and fee calculations will be simplified so that Veterans Affairs will pay full tuition and full fees for any eligible veteran who is a full-time student at a public college or university. Tuition and fees at private institutions would be capped at $20,000 a year per student.
  • Active-duty service members and spouses of active-duty members using transferred benefits would become eligible for the $1,000 book allowance that already goes to other student veterans using the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
  • Living stipends would be available to people taking distance learning classes without the current requirement that they must take at least one classroom course to qualify.
  • Service members transferring GI Bill benefits to a spouse or children would include the right to transfer any so-called “kickers” that increase payments so that family members could use the money.
  • For National Guard and reserve members, the bill gives credit for full-time active service in the Active Guard and Reserve program and time mobilized for natural disasters toward earning benefits, service that currently does not count.
  • On-the-job training and apprenticeships programs could be covered .

Many of the provisions in the compromise bill are similar to provisions in S. 3447.  Senate Bill 3447 is being refined and is expected to be brought to a vote in the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee in early August.

The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, which will receive the compromise bill, has scheduled a hearing on veterans’ education benefits on September 16.

Governor Announces Higher Education Task Force

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Today, Governor Gregoire announced the formation of a Higher Education Task Force. Evergreen’s President, Les Purce, will serve as a representative for the four-year Council of Presidents.

The goal of the Task  Force is to create a sustainable funding model and develop strategies that increase accountability to ensure taxpayers get the best value for the state’s and student’s investment at our four-year universities.

Gregoire asked the task force to focus on three tasks:

  • Develop a realistic and viable long-range funding strategy that provides Washington’s students with affordable higher education opportunities.
  • Recommend ways to improve accountability and performance in our public four-year higher education institutions to ensure we get the very highest value for the state’s and student’s investment.
  • Consider whether the higher education system’s current governance model should be modified to improve system-wide performance and accountability.

The task force will be chaired by Brad Smith, general counsel and senior vice president of Legal and Corporate Affairs at Microsoft. 

Members of the governor’s Higher Education Funding Task Force are:

 Brad Smith, Chair, Senior VP and General Counsel, Microsoft Corporation
Judith Runstad, Foster Pepper LLC
Charlie Earl, Director, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Jesus Hernandez, Chair, Higher Education Coordinating Board
Thomas L. “Les” Purce, President, Evergreen State College
Pat Shanahan, Vice President & General Manager, Airplane Programs, Boeing Company
David Tang, Managing Partner, K&L Gates LLP
Paula Reynolds, CEO, Preferwest LLC
Dean Allen, CEO, McKinstry Company
Bill Ayer, Chair and CEO, Alaska Air
Michael Kluse, Senior VP, Battelle
Maud Daudon, President & CEO, Seattle Northwest Securities
Chris Rivera, President, Washington Biotechnology and Biomedical Association
Ray Stephanson, Mayor of Everett
Paul Rosier, Executive Director, Washington Association of School Administrators
Alex McGregor, President & CEO, The McGregor Company

The Higher Education Funding Task Force will meet several times this summer and make recommendations to Gregoire in the fall, with proposals to eventually be incorporated into her 2011 legislative agenda.