Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research	BILL ANALYSIS
Higher Education Committee

SSB 6640

Brief Description:  Classifying members of the Washington national guard as resident students.

Sponsors:  Senate Committee on Higher Education (originally sponsored by Senators Rasmussen, Swecker, Snyder, Jacobsen, Franklin, Kohl‑Welles, Winsley and Roach).

Brief Summary of Substitute Bill

$Allows any member of the Washington National Guard to qualify for in-state tuition rates.

Hearing Date:  2/27/02

Staff:  Antonio Sanchez (786‑7383).

Background:

Some Washington State National Guard personnel live in the neighboring states of Oregon and Idaho at the same time they are serving in Washington National Guard.  Under current law, person serving in the Washington State National Guard who live outside of the state of Washington are required to pay out-of-state tuition if they attend a school in Washington State.  Currently, the only military personnel who are exempted from the one year residency requirement for in-state tuition are active duty military personnel stationed in the state of Washington.  Their spouses and dependents can also quality for in-state tuition.

The Air National Guard has 92 members who reside in the state of Idaho due to their civilian employment. However, Washington National Guard offers them the opportunity to work in areas that may not be available in the Idaho Guard such as flying large cargo planes or re-fueling jets. According to the Washington State National Guard some guard members are interested in attending school in the Spokane and Pullman area but are deterred due to the out of state tuition rates.

There are a number of reasons we have people in the Army or Air National Guard in Washington State and residing elsewhere.  Some National Guard members may have started their career with Washington and wish to stay in their respective unit and continue the job they are qualified for (and then they subsequently move to another state for their civilian employment). An example is a member moving from Washington State to Portland, Oregon due to civilian employment.

Also the National Guard units in neighboring states may not be as conveniently located where the individual resides. For example, a member lives in Portland and the nearest unit for their occupational specialty is either in Burn, Oregon or Vancouver, Washington. The Washington unit would be closer for them for weekend training and commuting. In addition, The Washington Guard offers opportunities that are not available in the other states such as the ability to use their expertise as pilots and fly for the Washington Air National Guard out of the Spokane unit.

Under the Border County Pilot Project enacted by the 1999 Legislature and modified by the 2001 Legislature, residents in several Oregon counties located near the border of Washington are eligible until June 30, 2002 to pay resident tuition at Clark College, Lower Columbia Community College, Grays Harbor Community College, and at the Washington State University branch campus in Vancouver.

Summary of Bill:

Allows any member of the Washington National Guard to qualify for in-state tuition rates without meeting the one-year residency requirement.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Available.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.