Supplemental budget requests have been submitted. Some are ridiculous projects that don’t need more money, but others show how out-of-balance the budget priorities last session were. Even as Washington enacted the largest tax increase in its history, essential services were underfunded in lieu of giving state workers a raise. Todd Myers breaks down some of the problems.
00:00 – Unbalanced budget overview
00:26 – Forecasted shortfall and blame on tariffs
00:51 – No rainy day leeway; spending choices
01:18 – Cuts to core programs
02:10 – Agencies’ supplemental requests
03:03 – +$10M EV chargers
04:05 – Certificate of Need program funding ask
05:19 – Local climate plans with no results
06:35 – Essential services underfunded
07:01 – Medicaid $460M gap and trade-offs
08:09 – DCF mental-health rates below Medicaid;
10:47 – Invasive Japanese beetle control funding
11:58 – DOC $6.5M to apprehend warrants
13:47 – OSPI asks $10M; NAEP admission; slipping scores
16:41 – Colleges asks for coverage on utility hikes tied to CCA/CETA
19:10 – Politics vs good governance
19:30 – New tax proposals vs spending cuts
20:21 – Claw back $3B raises; cut waste
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