Agencies in the higher education budget area (the four-year institutions, the community and technical college system, and the Student Achievement Council) have requested a total increase of $164.0 million from the general fund–state (GFS) for the 2024 supplemental operating budget. (The requested increase from all funds is $179.4 million.) As I wrote yesterday, $100.0 million of that has been requested for UW hospital operations.

Other notable requests in higher education include:

• Washington State University has requested a GFS increase of $19.0 million in 2023–25 and $16.8 million in 2025–27 to purchase carbon offset allowances, as required by the Climate Commitment Act. The Legislature had appropriated $1.7 million for WSU for this purpose for 2023, but allowance prices have been higher than forecasted. According to WSU, it has only been able to purchase “less than 10% of the allowances required to offset carbon dioxide emissions for calendar year 2023, at a market price of over three times the rate assumed when base funding was provided.”
• WSU and Western Washington University are currently bargaining with a union for certain newly organized academic student employees; they are both requesting funding to implement the labor agreement but neither request includes an estimate of the cost.
• WWU has requested $1.1 million in 2023–25 and $2.2 million in 2025–27 from the GFS to create an Office of Academic Access and Outreach, to “raise awareness of higher education opportunities.”
• Eastern Washington University has requested $3.1 million in 2023–25 and $6.5 million in 2025–27 from the GFS to establish “a dedicated Center for Internships and Community Engagement, along with granting each incoming student a $1,500 stipend.”
• Central Washington University has requested $1.3 million in 2023–25 and $2.6 million in 2025–27 from the GFS to create a College in the High School Instructor Institute and fund graduate tuition for high school teachers.
• The Evergreen State College has requested $738,000 in 2023–25 and $1.6 million in 2025–27 from the workforce education investment account to make “a simple and direct offer of college admission, paid­for tuition, and targeted support to all 2025 and 2026 Shelton graduates.”
• The Community and Technical College System has requested $9.0 million in 2023–25 and $14.6 million in 2025–27 from the workforce education investment account to expand the number of computer science bachelor programs by 15.
• The Washington Student Achievement Council has requested $8.3 million in 2023–25 and $16.6 million in 2025–27 from the GFS to align maximum eligibility time frames for the Washington College Grant, College Bound Scholarship, and Passport to Careers programs with the time frame for the federal Pell Grant.

(Previous posts on agency 2024 supplemental budget requests are here.)