Washington § 28B.145.140 - Local government partner promise scholarship program.

(1) A local government partner may establish its own promise scholarship program within the opportunity scholarship program. The local government partner promise scholarship program shall be administered by the Washington state opportunity scholarship program. The program administrator shall assist the local government partner in the selection, notification, and disbursement of scholarship awards.

(2) To be eligible to participate in a local government partner promise scholarship program, a student must have received his or her high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate as provided in RCW 28B.50.536 in Washington and attend a public two-year institution of higher education or a professional-technical certificate or degree program as approved by the state board for community and technical colleges under RCW 28B.50.090(7)(c). Eligibility may not extend beyond three years or 125 percent of the published length of the program in which the student is enrolled or the credit or clock-hour equivalent.

(3) A local government partner that establishes a promise scholarship program may establish separate rules for its program that are independent from the broader Washington state opportunity scholarship program.

(4) The value of the scholarship award under the local government partner promise scholarship program is, at minimum, the difference between the recipient's total tuition fees as defined in RCW 28B.15.020 and services and activities fees as defined in RCW 28B.15.041, less the value of any state-funded grant including the college bound scholarship program established in chapter 28B.118 RCW and the Washington college grant created in RCW 28B.92.200, scholarship, gift aid, or waiver assistance the recipient receives. The local government partner may provide additional scholarship awards to cover reasonable expenses associated with the costs of acquiring an education such as books, equipment, room and board, and other expenses as determined by the local government partner.

(5) The office of student financial assistance and the institutions of higher education may not consider awards made under a local government partner's promise scholarship program to be state-funded for the purpose of determining the value of an award for other state financial aid programs.

(6) If a student participating in a local government partner promise scholarship program transfers to an institution not eligible under the local government partner's promise scholarship program rules, the student must reapply to the broader opportunity scholarship program and meet all eligibility requirements. A local government partner may continue to provide funds to the student through its own promise scholarship program if the local government partner's program rules allow continued payment. A student may not receive funds from the broader Washington state opportunity scholarship program and the local government partner promise scholarship program at the same time.

(7) A participating student's eligibility must be reconfirmed prior to each disbursement of funds.

(8) In consultation with the local government partner, the administrator's duties include:

(a) Implementing a selection and notification process for awarding local government scholarship funds;

(b) Distributing funds to selected students; and

(c) Notifying institutions of higher education of the local government scholarship recipients who will attend their institutions of higher education and informing the institutions of the scholarship fund amounts and terms of the awards.

(9) Ten percent of the local government partner funds, excluding state matching funds, may be used for the operational costs listed in subsection (8) of this section. The local government partner may opt to have additional programmatic support from the broader Washington opportunity scholarship program, such as application or marketing support, for an additional agreed-upon fee.

(10) In the event that there are not enough funds to serve all eligible applicants, priority must be given to applicants to the broader Washington state opportunity scholarship program over applicants to a government partner promise scholarship program.

(11) For each local government partner promise scholarship program, state matching funds shall be limited to $250,000 per fiscal year.

(12) For purposes of this section, "government partner" means municipalities, counties, or federally recognized Indian tribes.

(13) To be eligible for a state match in the 2025-27 biennium, a local government partner shall submit a pledge amount to the program administrator referencing the local government partner promise scholarship program by February 1, 2025.

Purpose—Intent—2025 c 254: "The legislature recognizes that postsecondary credentials are vital for creating and maintaining a skilled workforce. To increase Washington's skilled workforce, local governments are encouraged to establish their own local government partner promise scholarship programs within the Washington state opportunity scholarship program to further reduce barriers for students within their jurisdiction. Current barriers may include scholarship applications, income limits, and degree program requirements. The purpose of this act is for local governments that establish local government partner promise scholarship programs to have minimal administrative duties, making benefits to students substantial. Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature to encourage additional local government partner promise scholarship programs to serve more students with fewer barriers." [ 2025 c 254 s 1.]