BILL REQ. #:  H-0827.2 

Read first time 02/01/13.   Referred to Committee on Higher Education.

     AN ACT Relating to restricting tuition increases for resident undergraduate students at four-year institutions of higher education; reenacting and amending RCW 28B.15.067; and adding a new section to chapter 28B.15 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 28B.15 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The legislature recognizes that for higher education tuition to be affordable for most Washington residents it should not exceed ten percent of the median family income.
     (2) In 2002 the state's share of spending relative to tuition at public baccalaureate institutions was seventy-six percent and in 2012 it dropped to thirty-six percent. The legislature finds that this shift has resulted in a reduction in access and opportunity with the University of Washington tuition rising from ten percent of the median household income to over twenty percent in just five years.
     (3) The legislature's goal is to make higher education accessible and affordable for all families and sets a long-term goal for tuition at institutions of higher education to be no higher than ten percent of the median household income. This long-term funding goal, referred to as education opportunity funding, includes increasing the proportion of state funding so that it is at least fifty percent share of spending relative to tuition to reduce the burden on students and their families.

Sec. 2   RCW 28B.15.067 and 2012 2nd sp.s. c 7 s 914 and 2012 c 228 s 6 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     (1) Tuition fees shall be established under the provisions of this chapter.
     (2) Beginning in the 2011-12 academic year, reductions or increases in full-time tuition fees shall be as provided in the omnibus appropriations act for resident undergraduate students at community and technical colleges. The governing boards of the state universities, regional universities, and The Evergreen State College; and the state board for community and technical colleges may reduce or increase full-time tuition fees for all students other than resident undergraduates, including nonresident students, summer school students, and students in other self-supporting degree programs. ((Percentage increases in full-time tuition may exceed the fiscal growth factor.)) Except during the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium, the state board for community and technical colleges may pilot or institute differential tuition models. The board may define scale, scope, and rationale for the models.
     (3)(a) Beginning with the 2011-12 academic year and through the end of the ((2014-15)) 2018-19 academic year, the governing boards of the state universities, the regional universities, and The Evergreen State College may reduce or increase full-time tuition fees for all students, including summer school students and students in other self-supporting degree programs as long as the increases each year and for each resident undergraduate program do not exceed the rate of inflation based on the percentage change in the implicit price deflator for personal consumption expenditures for the United States as published for the most recent twelve-month period by the bureau of economic analysis of the federal department of commerce. ((Percentage increases in full-time tuition fees may exceed the fiscal growth factor.)) Reductions or increases may be made for all or portions of an institution's programs, campuses, courses, or students; however, during the 2011-2013 fiscal biennium, reductions or increases in tuition must be uniform among resident undergraduate students.
     (b) Prior to reducing or increasing tuition for each academic year, the governing boards of the state universities, the regional universities, and The Evergreen State College shall consult with existing student associations or organizations with student undergraduate and graduate representatives regarding the impacts of potential tuition increases. Each governing board shall make public its proposal for tuition and fee increases twenty-one days before the governing board of the institution considers adoption and allow opportunity for public comment. However, the requirement to make public a proposal for tuition and fee increases twenty-one days before the governing board considers adoption shall not apply if the omnibus appropriations act has not passed the legislature by May 15th. Governing boards shall be required to provide data regarding the percentage of students receiving financial aid, the sources of aid, and the percentage of total costs of attendance paid for by aid.
     (c) Prior to reducing or increasing tuition for each academic year, the state board for community and technical college system shall consult with existing student associations or organizations with undergraduate student representation regarding the impacts of potential tuition increases. The state board for community and technical colleges shall provide data regarding the percentage of students receiving financial aid, the sources of aid, and the percentage of total costs of attendance paid for by aid.
     (4) ((Beginning with the 2015-16 academic year through the 2018-19 academic year, the governing boards of the state universities, regional universities, and The Evergreen State College may set tuition for resident undergraduates as follows:
     (a) If state funding for a college or university falls below the state funding provided in the operating budget for fiscal year 2011, the governing board may increase tuition up to the limits set in (d) of this subsection, reduce enrollments, or both;
     (b) If state funding for a college or university is at least at the level of state funding provided in the operating budget for fiscal year 2011, the governing board may increase tuition up to the limits set in (d) of this subsection and shall continue to at least maintain the actual enrollment levels for fiscal year 2011 or increase enrollments as required in the omnibus appropriations act;
     (c) If state funding is increased so that combined with resident undergraduate tuition the sixtieth percentile of the total per-student funding at similar public institutions of higher education in the global challenge states under RCW 28B.15.068 is exceeded, the governing board shall decrease tuition by the amount needed for the total per-student funding to be at the sixtieth percentile under RCW 28B.15.068; and
     (d) The amount of tuition set by the governing board for an institution under this subsection (4) may not exceed the sixtieth percentile of the resident undergraduate tuition of similar public institutions of higher education in the global challenge states.
     (5))) The tuition fees established under this chapter shall not apply to high school students enrolling in participating institutions of higher education under RCW 28A.600.300 through 28A.600.400.
     (((6))) (5) The tuition fees established under this chapter shall not apply to eligible students enrolling in a dropout reengagement program through an interlocal agreement between a school district and a community or technical college under RCW 28A.175.100 through 28A.175.110.
     (((7))) (6) The tuition fees established under this chapter shall not apply to eligible students enrolling in a community or technical college participating in the pilot program under RCW 28B.50.534 for the purpose of obtaining a high school diploma.
     (((8))) (7) Beginning in the 2019-20 academic year, reductions or increases in full-time tuition fees for resident undergraduates at four-year institutions of higher education shall be as provided in the omnibus appropriations act.
     (((9))) (8) The legislative advisory committee to the committee on advanced tuition payment established in RCW 28B.95.170 shall:
     (a) Review the impact of differential tuition rates on the funded status and future unit price of the Washington advanced college tuition payment program; and
     (b) No later than January 14, 2013, make a recommendation to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the legislature regarding how differential tuition should be addressed in order to maintain the ongoing solvency of the Washington advanced college tuition payment program.