EWU Presidential Message: Governor Signs 2025-2027 State Budget

The following message was sent from EWU President Shari McMahan to Eastern faculty and staff on Friday, May 23, 2025.

 

Dear colleagues,

On May 20, Governor Ferguson signed into law the state’s 2025-2027 operating and capital budget. We knew this was going to be a challenging year for the state but are proud of the funding Eastern was able to secure. First and foremost, we will have no furloughs. This was a topic of great concern for our leadership team, and we are thankful this will not happen as a result of this budget cycle. Below are some additional highlights from the budget that will directly impact Eastern:

• $10.5 million for Dental Therapy Program – EWU received capital funding to begin creating a dental therapy program.
• $6 million for Minor Works – This capital funding ensures EWU is able to continue small projects to maintain the physical environment on campus.
• No Martin Williamson Design Funding – Unfortunately, we were not granted funds to complete the design phase. We will continue to pursue this project as a legislative priority.
• Base Appropriation Cuts – All public universities received a reduction of 1.5% in base appropriations due to the budget shortfall at the state level. For EWU, this means a $1.4 million dollar reduction for the next two years (total $2.8M).
• Compensation and Fund Split – The budget provides $5.2 million in partial funding for cost-of-living adjustments but at a state cost share that is reduced from 70 percent to 63 percent.
• WA College Grant Funding – This state financial aid for low-income students remains largely whole; however, the median family income to qualify was rolled back from 65% to 60%.

Although not all of our capital requests received funding, this outcome was anticipated, and we remain proud of the strong proposals we submitted and grateful for the support we did receive. Our conversations will now turn to advancing our revised legislative agenda for the upcoming supplemental budget session, and we will continue working to ensure our students, faculty, and staff receive the support needed to be successful.

Sincerely,

 

Dr. Shari McMahan

President

Eastern Washington University