Transcript Highlights:

• aid transparency.
• aid transparency.
• aid will have to use.
• That reality means that aid offers and financial aid offices are possible.
• ><c> Aid</c><00:53:51.200><c> Administrators</c><00:53:52.079><c> and</c> of Financial Aid Aid Administrators

Committee: Senate Higher Education

Transcript Highlights:

• The Student Aid Commission recognizes that this proposal does represent a reduction in student aid year
• Grant aid.
• between tuition and financial aid, Cal Grant data, and obviously institutional aid.
• this Institutional aid.
• awarded aid.

Summary: The subcommittee on Education Finance heard an overview of the governor’s budget proposals and higher education financial aid trends, with a major focus on the Middle Class Scholarship (MCS), Cal Grant spending, and the effects of recent federal student aid changes. The Department of Finance said the budget would fully fund Cal Grant at projected levels and reduce MCS coverage from 35% to 17.5% of unmet need in 2026-27, while the Legislative Analyst’s Office supported considering the reduction as a cost-saving measure given out-year deficits. UC and CSU representatives opposed the cut, saying MCS is important to affordability and debt-free degree goals; they estimated average awards would fall substantially and that campuses do not have funds to backfill the loss. The Student Aid Commission said the proposal would reduce aid but simplify administration, and members questioned how lower awards would affect students, borrowing, and work-study options. No vote was taken, and the issue was held open for possible future action. The committee then discussed federal changes to student loans and Pell Grant policy under H.R. 1, including caps on Parent PLUS loans, elimination of Grad PLUS loans, and new proration rules for federal direct loans based on enrollment intensity. The LAO said these changes would likely push some borrowers into the private market, especially graduate and professional students and some parents of students at private institutions. CSU said the changes would affect thousands of graduate and part-time students and could reduce access by about $97 million in loan availability for part-time borrowers, while UC said the new definitions of professional degrees were too restrictive and would reduce access for nursing, teaching, law, dentistry, and other programs. Community colleges said they use relatively little federal loan aid but are monitoring Workforce Pell. Members raised concerns about workforce impacts, social mobility, and whether the state should consider alternative loan programs or other ways to reduce student costs. This issue was also held open. In the segment financial aid update, the LAO reported Cal Grant spending is projected to rise to about $3.2 billion in 2026-27, driven by more recipients and higher awards tied to UC and CSU tuition increases, while CSAC said FAFSA and CADAA applications are up significantly year over year. CSU, community colleges, and UC described their aid packaging and rising aid totals, with CSU reporting over $5.5 billion in aid to 381,000 students, community colleges reporting over $4.3 billion to more than 920,000 students, and UC reporting $3.17 billion in grant aid to undergraduates. Members asked about Cal Grant reform, application trends, and long-term outcomes; UC and community colleges pointed to alumni and wage dashboards, and the LAO noted the state’s Cradle to Career data effort. The committee then took public comment, including testimony on library funding and other education-related priorities, and concluded by holding the issues open without formal action.

Transcript Highlights:

• This is additional aid of 100 aid.
• Uh this aid.
• c> to</c><00:41:28.560><c> literacy</c><00:41:28.880><c> aid</c> literacy incentive aid to literacy aid
• must still be paid on the K-12 aid payment schedule. school library aid.
• </c><01:00:23.839><c> schedule</c> of the aid and the aid payment schedule of the aid and the aid payment

Committee: Senate Education Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> AIDS there are also miscellaneous AIDS AIDS there are also miscellaneous AIDS and<00:43:35.680><
• </c> fund AIDS um there are lots of Aid fund AIDS um there are lots of Aid programs<00:54:34.559><c>
• Aid County program Aid local government Aid County program Aid and<00:54:45.160><c> Township</c><00:
• of aid that would be going to local government aid, County Program Aid, or Township Aid.
• </c><01:00:03.160><c> Township</c><01:00:03.599><c> Aid</c> Aid County program Aid or Township Aid Aid

Committee: House Taxes

Transcript Highlights:

• and county program aid, beginning with aids payable in 2026.
• </c> aids payable in 2026. aids payable in 2026.
• Also, $15 program aid aid reduction.
• </c> aid and to statewide local housing aid. aid and to statewide local housing aid.
• </c><00:38:36.800><c> goes</c><00:38:37.040><c> to</c> aid, 66% of local government aid goes to aid,

Transcript Highlights:

• I-1163 established a home care aide certification.
• Some aides have quit due to challenges navigating the system. Other aides have lost income.
• So when certifications are delayed, so are these aides' raises.
• Some aides have quit due to challenges navigating the system. Other aides have lost income.
• However, only for home care aides...

Summary: The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee held a public hearing on the State Auditor’s Office performance audit of Washington’s Restoring Quality Home Care Initiative (I-1163). Auditors said the initiative’s background checks and 75-hour training requirement are widely viewed as safety measures, but the state lacks pre-2011 data to directly measure safety outcomes. They also found Washington’s long-term care workforce is still short, though the state ranks better than many others in workers per disabled person, and that some groups and regions have larger gaps between authorized and actually used Medicaid care hours, suggesting access problems for certain clients. The audit focused heavily on the certification process for home care aides. Auditors reported that many applicants never finish certification, that the process often exceeds the 200-day legal deadline, and that delays can cause lost income, job loss, and in some cases repeated employer changes that allow aides to keep working without becoming certified. They recommended that the Department of Health accept applications only after training and testing are completed, move testing into training programs more broadly, and eliminate redundant DOH verification of FBI background checks. Committee members asked about testing contract incentives, language access, and the role of immigration in workforce shortages; auditors said they found no financial performance standards in the Prometric contract, did not specifically study immigration status, and did not focus on language barriers in this audit. Department of Health and Department of Social and Health Services officials largely agreed with the audit’s findings and recommendations. They said they have already made improvements, including expanded in-program testing, more staffing, and rule changes, and that testing has been integrated into more than 110 training programs. DSHS noted testing is offered in 13 languages. Both agencies said they support further streamlining and expect continued collaboration, including possible budget or legislative requests. No public testimony was offered, and the committee adjourned without taking any vote or formal action on the audit.

Transcript Highlights:

• of the aid.
• of all aid payments equals the amount appropriated for aid in 2026.
• of all aid payments equals the amount appropriated for aid in 2026.
• aid.
• County program aid county program aid.

Committee: Senate Taxes

Transcript Highlights:

• For most prospective aides, the process begins when they're hired.
• Some aides have quit due to challenges navigating the system. Other aides have lost income.
• Some aides have quit due to challenges navigating the system. Other aides have lost income.
• So when the certifications are delayed, so are these aides raises.
• Employers are required to fire aids who are not certified in time.

Summary: The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee heard a State Auditor’s Office performance audit on the Restoring Quality Home Care Initiative (I-1163), which created home care aide certification requirements, FBI background checks, and an abuse/neglect registry. Auditors said some requirements likely improve safety, especially background checks and training, but the state lacked pre-2011 data to measure outcomes directly. They also found Washington has a long-term care workforce shortage, though its workforce supply ranks better than many states, and that more stringent entry requirements do not appear to reduce workforce participation compared with other states. The audit’s main concern was that the certification process is slow and burdensome. Auditors reported that most applicants never finish certification, that only about one-third of fiscal year 2025 applicants were certified within the 200-day legal deadline, and that the average time to certification was 463 days. They identified delays between training and testing, limited testing access in some areas, and redundant Department of Health verification of FBI background checks as key causes. The audit recommended streamlining the process by accepting applications later in the process, expanding testing within training programs, and eliminating the redundant background-check verification. Department of Health and Department of Social and Health Services staff largely agreed with the audit’s findings and recommendations. They said they have already made improvements, including moving exams into more than 110 training programs, increasing credentialing staff, and reducing barriers through rule changes. DSHS noted testing is offered in 13 languages. Committee members asked about testing contract incentives, language access, and whether the agencies would seek statutory or budget changes to implement the recommendations. No public testimony was offered, and the meeting adjourned without any vote or formal action by the committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• And you can see the aid on line 49.
• prevention aid, AIS aid, disparity reduction aid, which, by the way, is based on a calculation from
• reduction</c><01:05:13.920><c> aid,</c> aid, AIS aid, disparity reduction aid, aid, AIS aid, disparity
• homeless aid.
• homeless aid.

Transcript Highlights:

• The state financial aid account is used to ensure that all programs designated for financial aid are
• systems that benefit students and financial aid offices.
• systems that benefit students and financial aid offices.
• And by going to college... hardly knew that AIDS like FAFSA even existed.
• And if you fill out the FAFSA, you might get financial aid.

Bills: SB6090 , SB5931 , SB5963 , SB5978 , SB6082

Committee: Senate Higher Education & Workforce Development

Keywords: heritage orchard, agriculture, program, state funding, local agriculture, workforce education, accountability, oversight, administrative changes, investment, SB 5963, passport to careers, Washington College Grant, financial aid, higher education, student aid, need-based aid, college affordability, postsecondary education, workforce development

Transcript Highlights:

• The state financial aid account is used to ensure that all programs designated for financial aid are
• Department of Education method of calculating federal student aid packages.
• systems that benefit students and financial aid offices.
• And if you fill out the FAFSA, you might get financial aid.
• aid.

Summary: The Senate Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee began with a work session on student complaints in higher education. Faculty, union, and research witnesses argued that current complaint systems are sometimes misused in bad faith, disproportionately affecting faculty of color, women, and contingent faculty, consuming institutional resources, and chilling academic freedom. They called for an initial screening process for bias or retaliation, routine data collection and equity review, and a faculty bill of rights. Committee members asked about FERPA, Title IX, and how complaint data could be tracked consistently across institutions. The committee then held public hearings on several bills. SB 6090 would create a Heritage Orchard Program at Washington State University to register and preserve heritage orchards and rare apple varieties; Senator Braun said it would honor Washington’s apple history and support research at low cost. SB 5931 would make technical changes to the Workforce Education Investment Oversight Board, including two-year co-chair terms, a later annual report date, and removal of a dashboard requirement; WASAC, labor, and Microsoft testified in support. SB 5963 would automatically qualify Passport to Careers students as income-eligible for the Washington College Grant and align financial aid definitions; WASAC, College Success Foundation, students, and student advocates supported it as a way to reduce barriers for foster and homeless youth. The committee also heard SB 5978, which would codify and expand the Washington Guaranteed Admissions Program and require annual student notifications about admissions, financial aid, dual credit, and related opportunities. Supporters included the Council of Presidents, faculty, students, parents, and the Washington Roundtable, who said guaranteed admission and better outreach would reduce anxiety, improve transparency, and help more students enroll. Finally, SB 6082 would direct JLARC to audit fraud in state financial aid programs, including fictitious students and AI-enabled abuse; the sponsor cited recent fraud concerns, while community and technical college officials said colleges already have fraud controls in place, warned the audit was unfunded and potentially duplicative, and asked for more resources. No votes were taken, and the committee adjourned after closing the hearings.

Transcript Highlights:

• highway, uh, county state aid streets, and municipal state aid streets.
• </c> municipal state aid streets. Thank you. municipal state aid streets. Thank you.
• state aid staff would need to state aid state aid staff would need to develop<00:46:03.200><c> um</c
• </c> state aid and one for trunk highways. state aid and one for trunk highways.
• </c> conform to current state aid standards. conform to current state aid standards.

Committee: Senate Transportation

Transcript Highlights:

• basic supplemental revenue aid.
• It increases the funding for this by adding an additional tier of entirely aid, which is just all aid
• On line 7, consolidation transition aid. This is an ongoing aid increase.
• So, in fiscal year 26, it is not the entire reduction to the school library aid. Aid.
• Non-public pupil transportation aid and non-public pupil education aid have given parents the resources

Bills: HF1388

Committee: House Education Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• And uh to apply for federal aid as well as most forms of state financial aid.
• for federal aid as well as most forms of state aid.
• </c> as most forms of state aid. as most forms of state aid.
• It was financial aid program.
• and state aid. the the FAFSA process aid and state aid. the the FAFSA process itself<00:43:44.960><c

Committee: Senate Higher Education

Transcript Highlights:

• All 855 cities are eligible for aid. I should note that that 855 number is for aid payable in 2025.
• All 855 cities are eligible for aid. I should note that that 855 number is for aid payable in 2025.
• This is a general-purpose aid.
• Aid um the aid uh receive any of this Aid um the aid distributes<00:25:52.200><c> uh</c><00:25:52.279
• One of those was state aids.

Committee: House Taxes

Transcript Highlights:

• aid, are our general purpose aids to local governments.
• </c> property tax aids. property tax aids.
• So each of county program aid, local government aid, homeless prevention aid, and housing aid is now
• So each of county program aid, local government aid, homeless prevention aid, and housing aid is now
• /c><00:26:06.400><c> aid,</c> government aid, homeless prevention aid, government aid, homeless prevention

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:42:26.800><c> that</c> pupil Aid that's a three-fold Aid that pupil Aid that's a three-fold Aid
• So if the legislature creates an aid but only funds that aid for two years, that aid goes out to school
• So if the legislature creates an aid but only funds that aid for two years, that aid goes out to school
• This also lines up with an aid appropriation on my typical aid appropriation spreadsheet.
• or</c><01:35:56.159><c> credits</c> reduction Aid Border City Aid or credits reduction Aid Border City

Committee: House Education Finance

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> costs for literacy aid. costs for literacy aid.
• Section 20 renames the literacy incentive aid as literacy aid.
• Section 20 renames the literacy incentive aid as literacy aid.
• and the K12 uh on distribution of aid and the K12 uh aid<01:42:33.679><c> payment</c> aid payment aid
• </c><01:42:46.480><c> payment</c> aid statutes and the aid payment aid statutes and the aid payment schedule

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> application for federal student aid. application for federal student aid.
• to as a student aid account.
• </c> aid.
• And so the lower the student aid aid.
• </c><00:07:16.479><c> student</c><00:07:16.720><c> aid</c> financial aid um federal student aid financial

Committee: House Higher Education Finance and Policy

Transcript Highlights:

• family education aid, and home visiting aid.
• family education aid, and home visiting aid.
• family education aid, and home visiting aid.
• family education aid, and home visiting aid.
• family education aid, and home visiting aid.

Committee: House Education Finance