“Today we are announcing a significant new effort in how we’re going to create our budget,” Gregoire said, starting out her announcement. “We are seeing hopeful signs in our economic recovery but quite frankly, we are also seeing that things are not going to get back to the way they were anytime soon.”

She said in the first five months of this year, the state has added 14,000 new jobs — but that doesn’t hold a candle to the jobs lost. “Credit is tight for our businesses and tighter than it was two years ago.”

As a result of the economic crisis, she said, state revenues are down. When the 2011 Legislature meets, they’ll face a $3 billion projected shortfall.

“Today must mark the start of something different,” she said, to “think differently, to ask our questions in a new way.” She said tough choices aren’t new to the state, which has cut $5.1 billion in spending over the past two years.

She said the changes aren’t just about the process, they’re about building a strong financial foundation. “It’s about transforming government to meet the needs and the economic realities” of the future.

So: She wants to reform budget writing. “There are no sacred cows. We’re going to ask new and challenging questions” about state programs. “In addition to the rigorous budget process, I’ll challenge our state agencies” to go beyond “priorities of government” budgeting and consider fiscal responsibility, performance and efficiency.

Those three additional areas each have several questions. Example: Is this an essential service? If so, is it something that can be provided by others. “Could Washington State Ferries be managed by an outside organization,” she asked, by way of example. She said many ferry services are private run or on the way to that — ditto for the state data center. (more…)

Tags: Budget, Governor, Reform

Gov. Chris Gregoire’s office just sent out a brief note saying that at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow, she’ll unveil and discuss “a new comprehensive approach to constructing the 2011-13 state budget” — a process that will “be highlighted by more transparency, community involvement and outside experts.”

That’s all we know right now. Read the blog at 10:30 tomorrow morning for more information!

Tags: Budget, Governor, state

With President Obama’s nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court, Washington’s governor is rumored to be on the short-list to replace her, according to this article from a Washington, D.C. publication.

So what happens if Governor Gregoire moves to the other Washington? It depends on when she would resign:

• Before May 31: primary and general election to replace her
• After May 31 but before October 3: general election only – winner takes all
• After October 3: Lt. Governor Brad Owen succeeds her until the 2012 election, but his post would be on the 2011 ballot

The governor’s predecessor, Gary Locke, has already staked a post in the Obama Administration.  He serves as the Commerce Secretary.

Tags: Governor, Gregoire, solicitor general

Gov. Chris Gregoire is on set with Jessica Gao now on The Impact’s special Sine Die edition.

A crowd of about a two dozen lobbyists have gathered just outside the set — which is in the legislative building for today — and they’re watching, silently to see what the governor has to say. Tune in now on TVW. I’ll see what I can hear from where I sit and post here.

“I’m hopeful that we’re going to hear the Race to the Top bill” come out of the House pretty soon, she said. She said they’ve made an agreement on the content of the bill and “I don’t really care about the structure.”

She said the key for Race to the Top is that the state needs to be ready to implement the changes.

Gregoire indicated that there still is not agreement on the level of revenues and cuts. She said that public employee benefits, facilities closures and GA-U — three areas she identified as big sticking points for the session — have had good conversations, but not consensus.
On GA-U — which Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson said there was an agreement on earlier today — Gregoire said there’s progress, not agreement.

She said the state needs to close institutions, but didn’t say which ones. She said the key is that they cannot let anyone out early. She also said the Legislature may be passing bills that will lead to a greater caseload for the prison system, which needs to be taken into account. She said try to build a new prison in someone’s community and “they will fight you tooth and nail.” Try to close it after it’s been built: “and they will fight you tooth and nail.” She said trying to close an institution is an interesting experience.

She reiterated that there isn’t agreement between the House and Senate on the level of revenue and cuts. She said they’ve made progress today, but they’re not there yet.

Tags: Governor, special session

This week’s Q&A is with Marty Brown, Gov. Chris Gregoire’s director of Legislative Affairs. Read what he has to say on taxes, the 960 bill, the Constitutional amendment and more.

Q: When Gov. Gregoire introduced her tax package yesterday, she indicated it wasn’t a temporary package. Can you say more on that?
Brown: I think it’s at least through next biennium. We haven’t finished up all the bills. What we’d looked at was exactly how to make sure we raised some money for 2011-2013 biennium, too. We haven’t looked out any further than that. I think she’s considering them to be at least last three years.

Q: Why not go with a sales tax increase?
Brown: I think she thinks that it is probably our most regressive tax. It hits folks that can least afford it the hardest and I think that’s the main reason right there.
Will the Legislature still consider it? Possibly. I know they have at least one bill to do that.

Q: How much did you consult with the Legislature in putting together the tax package?
Brown: We had meetings with legislative leadership, we talked about some of the direction she was going. Obviously some of the issues have already been introduced.
We met with finance, Rep. Hunter and Sen. Murray, about things they were talking about. It wasn’t like people signed off. Much like when she put forth her budget, it’s what she proposes, understanding that the Legislature will have different ideas.

Q: Let’s talk about reform. There’s one proposal to fold the Parks and Fish and Wildlife commissions into the Department of Natural Resources. I’m wondering if that’s an idea the governor would consider?
Brown: A couple things: We considered DNR-natural resources reform and doing the same thing that some of the legislators are talking about. We are not convinced that it saves much money up front. There are lots of policy questions, but we understand the Legislature is working on that.
We have several reform things working right now. In natural resources, we’re trying to combine growth management hearings boards into trying to slim down other environmental hearings boards. We’ve got bills in on boards and commissions – to get rid of a bunch of those. The Legislature always has a hard time doing that. We’ve got a proposal to put Medicaid into the Healthcare Authority. We think that putting all of the health purchasing in one place is a cost savings we could work on. So quite a few things are moving right now. Whether or not the Legislature will be able to do it or not is an open question.

(more…)

Tags: 960, Constitutional amendment, Governor, liquor privatization, Marty Brown, taxes, Thursday Q&A

Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a bill to prevent youth concussions in sports today. The bill was brought to the spotlight by Zachary Lystedt, a middle school athlete who sustained a concussion during a football game but played the remaining two quarters anyway. He had to be flown to the hospital after collapsing, and now is in a wheelchair.

The bill would require every parent and student athlete to receive information on concussions at the beginning of the season. During a game or practice, if any student athlete sustains a head injury, they’ll be removed from play until they can be evaluated by a trained health care professional.

Here’s a full list of bills signed today by Gov. Gregoire:
• Engrossed House Bill No. 1824, relating to requiring the adoption of policies for the management of concussion and head injury in youth sports.

• Substitute House Bill No. 1845, relating to medical support obligations.

• Engrossed Substitute House Bill No. 1782, relating to encouraging early and consistent engagement of parents in children’s dependency matters.

• House Bill No. 2359, relating to delaying the implementation date for peer mentoring for long-term care workers.

• Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill No. 5073, relating to consolidating accounts into the state general fund.

• Substitute Senate Bill No. 5285, relating to guardians ad litem.

• Senate Bill No. 5354, relating to public hospital capital facility areas.
(more…)

Tags: bills, Governor, youth concussion

Gov. Gregoire had a bill signing this afternoon. Jennifer Huntley, host of The Impact, took some notes on what she said on the special session:

“They had a telephone call yesterday and told me they couldn’t reach agreement. It was pretty short and I said thank you, I won’t call a special session.” She didn’t say exactly why they couldn’t reach an agreement.

On the budget, Gregoire said “I’ve sent them a letter in which I’ve indicated that I will do my best to live within the budget with the unforeseen revenue forecast for June and September.” She said if that results in drastic, across-the-board cuts, she’ll have to ask for Legislative action.

Is she disappointed?
“I am, the one thing I am really disappointed with, I had hoped that school districts would be allowed access to about $68 million to avoid teacher layoffs. I don’t know if they would have accessed it but at least they would have had the ability to do so. I’m disappointed on that one the most. The rest, I’ve found ways that I think we can move forward and resolve.”

On the subject of levy equalization, Gregoire said she intends to fully fund it so that when the Legislature returns in January, they’ll have a hole to plug. Since statute hasn’t changed, she thinks she’s legally obligated to do that.

Any way they’ll be called back before January? She said the only reason she would is if the revenue forecast is so bad that she can’t absorb the difference without legislation.

Thanks, Jennifer!

And the Rep. Richard DeBolt, the House minority leader, had to say (via a press release):
“The decision to forego a special session is welcome news. From the moment the regular session ended April 26, Republicans in the state House of Representatives were adamant that we did not support bringing lawmakers back to complete the Democrat agenda, which included cutting funding for more than 220 schools and placing an additional burden on local taxpayers.

“At a cost of nearly twenty thousand dollars a day, it would have been an insult to the taxpayers of our state to call a special session to finish up the work of Democrat lawmakers, with near supermajorities, who were not able to complete the 105-day regular session.
(Entire statement after the jump.) (more…)

Tags: Governor, special session

“I hope everyone got a good night’s sleep. Just another typical evening,” the Governor began.

First: An update on swine flu. She said there are no known cases in Washington state. “There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for the people of this state to panic. But, we all need to be vigilant,” she said. Wash your hands and, if you have flu-like symptoms, stay home. She said the federal public health emergency is in place, and the state will be receiving antiviral medication.

“It cannot prevent the swine flu, but medication is used in the cases we find. A lot of people have asked Mary, Is this a vaccine? It is not.”

Tags: Governor, special session

Jennifer Huntley just interviewed Gov. Chris Gregoire on the special Sine Die edition of The Impact. Gregoire said she’s hoping the climate change and unemployment insurance conformity bills pass before they adjourn.

And, she said, she’s worried the Legislature won’t get their work done on time.

The interview will air this afternoon. Right now, both the House and Senate are caucusing, but you can see Jen’s live (and some taped today) interviews on TVW or at tvw.org.

Tags: Governor

Austin Jenkins is in the studio right now interviewing Gov. Chris Gregoire. The show will air in just a few hours — at 7 and 10 p.m., provided that there’s no floor session at that time. I’ll post the show right here as soon as it’s available.

A preview: Jenkins asked whether she thought the Legislature could get out on time. She said she hoped so — she’s headed to Washington D.C. on April 27, a day after the scheduled adjournment.

She’ll be in D.C. on business: As a follow-up to the health care summit she participated in with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last month, she and other participants are going to share their findings with President Barack Obama.

Watch Inside Olympia on TVW at 7 and 10 p.m. (again, Legislature willing) or right here (or at tvw.org) as soon as it’s available.

Tags: Governor