Lawmakers have been instructed to be back in Olympia on Wednesday morning for caucus and potential floor votes. While party leaders and budget writers have been meeting behind closed doors on budget negotiations, it’ll be the first time the full body will convene since special session began in March.

Gov. Chris Gregoire said last week that a budget deal needs to be struck by Tuesday in order for the Legislature to have enough time to act on it by the time the 30-day special session comes to a close on April 10th. Gregoire called the idea of going into a third special session “abhorrent.”

Few details about a potential budget deal have emerged; Gregoire said that lawmakers are wrapping up work on a “comprehensive” budget package that encompasses a number of ideas proposed by both Republicans and Democrats, although she has declined to say what those ideas include.

Meanwhile, Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna is holding a press conference today to present a white paper in which he describes his ideas for “how a McKenna administration will approach creating a sustainable budget. ” Check back later for updates.

Tags: special session

Gov. Chris Gregoire is mad — and she’s ready to do whatever it takes to get lawmakers to pass a budget. She said as much while answering media questions after her afternoon bill signing. She said the budget released this morning will not get the Legislature out of special session. “Twenty-five, 50 and 1,” she said, referring to the vote count in the Senate, House and her signature needed to end special session.

She said she negotiated with legislators this morning before the press conference and Republicans didn’t bring up some of the budget ideas they presented just an hour later. She called the press conference to unveil the budget “theatrical.”

“They did, under sufficient pressure, move to the Democrats’ position” of no cuts to education, she said. “Yay.” She said this morning she told lawmakers that she would not sign a budget that has more than $80 million in reversions, which she said spends the same dollar three times. She said the budget unveiled this morning has about twice that amount.

She said the budget has “still got the myth of we’re going to skip a payment … you skip a payment in pensions and it costs you about $400 million in the long haul. Last time I checked: gimmick.” She said she’s happy that the budget doesn’t cut K-12 or higher education.

“There has to be trust in the room. This does not advance trust in the room,” she said. She added that budget negotiators are scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. tomorrow. “If they don’t get something done here, I’m going to start trickling out vetoes. Maybe that will get their attention.”

A reporter commented that the Governor appeared mad. “I am mad,” she said, adding that legislators need to stop negotiating in the press, “get your jobs done and then go home,” she said.

“I’m not putting fault on anybody… I’ve been restrained, I have been complimentary, I have negotiated in good faith. Time’s up,” she said. “My frustration level is as high as it gets.” She said “suddenly putting charter schools” in their latest proposal is not helpful. “I promised to veto it… get over it.”

Tags: Budget, Governor, special session

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

Sens. Rodney Tom and Joe Zarelli talked to Jessica Gao this morning. Watch the whole thing here:

Some takeaways:

“If we pass the budget that the House Democrats are going to send over to us, what we have next January is easily a $2 billion problem,” Zarelli said.

Tom said his constituents are tired of budget shortfalls. “At some point, just like households, you have to live within your means. It’s not rocket science,” he said.

Tags: Budget, Sen. Joe Zarelli, Sen. Rodney Tom, sine die, special session

Here’s Jessica Gao’s interview with Gov. Chris Gregoire from this morning. Hear what she has to say about a possible budget deal, special session and more:

Tags: Budget, Governor, special session, The Impact, TVW

The Senate just took up House Bill 2058, which makes about $480 million in fund transfers and cuts.

To kick off debate, Sen. Ed Murray said the state’s unemployment rate has just dropped to 8.7 percent, as reported by the Associated Press. “It’s not low enough, but it’s definitely movement,” he said. Murray said the budget is responsible because lawmakers took time to hear from people around the state. “We are making a significant down payment on the crisis we face,” he said, and it will allow lawmakers to move more quickly during regular session to work on a budget and a jobs package.

 ”I’m happy we’re getting something done,” said Sen. Joe Zarelli. “We’re making a good start on what is a huge problem … I just want to encourage all the members here today,” to vote for the bill, he said. He agreed with Murray that this early action gives the Legislature a jump start on regular session business.

Sen. Jim Hargrove thanked the budget writers, but said it’s too soon to start looking at revenue. He said there’s more work to be done on waste, fraud and abuse. He said over the next few weeks, he and others will be working on finding efficiencies where more cuts can be made.

The bill passed 42 to 6. It has already passed in the House.

Tags: Budget, cuts, Senate, special session

The House Ways and Means committee is getting ready to vote on the bill to make about $480 million in fund transfers and spending reductions.

Before the vote, Rep. Gary Alexander said he was disappointed that lawmakers weren’t doing more. He said the $1.4 billion problem needs to be addressed — and that lawmakers are missing some critical chances to make cuts now.

Rep. Ross Hunter, chairman of the committee, said it has been a difficult process, even for Gov. Chris Gregoire, who only had to worry about one vote — her own — for her proposal.

The bill passed out of committee 24-1 and the House could vote on it as early as this evening. Stay tuned.

Tags: Budget, cuts, House, special session

As promised by Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown last week, the legislature has released a list of cuts and fund transfers to consider during special session. The grand total? $479 million. The House and Senate drafts should be available online soon. I’ll be sifting through the cuts and transfers and posting more. In the meantime, here’s Brad Shannon and Jordan Schrader’s story.

TVW will cover both the House and Senate Ways and Means committees today at 3:30 p.m. You can watch them on the web right here.

Tags: Budget, cuts, revenue, special session

House and Senate budget writers are close to a compromise on several hundred million dollars in cuts, according to Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown. Brown held a press availability this morning.

She said that budget writers are neither ready to adopt Gov. Chris Gregoire’s full package of cuts to bridge the $2 billion spending gap in the budget nor to pass a tax package. But, she said, after hearing from hundreds of citizens on the proposed cuts and negotiating, she’s optimistic that a package of cuts will be announced on Monday.

Brown did not provide details on the cuts: She said she’d leave that to budget negotiators, including sens. Ed Murray and Joe Zarelli.

“We still have a long way to go after that’s over,” she said, referring to more than a billion more in cuts — and possibly a tax package — that would need to be handled during regular session, which starts in January.

Lawmakers are also planning to pass a resolution urging Congress to pass the Marketplace Fairness Act, which would require internet retailers to collect sales tax on their sales. The bill could net the state $400 million in additional revenue if passed, Brown said.

Tags: Budget, Legislature, special session, taxes

This week’s Q&A is with Sen. Ed Murray, the Seattle Democrat who chairs the Senate budget writing committee. Murray talked about the budget hearing earlier this week, where lawmakers got a sense of the cuts agencies are proposing. We also talked about taxes, same-sex marriage and more. Next week, I’ll speak with a Republican budget writer about the impending cuts.

Q: Earlier this week, you heard some of the plans from state agencies for cutting 10 percent of their budgets. What are some of the elements that stood out the most?
Murray: Well, we have reached the point of — the cuts we’ve already made are fairly severe. But now we’re moving to the point of eliminating some pretty basic services that people depend on because they’re ill, because they’re disabled or because they’re old. So there are no sort of halfway measures left. This leaves only draconian choices.

Q: Are there any potential cuts you heard about that were particularly troubling?
Murray: You worry about some of the decisions we would make around the mentally ill. There are so many that stand out it’s hard just to pick one.
We’re looking at basic health care coverage, those sorts of things, assistance to immigrants, things like language interpreters for medical procedures. That pretty much cuts off the ability to someone to treat or someone who needs treatment.
Q: There has been talk about taxes. After what you heard earlier this week, are you convinced of the need of a revenue package?
Murray: I personally think we need to put revenue on the ballot and give voters a choice, but I don’t know if the votes are there in the Senate.

Q: Is that something you’re working on — getting support lined up for a potential package?
Murray: It certainly will be. To some extent, unless you’re actually in session it’s difficult to work some of these issues.

Q: At the hearing this week, you heard about the proposals to cut 10 percent — and yet, for many agencies, those cuts still don’t get you to $2 billion. How do you characterize the magnitude of this problem?
Murray: You know, it’s hard. When you ask voters, Should we have the services that state government provides like school, college, hep for families who have someone in their family who is disabled? They support it. (more…)

Tags: Budget, cuts, Sen. Ed Murray, special session, taxes