WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

A Legislative Update from Representative Clibborn

Dear Friends,

As the House and Senate continue to debate how to fund the critical functions of our state and meet our obligations to fully fund K-12 education, I want to update you on the status of budget negotiations and what I have been working on here in Olympia.

An Update on the Operating Budget

Earlier during this special session, House Democrats received public input on a revised budget that marks a significant compromise in negotiations. Our new budget reduces spending by $450 million and reduces new revenue by more than $900 million from the original proposal, while still maintaining a core set of investments.

House Democrats will continue to work in good faith as we near the deadline to pass a budget, but it’s time for Senate Republicans to meet us in the middle. For more information on the status of negotiations and the different proposals, take a look at this piece in the Seattle Times.

Here are some of the key differences between House & Senate budget proposals:

  • K-12: The House invests $100 million more for K-12 education mandated by the McCleary decision, and includes $150 million for teacher COLAs.
  • Early Learning: The House invests $115 million more for our young learners.
  • Mental Health: The House complies with the court-ordered Trueblood decision and funds competency restoration services, investing $50 million more in mental health care.
  • Human Services: The Senate Republican budget includes dozens of cuts and fails to improve services suffering from drastic cuts during the Great Recession, resulting in $167 million difference between the budgets.

Fighting for New Investments in Transportation

I have heard from so of you in the 41st District who are sick and tired of being stuck in traffic day in and day out. That is why I have been working tirelessly to pass a transportation revenue package that will meet the needs of our growing state. These new investments will modernize our transportation system, create jobs and help our economy, and provide transportation choices for commuters.

There would be numerous benefits for our community in this package. The biggest would be $1.3 billion to make significant improvements to I-405 from Lynnwood to Renton. This is one of the most congested corridors in our entire state, and the amount of time and money that drivers waste stuck in traffic along it is absurd. This funding would widen I-405 and provide other much-needed safety and efficiency upgrades.

As the Chair of the Transportation Committee, passing a transportation revenue package to fund these critical investments is my top priority. We have been meeting regularly with the Senate and are very close to an agreement. Although we have had to pause our negotiations to allow the operating budget to catch up, I remain confident that we can get a deal this session.

Helping Ports, Creating Jobs

It may not always seem like it, but the legislature works on more than just the budgets. I am proud to have sponsored a bill this session, recently signed into law, which will create and protect jobs by allowing more collaboration between our port districts

More than 40 percent of jobs in Washington are tied to trade, and our ports play a major role in driving our economy. My legislation, HB 1170, will allow Washington’s ports to operate more efficiently and effectively by allowing them to collaborate on certain aspects of port operations without completely merging together. This will help Washington ports, particularly the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma, better compete against expanding trade markets in Canada and California.