Washington lawmakers plan to spend $3 billion on an assortment of “shovel-ready” construction projects across the state — but because of our deep recession, that’s a far cry from the normal spending. 

As a sideshow to the main event of writing a state budget that closes a monster $9 billion gap, Democrats in both chambers have rolled out competing construction budgets. Senator Karen Fraser, chief architect of the Senate’s plan, called it “the happy budget,” even with the pared-back bottom line, since it’s in stark contrast with the painful service and employee cuts that are required to balance the main operating budget.

The Senate’s version of the two-year construction spending plan was first to debut, and less than three hours later, Representative Hans Dunshee was announcing deets of the House plan. After both houses hold hearings, amend and pass their plans, House-Senate negotiators will iron out the differences. The regular session must adjourn by April 26.

The Senate highlights are here. House highlights are here. 

The construction budgets are about $3 billion. The Senate’s is somewhat higher and includes roughly $1.8 billion in new state bond sales. That’s 29 percent less than the current budget, because of the economic downturn and lower borrowing capacity and because the operating budget folks snagged well over $700 million that otherwise could have gone to building projects.

School and college construction are the big winners, although there are plenty of earmarks. The Senate proposed a two-year “temporary suspension” of previously approved plans for a state Heritage Center on the Capitol Campus, and the House also did not fund the project at this time.

Legislators are promoting the construction and transportation budgets — the Senate passed the transpo budget just before unveiling the construction plan — as sorely needed job-generators in a time when unemployment is rising.