June is too soon. Bring back Washington Legislature in August to fix COVID-19 crisis

There are many good reasons to hold a special session of the Washington Legislature before summer slips through our fingers, as summers tend to do.

Lawmakers need to start digging out of a deep budget hole, caused by the COVID-19 shutdown, which is projected to reach nearly $9 billion between now and mid-2023.

“I know from dealing with past deficits that for every dollar you save in June, you avoid having to find $1.50 in savings come January,” Sen. Mark Schoesler, the Senate’s Republican minority leader, said last week, after the release of a devastating state revenue report. We can’t argue with his logic.

Legislators also shouldn’t shrink from tackling police reform — not after a groundswell of protests helped illuminate the unjust deaths of George Floyd and other African Americans in police custody.

Simply put, Washington’s part-time Legislature is ready to reclaim its role as a co-equal branch of government. More than three months have passed since it adjourned and the coronavirus pandemic pressed Gov. Jay Inslee into one-man duty; that’s a long time to wield largely unchecked emergency powers.

For all these reasons, we understand why Republican leaders have urged the Democratic governor to call legislators back to Olympia before the end of this month.

Sorry, fellas, but it ain’t gonna happen. That should be obvious to anyone who looks at the vanishing June calendar and the expanding menu of potential special session agenda items, from unemployment fraud to telemedicine reimbursements.

Inslee needs to land on a timeframe for legislators to gather. He should promptly announce a special session date, along with his policy priority list. That way lawmakers can start planning and Washingtonians have a foretaste of what to expect.

In our view, the second week of August makes sense, free from the distractions of the Aug. 4 primary election but before the politics of the November general election really heat up.

It also allows time to avoid some painful cuts, if Congress comes through with a bailout. Last month the US House approved a $3 trillion stimulus package with $500 billion in direct state and local assistance. Some Washington state majority Democrats are gambling on that aid winning final passage in July, despite strong headwinds from the US Senate and White House.

Finally, there’s one seldom discussed but critical reason why lawmakers should wait until August for a special session:

To ensure the wheels of open government don’t fall off under the weight of pandemic restrictions.

It’s alarming that the public’s right to know — and to provide input — could give way to closed House and Senate galleries and committee hearing rooms.

In an interview last week, House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, told the TNT’s editorial page editor that legislative leaders are discussing how to safely operate in the COVID-19 era. She said they’re closely watching how other state legislatures are conducting business; options include everything from meeting outdoors to letting some members vote from their offices via electronic connection.

While Jinkins said there will be opportunities for remote public testimony, she acknowledged committee hearings will be limited, and most action will occur on the House and Senate floors.

The degree of public access may hinge partly on which stage of reopening Thurston County is in, Jinkins noted. And if a special session is deferred until August, there’s a decent chance the county will have advanced to Phase 4.

What’s at stake here? Nothing less than Washingtonians’ fundamental trust in a transparent, responsive and accountable state government — one that won’t make multi-billion-dollar decisions outside the public eye.

In New Mexico last week, the state Supreme Court blocked the public from being physically present for a special legislative session that convened in Santa Fe Thursday. Republicans had sued to open the Capitol’s doors while lawmakers grapple with a $2 billion shortfall. But in a 3-2 ruling, the court said public health concerns must prevail.

“Democracy dies in darkness,” a GOP attorney said in an opening statement to the court, quoting the motto of The Washington Post.

Indeed, it does. And that’s one of the most compelling reasons why a special session of the Washington Legislature should wait until midsummer.

This story was originally published June 23, 2020 at 11:15 AM.