Tag Archives: Education

Senate unanimously approves Warnick legislation boosting dental schools

Warnick’s first bill of the session will help Yakima-area program

As the Legislature begins its first stretch of floor votes on proposals, the state Senate today unanimously approved Sen. Judy’ Warnick’s first bill of the 2023 legislative session, Senate Bill 5113.

Brought to Warnick’s attention by the Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences located in Yakima, the measure would make regulatory changes to licensing requirements for faculty of dental schools, expanding access to a critical health-care specialty.

Currently, barriers exist for out-of-state faculty moving to Washington to teach in various medical fields, including dentistry. Under Warnick’s legislation, accredited dental schools can request temporary licensure for faculty who have accepted employment at the respective school.

“Access to health-care services in rural communities is desperately needed and with shortages across the board, I’m pleased the Senate has approved my proposal to help educate more dental professionals,” said Warnick, R-Moses Lake. “Allowing this kind of licensure reform will help Pacific Northwest University of Health attract the talent they need to meet the needs of the Yakima area and beyond.”

Under current state law, other dental schools in Washington are able to provide similar waivers for prospective faculty. Warnick’s proposal would create parity for this eastern Washington dental program. The temporary licensure would still maintain high standards, requiring approval by the Washington State Dental Quality Assurance Commission.

The measure now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration. The 105-day legislative session ends on April 23.

Warnick bill to boost funding for rural skill centers becomes law

The governor Wednesday signed legislation sponsored by Sen. Judy Warnick, R-Moses Lake, that will improve funding for rural skill centers.

Senate Bill 5874, which was approved by the Legislature unanimously, requires direct funding of certain satellite skill centers in rural areas. The concept for the legislation was brought to Warnick’s attention by the Davenport School District.

“This change in state law will allow better funding of these critical centers in rural communities around the state,” said Warnick. “As our economy changes, we need an adaptive and skilled workforce in areas, but funding can be a challenge. I’m pleased that this legislation to ease the burden on local districts for operating these satellite centers will become law. These rural skill centers now have more options to deliver quality educational opportunities without additional administrative and financial burdens.”

The Davenport School District operates a satellite skill center in partnership with the Spokane School District, providing career and technical education (CTE) to high school students. However, some of the CTE programs may be too expensive or specialized for one school district to operate alone. Warnick’s legislation allows for direct funding of these centers if they meet certain requirements such as:

the center is located at least 30 miles from a core campus or other satellite program and enrolls students from a minimum of two school districts;
the center is solely responsible for hiring staff and covering all staffing costs; and
the CTE Advisory Committee and local school district board of directors recommend and support the direct funding.

“The Davenport School District and community is very appreciative of Senator Warnick’s efforts to get the rural satellite skill center bill passed this session,” said Superintendent Jim Kowalkowski. “This bill will allow us to receive direct funding for our two satellite skills programs (construction trades and nursing) and will provide our students and students in nearby rural districts opportunities for pre-apprenticeship courses that are hands-on and pathways to amazing careers.”

There currently are 14 skill centers in Washington state, many serving rural communities. The new law goes into effect July 27.

The Legislature adjourned, Sine Die

March 12, 2018

Greetings from Olympia,

The 2018 legislative session concluded on time, March 8. The short sessions are an opportunity to develop what’s referred to as a supplemental budget. The state budgets on two-year cycles, called a biennial budget, which we adopted last year and takes us through 2019. The supplemental budget is supposed to be an opportunity to make some minor adjustments and tweaks to the budget to meet any emergent needs. However, the majority Democrats had some other ideas. With over $2 billion in unexpected revenue, there was a strong push to spend those resources on growing government.

Early on, we approved a solution for the flawed Hirst decision to allow rural property owners to drill a well. That was a holdover from the 2017 legislative session. If you recall, the state was without a capital budget for a year as we worked through a solution. It was a hard-fought victory for rural Washington that required significant investments through the state’s construction budget to pay for water-related projects. That issue was one of the biggest challenges of my legislative career, but one that my colleagues and I believed had to be addressed, and one that urban legislators paid little attention to. You can read more about the resolution of Hirst by clicking here.

Education and the budget

Although the state Supreme Court agreed that the education funding plan that was approved last year will fulfill our McCleary obligations, they were unhappy with the timeline. They’ve decided that the state should put in about an extra billion dollars one year earlier. Our strong economy and surprise revenue growth have meant we can make that investment on time.

That said, one-party control in Olympia has meant very different budgets for our state. While Republicans resisted urges to raise or create new taxes, the same can’t be said for my colleagues across the aisle. With significant unexpected revenue, I believe that we should have returned that money to the taxpayers in the form of property tax relief.

Many are concerned, and rightly so, about the spike in this year’s property tax bills to fund education. I understand the frustration. The plan that was adopted last year included a prolonged phase-in at the behest of legislative Democrats, which resulted in an overlap and temporary increase in property taxes.

The good news is that we limited how much local dollars can be levied, and the result is more funding to schools, and over 70 percent of property owners will see a net decrease in the property taxes in 2019.

We voted on an education bill in the Senate and tried to adopt an amendment to provide $1 billion in property tax relief, but the majority Democrats voted against it. And again, other proposals diverted $700 million from the voter-approved Rainy Day Fund to direct that money to growing government while providing meager property-tax relief in the year when we don’t need it!

The latest budget approved by the majority continues to put special interests and government growth ahead of struggling citizens. I did not vote for the final supplemental budget as the gimmicks and taxes were unnecessary and sets what the state Treasurer called “a dangerous precedent.”

Investing in our community

In addition to the operating budget, we also approved this year’s supplemental transportation and capital budgets. These provide needed investments in local community projects, as well as improvements to our district’s transportation system. Here are some of the transportation projects that are funded in our district:

Park & Ride improvement at I-90 and Golf Course Road – $21,000
Columbia Basin Railroad Projects – $785,000
County Road Bridge Replacement Study for OGWRP – $100,000
Port of Moses Lake Hangar Expansion Planning & Design – $200,000

You can view the complete list here.

Projects in the supplemental capital budget include:

Roslyn Community and Cultural Center – $523,000
Damman School in Ellensburg – $1.27 million
Fair Safety and Access for Ellensburg and Grant County – $600,000

Click here to see a full list of projects in our district.

It is an honor to serve as your state Senator. Please do not hesitate to reach out to my office with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your state government.

Signature

Judy Warnick,

Your State Senator

Billions in new taxes, House fails rural families

April 6, 2017

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Greetings from Olympia!

This week brought another of the deadlines for bills to continue through the legislative process. The House Democrats unveiled their spending proposal to meet the state’s obligation to fund education and pay for other state services for the next two years. Unfortunately, it is just a spending wish list because it requires billions in more taxes that the House majority does not intend to bring up for a vote. While it does make investments in many areas of state government, the House proposal still spends less money on education – despite over $3 billion in new taxes – than the Senate’s complete and funded budget that does not include a general tax increase.

education

Our state is expected to collect $3 billion more in taxes generated from economic activity. Our budget prioritizes spending on education. As one of my colleagues noted, we put the first dollar, not the last dime, toward education, unlike the House Democrats’ proposal.

House Democrats fail to act for our state’s rural families

If you’ve been watching the news, you may have heard about the Hirst court decision. This ruling from the state’s Supreme Court in late 2016 effectively stopped home building in rural parts of our state. The court threw out decades of water law and placed the burden on local jurisdictions to make determinations about water availability before issuing permits. This is something that the state already does and a task counties don’t have the resources or technical expertise to do. So what happens? The costs of the studies required are placed on property owners hoping to build a life on their parcel and even if they pay the thousands of dollars for the studies, there is no guarantee a permit will be issued.

I sponsored Senate Bill 5239 to fix the Hirst ruling and bring some common sense back to Olympia. I am dismayed that the House Democrats failed to act before the deadline to approve the bill. They did not bring any solutions and ignored the numerous people who testified in public hearings about their plight. Some invested their life savings, only to be told they couldn’t drill a well.

The House majority has essentially said they don’t care. While the wealthy may be able to afford the studies, average property owners are stuck without relief.

I am committed to fixing this issue before the Legislature adjourns on April 23. When I came to Olympia to begin the 2017 legislative session, I knew that education was going to be at the forefront of our work, but the impacts of Hirst became very clear and the time to act is now.

I issued a statement on the House’s failure that you can read here.

You can learn more about the issue, and see what newspapers and stakeholders are saying by visiting these websites.

www.FixHirst.com

www.src.wastateleg.org/hirst-fix

It is an honor to serve as your state Senator. Please do not hesitate to reach out to my office with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your state government. Please watch your email, as I look forward to providing you with regular updates throughout the session.

Signature

Judy Warnick,

13th District Senator

Contact Me

Olympia Office:

103 Irv Newhouse Bldg.

P.O. Box 40410

Olympia, WA 98504

Olympia Phone:

360.786.7624

District Phone:

509.766.6505

E-mail:

Judith.Warnick@leg.wa.gov

Website:

Click here to visit my website

Sen. Warnick’s E-newsletter – Feb. 5, 2016

Update from Olympia – February 5, 2016

Greetings Friends and Neighbors,

We have reached the half-way point in the 2016 legislative session. When the Legislature adjourned last July, our state’s budget was balanced, making critical investments in our state’s K-12 system, investing in higher education and our state’s safety net. This year, much of our work is focused on funding K-12 education and addressing the costs of a very active fire season.

In these even-numbered years the Legislature convenes for only 60 days to make minor adjustments in the state budget and address pressing policy issues. The legislative session is scheduled to conclude March 10 and I am looking forward to finishing on-time with a sustainable budget that makes the right investments for Washington.

A look at our state’s budget

budget

Washington’s economy is growing and that positive news has meant a lot for our state’s budget. Last year we were able to fend off plans to raise taxes by over $1 billion. With additional revenue coming in it seemed irresponsible to spend beyond our means.

The chart above tells an interesting story about our state’s four-year budget outlook. As required by law Washington’s budget must be balanced over four years. The Legislature adjourned with a strong bipartisan and balanced budget that left $47 million in reserves. As a result of the Governor’s veto the budget was in the negative by $23 million. Positive economic news brought an additional $313 million to the state’s treasury but costs related to last years active fire season and out of control costs at the states Health Care Authority have resulted in a negative balance for the state. If you include the Governor’s policy proposals in his budget the problem becomes even worse. This is the kind of government spending that cannot continue. We need sustainable and responsible budgeting especially when revenue is up more than 10 percent.

Interesting facts about our economy

Although larger urban areas have seen unemployment drop and other positive economic news, I am working to make sure this upswing results in more jobs for our area and opportunities for our local small businesses. I found this report on state economics interesting. Click here to learn where our state ranks in the economic recovery.

Washington is a very trade dependent state. In fact we are the largest per capita exporter according to the state Department of Commerce, with nearly $90.5 billion in exports. The Washington Council on International Trade notes that rail is a key component to continued economic prosperity. Our local farmers depend on rail to move their goods to market, statewide nearly 10 percent of Washington’s gross domestic product relies on freight rail to move agricultural and even aerospace products to market. All told, this industry supports over 200,000 jobs in Washington State.

Committee Updates

To keep the legislative process moving, there are critical milestones throughout the legislative session. We are fast approaching the first cutoff, which means that policy bills from their house of origin must receive a public hearing in committee by Feb. 5 to continue in the process. The committee that I chair, the Senate Agriculture, Water and Rural Economic Development Committee, has been working extensively on water issues. We learned a lot from the drought last year and must look at creative and collaborative ways to address water access, quality and quantity challenges in our state. I encourage you to take a look at what goes on in my committee with detailed agendas and documents by clicking here.

Education challenges

With nearly half of our state’s $38 billion budget allocated to K-12 education, the Legislature is still grappling with complex policy issues around meeting the state’s obligation to fully funding education. The reality is that student achievement and success is not just about writing another check. Of particular interest during this legislative session is addressing how the state compensates teachers. Local districts through their levies are disproportionately bearing too much of the burden and the state is looking for ways to take on that aspect of school funding that is fair and balanced so that the quality of a child’s education isn’t determined by their ZIP code. There are several proposals being worked on by a group of bipartisan lawmakers. However, this may be a heavier lift than can be accomplished in this short legislative session.

In addition to compensation, our state faces teacher and substitute teacher shortages. Rural and lower income school districts face challenges recruiting and retaining talented teachers that make all the difference in a class room. Creating a more fair school funding at the state level that doesn’t over rely on local property taxes, which varies greatly between school districts, would go a long way in addressing teacher recruitment. The Legislature also needs to look at other regulatory issues that keep educated professionals from entering the teaching profession. Currently a person with a master’s degree can teach at a community college but without additional education and certification is unable to teach in our K-12 system. There must be common sense reforms we can put in place to expand opportunities in our educator workforce to meet the needs of students in our state.

In Remembrance

Late last week we received news that a former legislator representing part of our district in Lincoln County passed away. Representative Robert Dale Timm served the 8th Legislative District in the state House of Representatives from 1951 to 1959. I did not have the privilege of working with former Rep. Timm but he leaves behind a lasting legacy of accomplishment and public service. I recall that my own late mother spoke fondly of many Timm family members with whom she attended grade school. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

It is an honor to serve as your state Senator. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with questions regarding state government.

Sincerely,

Signature

Judy Warnick,

13th District Senator

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