Washington State College Tuition News

Great news! As many of you may have heard, earlier this summer our state passed the College Affordability Act. For the next two years, this act lowers tuition for Washington State colleges and universities. This means tuition at four-year schools statewide will be cut by 15 to 20 percent, while two-year institutions will see tuition drop by 5 percent.

Specifically, tuition at Washington State University and University of Washington is expected to drop 15% over the next two years, while tuition at Eastern, Central, Western, and the Evergreen State College will be reduced by 20%. No other states have decreased tuition by this much before. Lawmakers and educators alike are hailing this as an historic event that makes college in Washington State more affordable for families.

In addition, starting in the 2017-18 academic year, tuition operating fees for resident undergraduates at community and technical colleges may increase by no more than the state’s average annual growth rate in median hourly wages, as determined by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Those of you who have invested in GET credits may have some questions, since decreasing tuition was never foreseen when the program was implemented. What happens if you have Washington State GET tuition credits for your child? As of last week, the GET Committee authorized these decisions:

1. Based on the recent passage of the College Affordability Act, effective September 2, 2015, the payout value for the GET program will remain $117.82 per unit until the time when one year of resident undergraduate tuition and state mandated fees at Washington State’s highest-priced public university surpasses $11,782. This is intended to give GET customers peace of mind in knowing that they will not receive less than the current payout value for their account.
2. Based on the recent passage of the College Affordability Act, effective September 2, 2015 through December 15, 2016, the GET program will waive all state program refund fees and the two-year hold requirement for all account owners. Customers who are concerned about the tuition policy will be able to move their GET fund balances into a different 529 plan, including a 529 savings plan.
3. Based on the recent passage of the College Affordability Act, effective September 2, 2015 through December 15, 2016, the GET program will allow account owners to receive a refund of their contributions or the payout value, whichever is greater. Refunds of contributions include finance charges paid by customers with Custom Monthly plans, if these finance charges caused the effective unit price to be greater than $117.82 per unit.

Check out the GET website for more information.