Enhancing higher education procedures.

HB 2617 eliminates Washington's current "fund split" funding method, which forces public colleges and universities to use tuition revenue for mandatory costs like faculty salaries and benefits. Instead, it requires the state to cover these costs directly, freeing tuition revenue to improve educational quality and student services. The bill also mandates a study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy to define essential student services (such as counseling, tutoring, and career support) and determine their required funding levels, with a report due by December 2026. This aims to address structural underfunding that has reduced program offerings, increased class sizes, and strained institutional budgets.