an objective estimate of a bill’s fiscal impact

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FISCAL NOTES 2014 LEGISLATIVE SESSIONBecka JohnsonHigher Education Policy Analyst

January 8, 2014

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An objective estimate of a bill’s fiscal impact. Provides a 6-year projection, each year shows

incremental change from current law/budget Bases assumptions on least expensive way to reasonably

implement the bill Is always tied to a specific version of a bill Helps legislators evaluate a bill’s costs and merits Informs legislative staff, journalists, lobbyists, and others

WHAT IS A FISCAL NOTE?

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They inform legislative decisions that impact the UW. We need to be responsive and accurate

The tricky part is… We have less than 72 hours to respond Fiscal notes cover a huge variety of topics

We need your help to quickly prepare accurate fiscal notes.

WHY SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT FISCAL NOTES?

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OFM distributes the final FN to legislators

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FISCAL NOTE PROCESS OVERVIEW

Occasionally OFM sends a revision request

OPB adds FN to OFM’s system and submits it

OPB reviews FN for accuracy and completeness

Assessors prepare FN response in Bill Tracker

OPB adds FN to Bill Tracker and notifies assessors

OPB receives FN request from OFM

< 72

Hou

rs

OFM distributes the final FN to legislators

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FISCAL NOTE PROCESS OVERVIEW

Occasionally OFM sends a revision request

OPB adds FN to OFM’s system and submits it

OPB reviews FN for accuracy and completeness

Assessors prepare FN response in Bill Tracker

OPB adds FN to Bill Tracker and notifies assessors

OPB receives FN request from OFM

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Responding to a Fiscal Note Request

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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification

HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST

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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification2. Read the bill 3. Review relevant laws and budgets (as needed)

4. Coordinate your response with others (as needed)

5. In Bill Tracker, describe the bill’s fiscal impact using all relevant narratives and tables

HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST

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Summary: overview of how the bill impacts the UW

Four types of impact that may be relevant…

Cash Receipts: the bill’s estimated impact on the UW’s cash receipts (taxes & fees)

Expenditures: expenditures necessary to implement the bill, including all assumptions

FTEs: list of additional staff time FTEs (by job title and annual salary) required to implement the legislation

Capital: acquisition and construction costs not reflected elsewhere and describes potential financing

ELEMENTS OF A FISCAL NOTE

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EXPENDITURES

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EXPENDITURES

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FTE

Job Title, Full-time Salary FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019

Director, $85,000 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

TOTAL 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

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FTE

Job Title, Full-time Salary FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019

Director, $85,000 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

Graduate Student Asst., $50,000 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

TOTAL 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5

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FTE

Enter each full-time salary (not including benefits) List the number of FTE required for that job title/salary

Job Title, Full-time Salary FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019

Director, $85,000 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

Graduate Student Asst., $50,000 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

Site Supervisor, $70,000 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1

TOTAL 1.5 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6

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1. Check the due date and time in the email notification2. Read the bill 3. Review relevant laws and budgets (as needed)

4. Coordinate your response with others (as needed)

5. In Bill Tracker, describe the bill’s fiscal impact using all relevant narratives and tables

6. To save and return later, hit “Submit Feedback” (every 3hrs)

7. When finished, check “this is my final response” and hit “Submit Feedback”

HOW TO RESPOND TO A FISCAL NOTE REQUEST

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If there are too many unknowns to make a reasonable estimate, you can say impact is “indeterminate”

However, we must still:• Explain why the impact is indeterminate• Give a rough estimate of the fiscal impact (either “Less than

$50,000 per fiscal year” or “Greater than $50,000 per fiscal year”)• Provide a range of scenarios that provide a sense of scale,

indicate which scenario is most likely

WHEN THE FISCAL IMPACT IS INDETERMINATE

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In such cases, we can cite ‘no fiscal impact,’ However, we must still:

• Provide information about the scale of the costs • Explain what existing activities/efforts might be displaced

in order to accommodate the legislation

WHEN COST IS SMALL AND CAN BE ABSORBED

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A fiscal note must be objective, so please communicate your opinions separately

Reminder: Fiscal assessments must take priority over general assessments

WHEN YOU HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT A BILL

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Write for a general audience, avoid jargon Only report the incremental impact of the bill Report current dollars, don’t build in inflation Identify costs/receipts as one-time or on-going Identify and explain ALL assumptions Use realistic implementation dates and account for them Separate cost of benefits from cost of salaries In the FTE section, report the number of FTE needed Respond! please

TIPS AND REMINDERS

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OFM’s 2014 Fiscal Note Instructions: http://ofm.wa.gov/budget/ instructions/other/agencyfiscalnoteinstructions.pdf

OFM’s Fund Look-up: http://www.ofm.wa.gov/fund/

OFM’s Fiscal Note Look-up: https://fortress.wa.gov/ofm/fnspublic/

WA Legislature Home (bill and law search): www.leg.wa.gov

ADDITIONAL FISCAL NOTE RESOURCES

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Becka Johnsonjbecka@uw.edu (206) 616-7203

Miranda Leidichleidich@uw.edu (206) 685-7449

Sharyl Morrissharylb@uw.edu (206) 543-4679

If you don’t know who your fiscal note analyst is, or if you have general questions, contact Becka.

FISCAL NOTE ASSISTANCE

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Questions?