Partner promise scholarships

AN ACT Relating to encouraging local government partner promise 1
scholarship programs within the Washington state opportunity 2
scholarship program; amending RCW 28B.145.050 and 28B.145.070; adding 3
new sections to chapter 28B.145 RCW; and creating a new section.4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that 6
postsecondary credentials are vital for creating and maintaining a 7
skilled workforce. To increase Washington's skilled workforce, local 8
governments are encouraged to establish their own local government 9
partner promise scholarship programs within the Washington state 10
opportunity scholarship program to further reduce barriers for 11
students within their jurisdiction. Current barriers may include 12
scholarship applications, income limits, and degree program 13
requirements. The purpose of this act is for local governments that 14
establish local government partner promise scholarship programs to 15
have minimal administrative duties, making benefits to students 16
substantial. Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature to 17
encourage additional local government partner promise scholarship 18
programs to serve more students with fewer barriers.19
H-0738.1
HOUSE BILL 1587
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Bergquist, Rude, Reed, Pollet, Reeves, Zahn,
Timmons, Doglio, Salahuddin, and Nance
Read first time 01/24/25. Referred to Committee on Postsecondary
Education & Workforce.
p. 1 HB 1587
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28B.145 1
RCW to read as follows: 2
(1) A local government partner may establish its own promise 3
scholarship program within the opportunity scholarship program. The 4
local government partner promise scholarship program shall be 5
administered by the Washington state opportunity scholarship program. 6
The program administrator shall assist the local government partner 7
in the selection, notification, and disbursement of scholarship 8
awards. 9
(2) To be eligible to participate in a local government partner 10
promise scholarship program, a student must have received his or her 11
high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate as 12
provided in RCW 28B.50.536 in Washington and attend a public two-year 13
institution of higher education or a professional-technical 14
certificate or degree program in an education program at an 15
institution of higher education as defined by the local government 16
partner. Eligibility may not extend beyond three years or 125 percent 17
of the published length of the program in which the student is 18
enrolled or the credit or clock-hour equivalent. 19
(3) A local government partner that establishes a promise 20
scholarship program may establish separate rules for its program that 21
are independent from the broader Washington state opportunity 22
scholarship program. 23
(4) The value of the scholarship award under the local government 24
partner promise scholarship program is, at minimum, the difference 25
between the recipient's total tuition fees as defined in RCW 26
28B.15.020 and services and activities fees as defined in RCW 27
28B.15.041, less the value of any state-funded grant including the 28
college bound scholarship program established in chapter 28B.118 RCW 29
and the Washington college grant created in RCW 28B.92.200, 30
scholarship, gift aid, or waiver assistance the recipient receives. 31
The local government partner may provide additional scholarship 32
awards to cover reasonable expenses associated with the costs of 33
acquiring an education such as books, equipment, room and board, and 34
other expenses as determined by the local government partner.35
(5) The office of student financial assistance and the 36
institutions of higher education may not consider awards made under a 37
local government partner's promise scholarship program to be state-38
funded for the purpose of determining the value of an award for other 39
state financial aid programs. 40
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(6) If a student participating in a local government partner 1
promise scholarship program transfers to an institution not eligible 2
under the local government partner's promise scholarship program 3
rules, the student must reapply to the broader opportunity 4
scholarship program and meet all eligibility requirements. A local 5
government partner may continue to provide funds to the student 6
through its own promise scholarship program if the local government 7
partner's program rules allow continued payment. A student may not 8
receive funds from the broader Washington state opportunity 9
scholarship program and the local government partner promise 10
scholarship program at the same time. 11
(7) A participating student's eligibility must be reconfirmed 12
prior to each disbursement of funds. 13
(8) In consultation with the local government partner, the 14
administrator's duties include: 15
(a) Implementing a selection and notification process for 16
awarding local government scholarship funds; 17
(b) Distributing funds to selected students; and18
(c) Notifying institutions of higher education of the local 19
government scholarship recipients who will attend their institutions 20
of higher education and informing the institutions of the scholarship 21
fund amounts and terms of the awards. 22
(9) Ten percent of the local government partner funds, excluding 23
state matching funds, may be used for the operational costs listed in 24
subsection (8) of this section. The local government partner may opt 25
to have additional programmatic support from the broader Washington 26
opportunity scholarship program, such as application or marketing 27
support, for an additional agreed-upon fee. 28
(10) In the event that there are not enough funds to serve all 29
eligible applicants, priority must be given to applicants to the 30
broader Washington state opportunity scholarship program over 31
applicants to a government partner promise scholarship program.32
(11) For purposes of this section, "government partner" means 33
municipalities, counties, or federally recognized Indian tribes.34
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28B.145 35
RCW to read as follows: 36
(1) All institutions of higher education that participate in the 37
opportunity scholarship program, including a local government partner 38
promise scholarship program pursuant to section 2 of this act, shall 39
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provide timely verification of eligibility information to the program 1
administrator. 2
(2) Beginning in 2025, the education research and data center 3
shall provide data on the outcomes of Washington state opportunity 4
scholarship recipients and graduates by November 1st of each year.5
(3) Each participating student's eligibility must be confirmed 6
prior to disbursing funds from any program account.7
Sec. 4. RCW 28B.145.050 and 2020 c 357 s 912 are each amended to 8
read as follows: 9
(1) The opportunity scholarship match transfer account is created 10
in the custody of the state treasurer as a nonappropriated account to 11
be used solely and exclusively for the opportunity scholarship 12
program created in RCW 28B.145.040 and the local government partner 13
promise programs authorized in section 2 of this act . The purpose of 14
the account is to provide matching funds for the opportunity 15
scholarship program and the local government partner promise 16
programs. 17
(2) Revenues to the account shall consist of appropriations by 18
the legislature into the account and any gifts, grants, or donations 19
received by the executive director of the council for this purpose.20
(3) No expenditures from the account may be made except upon 21
receipt of proof, by the executive director of the council from the 22
program administrator, of private contributions to the opportunity 23
scholarship program. Expenditures, in the form of matching funds, may 24
not exceed the total amount of private contributions.25
(4) Only the executive director of the council or the executive 26
director's designee may authorize expenditures from the opportunity 27
scholarship match transfer account. Such authorization must be made 28
as soon as practicable following receipt of proof as required under 29
subsection (3) of this section. 30
(5) The council shall enter into an appropriate agreement with 31
the program administrator to demonstrate exchange of consideration 32
for the matching funds. 33
(6) During the 2019-2021 fiscal biennium, expenditures from the 34
opportunity scholarship match transfer account may be used for 35
payment to the program administrator for administrative duties 36
carried out under this chapter in an amount not to exceed two hundred 37
fifty thousand dollars per fiscal year. 38
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Sec. 5. RCW 28B.145.070 and 2018 c 254 s 8 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
(1) Annually each December 1st, the board, together with the 3
program administrator, shall report to the council, the governor, and 4
the appropriate committees of the legislature regarding the rural 5
jobs program ((and)), the opportunity scholarship program, and the 6
opportunity expansion program((s)), including but not limited to:7
(a) Which education programs the board determined were eligible 8
for purposes of the opportunity scholarship and which high employer 9
demand fields within eligible counties were identified for purposes 10
of the rural jobs program; 11
(b) The number of applicants for the opportunity scholarship and 12
rural jobs program, disaggregated, to the extent possible, by race, 13
ethnicity, gender, county of origin, age, and median family income;14
(c) The number of participants in the opportunity scholarship 15
program and rural jobs program, disaggregated, to the extent 16
possible, by race, ethnicity, gender, county of origin, age, and 17
median family income; 18
(d) The number and amount of the scholarships actually awarded, 19
whether the scholarships were paid from the student support pathways 20
account, the scholarship account, or the endowment account, and the 21
number and amount of scholarships actually awarded under the rural 22
jobs program; 23
(e) The institutions and eligible education programs in which 24
opportunity scholarship participants enrolled, together with data 25
regarding participants' completion and graduation, and the 26
institutions and programs in which recipients of the rural jobs 27
program scholarship enrolled, together with recipients' data on 28
completion and graduation; 29
(f) The total amount of private contributions and state match 30
moneys received for the rural jobs program and the opportunity 31
scholarship program, how the funds under the opportunity scholarship 32
program were distributed between the student support pathways 33
account, the scholarship account, and the endowment account, the 34
interest or other earnings on all the accounts created under this 35
chapter, and the amount of any administrative fee paid to the program 36
administrator; ((and))37
(g) Identification of the programs the board selected to receive 38
opportunity expansion awards and the amount of such awards; and39
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(h) For local government partners as defined in section 2 of this 1
act:2
(i) The total amount of private contributions and state match 3
moneys received; and4
(ii) The total number of students served by each local government 5
partner. 6
(2) In the next succeeding legislative session following receipt 7
of a report required under subsection (1) of this section, the 8
appropriate committees of the legislature shall review the report and 9
consider whether any legislative action is necessary with respect to 10
the rural jobs program, the opportunity scholarship program, or the 11
opportunity expansion program, including but not limited to 12
consideration of whether any legislative action is necessary with 13
respect to the nature and level of focus on high employer demand 14
fields and the number and amount of scholarships. 15
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