Olympia Updates

LEGISLATURE PASSES A BUDGET
WITH WSUs REQUESTED ENROLLMENTS

GOVERNOR SIGNED WSU BUDGET MAY 2

Weary legislators rolled out a House-Senate compromise supplemental budget April 27 and passed it within hours. Gov. Gary Locke signed the compromise budget, EHB 2478, on May 2.

The budget breakthrough came after a scheduled 60-day session, followed by a 29-day special session, followed by two weeks of out-of-session negotiations, and followed by a four-day second special session. There wasn`t that much hoopla with adjournment. Lawmakers were tired and anxious to return to their jobs, families, vacations, and campaigns back in the districts.

The budget the governor had proposed last week was not adopted. Instead, legislators pushed ahead in their ongoing negotiations and completed their marathon talks late Tuesday night. But the governor was taking plenty of satisfaction in putting out a proposal that spurred lawmakers to their own compromise, incorporating many of his proposals including expansion of "College Promise" scholarships. The exact language of the compromise budget was kept under wraps, even to legislators, until just before the vote.

The most surprising development to WSU is that the Legislature adopted the exact enrollment levels proposed by the university earlier in the session. The new funding levels are reduced from the levels set by the 1999 Legislature for this biennium, but fully-fund each campus for reasonable growth. Some under-enrolled universities that did not propose reductions received proviso language that will withhold funding for new enrollments until the students enroll at the campuses. WSU was not held to that requirement. The budget did, however, require a Higher Education Coordinating Board study of whether WSU should change from the semester system to the quarter system.

THE LEGISLATURE FUNDS SIGNIFICANT GROWTH AT ALL WSU CAMPUSES

WSU`s Pullman campus will be able to grow by 564 students (3.3 percent) from its current actual enrollments.

The compromise funding represents an improvement over both the House and Senate budgets for Pullman. The House provides funding on July 1 for 495 more students. The Senate provided funding for up to 664 students, but would only release the funds after the students began classes next fall. That posed a problem to WSU in deciding whether it could commit funds to programs. The final compromise budget allows WSU to spend funds July 1 to educate the 564 additional students it plans to enroll for a 3.3 percent increase in that campus`s enrollment. The budget provides WSU Pullman with $1.26 million more to achieve this enrollment target. That action by the Legislature was particularly significant because enrollments are currently 287 students under contract levels and some legislators favored taking funding from WSU Pullman. The growth does not include 60 more students provided for high-demand programs.

WSU Spokane is funded to grow by 119 students (28 percent) from its current actual enrollment.

The funding for WSU Spokane was set at just seven students below the House funding level and 32 students below the Senate maximum funding level. Current capacity and $751,000 in new dollars provided by this budget allows WSU Spokane to grow by 27.5 percent, all graduate and professional students. The WSU Spokane campus is forty students below its target this year.

WSU`s Vancouver campus is funded to grow by 101 students (10 percent) from its current actual enrollment.

The funding for WSU Vancouver is just 12 students below the House funding level and 50 students below the Senate`s maximum funding level. The budget provides enough funding for WSU Vancouver to grow 10 percent. With this funding, WSU Vancouver will be the first of the WSU branch campuses to exceed 1,000 full time students for the first time in the history of the university. The Legislature provided $496,000 in new funding for Vancouver, despite a 51-student shortfall this year.

Funding Inequities at WSU Tri-Cities are addressed, providing for a growth of 20 students.

Most significantly, WSU Tri-Cities funding was reduced from 754 students to 616, without any change in its current dollars. That correction substantially increases funding per student for WSU Tri-Cities to make it comparable to other branch campuses. Currently, WSU Tri-Cities receives about $2,000 per student less than other campuses.

INITATIVE 601`S EDUCATION CONSTRUCTION ACCOUNT
ASSISTS PULLMAN POWER PLANT

Emergency repairs to Pullman`s power plant is the first university project ever to be funded by Initiative 601`s "Education Savings Account." The account was set up by voters to use surplus revenues for education construction. But until an amendment to the initiative was made by this Legislature, it never has benefited a higher education project. The budget used the account to provide the $3.6 million for a new boiler and other repairs sought by WSU. WSU Tri-Cities` education partner, Columbia Basin College, also received $1 million from this account for a failing roof.

WSUs SPOKANE CANCER RESEARCH CENTER IS FUNDED AT $450,000.

As expected, the budget provided $450,000 for a Health Science Research Program at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute (SIRTI.) The funding requires $875,000 in existing programs of the College of Pharmacy, a program in reproductive biology, and nursing, to be located in Spokane. The requirement is consistent with the university`s plans for the Riverpoint campus.

This update is shared by fax and electronic mail to friends of Washington State University as state government developments occur regarding the 2000 Legislative Session. 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.