SENATE NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE APPROVES TRUST
LANDS BILL - SB 6778
The Senate Natural Resources Committee today approved
legislation supported by Washington State University that will
require a unanimous vote of the state Board of Natural Resources
before the state agrees to a federal "habitat conservation
plan" or HCP. All six senators present voted for the bill;
sponsor Sen. Kathleen Drew D-Issaquah, Sen. Jim Hargrove D-Hoquim,
Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen D-Camino Island, Sen. Bob Morton R-Orient,
Senate Majority Leader Sid Snyder D-Long Beach, Sen. Dan Swecker
R-Rochester. As Washington's land grant university, WSU
holds 151,000 of 190,000 acres of federal land originally granted
for that purpose at statehood. The HCP agreement will legally
bind the state to certain management practices on state-owned
lands for up to 100 years in the future. To date, DNR has not
detailed the specific impact of the HCP on individual trusts like
WSU. WSU Regent Lou Pepper was among those who testified for
the legislation, which he said would allow the university time
to obtain answers to questions if they are not available from
DNR. Pepper said there are an "unbroken line of cases"
which show that legally WSU trust lands must be managed to maximize
income to the university. Yet, he said the returns that the state
Department of Natural Resources has shown on the land are far
below typical trusts, about 1.5 percent in recent years. Bob
Nichols, representing the Governor's Office, was among
those expressing concerns for the bill. He argued that a single
member of the board should not be able to hold up important issues.
WSU and UW, which each have representatives on the six-member
board, have agreed to meet with interested parties on this issue
next week. The legislation now goes to the Senate Rules Committee
where it could be assigned to the floor for a vote. If it passes
the Senate, it still must be considered by the House, which voted
for similar language in the supplemental budget bill.
DAVIS CONFIRMED AS WSU REGENT
Richard A. "Dick" Davis was confirmed
to a second term as a member of the Washington State University
Board of Regents Tuesday by the state Senate. All 44 senators
present cast a positive vote for Davis. No further action by
the Legislature is necessary. Davis is President an Chief Executive
Officer of Pentzer Corporation, a private investment company in
Spokane. The Senate Higher Education Committee has scheduled
a hearing for Monday at 9 a.m. to consider the appointment of
a new WSU Regent, Peter Goldmark, the owner of the Double J Ranch
in Okanogan.
SENATE WAYS AND MEANS MAKES SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES
TO NON-RESIDENT TUITION BILL
Substitute House Bill 2478, which increases non-resident
undergraduate tuition from $8,595 to $9,491, was amended by the
Senate Ways and Means Committee to apply only to students who
are new to WSU next fall or spring. WSU students who are enrolled
now would be "grandfathered" in at the existing
$8,585 rate. The Senate Ways & Means version of the bill
would be repealed after one year, in an apparent effort to force
more long-range tuition reform out of the 1997 Legislature. The
action by Ways & Means sets up a potential conference committee
on the issue, as the state House of Representatives passed the
bill 96-0 on Feb. 5 without any exceptions for existing students.
Student lobbyists pushed for many of the changes in the Senate
bill.
STATUS OF OTHER LEGISLATION BEING TRACKED BY WSU:
Legislators are now mostly taking floor votes, considering
bills from the opposite houses of the Legislature as the 1996
session goes into its final scheduled week. Friday is the final
day for either house to consider bills unless they relate to the
budgets or disputes between the two houses.
SHB 2288 Financial Aid Portability.
Allowed Washington Student Need Grants to be used in Portland,
Oregon, universities. Ran into some opposition in the Senate Higher
Education Committee and appears dead in the Senate Ways and Means
Committee.
ESHB 2289 Public Lobbying.
Sought to prohibit public agency lobbying. Passed the House but
appears dead in the Senate Government Operations Committee.
2SHB 2293 Higher Education Technology Fee.
Allows institutions in agreement with students to charge a flat
fee for technology not to exceed $120. Amended in the Senate
Ways and Means Committee to allow quick repeal by the student
body. WSU has no intentions of imposing the fee and does not
intend to use the authority.
SHB 2191 Full Retirement Benefits to WSU Firefighters.
Passed the House, now the in the Senate Rules Committee.
This update is shared by broadcast fax and electronic
mail to friends of Washington State University as state government
developments occur. Contact Karen Fischer, WSU State-wide
Affairs, 509/335-6665. Larry Ganders is at 360/438-7552; Fax:
360/438-8104. Internet address is ganders@wsunix.wsu.edu. Visit
our web page at www.wsu.edu/IR/wsulegis/olympia.html.
