OLYMPIA – For many people in Washington State, the most impactful bill passed by the legislature last month will be the Workforce Education Investment Act, which will make public college tuition-free for families earning under approximately $50,000 per year.
HB 2158 is a major new workforce education program that will help people get the training and credentials they need for a family-wage job.
Peninsula College President Luke Robins.
This Investment Act expands on the State Need Grant, which has been in place for years, but will now be fully funded, primarily through a higher B&O tax rate for service industry businesses that employ people with advanced degrees.
Here’s Representative Mike Chapman.
28th District Rep. Mari Leavitt put it this way:
The program also provides partial tuition scholarships to families earning up to around $88,000 for a family of four, and it expands the Guided Pathways program.
Leavitt says the funding for this program will not be in place for the coming Fall enrollment period, but will kick in on January 1, 2020.