PROPOSED SENATE BUDGETS MAKE ESSENTIAL ADJUSTMENTS. Senate Ways
and Means Chairman Jim West, R-Spokane, and Sen.Gary Strannigan, R-Everett,
announced this morning proposals for lean supplemental operating and capital
budgets. The proposals provide critical funding to Washington State University
for building preservation, pay increased legal costs, transfer a classroom
building at the Spokane Riverpoint campus to WSU, and link research institutions
in the state to "Internet 2." WSU praises the Senate proposal as providing
some of the essential budget adjustments requested and supported by the
institution. Since there are both cuts and enhancements, the Senate operating
budget reflects a $1.4 million bump in the university's $340 million biennial
budget. WSU is still hopeful that requested funding for agricultural trust
lands management and K-20 distance education will be addressed by the Legislature.
These issues were funded by the Gov. Gary Locke's proposed budget. WSU
is also concerned that some needs such as new K-20 classrooms for communities
like Colville and Puyallup, and safety modifications to Johnson Hall in
Pullman, have not been funded by either the Senate or gubernatorial budget
proposals. As expected, there is no funding for a proposed higher education
endowment this year.
Highlights of the Supplemental Operating Budget, now under consideration
by the Senate Ways & Means Committee:
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Full funding of $3.3 million WSU request for final legal costs and settlements.
The $3.3 million contained in the Senate budget is $1.4 million more
than the $1.9 million provided by Gov. Gary Locke. The Senate budget reflects
a recent settlement of a Vancouver construction lawsuit. The $3.3 million
is needed to pay costs incurred by the attorney general's office and by
outside counsel to defend the state from litigation and settle lawsuits.
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$680,000 is transferred to WSU to assume business management of the
Spokane Riverpoint Higher Education Campus as approved by the state
Senate in ESSB 6717. West also proposes $250,000 to do an education needs
assessment of Spokane as recommended by the state Higher Education Coordinating
Board.
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Funding to develop "Internet 2" and a Cooperative Library Project. A
small portion of the $3 million which largely goes to the University of
Washington for Internet 2 could benefit WSU and other research entities.
It would establish a "gigabit per second" connection or "giga-pop" in Washington
State that will be a hub for Internet 2, the next generation of high-speed
internet technology. A portion of the library funds will go for electronic
journals that can be shared with WSU.
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Revised enrollment targets at levels requested by WSU for the 1998-99
academic year were accepted by West. This resulted in a $2.65 million net
savings to the budget for the current biennium while still allowing for
continued growth at all campuses.
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Funding for a Pre-paid Tuition Program. $1.4 million in funding
is provided to the Higher Education Coordinating Board to begin operation
of a program that will allow families to purchase "tuition credits" in
perhaps increments as low as $35 that will also guarantee admission to
Washington higher education institutions at 1998 prices.
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$100,000 is provided for workload increases at the WSU fish disease
diagnostic laboratory.
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$15 million provided to be shared among all state agencies to assist
in converting computers to function with dates beyond the year 2000. WSU
has needs in this area and supported that funding.
The Senate's Supplemental Capital Budget Funds Critical Infrastructure
Repairs. The Strannigan/West capital proposal funds $3 million of the
$3.5 million requested by WSU to make necessary repairs and improvements
to WSU Pullman campus buildings. The funding was reduced when WSU was required
to use the funds to settle legal disputes over construction of the Veterinary
Teaching Hospital.
TRUST LANDS AND K-20 CLASSROOMS ARE NOT ADDRESSED BY THE PROPOSED
SENATE BUDGETS:
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The governor, the state Department of Natural Resources, and Washington
State University requested $1.2 million for fund management of the university's
agricultural trust lands and end DNR's illegal practice of charging management
fees to the university's agricultural trust lands. The Washington State
Attorney General's office issued a formal opinion to the Legislature in
August, 1996, which stated that this practice was in direct conflict with
federal law. Already, tens of millions of dollars which could have gone
for WSU building construction has been improperly charged against the trust.
The Legislature passed a bill last year to end the practice but it was
vetoed by the governor, pending an agreement on a new funding source. The
proposed Senate budget fails to address this issue.
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The governor recommended $1.4 million of the $2.4 million requested
by WSU to begin providing more distance education programs over the new
K-20 Network. None of this funding request was provided by the Senate
Budget.
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Neither the governor's budget nor the Senate budget provides $1.085
million in funding requested by WSU to provide the electronics for classrooms
proposed for Puyallup, Colville, North Seattle, Wenatchee and Pullman.
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Neither the governor's budget, nor the proposed Senate budget, provides
the $1 million in capital construction dollars requested by WSU to design
building ventilation system safety modifications to Johnson Hall.
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