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WA lawmakers head into third session

WA lawmakers head into third session

Washington legislators are headed into an unusual second special session, still hoping to bridge stark partisan differences and avoid a June 30 deadline for averting a partial government shutdown. Dejected and weary lawmakers were closing out their 30-day special session Tuesday with little to show for their labors.  Gov. Jay Inslee, a freshman Democrat who once served in the state House himself, called a special session to convene at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. At a Capitol news conference, Inslee sought…

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House offers budget bookend: $1.3b in new revenue

House offers budget bookend: $1.3b in new revenue

The budget battle is about to get  hotter. Majority House Democrats on Wednesday unveiled a $34.5 billion budget plan for the next two years, relying on $1.3 billion in new revenue as a down-payment on the state Supreme Court’s order to boost aid to public schools. The blueprint, which they called honest, balanced and responsible, follows the contours laid down by new Gov. Jay Inslee, a fellow Democrat, and sets up the expected collision with the Senate’s no-new-taxes, $33.4 billion…

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WA revenue forecast plunges another $1.4 billion

WA revenue forecast plunges another $1.4 billion

Economic recovery seems “like a mirage in the desert” and Washington’s economic forecast has been chopped by another $1.4 billion. Will there be a special session of the Legislature? The grim news came at a meeting at the Capitol of the bipartisan Economic and Revenue Forecast Council.  House budget chief Ross Hunter said lawmakers now face the the prospect of slicing perhaps $2 billion out of a $30 billion budget that has been repeatedly “scrubbed” during the Great Recession. State…

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Low-key startup for second session

Low-key startup for second session

Washington’s special legislative session got a quick and quiet liftoff Tuesday morning, with none of the drama, speeches and press conferences that usually mark the opening day of a session. In the House, gavels fell at 9 a.m. with less than a dozen members on the floor. They soon recessed until Friday, in keeping with their plan to keep doing “rolling recesses” of three days at a time until agreements are negotiated on the budget and other key pieces of …

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WA lawmakers heading into special session Tuesday

WA lawmakers heading into special session Tuesday

Gov. Chris Gregoire has called Washington lawmakers back into special session, starting next Tuesday morning, urging them to show bipartisan cooperation as they write a state budget that bridges a $5 billion spending gap. The regular 15-week session wound to a close Friday and lawmakers still have at least two more weeks of work to do on the operating and construction budgets and related bills, House and Senate leaders said at a joint news conference with the governor.  The Senate will…

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Budget crisis update: Senate greenlights aid

Budget crisis update: Senate greenlights aid

Just as Washington was girding for a nasty special legislative session or across-the-board spending cuts by Governor Gregoire, Congress may at long last be riding to the rescue.  The U.S. Senate voted 61-38 in a key test vote Wednesday to jump-start a $26 billion aid package for the financially-strapped states. That  would translate into over a half-billion for Washington state. This would include $320 million in Medicaid matching funds that the Legislature had booked when it wrote the budget last…

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Something’s burning at the Capitol …

Something’s burning at the Capitol …

… or at least the fire alarm went off and emptied the whole building, including the Senate, which was in session at the time.  Biggest excitement of the day–heck, of the entire special session! So Governor Gregoire, exiting the campus for a meeting, has her car stop at the corner where her executive staff is huddled while awaiting the all-clear signal, insists she didn’t pull the alarm, just to stir things up.   She impishly added that, true, she wants the…

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OT in Oly: Searching for a budget solution

OT in Oly: Searching for a budget solution

Washington lawmakers are back at it. After a three-day pass to go home, the Legislature gathered back at the Capitol at noon Monday to kick off a new special session that can last up to 30 days. Lawmakers’ main task is to plug a $2.8 billion budget hole that developed after the 2009 Legislature adjourned last April 26.  Last year, they fixed a $9 billion budget gap without needing higher general taxes, but this year, the majority Democrats are planning…

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Y’all come back now, ya hear?

Y’all come back now, ya hear?

They’re gone, but not forgotten.  Weary Washington lawmakers are getting a long weekend off, after wrapping up their 60-day regular legislative session Thursday evening.  But their toughest, and most politically unpopular, tasks remain undone.  They’ll be back at noon on Monday for overtime session. Governor Gregoire’s proclamation says they’ll be here “no longer than seven days.”  The Constitution says special sessions are limited to “not more than 30 consecutive days.” Likewise, the governor has no authority to limit the subject…

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