April 6, 2007

Dancing with the bills: Even the Legislature has its own reality show

The dance continues as bills sashay from committee to committee, between House and Senate chambers, and if they're lucky – eventually waltz to the desk of Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Last Friday, March 30 marked the final day for bills to be heard in opposite chamber policy committees. And bills with fiscal impact had until Monday to be heard in either House Appropriations or Senate Ways and Means (unless they are deemed necessary to implement the budget).

The final curtain call for all bills (including budget-related bills) to be heard in their opposite chambers is April 13…and the whole production is scheduled to end April 22 when legislators take a bow and go home. (And no – there is no online voting or “vote-by-phone” for your favorite bill…and encore performances are definitely not encouraged. Well, at least not until the next season.)

For the die-hard fans that tune into Legislative News week-to-week, here's an update of the bills of interest to the two-year colleges that have not been voted off the show…at least, not yet:

High School Completion

House Bill 1051, expanding high school completion programs, is awaiting action in the Senate. If passed, the bill will return to the House, where representatives will decide if they agree with the changes proposed by the Senate.

Sponsored by Rep. Dave Upthegrove, D-Des Moines, the bill allows students under 21 years old who have completed graduation requirements, except the Certificate of Academic Achievement, to enroll at no charge at a two-year college in a high school diploma program. In addition, the bill allows colleges to contract with high schools to offer the program directly or join together to offer regional programs.

The bill was amended in the Senate Ways and Means Committee to change from a mandatory program to a pilot at two community and technical colleges (not named).

Financial Aid

Second Substitute House Bill 1096, creating postsecondary opportunity programs, is awaiting action in the Senate.

Sponsored by Rep. Phyllis Gutierrez Kenney, D-Seattle, the bill directs the SBCTC to develop and implement the opportunity grant program in partnership with business, labor, the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board and the Higher Education Coordinating Board.

While the policy bill is still in play in the Senate, funding for the program is also an active piece of the budget negotiations.

The governor's budget recommendations included $5 million for opportunity grants. The House budget included $15 million to fund the program. The Senate's budget did not include any funding for opportunity grants. The fate of the program now lies in the budget conference process as the House and Senate develop a final budget recommendation to send to the governor.

Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1131, creating the Passport to College Promise program, sponsored by Rep. Hans Dunshee, D-Snohomish, is awaiting action in the Senate. If passed, the bill will return to the House, where the representatives will decide if they concur with the changes proposed by the Senate.

The bill was amended by the Senate Ways and Means Committee to turn the program into a six-year pilot program to provide scholarships and student support services for students who emancipate from foster care at age 18, after having spent at least one year in foster care after their 16th birthday. The maximum annual supplemental scholarship amount will be equal to tuition and fees at the highest-priced state college or university.

In addition, the amended bill requires the Department of Social and Health Services to establish procedures for helping the Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) and institutions of higher education identify students who are eligible for assistance under the program.

Lastly, the bill was amended to charge the HECB, rather than the SBCTC, to be responsible for developing a foster youth-specific Web site on college admission and financial aid processes, timelines and resources.

Funding for the program was included in both House and Senate budget recommendations, at $2.5 and $2.7 million respectively.

Substitute House Bill 1179, allowing part-time students at postsecondary institutions to qualify for a State Need Grant, has been held by the Senate Ways and Means Committee, possibly as one of the bills deemed necessary to implement the budget.

Sponsored by Rep. Bob Hasegawa, D-Seattle, the bill reduces the minimum number of quarter credits for which a student must be enrolled to receive a State Need Grant from six to three (or the semester equivalent).

The House budget recommendations included funding to implement SHB 1179.

House Bill 1222, regarding State Need Grant award calculations, has been held by the House Appropriations Committee, possibly as one of the bills deemed necessary to implement the budget.

Sponsored by Rep. Phyllis Gutierrez Kenney, D-Seattle, the bill provides a sliding grant award scale for the State Need Grant based on family income and expands eligibility for the State Need Grant to students with up to 85 percent of the state median family income.

Funding was provided in the Senate budget to expand eligibility for the State Need Grant to include students whose family incomes are between 66 and 75 percent of the state median.

Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5098, creating the Washington College Bound Scholarship program (originally entitled the Washington Guaranteed Scholarship program), is awaiting action in the House.

Sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Kitsap County, the bill authorizes the Higher Education Coordinating Board to purchase credits through the Guaranteed Education Tuition (GET) Program for 7th grade students who are from low-income families. Students must pledge, during their 7th or 8th grade years, that they will graduate from high school with at least a C average and not have any felony convictions.

The scholarship would provide funding to cover the cost of the student's tuition, fees, books and materials, minus the value of any other state financial aid received. The Higher Education Coordinating Board would administer the program.

Tuition waivers

Substitute Senate Bill 5101, sponsored by Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, was passed by the House. The bill will return to the Senate, where the senators will decide if they concur with the changes proposed by the House.

The bill expands the eligibility for state employee college tuition waivers to include public school teachers and certificated instructional staff who hold, or are seeking, an endorsement and assignment in a state-identified shortage area.

Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5002, sponsored by Sen. Mike Hewitt, R-Walla Walla, was passed by the House. The bill will return to the Senate, where the senators will decide if they concur with the changes proposed by the House.

The bill changes tuition waivers for families of fallen veterans and National Guard members to make them mandatory for certain children and spouses of veterans. Tuition and fees waived for children and surviving spouses of eligible veterans do not apply to the limits placed on institutions with respect to operating fees revenue.

WA Learns Recommendations

The House passed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5806, sponsored by Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, which implements the Washington Learns higher education recommendations to establish a statewide tuition policy and specified policy issues. The bill is now on its way to the governor for signature.

Faculty/Labor

House Bill 1384 and its companion Senate Bill 5495, providing for full- and part-time academic employee salary increments for community and technical colleges, have been held respectively by the House Appropriations Committee and the Senate Ways and Means Committee, possibly as bills deemed necessary to implement the budget.

Sponsored by Rep. Phyllis Gutierrez-Kenney, D-Seattle, and Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, the bills direct the SBCTC to recommend to the Legislature an allocation model for distribution of salary increments for experience, professional development and training to state-funded academic employees at the community and technical colleges. In addition, they specify the SBCTC's biennial budget request be based on 0.8 percent of the academic employees' base salary plus the value of associated benefits.

Substitute House Bill 2361, changing collective bargaining eligibility requirements for certain employees of higher education institutions and related boards, awaiting action by the Senate.

Sponsored by Rep. Steve Conway, D-Tacoma, the bill provides collective bargaining rights to certain exempt employees in higher education. The substitute bill continues the exclusion of executive employees and their assistants, managers, confidential employees, and employees involved in human resources and labor relations.

Educational Programs

Second Substitute House Bill 1906, sponsored by Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina, is awaiting action by the Senate.

The bill would improve math and science education in the K-12 system and covers the main sections from the governor's omnibus education bill.

The bill would: create an after school math support program with community-based organizations; create a math and science instructional coach program; require the State Board of Education (SBE) to adopt new math and science standards; require the SBE to identify three math and science curricula for each grade span; create two new alternative routes to teacher certification for math and science teachers; and require a common math test for college readiness to be used by all colleges and universities as a measure of college readiness.

In 2SHB 1906, a conditional scholarship program is created for paraeducators who have three years of experience to enable them to complete an associate degree and enter an alternative route program to obtain a math, special education or ESL endorsement. 

Substitute Senate Bill 5104, expanding the applied baccalaureate degree pilot program, is being held by the House Appropriations Committee possibly as one of the bills deemed necessary to implement the budget.

Sponsored by Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, the bill expands the applied baccalaureate degree pilot program. Two additional pilots would be created – at least one of which will be a technical college. An amendment was added by the House Higher Education Committee that changes the date by which colleges must be selected for the pilot from February to June 2008.

Substitute Senate Bill 5731, creating a committee on the education of students in high demand fields in both two- and four-year colleges, is awaiting passage in the House.

Sponsored by Sen. Paull Shin, D-Edmonds, the bill establishes a committee on the education of students in high demand fields.

The committee will consist of: two members of the House of Representatives; two members of the Senate; and one person each from the Higher Education Coordinating Board, the SBCTC, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Labor Council, the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, the Council of Presidents, the Prosperity Partnership, and a graduate student member of the Washington Student Lobby.

Second Substitute Senate Bill 5743, linking economic clusters and quality management practices to customized training, is being held by the House Appropriations Committee, possibly as one of the bills deemed necessary to implement the budget.

Sponsored by Sen. Jim Kastama, D-Puyallup, the bill requires the SBCTC to develop additional mechanisms for identifying and reaching out to firms with a strong potential to be globally competitive after participating in the Job Skills Program; and encourage businesses participating in the program to participate in workshops or training in continuous quality improvement, performance measurement, and strategic planning, to improve company productivity and effectiveness.

Corrections/Education

Substitute House Bill 1319, sponsored by Rep. Al O'Brien, D-Mountlake Terrace, is awaiting passage by the Senate.

The bill expands the offense of stalking, at the felony level, to include the stalking of staff, including community college faculty and staff, who work in correctional facilities, municipal jails, criminal justice centers and Department of Corrections day reporting centers.

Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5070, sponsored by Sen. Mike Carroll, R-Lakewood, which incorporates changes to existing laws and new provisions that impact offenders returning to the community from confinement is awaiting passage in the House.

In the education section of the bill, the Department of Corrections (DOC) and the SBCTC are required to investigate and review methods to optimize education and vocational programming opportunities for offenders, including the need for an educational loan program within institutions. The report is due to the governor and Legislature by November 2007.

Miscellaneous

Senate Bill 5759, sponsored by Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, was passed by both the House and Senate and has been delivered to Gov. Chris Gregoire for signature.

If passed into law, the bill adds technical college trustees to the list of executive state officers who must file a statement of financial affairs. Community college trustees are already on the list.

When the technical colleges were merged into the community and technical college system, the Legislature failed to amend the Public Disclosure statutes to include technical colleges on the list of those required to file an F1 form.

Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5843, sponsored by Sen. Eric Oemig, D-Kirkland, regarding educational data and data systems was passed by the House and returns to the Senate for concurrence.

The House amended the bill to include the creation of an Education Data Center in the Office of Financial Management to conduct collaborative analyses of early learning, K-12, and higher education programs and issues.

How well do you know your state? Test your knowledge of obscure Washington state facts!

Well, we just wouldn't be doing our jobs if we didn't take up more Web space producing Legislative News. So now that you've been schooled in the obscure terms thrown around the “hill,” (see the March 9th edition of Leg News) we figured it was time to test your knowledge of Washington state symbols and obscure facts.

Put your thinking caps on…and be forewarned, some answers are real…and some, well, we got creative. Good luck!

Click on the answer to find out if you're right.

answer sheet