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Tag: Washington Legislature

House tax plan: cats and dogs

House tax plan: cats and dogs

House Democrats have weighed into the tax debate in Olympia, offering an assortment of tax hikes – called “cats and dogs” in Capitol-speak – rather than a package that is anchored by a state sales tax increase. The $858 million package is closer in approach to Governor Gregoire than the Senate Democrats. The Democratic governor proposed a $605 million mix of taxes, including a $1-a-pack tax on cigarettes, a tax on pop and candy and a higher hazardous materials tax on petroleum…

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Initiatives and lawmakers, part deux

Initiatives and lawmakers, part deux

For all the talk about big changes for Washington’s much-used, much-maligned initiative process, not a single initiative crackdown is passing this legislative session. There were a large number of bills introduced and considered by committees in Olympia, and some passed one house or the other.  But after crossover between House and Senate occurred and committee and floor deadlines passed, all of the proposals have died. These included plans to boost the initiative and referendum filing fee from the current $5…

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WA budget battle is on: Taxes, cuts & Uncle Sam

WA budget battle is on: Taxes, cuts & Uncle Sam

In an unusual rush of budgetry at the Capitol, the Senate and House went public with their dueling budget plans within hours of each other, setting up a dash to adjournment within a few weeks. Both proposals rely on another round of spending cuts, more federal bailout bucks, fund transfers galore, and, yes, tax increases.  The prob: closing a budget gap of $2.8 billion, just a few short months after dealing with a $9 billion projected deficit. The Senate tax…

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Military-overseas voting bill moving forward

Military-overseas voting bill moving forward

One of Secretary Reed’s requested bills for this session cleared a key hurdle when the Senate Government Operations and Elections Committee passed it Monday. House Bill 2483 would let military and overseas voters return a ballot by fax or email as long as the voter’s signed declaration is returned with the ballot. It would help ensure that our military and overseas voters can send in their ballot in time to be counted. The bill is headed to the Senate Rules…

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Mixed signals from big Capitol rallies

Mixed signals from big Capitol rallies

Two of the largest public rallies were staged back-to-back on the WA Capitol steps today, rambunctuous but civil affairs that gave Governor Gregoire and the Legislature diametrically opposed messages on how to solve a $2.8 billion budget mess. The first, a sort of Tea Party sponsored by the conservative think tank called Evergreen Freedom Foundation, drew about 3,000 people, according to troopers.  The “Push Back, No Tax” rally urged a hold-the-line approach. “No more!!” they yelled.   One man carted a…

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Another round of Eyman vs. Legislature begins

Another round of Eyman vs. Legislature begins

Groundhog Day might be February 2, but for Tim Eyman and our office’s Elections staff, it might as well be moved to January. In what is usually an annual event, the “I-Man” filed his latest initiative this morning in the Secretary of State’s Executive Office, flanked by several of his longtime supporters, plus Republican state Senators Pam Roach and Janea Holmquist. Called the “Save The 2/3’s Vote For Tax Increases,” Eyman’s proposal could be dubbed “The Return of Initiative 960.”…

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Sea of red ink: WA treasury plunges $760 million

Sea of red ink: WA treasury plunges $760 million

It’s true that the state and national economy are finally recovering, but consumers aren’t spending and unemployment keeps edging upward.  That odd situation, dubbed a “revenue-less recovery,” today led the state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council to slash another $760 million from the expected tax revenue for the next two-year period. State budget Director Victor Moore says the grim development means the Legislature and Governor Gregoire now have a budget hole of $2.6 billion to fill, just months after fixing a…

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State government money woes sweep West Coast

State government money woes sweep West Coast

Governor Gregoire and the Washington Legislature are cringing at the thought of a projected $2 billion budget gap this winter, and that number is expected to rise a bunch more in Thursday’s revenue forecast update.  This after closing a $9 billion gap in April. Does misery love company? Then take note that our sister states of Oregon and California are facing dire straits. Today’s LA Times says the fresh deficit of $21 billion is looming for the not-so-Golden State, even…

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R-71: No gay-marriage bill expected in 2010

R-71: No gay-marriage bill expected in 2010

Gay-rights activists say they don’t expect to jump from their Referendum 71 victory to pursuing gay-marriage in the Legislature or in the courts right away. Sen. Ed Murray, sponsor of the state’s newly ratified domestic partnership law, tells The Herald of Everett that he isn’t expecting even a hearing in Olympia on the perennial request for the right to marry.  The spokesman for the Approve R-71 says “I think 2010 is too soon,” and activists called it a conversation for…

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Sales tax plan stirs to life in Olympia

Sales tax plan stirs to life in Olympia

The long-expected ballot proposition for a November tax vote is on the move in the Washington Legislature. The plan, sponsored by Representative Eric Pettigrew and four Democratic colleagues, is for a three-tenths of a percentage point increase in the state sales tax — from 6.5 percent to 6.8 — during the calendar years 2010, 2011 and 2012. The tax would expire then unless extended by supermajority votes in the Legislature.  A quick explainer is here. The tax bump would raise about $1.1…

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