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Category: Governor’s Office

Lawmakers kick off election-year session

Lawmakers kick off election-year session

Washington lawmakers are back at work, confronting a $1.5 billion budget gap, the possibility of a tax referendum, and a number of touchy social issues, including gay marriage, marijuana, and abortion — all within the context of 2012 being the first election since redistricting. The session got off to a very quiet start at noon Monday, with few speeches and few protesters outside.  That was in marked contrast to the noisy reception lawmakers got when Occupy Olympia and thousands of…

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Gregoire urges lawmakers to OK gay marriage

Gregoire urges lawmakers to OK gay marriage

Gov. Chris Gregoire is urging the Washington Legislature to make the state the seventh in the US to authorize same-sex marriage. The Democratic governor, in an emotional press conference at the Capitol, said she had struggled with the issue for years, primarily because her Catholic faith opposes gay marriage. She said public opinion, particularly among young people, has shifted toward favoring same-sex marriage.  She added: “I’ve been on my own journey. … It is the right thing to do and…

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Special session adjourns after trimming budget $480m

Special session adjourns after trimming budget $480m

Washington lawmakers have adjourned their unprecedented 17-day November-December emergency session designed to start trimming the state budget to size. But they won’t be gone for long.  The regular 2012 session, supposedly limited to 60 days, is just around the corner — Jan. 9. The Democratic-controlled Legislature didn’t do the complete $2 billion budget-and-tax deal that Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire had strongly recommended when she called the session.  They gave strong bipartisan agreement to a plan, House Bill 2058, that begins…

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New Elway Poll shows majority support for tax hike

New Elway Poll shows majority support for tax hike

A new statewide Elway Poll by independent pollster Stuart Elway shows nearly two-thirds of Washington voters are “certainly” or “probably” willing to support Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposal for a three-year boost of the state sales tax by a half-cent on the dollar. Elway said polling done last week with 408 randomly selected Washington voters across the state showed that voters want lawmakers to cut spending, but that new revenue will also need to be part of the solution. In his…

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Gregoire proposes sales tax hike, budget cuts

Gregoire proposes sales tax hike, budget cuts

Gov. Chris Gregoire has proposed a $2 billion all-cuts rewrite of the ailing state budget, along with a plan to ask the voters to OK a three-year state sales tax hike of a half-cent to head off some of the cuts. The Democratic governor said the Legislature already has slashed the state budget by $10 billion in the past three years, “shredding” the state safety net and whacking K-12, higher education and other areas.  She said her latest list of…

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Governor appoints King County jurist Gonzalez to high court

Governor appoints King County jurist Gonzalez to high court

Temple of Justice, home of the State Supreme Court Gov. Chris Gregoire has chosen a successor to retiring Justice Gerry Alexander: veteran King County Superior Court Judge Steven Gonzalez. Gonzalez, who came from an immigrant family with Mexican and Eastern European roots and was first named to the King County bench by Gov. Gary Locke, becomes the high court’s lone minority justice.  Gregoire, who praised his intellect and broad legal skills, also noted his gift for learning foreign languages and…

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11/11/11: So much to celebrate!

11/11/11: So much to celebrate!

(Courtesy of Washington State Archives) November 11th holds an extra-special place in the hearts of Washingtonians every year.  We have a double reason to celebrate: to honor the contributions of our nation’s veterans and to recognize the day Washington achieved statehood.  So when we’re all celebrating, we can wave both the American and Washington flags in thanks for our vets and in commemoration of Washington’s 122 birthday. Above is the telegraph that Gov. Ferry received that said President Benjamin Harrison signed the…

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Gregoire proposes massive cuts for November session

Gregoire proposes massive cuts for November session

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire, responding to the state’s continuing economic woes and a huge state budget deficit, is proposing a laundry list of deep spending cuts across all areas of state government. At a televised news conference at the Capitol, she laid out ideas totaling over $3.8 billion and endorsed nearly $1.7 billion of those for the budget rewrite she’ll release in November. The governor officially issued a call for an unusual November-December emergency session of the Legislature to adopt…

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Governor calls emergency budget session for Nov. 28

Governor calls emergency budget session for Nov. 28

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire has called the Legislature into emergency special session, beginning the Monday after Thanksgiving, to deal with a gaping $2 billion hole in the two-year state operating budget. The decision, which will trigger a session that can last for up to 30 days, was expected, following a dire new revenue projection that knocked another $1.4 billion hole in the budget.   If the Legislature doesn’t raid the “rainy day” fund and provide additional reserves, the problem becomes about…

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More budgetary gloom: Revenue forecast drops again

More budgetary gloom: Revenue forecast drops again

Less than 24 hours after Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a budget that fixed a $5 billion spending gap by cutting salaries and the budgets of nearly every state agency, a new revenue update brought more bad news. A new projection of a $183 million downturn in the next two years, combined with the Legislature’s reliance on one-time fixes like a tax-amnesty windfall and fund grabs, leaves the state roughly $572 million lower than previously expected, state budget Director Marty Brown…

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