The higher education coordinating board shall have the following powers and duties in administering the program for the four-year institutions of higher education:

     (1) To adopt rules necessary to carry out the program;

     (2) To establish one or more review committees to assist in the evaluation of proposals for funding. The review committees may receive input from parents, educators, and other experts in the field of early childhood education for this purpose;

     (3) To establish each biennium specific guidelines for submitting grant proposals consistent with the overall goals of the program. The guidelines shall be consistent with the following desired outcomes of increasing access to quality child care for students, providing affordable child care alternatives for students, creating a partnership between university or college administrations, university or college foundations, and student government associations, or their equivalents;

     (4) To proportionally distribute the amount of money available in the trust fund based on the financial support for child care received by the student government associations or their equivalents. Student government associations may solicit funds from private organizations and targeted fund-raising campaigns as part of their financial support for child care;

     (5) To solicit grant proposals and provide information to the institutions of higher education about the program;

     (6) To establish reporting, evaluation, accountability, monitoring, and dissemination requirements for the recipients of the grants; and

     (7) To report to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 15, 2008, and every two years thereafter, on the status of program design and implementation at the four-year institutions of higher education. The report shall include but not be limited to summary information on the institutions receiving child care grant allocations, the amount contributed by each university or college administration and student government association for the purposes of child care including expenditures and reports for the previous biennium, services provided by each institutional child care center, the number of students using such services, and identifiable unmet need.

[2008 c 162 § 3; 2005 c 490 § 8; 1999 c 375 § 3.]

NOTES:

     Intent -- 2008 c 162: See note following RCW 28B.135.010.

     Effective date -- 2005 c 490: See note following RCW 43.215.540.