FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 1663

PARTIAL VETO

C 198 L 11

Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description: Removing the requirement that institutions of higher education purchase from correctional industries.

Sponsors: House Committee on Higher Education (originally sponsored by Representatives Parker, Ormsby, Probst, Billig, Schmick, Fagan, Angel and Ahern).

House Committee on Higher Education

House Committee on Ways & Means

Senate Committee on Higher Education & Workforce Development

Background:

As agencies of Washington, institutions of higher education are subject to various laws related to general administration that include purchasing of equipment. Higher education institutions are required to purchase material, supplies, services, and equipment from correctional industries (inmate work programs) at the Department of Corrections (DOC) unless an institution of higher education satisfactorily demonstrates to the Director of the Office of Financial Management (OFM) that the cost of compliance is greater than the value of benefits.

Legislation enacted in 2004 required the Council of Presidents and the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) to: convene a correctional industries business development advisory committee and work collaboratively with correctional industries to reaffirm purchasing criteria, update the approved list of products that higher education institutions must purchase, and develop recommendations on ways to continue to build correctional industries' business with institutions of higher education; develop a plan to increase higher education institution purchases from the DOC to be submitted to the Legislature by January 30, 2005; and establish targets for purchases of 1 percent by May 30, 2006, and 2 percent by June 30, 2006.

In 2009 the OFM granted exemptions to all six public baccalaureate institutions and the SBCTC (on behalf of the community and technical colleges) from purchasing at least 2 percent of their products from correctional industries.

In 2010 an analysis conducted by the OFM found that on average, higher education institutions purchase about 9 percent of their products from correctional industries.

Summary:

Public higher education institutions are no longer required to seek an exemption from the OFM with regards to purchasing from the DOC, and they must endeavor to assure the DOC has notifications of bid opportunities with the goal of meeting or exceeding the two percent purchasing target.

Votes on Final Passage:

Partial Veto Summary: The Governor vetoed the section of the act which eliminates the emergency clause.