BILL REQ. #:  S-0255.1 

Read first time 01/15/09.   Referred to Committee on Higher Education & Workforce Development.

     AN ACT Relating to establishing a global Asia institute; adding a new section to chapter 28B.20 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that Asia and its interactions with the rest of the world are transforming the way the world works in the twenty-first century. The legislature further finds that trade, finance, technology, and global influence and institutions are all areas in which China, India, and other Asian states are in the process of reshaping the nature of the international system, and that Washington state is uniquely situated to contribute to enhance interactions between the United States and Asia. The legislature intends to establish a global Asia institute at the University of Washington.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28B.20 RCW to read as follows:
     A global Asia institute is created within the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies. The mission of the institute is to promote the understanding of Asia and its interactions with Washington state and the world. The institute shall host visiting scholars and policymakers, sponsor programs and learning initiatives, engage in collaborative research projects, and facilitate broader understanding and cooperation between the state of Washington and Asia through general public programs and targeted collaborations with specific communities in the state.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   The sum of two million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, from the general fund to the higher education coordinating board for the purposes of this act.