Dear friends and neighbors,
Welcome to a new year, and the start of a new session! Next week marks the beginning of the 2025 legislative session and one of my greatest priorities is to continue serving you, the 11th Legislative District, better. Our democracy is strongest when everyone can participate, which is why I am seeking your input on some of the key challenges, priorities, and policies that we’ll be working on in 2025.
Every year, I release a survey at the beginning of the session to hear directly from you. You can take my 2025 Legislative Session survey by clicking here or the button below. If you have additional feedback or advocacy, please feel free to email me.
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Thank you for your time—I look forward to hearing from you!
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Expanding the Promise to our Students
I’m thrilled to provide an update on the Renton Promise, a groundbreaking college tuition and success program aimed at providing unparalleled opportunities for local graduates, which launched in 2023.
Together with Renton Technical College and the Renton School District, we ensured that Renton School District graduates have the extraordinary opportunity to attend Renton Technical College for two years without having to worry about tuition or fees. Regardless of their grade point average (GPA), income level, ability, or country of birth, this program is helping ensure that every Renton School District graduating senior has equal access to a promising future.
I’m so pleased to be able to share that more than 120 students participated in the 2023-24 school year, with almost 200 students anticipated to attend in the 2024-25 school year. The City of Renton has approved to maintain and fund the program, and Renton Technical College has hired a dedicated staffer to be a consistent point of contact for retention and guiding support.
To take advantage of this remarkable opportunity, students from the Renton School District need to complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form or a Washington Application for State Financial Aid (WASFA), and apply to attend Renton Technical College.
The Tukwila Promise
What is even better is that I can also share that the City of Tukwila is establishing a similar program, where graduates of Foster High School will have the opportunity to attend Highline College for two years without having to worry about tuition or fees. The city has included the funds in their most recent budget and students from Foster High can apply by filling out a FAFSA or WASFA and applying to attend Highline College.
By investing in the potential of our young graduates, we are building a stronger, more resilient community—one that fosters academic growth, cultivates innovation, and embraces diversity. Every student deserves the chance to thrive, and our local technical colleges have opened their doors wide to ensure this vision becomes a reality. Our goal is to ensure that financial barriers do not hinder anyone from accessing higher education and reaching their full potential!
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The Current State of Washington’s Budget
Our state budget is how we support the people of Washington. Individuals and families across the state rely on us doing our job, whether that’s hiring enough teachers, funding public safety, supporting behavioral health, or strengthening our safety net. Despite leaving Olympia last spring with a balanced budget, the Legislature is returning in 2025 to a budget shortfall that we will need to address.
There are a few key factors driving this shortfall, including population growth and increased demands for services, inflationary pressures, and slower than anticipated tax revenues. During the pandemic (2020-2023), we used one-time federal COVID-19 relief funds to help Washington residents survive the unprecedented challenges we all faced by keeping our small businesses and schools afloat while increasing investments in public health and food, utility and rent assistance. Today, demand for most support services such as Medicaid and other public assistance programs remains higher than before 2020. At the same time, our ever-growing population is driving increased demand for housing, healthcare, education, and public services.
As demand for state services has grown, the cost to provide them has also increased dramatically. We’ve all seen costs go up: you and I see it at the grocery store, and the state is seeing it in every area of the budget. The cost to pay for fixing roads, building new roads and ferries, and running our schools is significantly higher than it was five years ago. When those costs go up, so do the state budgets – but we can’t stop paying teachers to teach, or construction workers to fix highways. We have to find a way to pay for those essential services that you and your family deserve.
In addition to the pressures of inflation and a growing need for services, Washington state is particularly vulnerable to uncertain global economic conditions, including changes in trade policies and geopolitical tensions because our tax code is heavily reliant on consumption-based taxes. Our reliance on sales tax, as well as the B&O tax, means when people spend less, the state takes in less revenue and therefore has fewer resources to support Washington families; and low- and middle-income families are still paying more than the wealthiest people in our state as a percentage of income. In addition, often, the circumstances leading families to spend less also contribute to Washingtonians needing more assistance from the state.
Washington’s been on the path to significant tax reform for decades, because we know that the current system is not performing well for the people of Washington state. While we’ve taken some initial steps to modernize our tax code with the work of the Tax Structure Work Group and the implementation of the Capital Gains Excise Tax, we’re nowhere near the end of our road toward building a tax structure that reflects our 21st century economy, our rapid growth, and the expanding needs of our communities.
The Governor’s Proposed Budget
Last month, Governor Inslee proposed his final budget as our sitting governor. In order to address the budget shortfall, the proposal includes a mix of budget reductions, as well as some new revenue sources, while including targeted new spending in critical areas. Some highlights of investments include $719 million for behavioral health investments, $905 million in affordable housing and homelessness services and programs, and $2 billion for climate and energy.
In approaching balancing the budget, they first looked for savings in state operations, and have proposed pausing nonessential programs, delaying expansions, rightsizing state agencies to work nimbly, and implementing a statewide spending freeze, leading to approximately $2 billion in budget reductions. However, the Governor’s proposal reflects that even with these actions, protecting progress on the issues Washingtonians care about requires additional revenue. That’s why the budget includes two main targeted tax adjustments: a wealth tax of 1% on worldwide wealth over $100 million and Business & occupation (B&O) tax reform. These tax reforms are aimed to not only protect funding for essential services by raising around $13 billion in new revenue, but to also make Washington’s tax system more fair. Learn more about Governor Inslee’s revenue proposals for the 2025 Legislative Session.
Looking to the 2025 Session
As legislators, we have the responsibility to invest in what matters most—our people. By leading with Democratic values and equity, we can ensure that every Washingtonian can succeed. We can have both – a strong economy and relieve pressure on lower- and middle-income families by better aligning our tax code. As we address this deficit in the upcoming session, we’ll guard against regressive solutions that will only burden Washington’s working families and will instead consider changes to our tax structure that ensure Washington’s wealthiest residents share more equitably in the responsibility of funding the critical investments our communities need, such as schools, public safety, behavioral health, our transportation system, and more. Together, we will build a Washington that lifts everybody up.
Look out for an upcoming survey on revenue options and budget cuts!
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Serve as a Legislative Page!
The Washington State Legislature has one of the best page programs in the country! Pages are sponsored by legislators and serve for one week during the legislative session, learning about the legislative process while distributing materials throughout the Capitol, assisting offices, delivering messages, and presenting colors at the opening of the day’s legislative session. Find out more about the page program by clicking here! |
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It’s an honor to continue to represent the 11th Legislative District. I look forward to hearing your continued advocacy, feedback, and engagement throughout the 2025 Legislative Session–please don’t hesitate to send me an email or give me a call at (360) 786-7862.
Thank you for reading!
Sincerely,
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Rep. Steve Bergquist