Peninsula Daily News news sources
OLYMPIA — The state Senate approved Monday its proposed two-year state budget that slashes $4.8 billion in state spending, including deepening cuts to kindergarten-through-high school education.
The bill containing the budget, with cuts to most state programs, passed on a 34-13 vote after leaders of both parties said it wasn’t the spending plan they would have written if they were working alone.
Instead, they said, it represents ideas from liberals, moderates and conservatives.
“This is the first bipartisan budget — ever,” Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, said, likening it to such seemingly impossible accomplishments as landing on the moon or swimming the English Channel.
Hargrove, who voted for the bill, represents Clallam and Jefferson counties in the Senate along with a portion of his home Grays Harbor County.
“The Senate has come together to do something historic. It is a big deal,” Hargrove said.
The 34-13 vote sets up negotiations with the House of Representatives and Gov. Chris Gregoire’s Office which will likely take the legislative session into overtime.
The differences, few but large in money, between the House and Senate budgets seem too big to close between now and the end of session, currently scheduled for Easter Sunday.
“Make no mistake, we cut and we cut deeply,” said Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, chair of the Ways and Means Committee.
“It is the deepest cuts and the lowest level of spending in decades. It has been a painful process and we have made very difficult decisions.”
The plan includes $4.8 billion in cost-cutting measures as it tries to fill in a $5.1 billion deficit in the next two-year period.
It also includes more than $450 million in fund transfers, among other things, and leaves an ending balance of about $725 million.
Democrats hold a 27-22 majority in the Senate, with several moderate Democrats who have shown a willingness to work the Republicans.
From the get-go, the Senate began writing its budget with significant influence for the Republicans. Democrats have a more stable majority, both in numbers and procedure, in the House.
“I’m happy to report to you this budget, for the first time in half a dozen years, does not spend more than what we have,” said Senate Minority Leader Mike Hewitt, R-Walla Walla.
Hewitt added that the Senate budget puts the state on a more “stable” path of spending.
“I’m just hoping the House will stay with us,” he said.
The Senate budget is the last piece of the puzzle as lawmakers head for tough negotiations on state spending in the final days of the legislative session, but last week Gregoire acknowledged that a special session is needed to finish all the work.
The Senate plan assumes $250 million in savings from wage reductions for teachers.
But teacher salaries include a combination of local, federal and state money. Under the proposal, school districts would have to decide how to deal with the reduction in money.
Last week amid much criticism, a Senate panel replaced a plan to penalize school districts with high truancy rates — something budget writers assume will save another $95 million — with a plan to delay payments to school districts for buses, an idea presented by Gregoire in December.
On Monday, Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Seattle, chair of the Senate’s education committee, took responsibility for pushing the average class attendance budget cut, saying the backfire should have been directed at her.
“But I still believe it’s the right thing to do, and I will work over the interim to study the seven states that are doing it to see if it made a difference in their attendance,” she said.
The Senate budget mandates more furloughs for state employees, based on salary.
Workers who make between $50,000 and $75,000 would see an extra 16 hours of furloughs, for example.
It cuts more deeply into Disability Lifeline, a state program that aids disabled adults.
Under the Senate plan, the program would see $180 million in savings from eliminating cash grants to program recipients.
Instead, the program would switch to housing vouchers. The program also sees a reduction in enrollment in its medical program, for savings of more than $50 million.
The Basic Health Plan, the state’s health care program for the poor, would see a $122 million cut from reducing enrollment to 34,000 people in 2013.
About $1.2 billion in savings would come from not funding two education initiatives that increase teacher pay and reduce classroom sizes.
Lawmakers have not funded these two voter-approved mandates during the recession.
Under the Senate plan, higher education sees a cut of about half a billion dollars.
Like the House and Gregoire, Senate budget writers say the cut can be offset by yearly tuition hikes in the next two years at the state’s universities and colleges.
Under the Senate budget, the University of Washington, Washington State University and Western Washington University would see 16 percent tuition hikes; Central Washington and The Evergreen State College would see a 14 percent increase; and Peninsula and other community college tuitions would go up by 12 percent.
The Senate’s plan also halts automatic increases to state employee retirement plans to save $361 million, and takes $212 million from kindergarten through 4th grade class-size programs.
