HB 2438 Washington House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Establishing the supporting our early education degree seekers scholarship.

HB 2438 establishes the "Supporting Our Early Education Degree Seekers Scholarship" to provide tuition-free education for students pursuing early childhood education credentials at Washington state community or technical colleges. It targets low-to-moderate income students (65-150% of state median family income) enrolled in eligible associate degree or certificate programs, requiring them to work in early learning centers for two years post-graduation. The scholarship uses $10 million annually from the existing Washington Advanced College Tuition Payment Program surplus (which has a 178% funding level), covering up to 90 tuition credits per student over three years. Recipients must maintain academic progress and may receive additional wraparound support services from colleges to aid program completion.

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Feb 19, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Bill → Substitute Bill · 8 edits

MODERATE

The bill was renumbered from H-2758.1 to H-3363.2 and moved from the original House Bill status to a Substitute Bill after committee review. The primary changes involve expanding eligibility for the scholarship to include students who already hold an associate's degree (limiting them to 30 credits), shifting the income adjustment authority from the Student Achievement Council to the administering office, and adding a new scholarship account with specific funding restrictions. The expiration date for the study requirement was also extended from 2028 to 2029.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to allow students with an associate's degree to receive up to 30 credits of tuition-free education, whereas the original version only allowed students who had not previously earned an associate's degree to participate.

TIMELINE

The bill number changed from H-2758.1 to H-3363.2, and the reading date was updated from January 13, 2026, to February 4, 2026.

The deadline for the sustainability study was extended from October 1, 2027, to October 18, 2028, and the section expiration date was moved from July 1, 2028, to August 1, 2029.

ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility criteria were updated to allow students who have previously earned an associate's degree to receive up to 30 credits, provided they meet other requirements.

The requirement for family income adjustment was changed from being set by the Student Achievement Council to being set by the administering office.

FISCAL

A new 'early education scholarship account' was created to hold funds specifically for this scholarship, with a limit of $500,000 annually for administrative costs.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added to limit administrative costs to no more than $500,000 per year from the dedicated funding source.

ENFORCEMENT

A new statute of limitations was added, barring any legal challenges to the act's validity after January 1, 2030, and requiring notification to tuition unit contract owners.

DEFINITION

The definition for 'Board' (State Board for Community and Technical Colleges) was removed, while the definition for 'Council' (Student Achievement Council) was added.

Substitute Bill → Second Substitute Bill · 9 edits

MAJOR

The bill was renumbered and moved from the Postsecondary Education committee to Appropriations, with its first reading date updated. The most significant policy change is the addition of a new funding source to replace existing Early Achievers program money, alongside the removal of a specific IRS-related finding. Eligibility for the tuition scholarship was tightened by lowering the income threshold for the lowest tier from 65% to 61% of the state median, and the award calculation now distinguishes between students at 61-100% income (who must replace existing grants) and those at 101-150% income. The bill's sunset date was extended from August 2029 to December 2029, and the deadline for legal challenges was moved up from January 2030 to July 2028.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded by adding a provision to replace funding for the Early Achievers program, while the scope of the scholarship's financial benefit was modified to create two distinct award tiers based on family income levels.

TECHNICAL

The bill number changed from H-3363.2 to H-3488.1, and the title changed from 'Substitute Bill' to 'Second Substitute Bill'.

REQUIREMENT

The committee assignment changed from Postsecondary Education & Workforce to Appropriations, and the first reading date was updated from February 4 to February 9, 2026.

FISCAL

A new finding was added stating it is appropriate to use surplus funds to replace current funding for the Early Achievers program and its grants.

A finding regarding an IRS informational letter about transferring credit purchases in qualified tuition programs was removed.

The scholarship award calculation was split into two tiers: students at 61-100% income must replace prorated Washington College Grant awards, while students at 101-150% income do not have this requirement.

The funding mechanism was updated to require the State Treasurer to transfer $10 million annually from the Washington Advanced College Tuition Payment Program account starting August 1, 2027.

ELIGIBILITY

The income threshold for the lowest scholarship tier was lowered from 65% to 61% of the state median family income.

TIMELINE

The sunset date for the scholarship study was extended from August 1, 2029, to December 1, 2029.

ENFORCEMENT

The deadline for filing legal challenges against the act was moved forward from January 1, 2030, to July 31, 2028.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 9, 2026

Committee

Referred to Rules 2 Review.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Appropriations at 10:30 AM.

lower

Feb 7, 2026

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Appropriations at 9:00 AM.

lower

Feb 4, 2026

Committee

Referred to Appropriations.

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Postsecondary Education & Workforce at 1:30 PM.

lower

Jan 27, 2026

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Postsecondary Education & Workforce at 1:30 PM.

lower

1 primary · 5 co-sponsors