State lawmakers are in advanced discussions to make $400 million in budget cuts next week as a preliminary fix to the state’s $1.4 billion shortfall, top budget negotiators said Friday.
Republican Rep. Gary Alexander said he is reviewing a proposal from his Democratic counterparts, seeking revisions and additions to reach as much as $500 million in savings. Lawmakers said they are optimistic the measure will pass next week because it reserves more contentious issues for discussion later.
“There’s enough low-hanging fruit that we can make significant inroads,” he said.
House members are scheduled to take up the legislation Monday afternoon, and Democratic Rep. Ross Hunter said he expects negotiators to work through the weekend finalizing the proposal. Leaders declined to discuss specific details but said it was focused more on broader administrative reductions for state agencies than specific program eliminations.
The Legislature is seeking to make some cuts in December before returning for the regular session in January.
“We’re getting close,” Hunter said.
Senators from both parties are also involved in the discussions, said Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane. She expects work can be completed by next weekend.
Gregoire had asked lawmakers to finish a budget before Christmas, warning that delaying the cuts will only make them more difficult as government continues to spend each day. But Brown said the Legislature has taken time reviewing cuts and argued that the public had a right to voice opinions about the proposals that will drastically impact thousands of lives. She called Gregoire’s initial timeline “overly ambitious.”
“I’m certainly not going to apologize that we’ve taken a couple weeks to deliberate,” Brown said.
Lawmakers are seeking to eventually find $2 billion in cuts to fix the $1.4 billion shortfall and have a $600 million buffer. Gov. Chris Gregoire has proposed getting there through a combination of cuts, fund transfers and delayed payments. The cuts would include shortening the school year by four days, eliminating some social programs and releasing prisoners early.
She has separately proposed that voters approve a temporary increase in the sales tax to offset some of the cuts.
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