Special session update from Rep. Judy Warnick: June 6, 2013

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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

You may have already heard the regular session ended April 28 and the governor called us back into a special session May 13. Since then, budget negotiators (including myself) have been meeting to come to an agreement. Most of the other legislators were sent home to save taxpayer dollars until an agreement could be reached.

We were called back into session to vote on just one bill last week – a bill dealing with the estate tax. Today and tomorrow, we are all back again, this time to consider a new proposal by House Democrats.

I wrote to you earlier about House Democrats’ original tax increase proposal, which was about $1.3 billion. After a public hearing and outcry, beer taxes were removed. After House Republicans released the full list of people affected, the permanent B&O tax increase was removed yesterday as well. I am very glad House Democrat budget writers finally realized their initial proposals lacked public support and were bad for our economy. However, their latest tax proposal does still include tax increases on: bottled water, travel agents, prescription drug sellers, research and development firms, oil refineries (which can affect jobs and the cost of gas for the rest of us!), and nonresidents who shop in our state and are currently exempt from our sales tax.

Their new budget proposal is concerning because they are proposing to sweep the Public Works Assistance Account, which is part of the capital budget and helps local communities fund critical infrastructure projects in their area. As the ranking Republican on the Capital Budget Committee, I’m very concerned about what this proposal will do to a budget that’s primary purpose is to fund long-term infrastructure throughout our state. Sweeping this account into the operating budget is a gimmick that has been used in the past, and it is not a sustainable form of budgeting.

We have just five days remaining in this special session, and while I have heard good faith negotiations are occurring and the Democrats’ movement on their tax proposals shows promise, there is still a great deal of work to be done. After the operating and capital budgets are passed in both chambers, there are a variety of bills “necessary to implement the budget” which tie policy changes to the fiscal decisions made in the budgets. This takes a great deal more time than you might think. I am hopeful we can finish by Tuesday, and not leave citizens waiting and wondering any longer about what will receive funding and at what levels. Schools and local governments need to make decisions, as do small business owners. What we do in Olympia does impact the lives of Washington’s residents.

In local news:

When we do finally complete our work, I plan to travel around our four-county district and visit with community groups, employers, cities and counties, and to hold several “district office hours” in Yakima, Ellensburg and Lincoln County. I’ll keep you informed once we can schedule those.

In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to call or write my office any time. I’m here to serve you, and it’s an honor.

Sincerely,