Brief Description: Providing for academic employee salary increments for community and technical colleges.

Sponsors: Representatives Kenney, Cox, Hasegawa, Hankins, Roberts, McIntire, Fromhold, Kilmer, Morrell, Rodne, Santos, Clibborn, Ormsby, O'Brien, Jarrett, Walsh, Conway, Wood, Kessler, Linville, Kagi, Appleton, Green, McCoy, Blake, Lantz, Sells, Campbell, P. Sullivan, Simpson, Schual-Berke, McDonald, Haigh, Dickerson, Moeller, Springer and Wallace.

Hearing Date: 1/20/06

Staff: Sarah Ream (786-7303).

Background:

Salary increments are pay increases based on years of service and, in some pay systems, additional education.

In some cases employees receive increments even if there is no state funding provided specifically for that purpose. For example, classified employees in the state personnel system receive 5 percent increments for each year of service (up to a cap), but the Legislature assumes that state agencies can pay the costs through savings from employee turnover or other resources.

Classified staff in the K-12 system receive increments based on local collective bargaining agreements, but the state funding formulas for K-12 are not adjusted based on these costs. School districts rely on turnover savings and other resources. Certificated instructional staff in the K-12 system receive increments based on years of service and education. In this case, the state funding formulas specifically recognize the costs school districts incur through the statewide salary schedule.

Salaries for faculty at community and technical colleges are also established through local collective bargaining agreements. Most salary schedules provide for increments based on some combination of years of service and education. However, state law limits salary increases provided through collective bargaining agreements to the amount or percentage established by the Legislature in the appropriations act and allocated to the board of trustees by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC). As a result, community and technical colleges may not use turnover savings or other resources to pay for faculty salary increases without a special authorization.

For at least the last 10 years, the Legislature provided funding for community and technical college faculty increments through provisions in the biennial budget. The budget bills have given special authorization to community and technical colleges to use turnover savings to help fund faculty increments.

Summary of Bill:

The Legislature intends that state appropriations provide consistent and predictable funding for community and technical college academic employee salary increases. In its biennial budget, the SBCTC shall request an amount of funds, that together with academic employee turnover savings, is sufficient to cover projected state-funded increments for the community and technical college system. The SBCTC shall determine how to allocate to the community and technical colleges the appropriations granted for increments.

The SBCTC's budget request shall be based on 0.8 percent of the academic employees' salary plus the value of associated benefits. "Associated benefits" are benefits based on a percent of an employee's salary.

The boards of trustees of the various community and technical college districts will award salary increments based on locally bargained agreements. To the extent a general salary increase is used to pay academic employee increments, the general salary increase will be reduced by the same amount.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Available.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.