The House is debating the latest budget proposal now. Watch live on TVW.

First up: Amendments. Rep. Gary Alexander filed a striking amendment to Rep. Ross Hunter’s striker.

“We’re not that far apart,” said Rep. Richard DeBolt. He says that Alexander’s striker is the only budget that will get lawmakers out of Olympia today. “Let’s send that budget over to the Senate and let’s Sine Die tonight,” he said.

Rep. Bruce Dammeier said some of the budget cuts in Alexander’s amendment are “difficult…. At some point, we have to own up to our responsibility” to write an “honest” budget that doesn’t use accounting tricks.

Rep. Eileen Cody said the minority party wants to “kick 20,000 people off healthcare” so that they can avoid sending an apportionment payment to schools one day late. She said that’s not something she can vote for.

“This striking amendment will take us back in the right direction. It will bring some honesty and transparency back to this process,” said Rep. Barbara Bailey.

The amendment failed, 43 to 55.

Now, for debate of Hunter’s striking amendment.

Rep. Ross Hunter said he wants the House to adopt a budget and thinks this one strikes the right balance.

Rep. Gary Alexander said the chance to pass a bipartisan bill, however, is done. “I don’t think this bill has 50 votes in the House and 25 in the Senate,” he said, adding that he doesn’t know why they’re voting on it at all. He said the delay of payments to the school district is “an accounting error that will cause longstanding repercussions.” He said he’s pleased with a few of the changes in the budget, but not enough to earn his vote. (more…)

Tags: Budget, House, special session

Reps. Ross Hunter and Gary Alexander talked with Jessica Gao this morning. They both talk about the striking amendment to the Senate-backed budget that House Democrats just unveiled.

Tags: Budget, House, Rep. Gary Alexander, Rep. Ross Hunter, The Impact, TVW

TVW is interviewing top lawmakers throughout the day. Here’s The Impact host Jessica Gao’s interview with House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan, in which he says this morning’s deal could “absolutely” get the Legislature out on time:

Tags: Budget, House, The Impact

The bill to add the state cigarette tax to “roll your own” cigarettes is getting a vote in the House now. Watch live on TVW.

Rep. Cary Condotta said the bill will close 65 to 70 businesses across the state. “There is no question here what they’re doing,” he said, for only about a million dollars in revenue. “No thank you, Mr. Speaker. Not for me.”

But Rep. Chris Hurst, a Democrat from Enumclaw, said the bill will protect jobs — not take them away. He said RYO businesses often advertise cigarettes at half price and that puts all the other businesses around them at risk. “They’re right on the margins right now, Mr. Speaker. They’re barely getting by. These grocery stores legally sell tobacco and that’s a big part of their business,” he said.

Rep. Matt Shea asked how many votes the bill would take to pass, since it increases revenue to the state. Rep. Jim Moeller, acting speaker, said that since roll-your-own cigarettes are already included in the definition of cigarettes under state law, there was no need for a two-thirds vote.

The bill passed 67 to 30 and now heads to the Senate.

Tags: House, Roll your own cigarettes, taxes

The House is debating its version of the supplemental budget now. Watch live on TVW. Each legislator is limited to speaking for three minutes.

Rep. Ross Hunter (D, Medina) was the first to speak. He said there are some in the House who want to spend more — and some who would rather try to save more, but that he believes this budget strikes the right balance.

Rep. Gary Alexander (R, Olympia) said the budget isn’t responsible to the state’s most vulnerable. He said the most divisive issue for Republicans is that the budget shifts responsibilities onto the next Legislature by delaying payments.

Rep. Jeannie Darneille (D, Tacoma) said this budget, like previous ones, seeks to implement evidence-based practices so that the right, targeted cuts are made. “We’ve tried to make our choices in a responsible fashion,” she said.

Rep. Charles Ross (R, Naches) said the budget writing committee has worked hard to define the core functions of government. He said Republicans created a budget to meet those core functions, but it was rejected. He said this budget will “create public safety concerns all across the state” by making changes to community corrections supervision.

Rep. Barbara Bailey (R, Oak Harbor) said real reform is “the only way we will be able to accomplish real sustainability in our budget.” She said year over year, the state spends more than it gets in tax revenue.

Rep. Bruce Dammeier (R, Puyallup) said the citizens in his district are “crying for leadership in Olympia … we’ve seen leadership budgets,” he said, including the governor’s budget, which would have cut services and put a tax package to voters to buy back services. He said that although he said he didn’t agree with her budget, he respected her for “putting it out there.”

Rep. Cathy Dahlquist (R, Enumclaw) said the state’s first priority is to fund education. “Mr. Speaker, I would argue that this budget does the exact opposite,” she said. She cited the Puget Sound Partnership as an example: It was created in 2007 and receives hundreds of millions in state funding. She said reviews of the agency have shown waste and mismanagement, and she suggests cutting funding for it altogether. “Why are we pitting schools, Mr. Speaker, against an irresponsible agency for the same dollar?”

Rep. Pat Sullivan (D, Covington) said this budget strikes a balance. He said he’s proud to vote for the budget and asked others to join him in supporting it.

The budget passed 53 to 45 and now heads to the Senate, where Democrats introduced their version of the budget yesterday.

Tags: Budget, House, operating budget

The House just began debating amendments on the supplemental operating budget. You can see the full list here. And you can watch live on TVW.

“Hopefully, this is the last deep-cuts budget,” said Rep. Ross Hunter, “but I think it’s wise for us to set up a budget in such a way so that we leave some flexibility in our ending fund balance,” he said, speaking to an amendment on the delayed apportionment payment.

“This amendment says, literally, we’re going to fund our schools with our last dime,” said Rep. Bruce Dammeier, of the same amendment. “If we approve it, frankly it’s an embarrassment to me,” he said.

After amendments, the House moved on to other bills — they’ve got to wait 24 hours to take up the budget, according to the rules.

Tags: Budget, House, operating

A supporter cheers after the House vote on same-sex marriage

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Tags: House, same-sex marriage

We just received word from the House Democratic caucus that they plan to begin voting on the bill to allow same-sex marriage in Washington at around 1 o’clock tomorrow.

Stay tuned.

Tags: House, same-sex marriage

Rep. Jamie Pedersen, who brought his partner and their children to the hearing, said they were proud to register as domestic partners several years ago — but that this bill represents the final step in the state toward equality.

Jim Justin with Gov. Chris Gregoire’s office said on behalf of the governor that “now is our time” to end discrimination.

Rep. Brad Klippert said if the goal is marriage equality, why limit marriage to just two people? He asked Justin if polygamy might be considered part of marriage equality. Justin said the bill before the committee is what the governor is willing to sponsor.

Rep. Roger Goodman said 96 people are signed up to testify — they’ll each get two minutes, and not all of them will likely be called up, he said.

One student who is the son of two lesbians said no one knows what he means when he says his mothers are “domestically partnered.” He said it sounds more like a business venture than a loving family unit. “Please pass this bill. Your actions will show that Washington state does not discriminate.”

Dan Folden with New Heights Christian Church said redefining marriage is like rerouting the Columbia River. He said if the river were to be rerouted, lawmakers would require an environmental impact statement — but that nothing similar is being done with this legislation. He said he doesn’t approve of passing the bill first to find out what will happen to society.

Another opponent said it’s an abomination and “disgusting.” He said governments don’t determine who can be baptized or saved, and he doesn’t want the government defining marriage, either.

“Simply put, I’d like to get married one of these days,” said Anne Edson. She said she and her partner both served in the military and she is now a minister who spends a lot of her time doing public service, but she’s never been able to get married.

Tags: gay marriage, House

This week: Senate Democrat Leader Lisa Brown and House Republican Leader Richard DeBolt share their views on the state budget, possible tax hikes, and other key issues facing the 2012 State Legislature. Enjoy.

Tags: Budget, House, Inside Olympia, Reform, Senate, taxes