Olympia
Update No. 7 • March 12, 2008
2008 Conference Budgets, Day 59
From: Larry Ganders,
Assistant to the President
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"Stars” funding reborn;
Budget ends fee freeze
Enhanced funding for the university “stars” research program
and authorization for $1.5
million or more in necessary WSU fee increases were
announced by legislative leaders who completed a compromise supplemental
operating budget today.
The compromise budgets contain no cuts but two major disappointments:
No funding was included in the final operating budget for WSU’s $1 million core
computing study, which was passed by the Senate. The final capital budget
contained no funding for design of the Veterinary Medical Research Building,
which had been approved by the House. Those issues will likely lead WSU’s
priority list for the 2009 legislative session.
Legislators are now
driving toward adjournment tomorrow after making few substantial changes to the
higher education budget from the biennial plan passed last year.
Caseload increases and drops in the revenue forecast left them with $500
million less to spend this session. They settled on an $835 million reserve.
There are some changes
ahead with an election pending and the retirement of significant legislators
being announced. Today, it became known that House Appropriations Chair Helen
Sommers, 75, perhaps the strongest advocate for research universities in the
Legislature, is retiring after 36 years in the state House of Representatives.
There are many legislators who will be vying to replace Sommers as chair. House
Capital Chair Bill Fromhold, D-Vancouver, is among a growing list of others who
are not running for re-election.
Despite Puget Sound radio
station talk show hosts crusading for a $75 million appropriation to keep the
Seattle Sonics in town, there is no funding in the budget to accomplish that.
Proposals to renovate Husky Stadium and build a new $800 million UW branch
campus in Everett have been reduced to budget studies rather than budget
appropriations.
The total enhancements (minus technical changes) in the compromise budget to WSU
is $3.1 million, less than the $4.5 million provided by the Senate but more than
the $2.1 million provided by the House and the governor. Below are the
highlights of the WSU operating budget contained in Engrossed Substitute House
Bill 2687. The bill is now poised to be approved by the Legislature and sent to
the governor.
$1.5 million for “Stars.”
The final conference budget restored and added to the more than $1.5 million
sliced by the House from a program designed to recruit key “star researchers”
for UW and WSU. Like the Senate budget, the final legislative budget leaves the
funding intact and then adds $265,000 to the appropriation.
WSU will use the “Stars” funding toward a new position for Birgitte Kiar Ahring,
a world class Danish microbiologist, who has been hired to lead WSU efforts in
bioproducts research. She will lead a research center with WSU scientists across
the state. She will be based at a Bioproducts Science & Engineering Laboratory
building at WSU Tri-Cities, a facility built in partnership with Pacific
Northwest National Laboratories. Among her areas of expertise is converting
wheat straw into enthanol and motor vehicle fuel.
$1.5 million Fee Authorization.
About $1.5 million in fee increases
that were presumed in last year’s biennial budget for WSU were put in doubt by
the passage of Initiative 960. It required special authorization for the
increases, most notably $640,000 in student “services and activities” fees
increases for organizations like the Associated Students of Washington State
University. The final compromise budget
provides that authorization to ease issues like mandatory state employee pay
raises, rising gasoline costs, and rising food costs. Examples of groups funded
by S&A fees also include the Cougar Marching Band, the WSU Graduate and
Professional Students Association, Student Publications including the Daily
Evergreen, Health Advocates, Cable 8, and ASWSU Programming, which provides
concerts and other programs for students.
$1.6 million to correct salary error.
Funding was provided to
WSU to correct errors in the calculations of salary increases for the current
budget.
Child care funding.
ASWSU, represented this session by student lobbyist Chris Reigelsperger, and the
Washington Student Lobby were successful in securing $1 million for higher
education institutions for a new child care grant program. About $500,000 is
earmarked for the four-year higher education institutions and $500,000 for the
community colleges. The student
lobbyists have also successfully pushed through House Bill 2582, now headed for
the governor’s desk. The bill establishes new guildelines for the current state
child care grant program. WSU
received about $33,000 under the old competitive grant program. The new program
takes into consideration matching funds provided by student governments. Since
ASWSU contributes about $280,000 per year for child care, it would now be
eligible for about $125,000 in grants, according to Reigelsperger. “We’re
thrilled with the outcome,” he said.
$500,000 for Community Technology. The Senate had provided $1 million
funding for WSU to administer “community technology” grants. The House had
provided no funding. The funding is now implemented through Second Substitute
Senate Bill 6438, which underwent substantial change before it passed the
Legislature. The program had previously been guided by Senate Bill 6775, which
died in the House Rules Committee. Senate bill 6438, however, now contains the
WSU program that was in SB 6775. It sets up a grant program through WSU,
building on a program initiated by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The
grants “provide training and skill-building opportunities for community
technology programs; access to hardware and software; internet connectivity;
assistance in the adoption of information and communication technologies in
low-income and underserved areas of the state; and development of locally
relevant content and delivery of vital services through technology.”
$77,000 for Campus Mental Health.
Surprisingly, legislators did not make significant investments in campus safety
this session despite incidents at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois
University. The only direct appropriation to WSU was $77,000 for a new campus
safety mental health counselor. WSU had requested about $3 million in funding
(about $1.8 million in one-time funding was supported by the governor but not
the Legislature.)
$225,000 for the William Ruckelshaus Center.
Funding was provided
directly to WSU to support the joint UW-WSU policy consensus center. The WSU
funding was provided to explore practical and effective ways to resolve or
reduce conflict associated with land use requirements and property rights. There
is also funding to implement Engrossed Substitute House Bill 3123, which has
passed both houses and is on the governor’s desk. It directs the center to
assist labor, hospital and nurses organizations in reviewing and establishing
nurse staffing plans.
$160,000 for Student Employee Bargaining. Funding is provided for
the necessary administrative resources and personnel at WSU now that the
Legislature has passed enabling legislation that allows graduate student
teaching and research assistants to collectively bargain. The legislation, House
Bill 2963, has passed both houses and been delivered to the governor.
$145,000 for Integrated Pest Management in Schools. The budget
provided additional funding to WSU to assist school districts and the Washington
State School Director’s Association in implementing integrated pest management
programs. The program reduces the uses of chemicals for weed and pest control.
Legislation on the subject has not yet passed the Legislature.
$200,000 for the Deaf Education Program at WSU Vancouver. The
funding implements a program that will allow licensed teachers to more
effectively educate deaf or hearing-impaired students.
$75,000 for Green Collar Jobs.
Funding is provided to WSU extension to provide consultation on Employment
Security “green economy” labor market research as provided in Engrossed Second
Substitute House Bill 2815. The bill has passed both houses and been sent to the
governor.
$50,000 Renton Small Business Development Center.
Funding is provided to expand counseling
and technical assistance centers through Renton Technical College, part of the
Small Business Development Center (SBDC) operated by WSU.
Food Animal Veterinarian Scholarship Created, but not funded.
The budget allows the
provisions of Senate Bill 6187, food animal veterinarians to be implemented. The
bill, which has passed the Legislature, creates a new scholarship programs for
students who want to specialize in large animals. However, the budget created no
funding for those scholarships. Unless private or other funds are secured, it
seems unlikely the scholarship program will be implemented.
Olympia Update is produced for persons interested in state
government developments affecting Washington State University. For more
information, go to
www.olympia.wsu.edu.
Contact: Larry Ganders, Assistant to the President, 360-956-2165. From WSU
campuses, dial 8-2165. If you wish to subscribe to Olympia Update directly by
email go to
www.olympia.wsu.edu/Update.aspx
