We are back at work in Olympia this week. It was certainly not my plan to still be here, but unfortunately our education budget is still not approved.
Governor Inslee made it pretty clear in his remarks this week why we’re at this impasse; both sides need to be willing to compromise and to focus on one goal – agreeing on a budget that meets our constitutional obligation to fund our kids’ education.
I encourage you to watch Gov. Inslee’s speech, because what he says is important if we’re going to avoid shutting down the state July 1. Here are a couple of quotes:
“Compromise needs to come from all parties. But the position we’re in today is the inevitable result of a lack of substantive compromise from the Senate majority.”
“On policy, the Senate went to the edges, not to the middle. They said they wouldn’t fund education unless a list of unrelated policy bills was passed first.
“This should be a debate about education funding, not workers’ compensation, tax breaks for millionaires, anti-teacher bills, and certainly not about anything like payday lending.”
So, our work goes on. But I can promise you that my commitment remains the same:
· Our focus is on our moral and constitutional duty to fund our kids’ education.
· We refuse to rig the system against kids, seniors and the disabled.
· Our plan is to keep our promises to kids, jobs and the people of Washington.
For more insights into the unprecedented situation facing the legislature:
https://www.kirklandreporter.com/opinion/211292201.html
Editorial: Time to compromise on Washington state budget