Gov. Jay Inslee signed the two-year operating budget into law late Tuesday night, just before the midnight deadline that would have forced a partial state government shutdown.
“It’s forward-thinking, it’s responsible and it’s fair. It’s taken a long time to get here, but the final result is a budget that does respond to the fundamental needs of the people of the state,” Inslee said as he signed the document around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday.
The budget passed out of both chambers on Monday. The Senate voted 38-10, while the House voted 90-8.
The compromise budget spends $38.2 billion over the next two years, reduces K-3 class sizes, gives teachers a total 4.8 percent pay raise through 2017, slashes tuition by 20 percent at four-year regional universities and by 15 percent at the University of Washington and Washington State University.
An outline of the agreement was announced by Inslee and legislative leaders on Saturday afternoon, but details were not released to the public online until Monday afternoon.
Among the highlights:
-An additional $1.3 billion will be spent in K-12 education to meet McCleary obligations, including smaller class sizes in kindergarten through third grade, all-day kindergarten and fully funding maintenance, supplies and operating costs.
-$173 million for pay raises for state workers, fully funding collective bargaining agreements.
-$153 million for pay raises for teachers. Combined with a cost-of-living pay raises, that will amount to a 3 percent raise for the 2015-16 school year and a 1.8 percent raise for the 2016-17 school year.
-Colleges and universities will see varying tuition cuts. The state’s two research universities, UW and WSU, will get a 15 percent tuition cut. Four-year regional universities such as Western Washington University or Evergreen State College will get a 20 percent cut. Community and technical colleges will get a 5 percent reduction. The tuition cuts will be phased-in starting with a 5 percent reduction this year.
-An increase in revenue of about $200 million will come from repealing tax breaks, increasing certain fees and transferring lotto funds. The budget repeals a tax break for software manufacturers, eliminates a preferential business and occupation tax rate for royalty income and increases Dept. of Revenue late fee penalties.
-A decrease of about $35 million in revenue will come from extending or reinstating several tax breaks, including one for food processors and another tax break for data server farms.
-$134 million will go to early learning, including expanded preschool, funding the Early Start Act and child care eligibility changes.