Waterbuffalo
02-28-2008, 01:57 AM
Please take the time to look over the full article here:
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/02/02272008_Senate-budget-sets-up-showdown.cfm
February 27, 2008
By KATHIE DURBIN, Columbian staff writer
OLYMPIA — The Senate rolled out a 2008-09 supplemental budget Tuesday that sets up a showdown with the House over funding teacher cost-of-living raises, all-day kindergarten and transportation mega-projects.
The $33.7 billion Senate operating budget includes a net $319 million in new spending. It would leave about $755 million unspent — slightly more than the House budget passed Monday — but it would get there by a different route.
“This is the time to tighten our belts, not to panic,” said Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton, chairwoman of the budget-writing Ways and Means Committee.
Vice-chairman Sen. Craig Pridemore, D-Vancouver, said the budget keeps commitments made by the 2007 Legislature.
“We don’t succumb to irrational gloom and doom and make knee-jerk cuts,” he said. “We don’t raise taxes. We respond to unanticipated events, such as the December storm, and some anticipated ones, such as the upcoming WASL graduation requirement. And we leave three-quarters of a billion dollars in reserve.”
The budget adds $26.9 million in new spending to help students who are struggling to pass the Washington Assessment of Student Learning and meet other high school graduation requirements. Senate Education Chairwoman Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, made it clear that she would support sticking with the requirement that 2008 graduates pass the reading and writing sections of the WASL only if the state made a significant investment to help students who were in danger of being left behind.
The budget funds a 3.9 percent cost-of-living increase for school employees mandated by a voter-approved initiative. But it does not include the additional 1 percent catch-up increase the House proposes to fund at a cost of $39 million for employees in K-12 schools and community colleges.
Instead, Prentice said, she is committed to following through on last year’s promise to phase in all-day kindergarten for all Washington children. The House budget slows the growth of the program in 2008-09.
“We won’t accept a budget that includes less than full funding for all-day kindergarten,” she said. “I think the public would be justifiably outraged.”
The Senate budget also adds $12 per student to maintain and improve school libraries, at a cost of $11.7 million
Prentice described the budget as “frugal.” But Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, said before the budget roll-out that neither the House nor the Senate had produced a frugal spending plan.
“If you added together the adds in the Senate and House budgets, there would be nothing left” in reserve, he said. “We are spending $1.7 billion more than we are forecast to take in.”
Zarelli, the ranking Republican on Ways and Means, noted that both budgets would leave the state with about $300 million to spend on unanticipated costs after $445.7 million is deposited in the rainy day reserve account. The staff of the Ways and Means Committee has projected that the state will face a $2.4 billion deficit in the 2009-11 biennium.
Frugal or not, the budget does include new spending for some projects favored by local legislators, including Zarelli:
* $1.9 million in general fund revenue, to be matched by $1.7 million in federal revenue, to cover smoking cessation programs for Medicaid recipients. Pridemore introduced the bill, which would cover counseling, nicotine replacement therapy and prescription drugs. State health officials said the program could help reduce the state’s health care costs, because 40 percent of Medicaid recipients are smokers.
* $1 million for a pilot project in Clark County to study reactive attachment disorder among children 9 years old or younger and recommend ways to intervene when children cannot form emotional bonds or respond to others in socially appropriate ways. Zarelli* introduced the bill.
* $2.4 million to set up a system for offering a “working family tax credit” to families who qualify for the federal earned-income tax credit. Pridemore introduced the bill authorizing the payments beginning in the 2009-10 fiscal year.
Absent from the Senate budget was an appropriation to begin implementing the recommendations of a gang task force to reduce criminal gang activity. The House included $2.3 million in its supplemental budget to fund small grants to local law enforcement agencies.
Rep. Charles Ross, R-Naches, who co-chaired the task force, said he was hopeful the appropriation would survive. “When the powers sit down to negotiate the budget, that’s a very high priority for the House negotiators,” he said.
Few capital projects
The Senate also released its capital budget Tuesday. Unlike in past years, it included very little money for new local projects.
Sen. Karen Fraser, D-Olympia, who oversaw preparation of the capital budget, said her goal was to preserve the state’s bonding capacity for the 2009-11 biennium, when the demand for K-12 and higher education construction is expected to grow. (aka state charge card--WB)
The new frugality left the city of Vancouver empty-handed. “The city was hoping that we would get $1 million to $2 million in the capital budget to help with infrastructure development at the old Boise Cascade site,” said Mark Brown, a lobbyist for the city. “We have to come up with $40 million for infrastructure.” (Hey Chief.. Hope you enjoy this one????? A told you SOOOO?--WB)
Brown said the city didn’t include the funding request in its 2008 legislative wish list last December, but the need became obvious after Gramor Development agreed three weeks ago to lead redevelopment of the 32-acre riverfront property. The project is expected to bring a mix of condominiums, shops and restaurants to the site worth up to $1.2 billion.
According to one estimate, redevelopment of the Boise Cascade site and nearby properties, combined with the reconfiguration of Interstate 5 access streets as part of theColumbia River Crossing, could eventually increase traffic in downtown Vancouver by up to 20,000 car trips per day.
“We’re disappointed but not completely surprised,” Brown said. “It’s a difficult year to get $1 million to $2 million for anything.” But he said he was working with Pridemore and Rep.
Bill Fromhold, chairman of the House Capital Budget Committee, to try to get funds added.
“What matters is the final budget that goes to the governor,” he said. “We haven’t given up.”
House and Senate Democrats have until adjournment March 13 to work out the differences and pass a final one-year spending plan.
http://www.columbian.com/news/localNews/2008/02/02272008_Senate-budget-sets-up-showdown.cfm
February 27, 2008
By KATHIE DURBIN, Columbian staff writer
OLYMPIA — The Senate rolled out a 2008-09 supplemental budget Tuesday that sets up a showdown with the House over funding teacher cost-of-living raises, all-day kindergarten and transportation mega-projects.
The $33.7 billion Senate operating budget includes a net $319 million in new spending. It would leave about $755 million unspent — slightly more than the House budget passed Monday — but it would get there by a different route.
“This is the time to tighten our belts, not to panic,” said Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton, chairwoman of the budget-writing Ways and Means Committee.
Vice-chairman Sen. Craig Pridemore, D-Vancouver, said the budget keeps commitments made by the 2007 Legislature.
“We don’t succumb to irrational gloom and doom and make knee-jerk cuts,” he said. “We don’t raise taxes. We respond to unanticipated events, such as the December storm, and some anticipated ones, such as the upcoming WASL graduation requirement. And we leave three-quarters of a billion dollars in reserve.”
The budget adds $26.9 million in new spending to help students who are struggling to pass the Washington Assessment of Student Learning and meet other high school graduation requirements. Senate Education Chairwoman Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, made it clear that she would support sticking with the requirement that 2008 graduates pass the reading and writing sections of the WASL only if the state made a significant investment to help students who were in danger of being left behind.
The budget funds a 3.9 percent cost-of-living increase for school employees mandated by a voter-approved initiative. But it does not include the additional 1 percent catch-up increase the House proposes to fund at a cost of $39 million for employees in K-12 schools and community colleges.
Instead, Prentice said, she is committed to following through on last year’s promise to phase in all-day kindergarten for all Washington children. The House budget slows the growth of the program in 2008-09.
“We won’t accept a budget that includes less than full funding for all-day kindergarten,” she said. “I think the public would be justifiably outraged.”
The Senate budget also adds $12 per student to maintain and improve school libraries, at a cost of $11.7 million
Prentice described the budget as “frugal.” But Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, said before the budget roll-out that neither the House nor the Senate had produced a frugal spending plan.
“If you added together the adds in the Senate and House budgets, there would be nothing left” in reserve, he said. “We are spending $1.7 billion more than we are forecast to take in.”
Zarelli, the ranking Republican on Ways and Means, noted that both budgets would leave the state with about $300 million to spend on unanticipated costs after $445.7 million is deposited in the rainy day reserve account. The staff of the Ways and Means Committee has projected that the state will face a $2.4 billion deficit in the 2009-11 biennium.
Frugal or not, the budget does include new spending for some projects favored by local legislators, including Zarelli:
* $1.9 million in general fund revenue, to be matched by $1.7 million in federal revenue, to cover smoking cessation programs for Medicaid recipients. Pridemore introduced the bill, which would cover counseling, nicotine replacement therapy and prescription drugs. State health officials said the program could help reduce the state’s health care costs, because 40 percent of Medicaid recipients are smokers.
* $1 million for a pilot project in Clark County to study reactive attachment disorder among children 9 years old or younger and recommend ways to intervene when children cannot form emotional bonds or respond to others in socially appropriate ways. Zarelli* introduced the bill.
* $2.4 million to set up a system for offering a “working family tax credit” to families who qualify for the federal earned-income tax credit. Pridemore introduced the bill authorizing the payments beginning in the 2009-10 fiscal year.
Absent from the Senate budget was an appropriation to begin implementing the recommendations of a gang task force to reduce criminal gang activity. The House included $2.3 million in its supplemental budget to fund small grants to local law enforcement agencies.
Rep. Charles Ross, R-Naches, who co-chaired the task force, said he was hopeful the appropriation would survive. “When the powers sit down to negotiate the budget, that’s a very high priority for the House negotiators,” he said.
Few capital projects
The Senate also released its capital budget Tuesday. Unlike in past years, it included very little money for new local projects.
Sen. Karen Fraser, D-Olympia, who oversaw preparation of the capital budget, said her goal was to preserve the state’s bonding capacity for the 2009-11 biennium, when the demand for K-12 and higher education construction is expected to grow. (aka state charge card--WB)
The new frugality left the city of Vancouver empty-handed. “The city was hoping that we would get $1 million to $2 million in the capital budget to help with infrastructure development at the old Boise Cascade site,” said Mark Brown, a lobbyist for the city. “We have to come up with $40 million for infrastructure.” (Hey Chief.. Hope you enjoy this one????? A told you SOOOO?--WB)
Brown said the city didn’t include the funding request in its 2008 legislative wish list last December, but the need became obvious after Gramor Development agreed three weeks ago to lead redevelopment of the 32-acre riverfront property. The project is expected to bring a mix of condominiums, shops and restaurants to the site worth up to $1.2 billion.
According to one estimate, redevelopment of the Boise Cascade site and nearby properties, combined with the reconfiguration of Interstate 5 access streets as part of theColumbia River Crossing, could eventually increase traffic in downtown Vancouver by up to 20,000 car trips per day.
“We’re disappointed but not completely surprised,” Brown said. “It’s a difficult year to get $1 million to $2 million for anything.” But he said he was working with Pridemore and Rep.
Bill Fromhold, chairman of the House Capital Budget Committee, to try to get funds added.
“What matters is the final budget that goes to the governor,” he said. “We haven’t given up.”
House and Senate Democrats have until adjournment March 13 to work out the differences and pass a final one-year spending plan.