Student priority bill boosting CWU’s tuition waiver authority now goes to Gov. Gregoire

OLYMPIA – A bill to correct a decades-long funding inequity affecting Central Washington University (CWU) passed the Senate last week.

Sen. Paull Shin, D-Edmonds, was instrumental in guiding the companion measure, House Bill 1497, sponsored by Rep. Deb Wallace, D-Vancouver, through the Senate. The bill would increase CWU’s tuition waiver authority from 8 percent to 10 percent.

HB 1497 unanimously passed the Senate and is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Chris Gregoire.

“I am particularly happy to support this legislation,” said Shin, a former college professor and chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee. “This would benefit rural areas such as Yakima County, where there are many farming communities. The bill would give those students, and Latino students, a chance to attend college at an affordable rate.”

Shin was prime sponsor of Senate Bill 5466, which would have permanently increased CWU’s state-funded tuition waiver authority from 8 percent to 11 percent. The additional waiver funding would be available to the 600 students earning degrees at CWU-Lynnwood in Shin’s legislative district.

Tuition waivers are designed to increase campus diversity and allow more students an opportunity to pursue a college degree. Funding for the proposal is contained in the 2007–09 operating budget passed by the Senate last month. The proposed budget provides $500,000 as the down-payment for a five-year phase-in for the increased tuition waiver authority.

In 1992, the Legislature allowed colleges and universities to keep their tuition revenues instead requiring that they be deposited in the general fund. The Legislature then reimbursed the institutions for the amount of the tuition waivers. This resulted in a lopsided distribution of state funding and hampered CWU’s ability to provide financial assistance to needy students. By boosting tuition waivers from 8 percent to 10 percent, CWU will now be on a par with Western Washington University.

The legislative session is scheduled to end April 22.

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