March 19, 2008
Several Members Set to Retire in 2008
Although the official news of Rep. Helen Sommers decision to not seek another term in the state House rightly dominated much of the end of session press coverage, a number of other legislators have decided to call it a day at the end of their current terms. Here’s the current list of those state elected officials who…
March 13, 2008
UW North Sound Must Wait Another Year
One thing I forgot to mention in the last post is the ultimate fate of the UW North Sound campus. In short, it’s not happening this year at all. All that’s left in the operating or capital budget is a $100,000 appropriation to the Higher Education Coordinating board to convene the interested parties in Snohomish,…
March 12, 2008
2008 Supplemental Budget Assessment — Not Bad, Not Bad At All
Well, now that we’ve all had a chance to digest the details of the final legislative supplemental operating and capital budgets, I’ve come to the conclusion that given the Governor’s desire to maintain a large budget reserve, the precipitous $423 million drop in revenues in February, the $91 million in increased mandatory expenditures that were estimated…
Budgets Are Public
The supplemental operating and capital budgets are now public. I have posted an updated budget comparison spreadsheet in the Highlights section that includes the final conference proposals for the UW. More to come later.
March 11, 2008
It’s Official: Rep. Helen Sommers to Retire
Seattle Times Olympia reporter Ralph Thomas has posted a story on the paper’s website that has been in the rumor mill for some time — Rep. Helen Sommers (D-Seattle) is officially planning to step down when her term expires at the end of this year. The state’s longest serving legislator was first elected to the House…
T-Minus Two Days and Counting
Day 58 just ended moments ago as both the Senate and House chambers adjourned until tomorrow morning. Both Houses continue the slow march of passing bills and negotiating the final details of both the operating and capital budgets which will be made public tomorrow morning. As soon as we have details on the final budget…
March 10, 2008
UW North Sound Campus Still Hanging Around
Not sure how many of you many have noticed this story in yesterday’s Everett Herald, but supporters of a new UW branch campus in Snohomish County are shopping a bill during the waning days of the 2008 session which would statutorily establish the new UW campus in Snohomish County but not specify the exact location…
March 8, 2008
Good News on the I-960 Fee Bill
Last evening, the House Appropriations committee passed a new version of HB 3381 that does include the amendment that was being pushed by higher education institutions to re-authorize tuition and fees for the remainder of the current biennium. For the time being at least, the UW and other universities and colleges are breathing a huge…
March 7, 2008
To Fee or Not to Fee?
Well, this has been a very interesting 24 hours. One of the odd outcomes that resulted from the passage last fall of Initiative 960 (I-960) is the opinion from the state’s Solicitor General that agencies, like the University of Washington, need to ask the legislature this session to essentially “re-authorize” tuition and fee increase authority…
March 6, 2008
Governor Dan Evans Wins Coveted TVW “Cammy” Award
It seems unlikely that on day 53 of this 60-day session that our request legislation to provide $150 million in public financing to renovate Husky Stadium is going to leap to the forefront of “go home” issues (although I am still permitted to dream if I want). But that doesn’t mean the UW is coming back from…
