Last major cutoff today, Legislature ends last full week of 2020 session
Members of the House and Senate spent the week on the floor, debating and voting on bills ahead of today's 5 p.m. chamber cutoff deadline. Bills, unless necessary to implement the budget, must be passed out of the opposing chamber in order to stay alive for the session.
Bill status update
The following bills, which are being monitored by the college system, passed the Legislature this week. They now head to Gov. Jay Inslee's desk for signature.
- HB 1702, requiring colleges to indicate at the time of registration courses using low-cost — defined as $50 or less — materials, passed the Senate Thursday with a 49 to 0 vote.
- SHB 2589, requiring colleges and universities to print suicide prevention organization contact information on student and staff ID cards, passed the Senate Tuesday with a 42 to 7 vote.
- 2SHB 2864, establishing the Running Start Summer School Pilot Program for two years in three community colleges, passed the Senate Thursday with a 49 to 0 vote.
- ESSB 6141, requiring the Washington Student Achievement Council to develop a federal and state financial aid calculator, directing colleges and universities to develop clear and consistent definitions for financial aid award letters, and requiring the High School and Beyond Plan to include information about the Washington College Grant and other scholarships, passed the House Wednesday with a 93-3 vote.
- 2SSB 6561, creating the Undocumented Student Support Loan Program to provide undocumented Washington state residents an option to take out loans to attend a college or university, passed the House Thursday with a 82-15 vote.
Trustee confirmed by Senate
The following trustee was confirmed by the Senate this week. This list is as of noon Friday:
- Charles McFadden, Big Bend Community College, confirmed March 5
Coming up next week
Conference committees will work between now and Thursday's scheduled end of the regular session to find common ground on bills that passed the opposing chamber with amendments. Next week will also see concurrence votes, as each chamber must pass the same version of a bill before it goes to the governor's desk for signature.
Also expected are final votes on the supplemental operating and capital budgets.
