HOUSE AND SENATE TAKE DIFFERING APPROACHES TO ENROLLMENT
BUT BOTH FUND MORE STUDENTS AT ALL WSU CAMPUSES NEXT FALL
The Senate and the House take different approaches to enrollment in their respective versions of the supplemental operating budget. Negotiations will now focus on a discussion of Second Substitute Senate Bill 6404. The supplemental budget bill passed three times and was amended twice by the Senate. However it was completely rewritten and passed overwhelmingly by the House.
The approaches to enrollment are the primary difference in the WSU section of the budget. Both bill versions provide $3.6 million for a new boiler at the Pullman power plant and fund the Spokane Health Sciences Initiative at $450,000.
WSU believes either the House or Senate enrollment scenario will work adequately for the university to fund the institution through the balance of the 1999-2001 biennium.
The House provides guaranteed funding for 814 new students for the Washington State University system next year. The
Senate continues funding set in 1999 for next year for up to 1,064 students. However, the Senate did make a change that now requires WSU to return funding to the state for unfilled student slots next fall.
The Senate requirement that funding for unused slots be returned may not be a substantial difference in practical terms. The 2001 Legislature can be expected to recover funding for unfilled fall slots. That action would come next spring, before the Senate`s language would take effect on July 1, 2001. WSU was under-enrolled by 536 students this year. Earlier in the session, WSU requested that the growth figures be revised downward to allow for a total growth of 844 students. The House comes within an acceptable 30 students of that system request and, of course, the Senate plan would also provide for that. (These calculations include 60 FTEs awarded for Pullman by the Higher Education Coordinating Board to address high demand courses.)
Here is how each version of the budget affects each campus:
WSU Pullman funded to grow by 555 To 724 students
Even in the most conservative budget, proposed by the House, WSU Pullman will grow by 3.3 percent (555 FTEs)
next fall. For Pullman, the difference between the House and Senate budgets is 169 students. The Senate sets the new
budget target for the Pullman campus at 17,709 full time students, allowing for a maximum growth of 724 students at the
campus. The House budget provides for a target of 17,540 students, providing for a growth of 555 students. WSU had
requested funding for 624 students but believes the House funding level is within acceptable limits.
WSU Spokane funded to grow by 126 To 169 graduate and professional students
Even in the most conservative budget, proposed by the House, WSU Spokane will grow by 29 percent (126FTEs).
For WSU Spokane, the difference between the House and Senate budget is 43 students. Both the House and Senate budgets
provide more FTEs than WSU requested, which is 119 additional students. The Senate budget retains the enrollment target
set by the 1999 Legislature for 601 students, a growth of 169 students. The House budget revises the enrollment target to
558 students, a growth of 126 students. In addition to student growth numbers, both budgets provide $450,000 for a Cancer
Prevention Research Center to be operated by WSU at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute
(SIRTI.) Both budgets also provide funding for $425,000 for SIRTI to continue providing commercialization activities to
Spokane. Both pieces are part of a WSU/SIRTI agreement to expand research and technology transfer at the Riverpoint
Higher Education Park.
WSU Vancouver funded to grow by 113 To 151 students
Even in the most conservative budget, proposed by the House, WSU Vancouver will grow by 12 percent (113 FTEs). For
WSU Vancouver, the difference between the House and Senate budgets is 38 students. Both the House and Senate budgets
provide more FTEs than WSU requested, which is 101 additional students. The Senate budget retains the enrollment target
set by the 1999 Legislature for 1,121 students, a growth of 151 students. The House budget revises the enrollment target to
1,083, providing for a growth of 113 students.
Funding inequities at WSU Tri-Cities addressed in both budgets
Both budget versions provide a crucial adjustment for WSU Tri-Cities, funding a modest growth of 3.4 percent (20
FTEs). That sets its enrollment target at 616. The 1999 Legislature had set the fall 2000 enrollment target at 754 but
provided funding for only about 600 students, continuing a funding inequity that has plagued the campus since it was
founded. WSU Tri-Cities is currently funded at about $2,000 less per student than comparable campuses. The full funding
at the new enrollment target will allow a fresh start for WSU Tri-Cities and will result in more funding being allocated for
each student, more closely following the funding levels of other WSU and UW branch campuses.
This update is shared by fax and electronic mail to friends of Washington State University as state government developments occur regarding the
2000 Legislative Sessions. Contact Michelle Delaney, 509-335-9681 to receive a copy. Call Larry Ganders at 360/956-2165 or send him a short
pager message via e-mail to 3607863527@page.metrocall.com. From WSU Campuses, Dial 8-2165. e-mail: Ganders@energy.wsu.edu. Call Jane
Yung in Olympia at 360/956-2164 or page her at 360-956-8500. For bill status and other info, visit our web page at www.olympia.wsu.edu.
