December 22, 2020
Gov. Inslee unveils 2021-23 budget proposals
Gov. Jay Inslee released his 2021 supplemental, 2021-23 operating, and 2021-23 capital budget proposals last week. The Governor’s proposed biennial operating budget includes $57.6 billion in spending focused heavily on public health and economic recovery. The budget commits an additional $397 million to the state’s public health system for personal protective equipment, testing supplies and…
WA state House & Senate announce leadership changes and committee assignments
The 2020 Washington state general election results were certified by Secretary of State Kim Wyman on Dec. 3 with voter turnout high at just above 84 percent. Democrats will retain their majorities in both the House of Representatives (57-41) and Senate (28-21). With the election now over, Democrats and Republicans have made changes to leadership…
December 9, 2020
Discover the UW’s impact in every legislative district
This morning the Office of State Relations launched it’s new and improved UW in Your Community website. Since 2010, the site has been dedicated to demonstrating the impact the University has on every legislative district in Washington state. This year’s update now highlights UW students and alumni, over 40 unique programs, and some of the…
November 19, 2020
State revenue projections increase prior to legislative session in January
The latest economic and revenue forecast released by the Washington State Economic and Revenue Council on Nov. 18 projects revenue collections will increase by more than $634 million for the 2019-20 state budget and $328 million for the 2021-23 biennium, bringing the state’s revenue shortfall resulting from COVID-19 to $2.4 billion. Although this remains a…
November 6, 2020
Early results from WA State’s 2020 General Election
The 2020 General Election was held Nov. 3, and while votes continue to trickle in, voter turnout in Washington state is expected to exceed 80 percent. As one of the few states that votes almost entirely by mail, ballots will continue to be tabulated over the next several weeks. All ballots sent by mail must…
October 28, 2020
The UW’s state budget requests and legislative engagement
The UW 2021-23 legislative agenda Every year, the University of Washington submits decision packages to the state outlining budget requests for the upcoming legislative session. Recognizing the challenges facing the state due to the ongoing pandemic, this year’s decision package prioritizes preserving current state funding levels for the UW to avoid significant harm to student…
September 24, 2020
State revenue and employment numbers higher than previously estimated
On Sept. 23, the Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released their newest economic and revenue update, which estimates the state’s General Fund revenue collections will be $2.2 billion higher than what was forecasted in June for the current 2019-21 budget cycle. State revenue collections between Aug. 11 and Sept. 10 were $319.9 million…
August 28, 2020
Construction begins on the UW’s new health sciences education building
Sen. David Frockt and the deans of the UW’s six health science schools (Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health, and Social Work) helped break ground on the new Health Sciences Education Building on Aug. 27. Slated to open in May 2022, the four-story building will serve 8,000 students across the six health science schools, which…
August 5, 2020
WA State holds primary election
The 2020 primary election was held yesterday, Aug. 4. Washington’s top-two primary system allows voters to choose any candidate running in each race, regardless of political party. The two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election on Nov. 3. There are more than 4.6 million registered voters in Washington who vote entirely…
June 18, 2020
Two year economic forecast confirms steep decline in state revenue
The Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released their June quarterly report yesterday showing the impacts of COVID-19 on the economy. The Council predicts a staggering $4.5 billion revenue shortfall for the current 2019-21 biennium. The state’s General Fund has a cumulative shortfall of approximately $452 million (5.6%) since February 11. Washington employment numbers…
