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Oversight board hears that WEA is funding a growing share of higher education costs amid general-fund cuts
Summary
Board staff told the WEA Oversight Board that after the 2026 supplemental budget the state's general fund now covers a smaller share of higher education spending and the WEA account is covering a larger portion, driven by a $400 million shift and other backfills.
Board staff briefed the WEA Oversight Board on recent changes in how Washington finances higher education, saying the state general fund's share of higher-education appropriations has declined while the WEA account's share has risen.
“The proportion historically was about 75% from the general fund,” the presenter said, noting that after the 2025 session the share dropped to roughly two-thirds and that the 2026 supplemental operating budget pushed that share to a little under 64 percent. The presenter attributed much of the change to a $400 million transfer of obligations into the WEA account and a one-time roughly $240 million backfill from institutions’ capital project accounts.
Board members pressed for context. Bill Line of United Faculty Washington State warned that moving funding into WEA does not mean more total higher-education funding and urged attention to overall budget trends. Charles Knuson of Amazon noted that some of the apparent increase is tied to tax changes, not underlying growth, and cautioned that the “ceiling is coming down and the bottom is falling out.”
The presenter also highlighted caseload pressures: the Washington College Grant appropriation from WEA increased from about $318 million in the 23–25 biennium to $583 million so far in 25–27, an increase of roughly $250 million. Board staff said they will monitor caseload forecasts closely, with new revenue forecasts due in September and November and a college-grant forecast update in November 2026.
The board did not take policy action during this update; staff said they will return with further forecasts and numbers prior to the next legislative session.
