AN ACT Relating to the distinguished professorship program; adding new sections to chapter 28B.10 RCW; creating a new section; and repealing RCW 28B.10.860, 28B.10.861, 28B.10.862, 28B.10.863, 28B.10.864, and 28B.10.865.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that quality in the state's public four-year institutions of higher education would be strengthened by additional partnerships between citizens and the institutions. The legislature intends to foster these partnerships by creating a matching grant program to assist public four-year institutions of higher education in creating endowments for funding distinguished professorships.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The Washington distinguished professorship trust fund program is established.

The program shall be administered by the higher education coordinating board.

The trust fund shall be administered by the state treasurer.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. Funds appropriated by the legislature for the distinguished professorship program shall be deposited in the distinguished professorship trust fund. All moneys deposited in the fund shall be invested by the state treasurer. Notwithstanding RCW 43.84.090, all earnings of investments of balances of the fund shall be credited to the fund. At the request of the higher education coordinating board under section 5 of this act, the treasurer shall release the state matching funds to the designated institution's local endowment fund. No appropriation is required for expenditures from the fund.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. In consultation with the eligible institutions of higher education, the higher education coordinating board shall set priorities and guidelines for the program. These guidelines may include an allocation system based on factors which include but are not limited to: The amount of money available in the trust fund; characteristics of the institutions including the size of the faculty and student body; the needs of special programs within the institutions; and the number of professorships previously received.

Any allocation system shall be superseded by conditions in any act of the legislature appropriating funds for this program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. All state four-year institutions of higher education shall be eligible for matching trust funds. An institution may apply to the higher education coordinating board for two hundred fifty thousand dollars from the fund when the institution can match the state funds with an equal amount of pledged or contributed private donations. These donations shall be made specifically to the professorship program, and shall be donated after July 1, 1985.

Upon an application by an institution, the board shall assign a priority to the application, and may designate two hundred fifty thousand dollars from the trust fund for that institution's pledged professorship. If the pledged two hundred fifty thousand dollars is not received within three years, the board shall make the designated funds available for another pledged professorship.

Once the private donation is received by the institution, the higher education coordinating board shall ask the state treasurer to release the state matching funds to a local endowment fund established by the institution for the professorship.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The professorship is the property of the institution and may be named in honor of a donor, benefactor, or honoree of the institution, at the option of the institution.

The institution is responsible for soliciting private donations, investing and maintaining all endowment funds, administering the professorship, and reporting on the program to the governor and the legislature upon request. The institution may augment the endowment fund with additional private donations.

The proceeds from the endowment fund may be used to supplement the salary of the holder of the professorship, to pay salaries for his or her assistants, and to pay expenses associated with the holder's scholarly work.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. Any private or public moneys deposited in the Washington distinguished professorship trust fund or any local endowment for professorship programs shall not be subject to collective bargaining.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. A distinguished professorship program established under chapter 343, Laws of 1985 shall continue to operate under sections 1 through 7 of this act and the requirements of sections 1 through 7 of this act shall apply.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. The following acts or parts of acts are each repealed:

(1) Section 1, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.860;

(2) Section 2, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.861;

(3) Section 3, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.862;

(4) Section 4, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.863;

(5) Section 5, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.864; and

(6) Section 6, chapter 343, Laws of 1985 and RCW 28B.10.865.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Sections 1 through 8 of this act are each added to chapter 28B.10 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. (1) For the biennium ending June 30, 1989, all appropriations to the Washington distinguished professorship trust fund shall be allocated as provided in this section. The state treasurer shall reserve the following amounts in the trust fund for distribution to four-year higher education institutions at such time as qualifying gifts as defined in section 1 of this act for distinguished professorships have been deposited:

(a) Forty-five percent of the appropriation for the University of Washington;

(b) Thirty percent of the appropriation for Washington State University;

(c) Twenty-five percent of the appropriation divided among Eastern Washington University, Central Washington University, Western Washington University, and The Evergreen State College.

(2) Distribution of funds allocated in subsection (1)(c) of this section shall be made in the following manner: Eastern Washington University, Central Washington University, Western Washington University, and The Evergreen State College are guaranteed one professorship. The remaining professorship shall be allocated on a first come first served basis to a regional university or The Evergreen State College which has used the professorship guaranteed it, and qualified for an additional professorship under section 5 of this act. If the regional universities and The Evergreen State College have not obligated the unassigned professorship by May 1, 1989, that professorship may be allocated to either the University of Washington or Washington State University in accordance with rules promulgated by the higher education coordinating board.

(3) As of January 1, 1989, if any funds reserved in subsection (1) (a) or (b) of this section have not been designated as matching funds for qualifying gifts, any four-year institution of higher education, which has already fully utilized the professorships allocated to it by this section, and, in the case of the regional universities and The Evergreen State College, has exhausted the allocation in subsection (1)(c) of this section, may be eligible for such funds under rules promulgated by the higher education coordinating board.