Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research | BILL ANALYSIS |
College & Workforce Development Committee |
HB 1927
This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent. |
Brief Description: Concerning the Washington opportunity scholarship program.
Sponsors: Representatives Slatter, Sells, Paul, Leavitt, Ortiz-Self and Pollet.
Brief Summary of Bill |
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Hearing Date: 2/12/19
Staff: Megan Mulvihill (786-7304).
Background:
The Washington State Opportunity Scholarship (WSOS) program was established in 2011 to provide scholarships to low and middle-income resident students pursuing eligible high-demand majors in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and health care, and to encourage scholarship recipients to work in the state upon completion of their degrees. The eligible student needs to be working towards a first bachelor's degree or a professional-technical certificate or degree at an eligible Washington state college or university. For the 2017-18 academic year, 1,862 recipients were selected to receive the scholarship.
The WSOS program is overseen by the WSOS Board and administered by the program administrator. Washington STEM is the current program administrator, and is charged with publicizing the program, selecting scholarship recipients, distributing awards, and managing the account investments. The WSOS Program is a public-private partnership in which the state matches private contributions to fund the scholarships.
Summary of Bill:
A definition for "private sources," "private funds," "private contributions," or "private sector contributions" is added to the WSOS program to mean donations from private organizations, corporations, municipalities, counties, and other sources, but excludes state dollars.
The WSOS program administrator must ensure that if a private source is from a municipality or county, that an amount equal to the value of the private source plus the state match is awarded to participants within the municipality or county according to the municipality's or county's program rules.
In addition, technical corrections are made to the WSOS account language.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Requested on February 5, 2019.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is passed.