Western Legislative Review Governor Signs Supplemental Budgets after Legislature Adjourns
Governor Jay Inslee signed the 2018 supplemental operating and capital budgets yesterday after the Legislature adjourned sine die on March 8, the 60th day of the regular session. You can find a summary of the budget impacts to WWU here. In addition to signing the supplemental budgets, the Governor has also signed a variety of bills related to higher education that the Legislature approved during session.
A few of the bills related to higher education that passed the Legislature and will become law this year include:
- House Bill 1433 – Decoupling Services and Activities fees from tuition increases;
- House Bill 1488 – Expanding state financial aid programs to all resident low-income students;
- House Bill 1561 – Concerning open educational resources;
- Senate Bill 5917 – Requiring a system-wide credit policy regarding International Baccalaureate exams.
- Senate Bill 6029 – Establishing the Student Loan Bill of Rights;
- Senate Bill 6514 – Concerning suicide prevention and behavioral health in higher education; and
- Senate Bill 6582 – Concerning the criminal history of applicants to institutions of higher education;
You can find a more comprehensive summary of bills relating to higher education that passed the Legislature and additional information about how the supplemental budgets impact Western in the Office of Government Relations’ 2018 Legislative Session Report.