2017 saw every legislature in the West in session--including the 15 Western states, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam--with legislators addressing a diverse array of higher education topics and dealing with an equally wide variety of budgetary outlooks. As in past years, Western states featured some of the largest percentage increases in state higher education funding as well as some of the deepest cuts. States with economies reliant on oil, natural gas, and coal extraction continued to adapt to an era of difficult discussions and tight budgets brought on by low energy prices, while states with expanding economies explored new ways to invest in their higher education systems. Despite the variation in state budgets, some common themes arose during the 2017 sessions. First and foremost, legislators were especially focused on keeping students at the center of their higher education legislative activity. Bills regarding affordability, students' right to privacy and free speech, streamlining pathways to credential attainment, and clarifying the cost and value of higher education appeared in legislatures across the West. Other topics of interest included altering higher education governance structures and more effectively using data.