AN
ACT Relating to higher education, but only with respect to tuition and fees at
community colleges and residency requirements; amending RCW 28B.15.100 and
28C.10.084; and creating a new section.
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 1. The
legislature recognizes that certain tuition policies may have an adverse impact
on the unique role of community colleges.
Therefore,
it is the intent of the legislature to eliminate impediments to the ability of
community colleges to meet the diverse needs of students and business
interests.
Sec.
2. RCW
28B.15.100 and 1998 c 75 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The governing boards of the state universities, the regional universities, The
Evergreen State College, and the community colleges shall charge to and collect
from each of the students registering at the particular institution for any
quarter or semester such tuition fees and services and activities fees, and
other fees as such board shall in its discretion determine. The total of all
fees shall be rounded to the nearest whole dollar amount: PROVIDED, That such
tuition fees for other than the summer term shall be in the amounts for the
respective institutions as otherwise set forth in RCW 28B.15.067.
(2)
Part-time students shall be charged tuition and services and activities fees
proportionate to full-time student rates established for residents and nonresidents:
PROVIDED, That except for students registered at community colleges,
students registered for fewer than two credit hours shall be charged tuition
and services and activities fees at the rate established for two credit hours:
PROVIDED FURTHER, That, subject to the limitations of RCW 28B.15.910, residents
of Idaho or Oregon who are enrolled in community college district number twenty
for six or fewer credits during any quarter or semester may be exempted from
payment of all or a portion of the nonresident tuition fees differential upon a
declaration by the higher education coordinating board that it finds Washington
residents from the community college district are afforded substantially
equivalent treatment by such other states.
(3)
Full-time students registered for more than eighteen credit hours shall be
charged an additional operating fee for each credit hour in excess of eighteen
hours at the applicable established per credit hour tuition fee rate for
part-time students: PROVIDED, That, subject to the limitations of RCW
28B.15.910, the governing boards of the state universities and the community
colleges may exempt all or a portion of the additional charge, for students who
are registered exclusively in first professional programs in medicine, dental
medicine, veterinary medicine, doctor of pharmacy, or law, or who are
registered exclusively in required courses in vocational preparatory programs.
Sec.
3. RCW
28C.10.084 and 1993 c 445 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The agency shall establish, maintain, and administer a tuition recovery trust
fund. All funds collected for the tuition recovery trust fund are payable to
the state for the benefit and protection of any student or enrollee of a
private vocational school licensed under this chapter, or, in the case of a
minor, his or her parents or guardian, for purposes including but not limited
to the settlement of claims related to school closures under subsection (10) of
this section and the settlement of claims under RCW 28C.10.120. The fund shall
be liable for settlement of claims and costs of administration but shall not be
liable to pay out or recover penalties assessed under RCW 28C.10.130 or
28C.10.140. No liability accrues to the state of Washington from claims made
against the fund.
(2)
By June 30, 1998, a minimum operating balance of one million dollars shall be
achieved in the fund and maintained thereafter. If disbursements reduce the
operating balance below two hundred thousand dollars at any time before June
30, 1998, or below one million dollars thereafter, each participating entity
shall be assessed a pro rata share of the deficiency created, based upon the
incremental scale created under subsection (6) of this section. The agency shall
adopt schedules of times and amounts for effecting payments of assessment.
(3)
To be and remain licensed under this chapter each entity shall, in addition to
other requirements under this chapter, make cash deposits into a tuition
recovery trust fund as a means to assure payment of claims brought under this
chapter.
(4)
The amount of liability that can be satisfied by this fund on behalf of each
individual entity licensed under this chapter shall be established by the
agency, based on an incremental scale that recognizes the average amount of
unearned prepaid tuition in possession of the entity. However, the minimum
amount of liability for any entity shall not be less than five thousand
dollars. The upper limit of liability is reestablished after any disbursements
are made to settle an individual claim or class of claims.
(5)
The fund's liability with respect to each participating entity commences on the
date of its initial deposit into the fund and ceases one year from the date it
is no longer licensed under this chapter.
(6)
The agency shall adopt by rule a matrix for calculating the deposits into the
fund required of each entity. Proration shall be determined by factoring the
entity's share of liability in proportion to the aggregated liability of all
participants under the fund by grouping such prorations under the incremental
scale created by subsection (4) of this section. Expressed as a percentage of
the total liability, that figure determines the amount to be contributed when
factored into a fund containing one million dollars. The total amount of its
prorated share, minus the amount paid for initial capitalization, shall be
payable in up to twenty increments over a ten-year period, commencing with the
sixth month after the entity makes its initial capitalization deposit.
Additionally, the agency shall require deposits for initial capitalization,
under which the amount each entity deposits is proportionate to its share of
two hundred thousand dollars, employing the matrix developed under this
subsection. The amount thus established shall be deposited by each applicant
for initial licensing before the issuance of such license.
(7)
No vested right or interests in deposited funds is created or implied for the
depositor, either at any time during the operation of the fund or at any such
future time that the fund may be dissolved. All funds deposited are payable to
the state for the purposes described under this section. The agency shall
maintain the fund, serve appropriate notices to affected entities when
scheduled deposits are due, collect deposits, and make disbursements to settle
claims against the fund. When the aggregated deposits total five million
dollars and the history of disbursements justifies such modifications, the
agency may at its own option reduce the schedule of deposits whether as to
time, amount, or both and the agency may also entertain proposals from among
the licensees with regard to disbursing surplus funds for such purposes as
vocational scholarships.
(8)
Based on annual financial data supplied by the entity the agency shall
determine whether the increment assigned to that entity on the incremental
scale established under subsection (6) of this section has changed. If an
increase or decrease in gross annual tuition income has occurred, a corresponding
change in its incremental position and contribution schedule shall be made
before the date of its next scheduled deposit into the fund. Such adjustments
shall only be calculated and applied annually.
(9)
No deposits made into the fund by an entity are transferable. If the majority
ownership interest in an entity is conveyed through sale or other means into
different ownership, all contributions made to the date of transfer accrue to
the fund. The new owner commences contributions under provisions applying to a
new applicant, except that if ownership of an entity is transferred to an
immediate family member, all tuition recovery trust fund contributions shall
remain with the entity transferred, and no additional cash deposits may be
required beyond the original ten-year contribution cycle.
(10)
To settle claims adjudicated under RCW 28C.10.120 and claims resulting when a
private vocational school ceases to provide educational services, the agency
may make disbursements from the fund. Students enrolled under a training
contract executed between a school and a public or private agency or business
are not eligible to make a claim against the fund. In addition to the
processes described for making reimbursements related to claims under RCW
28C.10.120, the following procedures are established to deal with
reimbursements related to school closures:
(a)
The agency shall attempt to notify all potential claimants. The unavailability
of records and other circumstances surrounding a school closure may make it
impossible or unreasonable for the agency to ascertain the names and
whereabouts of each potential claimant but the agency shall make reasonable
inquiries to secure that information from all likely sources. The agency shall
then proceed to settle the claims on the basis of information in its
possession. The agency is not responsible or liable for claims or for handling
claims that may subsequently appear or be discovered.
(b)
Thirty days after identified potential claimants have been notified, if a claimant
refuses or neglects to file a claim verification as requested in such notice,
the agency shall be relieved of further duty or action on behalf of the
claimant under this chapter.
(c)
After verification and review, the agency may disburse funds from the tuition
recovery trust fund to settle or compromise the claims. However, the liability
of the fund for claims against the closed entity shall not exceed the maximum
amount of liability assigned to that entity under subsection (6) of this
section.
(d)
In the instance of claims against a closed school, the agency shall seek to
recover such disbursed funds from the assets of the defaulted entity, including
but not limited to asserting claims as a creditor in bankruptcy proceedings.
(11)
When funds are disbursed to settle claims against a current licensee, the
agency shall make demand upon the licensee for recovery. The agency shall
adopt schedules of times and amounts for effecting recoveries. An entity's
failure to perform subjects its license to suspension or revocation under RCW
28C.10.050 in addition to any other available remedies.
