Office of Planning & Budgeting

federal government


November 28, 2018

November Revenue Forecast Predicts Slower, But Increasing Growth

The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council (ERFC) released their November revenue forecast. The projected Near General Fund-State (GF-S) revenue forecast for the 2017-19 biennium increased by $163.4 million. Projected revenue collections for the 2019-21 biennium increased by $195.5 million. The report projects higher personal income than the September revenue forecast, but slower growth. Here is a quick…


November 14, 2018

September Revenue Forecast Shows Increased Revenue

The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council (ERFC) released their September revenue forecast. The projected Near General Fund-State (GF-S) revenue forecast for the 2017-19 biennium increased by $348 million. Projected revenue collections for the 2019-21 biennium increased by $443 million. The forecast expects higher personal income and employment than the June revenue forecast. Here is a quick summary…


July 19, 2018

July Economic & Revenue Update Indicates Continued Growth in Washington

Last month the Washington state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council (ERFC) released their June revenue forecast. Cumulative major General Fund-State (GF-S) revenue collections were $189 million higher than the February revenue forecast. Here is a quick summary of the total projected GF-S revenue for each biennium: $45.288 billion, for the 2017-19 biennium, 16.0% more than…


June 24, 2016

Update: Supreme Court Decision on Fisher v. University of Texas

On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld University of Texas at Austin’s race-conscious admissions policy in its second consideration of a Fisher v. University of Texas appeal. As a reminder, the case stemmed from a lawsuit by Abigail Fisher, a white applicant to UT Austin who claimed she was unfairly rejected due to the university’s…


March 22, 2016

New OPB Brief on Income Share Agreements (ISAs)

Over the past few months, income share agreements (ISAs) have received significant attention from political candidates, higher education advocates, and news sources. A new OPB brief takes a closer look at ISAs by: Exploring differences between and the history of privately funded ISAs and publicly funded ISAs (such as Pay It Forward). Comparing ISAs to federal…


January 26, 2016

Obama administration announces plan to expand Pell Grant program

The Obama administration has introduced a plan to bring back year-round Pell Grants and to create a $300 bonus for Pell recipients taking at least 15 credits a semester. Both elements of the plan are designed to incentivize students to graduate faster and accrue less debt in school. The plan would cost $2 billion over…


December 21, 2015

Perkins Loan Program Temporarily Revived

Last week, Congress passed a bipartisan bill to extend the Federal Perkins Loan Program, which had expired in September. The bill authorizes new undergraduate applicants to join the program through September 2017, but only if they have exhausted all other federal borrowing options first.  New graduate students will not be able to join the program,…


November 19, 2015

DOJ reaches largest-ever settlement with for-profit higher education provider

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced on Monday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has reached a settlement in its false claims case against the Education Management Corporation (EDMC), an operator of for-profit colleges and universities. The $95.5 million settlement is the largest ever in a higher education false claims case. EDMC will also forgive…


November 3, 2015

National 3-Year Cohort Default Rate Drops For Third Consecutive Year: UW Continues to Excel

The Department of Education recently released their annual report detailing the 3-year cohort default rate (CDR)—a metric that measures what percentage of postsecondary students default on their loan payments within the first three years of entering repayment—and the data are encouraging: the 3-year CDR for FY 2012 is 11.8 percent, almost two percent lower than…


November 24, 2014

Average Debt for Graduates Continues to Rise

Overall student debt levels of recent bachelor’s degree recipients continue to rise according to Student Debt and the Class of 2013, a new report from the Project on Student Debt at The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS).  The report includes 2013 state- and college-level debt data for graduates from colleges that opt to…



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