2026 Washington State Legislative Session Outlook

The 2026 legislative session will begin on January 12 and run for 60 consecutive days. This year, Washington is projected to face another operating budget deficit. Given the challenging fiscal outlook for 2026, the 91探花has not submitted any new operating budget requests. Instead, the University will focus its advocacy efforts on mitigating potential budget cuts and their impact to the UW鈥檚 education, research, and public service missions. .

Introducing President Jones to the U District

In October, President Robert J. Jones toured the Ave with Regional & Community Relations and U District Partnership (UDP) staff to learn more about the neighborhood and meet local business owners. He made stops at the University Bookstore, Shiga鈥檚 Imports, Sweet Alchemy and Boba Up.

Tribal Relations, President Jones Attend Annual ATNI Convention

This fall, the Office of Tribal Relations represented the 91探花at the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) annual convention. ATNI is an Inter-Tribal nonprofit organization that represents and advocates for the 57-member Tribal governments and their elected leaders. On the opening day of the convention, President Jones joined to address Northwest Tribal leaders and ATNI members. During his remarks, he pledged to continue the UW鈥檚 strong commitment to collaboration with Washington Tribes and support for Indigenous students, faculty and staff.

Advocacy in D.C.

President Jones met with several members of Washington’s congressional delegation during a trip to our nation’s capital this October. In these meetings, he emphasized the challenges and opportunities facing the University. For more news and updates on federal issues, check out the Office of Federal Relations’ website.

Partners in Spokane

In September, President Jones visited Spokane to meet with students, faculty and 91探花leadership. He was joined by Gonzaga University President Katia Passerini for a tour of Regional Initiatives in Dental Education鈥檚 (RIDE) new training center. The center houses the expanding program, which is doubling the number of dental students from 32 to 64 and adding a second year of instruction in Spokane thanks to investment from the state legislature.

Welcome Kevin Chang

The Office of External Affairs is excited to announce that Kevin Chang has joined the 91探花 as Associate Director of State Relations. He succeeds Morgan Hickel, who was appointed Director of State Relations in September. Prior to the UW, Chang served as a senior advisor at the United States Senate in Washington, D.C., leading legislative efforts on education, health care, and social security policy. He is a graduate of the 91探花 with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in international studies.

The Office of State Relations serves as the principal liaison between the University and state government. Staff work with state legislators, statewide elected officials and state agency officials to advance the University鈥檚 academic and legislative priorities.

鈥淚鈥檝e worked closely with Morgan since she joined the UW. She is a proven leader who is ready to step in as Director of State Relations,鈥� Vice President Dacca said. 鈥淪he brings a wealth of experience, strong relationships both inside and outside the UW, and deep knowledge about the opportunities and challenges facing our University.鈥�

Hickel has been with the 91探花since November 2018, when she joined the Office of State Relations as Associate Director. In this role, she worked on multiple key budget requests and pieces of legislation supporting the University. Prior to the UW, she worked in government relations at the federal, state, and local levels for multiple trade associations. She also managed a successful campaign in Tacoma, Washington. Hickel graduated from the 91探花 with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in communications.

鈥淚 look forward to continuing to advocate for the 91探花in state government,鈥� Hickel said. 鈥淚n this role, I remain committed to working collaboratively with state leaders, community partners, and the 91探花community to advance our public-service mission and impact across Washington state.鈥�

鈥淛oe鈥檚 unique blend of experience across several levels of government as well as his deep institutional knowledge make him well positioned to take on this role,鈥� said Hodgins. 鈥淗is expertise in advocacy, knowledge of regional public policy, and commitment to this University will be critical as the 91探花navigates upcoming campus leadership changes and a challenging political landscape.鈥�

With nine years of service to the University as Director of State Relations, Dacca brings a wealth of experience in public policy, government relations, and higher education advocacy to his new role. Prior to his work at the UW, he served on staff for former U.S. Representatives Derek Kilmer and Norm Dicks as well as a legislative assistant in the Washington State Senate. A proud 91探花alumnus, Dacca graduated with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in political science.

鈥淚 am grateful to President Cauce for the opportunity to serve my alma mater in this important role and I am honored to continue to work alongside the talented and dedicated External Affairs team,鈥� said Dacca. 鈥淏uilding on the foundation led by Vice President Randy Hodgins, we will continue to strengthen partnerships both inside and outside the University and work collaboratively to advance the dynamic, public-facing mission of the UW.鈥�

The Office of External Affairs is responsible for government and community relations at the federal, state, regional, and tribal levels. Units within External Affairs advocate for the UW鈥檚 priorities on a wide variety of issues, provide advice on legislative strategy, build and maintain relationships with leaders across Washington state, and raise awareness of emerging issues and opportunities. The Vice President of External Affairs reports directly to the 91探花President.

During this transition, Morgan Hickel will serve as interim director of State Relations beginning on July 2.

The full release from 91探花News is available on their website.

Last updated on: January 12, 2023

The Office of Regional & Community Relations links the University with neighborhoods surrounding the Seattle campus, civic groups and local government. The Director of Regional & Community Relations reports directly to the Vice President for External Affairs.

鈥淲ith more than two decades serving in this office, Aaron knows the Regional and Community Relations world like the back of his hand,鈥� Hodgins said. 鈥淗is vast institutional knowledge and experience as well as strong connections inside and outside the University will continue to strengthen the UW鈥檚 relationships with local lawmakers and community stakeholders.鈥�

Hoard has been with the 91探花for 23 years serving first as a Special Projects Manager and then as Deputy Director for the Office of Regional & Community Relations. While with the UW, he has worked on a variety of projects including affordable housing, public safety, transit, the Campus Master Plan, North of 45th and served on local boards and committees. He was formerly a Comprehensive Planner and Geographic Information Systems Analyst for the City of Bellevue. He graduated from the 91探花 with a degree in geography.
鈥淚 look forward to continuing my work to connect campus with local government and the surrounding community,鈥� Hoard said.

Hoard takes over the director position from Sally Clark who was recently named Vice President of Campus Community Safety.

Yet, my excitement around these significant investments is tempered by two critical pieces that did not make the cut this year. Our funding request for the 91探花School of Dentistry Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE) program expansion would have doubled the annual cohort of RIDE students from eight to 16 per year and ensured that they spend two academic years based in Spokane. We know there is a critical need for more dentists, particularly in rural areas, and expanding this program in Eastern Washington would have been a fantastic step toward bridging that gap.

Additionally, while we did see an increase in the state portion of the compensation fund split, up to 60% from 58% in the previous biennium, we are behind every other public university in the state when it comes to state support for 91探花staff salaries. This is particularly distressing when the 91探花continues to receive record demand from Washington students, and insufficient state funding levels mean we cannot offer admission to as many students who qualify for admission. Without stronger state investment from the legislature, the 91探花must rely more on students鈥� tuition for compensation leaving less for critical investments in other areas.

Despite this, 2023 was a good session for the University and I am grateful for the hard work of my Office of State Relations staff, as well as the 91探花leaders and students who took time to visit Olympia and urge the legislature to fund our requests. I know my staff is already thinking about how they will approach the critical pieces that ended up on the budget office鈥檚 cutting room floor during next year鈥檚 session.

For a more detailed breakdown of the budget highlights, I recommend checking out the Office of State Relations鈥� most recent blog post.

Beyond the move back to in-person, this session is also noteworthy because 29 new legislators joined the House and Senate this year and most sophomore legislators working an in-person session for the first time. This means we have a unique opportunity to meet and share the impact of higher education broadly and the 91探花specifically with many new members.

During this 105-day 鈥渓ong鈥� session, legislators will decide the 2023-25 biennial operating, capital, and transportation budgets. The 91探花has put forward a robust agenda with asks ranging from staff compensation to dental health to building renovation to growing local, more diverse STEM workforce pipeline. I鈥檝e highlighted some key requests below. For a full list of our budget requests, our .

Competitive compensation for nonrepresented faculty and staff: $26.2M in FY24; $46.6M in FY25+
With rising inflation and the high cost of living in the Puget Sound region, funds are requested to increase salaries for nonrepresented employees by 4% in FY24 and 3% in FY25 with an improved fund split of at least two-thirds of state funding. Investing in compensation is paramount to our efforts to recruit and retain quality faculty and staff.

Ensuring 91探花Medicine can continue to care for our state鈥檚 most vulnerable residents: $300M
91探花Medical Center and Harborview Medical Center serve a unique role as the state鈥檚 safety-net and health-care workforce training hospitals. Given the serious financial crisis facing these hospitals, we are requesting funding for safety-net and health-care workforce training activities; to alleviate significant labor costs and sustain clinical operations; and to ensure our hospitals鈥� financial viability while other payment programs await federal approval.

Growing a local, more diverse STEM workforce pipeline: $5.2M in FY24; $9.1M in FY25+
Student and employer demand for 91探花STEM degrees continues to exceed our existing capacity. With additional funding, the 91探花would add 760 enrollments and 300 degrees per year by FY27, as well as academic support services, to qualified Washington students in informatics, computing and engineering.

91探花School of Dentistry RIDE program expansion: $2M in FY24; $2.34M in FY25+
The Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE) program of the 91探花School of Dentistry trains dentists to meet the needs of rural and underserved populations in the state. In partnership with Eastern Washington University, we request funds to double the annual cohort of RIDE students from eight to 16 per year and ensure that they spend two academic years based in Spokane.

Phase 2 of the Magnuson Health Sciences Center renovation and replacement: $58M
Built in the 1970s, Magnuson Health Sciences Center needs a major overhaul. The new facilities will promote innovative, multidisciplinary learning to over 8,000 students in the UW鈥檚 six health sciences schools (dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, public health and social work), accommodate future program growth, and support continuing education for current health-care professionals.

Design and renovate Anderson Hall in Seattle: $28.9M
Constructed in 1925, Anderson Hall has an antiquated learning environment that lacks adequate classroom and collaborative learning spaces. Renewed facilities will accommodate increased enrollment, address long-standing accessibility and safety issues, and allow for innovative learning and research in support of Washington鈥檚 environmental, economic and societal prosperity.

Design and construct phase 2 of w菨色菨b蕯altx史 鈥� Intellectual House: $9M
w菨色菨b蕯altx史 鈥� Intellectual House is a learning and gathering place for the UW鈥檚 American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) students, faculty and staff and a center for sharing the knowledge of Northwest Indigenous peoples. The building aims to further support access and retention for AIAN students.

Behavioral health renovation of 91探花Medical Center鈥揘orthwest: $13M
This project renovates an existing psychiatric unit at 91探花Medical Center鈥揘orthwest, which will house voluntary adult psychiatric patients. These beds will be part of the behavioral health training program for multidisciplinary care teams centered at the Behavioral Health Teaching Facility.

While Washington鈥檚 economy continues its unprecedented rebound from the dire projections made in the early days of the pandemic, the unrelenting COVID rollercoaster continues to present numerous challenges. Because this is a short 鈥渟upplemental budget鈥� session, the University limited its requests to the most essential items including:

• $18.45M for salary adjustments for faculty and staff who are not scheduled to receive wage increases in the current biennial budget. Recruiting and retaining effective educators and staff is critical to the continued success of students and the University. This is our number one priority!
• $2M to expand computer science and engineering degrees by an additional 100 per year to meet sustained, high demand from students and employers.
• $505K to create two behavioral health pharmacy residencies housed at the new Behavioral Health Teaching Facility. These residencies would help address the state鈥檚 critical behavioral health patient and workforce needs and the request is in partnership with Washington State University, which is requesting additional funds for two pharmacy residencies in Eastern Washington.
• $800K for a three-year research program led by the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation in Spokane focused on community health metrics to help proactively address health disparities in rural and tribal communities in Eastern Washington.
• $621K maintenance and operation (M&O) funds for Milgard Hall at 91探花Tacoma. Construction is ahead of schedule and occupancy is now expected in October 2022 instead of mid-2023.

For more details regarding the UW鈥檚 capital and operating budget requests, see the . In an encouraging initial step forward in the process, last month we learned that Governor Inslee included all of our funding requests and allocated additional funds to other important initiatives in his supplemental budget proposal. Support from the Governor coupled with strong revenue projections causes me to be cautiously optimistic about the Senate and House budgets as well. For regular updates throughout the 2022 session, be sure to check out the Office of State Relation鈥檚 blog.

When you think about where the 91探花 is making an impact, Spokane might not be the first place that comes to mind. You might instead picture our extensive west side purple and gold presence, particularly on our Seattle, Bothell and Tacoma campuses. However, the 91探花actually has a long history in the Lilac City. From the early 1970s when the 91探花School of Medicine secured a grant to start the WWAMI program and began clinical rotations in Spokane, to today when a cohort of 60 students complete their Foundations Phase in Spokane each year, the 91探花community has been living, learning and serving the Inland Northwest for over 50 years.

You might be asking 鈥� particularly if you live on the west side of the state 鈥� what makes Spokane so attractive? 聽Well, affordability is one answer. Despite being the 2^nd largest city in Washington state, the cost of living in Spokane is estimated to be 37% lower than in Seattle and although the Spokane housing market has risen steeply over the last 18 months, the median home price is still $400,000 less than the Emerald City. Throw in shorter commute times and access to fantastic restaurants, arts and entertainment and the great outdoors, it鈥檚 easy to see the appeal. Beyond livability metrics, Spokane leaders are cultivating a growing life sciences research ecosystem that is on track to reach $2.5 billion in the next ten years. In the last six years alone, Spokane has experienced a 50% increase in NIH research dollars.

Mirroring the growth Spokane is experiencing, the 91探花is also growing its footprint in the city. Earlier this summer, I had a chance to tour the new UW-GU Health Partnership building. 聽When finished, over 600 Gonzaga and 91探花students will utilize the four-story, 90,000 square-foot building. These students will be the next generation of doctors, nurses and health care workers and technicians serving communities in eastern Washington and across our state. Despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, construction continues to be on schedule and is expected to finish ahead of time in May 2022.

The new space will not only serve our medical students in Spokane but will also open up opportunities for other 91探花departments to locate important regional research and programming on the eastern side of the state. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), for example, is developing a program focused on community health metrics, disparities and drivers that would be based in Spokane. Although our 2022 Legislative agenda is still being fleshed out, securing funding from the state to support IHME Spokane will be among the requests. And I鈥檓 confident that more 91探花programs will follow in the coming years.

The 91探花 is committed to our entire state and dedicated to expanding access to education, spurring innovation and meeting the needs of patients and communities across eastern Washington and beyond. As President Cauce always says, it is our aim to not simply be the University OF Washington, but also to be the University FOR Washington.

The 91探花 acknowledges the Coast Salish peoples of this land, the land that touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Suquamish, Tulalip and Muckleshoot nations. To learn more about the land you live on, we recommend consulting聽.

Indigenous People’s Day is a celebration and honoring of the past, present, and futures of Native People in lieu of Columbus Day. On this day, we recognize the histories, cultures and contributions of Native people in Washington state and beyond. To learn more about connections between Indigenous communities and the 91探花, the Office of External Affairs recommends the following resources as a starting point.

Take the Indigenous Walking Tour – Authored by Owen Oliver, a recent 91探花graduate, the tour highlights the Indigenous presence on campus, including stops at the Burke Museum and w菨色菨b蕯altx史 Intellectual House. A聽virtual version of the tour聽is available courtesy of 91探花News.

Visit the Burke Museum – cares for and shares natural and cultural collections so all people can learn, be inspired, generate knowledge, feel joy and heal. The Burke holds significant collections of Northwest and Alaskan Native art, archaeology and historical archives, which are actively used by Native artists, scholars, students, Tribal leaders and community members. Relationships maintained between indigenous communities and the Burke Museum preserve the ingenuity, creativity, science and complex knowledge of natural and cultural resources.

Check out 91探花In Your Community – The 91探花is proud to partner with many tribal nations, tribal citizens and descendants connected to Washington territories. 91探花In Your Community’s聽Tribal Nations聽page highlights some of the many ways the 91探花collaborates with tribal citizens and supports Native students. For a more comprehensive list of resources, we recommend the 91探花Tribal Relations聽.