Friends, supporters, constituents, and interested readers, let me start by saying THANK YOU for helping to make my first legislative session so impactful. We all knew the enormous challenges we would face, but with your support and encouragement I feel very good about my advocacy, representation of the 22nd District, and the relationships that I built. All of these are foundational in establishing my long-term agenda – tax reform to pay for our most critical services: Education, environmental protection, and support for the most vulnerable. What follows is a list of some of the major reductions that were made this year and my take on the difference between a political majority and a philosophical majority. At the end of this e-memo are a few bright spots in the transportation and capital budgets for the 22nd Legislative District.
It has been an incredible honor to serve you this year and again, I can’t thank you enough for engaging, advocating, and pushing for your own values and interests. I am your voice and advocate in the Legislative process – don’t stop telling me how you feel, what you are thinking, and how you would like to see me perform the role to best serve our community.
Major Operating Budget Reductions
This budget, which was the result of long and arduous negotiations, puts in place approximately $4 billion in net cuts for publicly funded programs. Most of our citizens will feel the impact of these cuts.
- $1.1 billion from employee compensation and pensions (state employee, teacher, and retiree reductions)
- $1.0 billion from K-12 programs
- $677 million from health care
- $502 million from long-term care and other human services programs
- $472 million net from higher education.
- $532 million in cuts with $60 million added to student financial aid programs to mitigate some of the impacts of rising tuition.
- $127 million from corrections and criminal justice
- $108 million in general government, legislative, and judicial functions
- $95 million in natural resources
You can get a complete breakdown of the budget here, and feel free to call my office if you have specific questions.
Moving Forward
I knew the budget would be horrific and I was even prepared to vote for cuts knowing that I-1053 and its 2/3rds requirement to raise taxes and close tax loopholes would constrain us. It’s too easy to vote against a budget like this and vilify those who vote for it. That’s not responsible government. As a member of the majority parity, my job is to fight for the values of our district, and then on balance make judgments through my yes/no votes about whether our budget writers and leaders did the best job they could to defend our highest priorities and values. I believe on the budget, they did that. Because of the constraints created by Tim Eyman and his assault on public services, kids, and the most vulnerable, I was compelled to support our leaders with my budget vote.
That being said, this Legislature did make a few policy decisions that run counter to what I believe to be our core community values. I was unable to support cuts to our retirees, the diminution of bargaining rights for state employees, the expansion of additional tax preferences (loopholes), and the direct transfer of benefits from injured workers to our state’s most powerful and wealthy corporations. The importance of these no votes highlights the truth that I am part of a political majority (Democrats) but not a philosophical majority. Nearly every member of the Republican Party, joined by a handful of Democrats, still believes in supply-side trickledown economics. That philosophical majority is clearly in control of the Senate and it forced the House Democrats to compromise not just on positions but on our core values – this is something I will not do, and my votes reflected that! The philosophical majority still believes that workers are to be viewed as “costs” instead of assets. The philosophical majority still believes in the blind adherence that the private sector is always right and the public sector is always wrong. Please understand that the individuals who make up the philosophical majority are good people. THEY ARE! Individually they are not out to do harm, they do however cling to a political and economic paradigm that has proven inadequate in lifting up all people. That same philosophy by virtue of its pessimism can’t embrace the possibility that all citizens can and should have an opportunity at our growing prosperity. Put simply, the current philosophical majority has resigned itself to few winners and many losers and I will fight every day proving to them that America and Washington has not always been this way, and we don’t have to be this way in the future.
As most of you know by now, I believe the road to long-term success in our state government starts with a careful review and analysis of our state’s archaic tax code. Amidst all the strife and fret over budget cuts there were a few key moments that were created to make progress on the tax reform agenda shared by so many. One was the House Floor debate of HB 2078.
HB 2078 would have closed a specious tax exemption that benefits Wall Street banks in order to fund class size reductions for K-3 programs. Bringing this bill to the House Floor was not an easy task. For those that lent your voices of support, THANK YOU. We were successful in getting a floor debate on this bill (Click here to see the full debate; it begins @ 22 minutes into the video). Please watch this debate carefully, the arguments put forth here are an indicator of what progressive tax reform faces.
Unfortunately, HB 2078 failed to receive the 2/3rds super majority required to pass but it did get the constitutional simply majority. This strange conflict of now needing a 2/3rds vote when the State Constitution only calls for a simple majority is the basis of my next stage of tax reform advocacy. We must get the courts to take up this issue and decide once and for all if initiatives can overwrite our constitution. Could a majority of us pass a law banning free speech or gun rights? Of course not! The Constitution is a sacred document defended by progressives and Tea Party members alike. Surely we can agree that even the most populist of sentiments should not trump constitutional rights – even when those rights are bestowed upon the often maligned members of the State House of Representatives and Senate. I am working with other House members to create the opportunity for the courts to decide this question once and for all. We cannot reform our tax code without first knowing who has the authority over that code and by what process that authority reveals itself – by citizen initiative one issue at a time, or via the 147 legislators and Governor elected by the people to represent the people. I am a staunch supporter of the initiative power when it is used legally. I-1053, however, attempted to amend our constitution, and I will be doing my part to help the courts see that clearly.
Projects and Jobs Coming to Our Community
There are a number of projects contained in the Transportation and Capital Budgets that will bring some modest economic stimulus to our community. Total project investments are around $90 million for the coming biennium. The jobs created and functions served by these projects are essential to our long-term economic success. Please note that approximately 70% of the money is dedicated to educational facilities and environmental mitigation/conservation.
Transportation Budget:
- I-5 / Martin Way Bike Lanes – $36,000
- I-5 / Fort Lewis vicinity Ramp Meters – $111,000
- I-5 / 14th Ave Thompson Place Noise Wall – $1,856,000
- I-5 / Queets Drive E Tanglewilde Noise Wall – $1,306,000
- I-5 / SR 121 to North of Tumwater Blvd Paving – $2,828,000
Capital Budget:
- Boys and Girls Club Facility grant — $163,000
- Olympia Little Theatre Facility Grant — $44,000
- Community Action Council Facility Grant — $95,000
- Capitol Campus projects and repairs — $21,000,000
- Evergreen State College projects – Approx. $18,000,000
- South Puget Sound CC projects – Approx. $32,000,000
- Ecology, Natural Resources, Conservation projects — $12,267,000
So there you have it. A very broad overview of the session dynamics, the devastating cuts, our next step in tax reform, and some important projects for the district.
I will take a summer break from the e-memos, unless some breaking news emerges. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions, thoughts, concerns, or a really good political joke (keep them clean and avoid sending any pictures ;-).