Apr
25
It’s day three of the 2007 legislative interim and it’s obvious from this past Monday that my golf game needs a lot of work. What’s still looking very nice though is the UW’s state budget. As the Governor and legislative leaders have toured the state visiting major newspaper editorial boards during the past few days, progress in higher education continues to come up as a major session success.
The Governor’s staff is now busy reviewing hundreds of bills passed by the legislature (including the three major budgets) for the purpose of making recommendations on which ones to sign, partially veto, or veto entirely. The Governor has 20 days to act on measures passed within the last five days of a legislative session, so we should look for action on the budget sometime towards the middle or end of the week of May 7.
As for major interim activities, the UW will be busy. Work must begin shortly with the Office of Financial Management on site selection and other related issues resulting from the creation of a new campus in the Snohomish, Island and Skagit county region. ESSB 6099 calls for a significant mediation process related to the expansion of SR 520 and a separate process to be directed by the Governor’s office related to planning for high capacity transportation in the SR 520 corridor.
