Over the weekend, the Washington state Legislature managed to pass its budgets for the next biennium ahead of the session's April 27 deadline.
While the budget process was mostly fought along party lines this year, minority Republicans have praised the $7.6 billion capital budget, which received unanimous support in both houses.
Republicans involved in the budget process labeled it a budget “for the entire state,” highlighting statewide impacts, responsible spending and bipartisan cooperation.
“I’m proud of how we held firm on the things the Senate views as most important, which include investments that will be seen in all four corners of the state,” said Sen. Perry Dozier, R-Waitsburg, assistant Republican leader for the Senate Capital Budget.
“Education and behavioral health are priorities in rural Washington as much as anywhere in our state, and that is reflected here. It’s a solid budget, and deserving of the strong bipartisan support it received today.”
The budget boasts significant funding for K-12 schools as well as affordable housing and behavioral health.
$975 million was carved out for K-12 school construction, maintenance and upgrades with nearly $430 million supporting the School Construction Assistance Program and just over $202 million going toward small district and tribal compact school modernization.
More than $600 million of the $761 million dedicated to affordable housing will fund the Housing Trust Fund which provides grant funding for new affordable housing projects
State Rep. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, who serves as an assistant ranking member on the Capital Budget Committee, and fellow 20th District lawmaker Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama, also announced their support of the new capital budget, pointing out more than $91 million in spending on projects that will impact their district.
"This budget reflects what happens when legislators put people ahead of politics," Abbarno said. “We secured vital investments that strengthen our communities, create opportunity and improve quality of life across Southwest Washington. From safe drinking water projects and flood protection to youth athletic facilities and historic preservation, these projects will have a lasting impact on future generations."
The biggest price tag for local projects is $75 million dedicated to the Chehalis Basin Strategy, which funds projects throughout the 19th, 20th, 24th and 35th legislative districts dedicated to restoring fish habitat and reducing catastrophic flooding.
The program, which is supported by the Office of the Chehalis Basin and the Chehalis Basin Board, has received $70 million in the last two bienniums and requested $80 million in funding this biennium to fund the increasing size and scale of the projects they hope to undertake.
“The legislative appropriation is $5 million more than proposed by Governor Inslee,” said Chehalis Basin Board member and Chehalis resident J. Vander Stoep. “Legislators, especially our local legislators and the others who represent parts of the Chehalis Basin, Republicans and Democrats, see the progress being made with more than 140 fish and local flood projects done on-time and on-budget. They want the process to continue until we have a basin-wide flood protection system and a basin-wide fish and habitat recovery plan completed … They see the combined work of local officials, farmers, tribal leaders and environmental representatives working together as an unusual and positive thing.”
The capital budget also supports a swath of other projects in and around Lewis County. It dedicates $22 million of the $485.4 million going to behavioral health facilities across the state to fund a 136-bed civil conversion facility on the Department of Corrections’ Maple Lane Campus in Grand Mound. That facility currently houses individuals found not guilty of a crime due to a plea of insanity, according to the Washington state Department of Social and Health Services website.
The budget also sets aside $5 million to the City of Centralia Nitrates Project to address problems with drinking water in Fords Prairie Neighborhood of Centralia, which have been linked to the nearby Bob Oke Game Farm operated by the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“I am very pleased with the wide variety and broad distribution of projects that we secured throughout the district, and for a variety of purposes," Orcutt said. "Many of these are critically important investments, especially in our smaller communities, providing for air and water quality, fish and wildlife habitat protection, outdoor recreation, and infrastructure needs."
Other significant funding amounts include $2 million for the Port of Chehalis hydrogen fueling station and production facility, $1.75 million for the Chehalis River raw water main replacement project and $1.092 million for field lights at Fort Borst Park in Centralia.
Other 20th Legislative projects funded by the budget include:
• $1.545 million for slope stabilization and slide alleviation along Pioneer Street in Ridgefield
• $803,000 for Battle Ground Lake Equestrian Parking Lot improvements
• $767,000 for upgrades to the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds 4-H Barn in Centralia
• $752,000 for Rose Way Extension and Industrial Infrastructure in Woodland
• $541,000 for a Cascade Community Health behavioral health facility in the United Learning Center in Centralia
• $521,000 for the development of Austin Point Water Recreation Park in Woodland
• $400,000 for La Center Downtown 2.0 infrastructure improvements
• $318,000 for the Holcomb-Little Kalama River Tributary fish passage project
• $318,000 for Lengle-Sand Creek fish passage project
• $217,000 for the Cambodian Cultural Hall/Sala Thormaksaphea through the Building for the Arts grant program in Clark County
• $152,000 for Southwest Washington Dance Center facility improvements in Chehalis
• $150,000 for Lewis County Courthouse restoration and preservation efforts in Chehalis
• $145,000 to restore Chehalis's historic Porter No. 5 Steam Engine
• $80,000 for Mossyrock Grange preservation
• $50,000 for Chehalis Recreation Park improvements
• $45,000 for Scott Hill Park and Sports Complex improvements in Woodland
Bipartisan cooperation is quite normal in the capital budget since the budget is funded in large part by bond bills that require a three-fifths majority to pass.
However, Republicans pointed out in recent news releases that cooperation was not a given this year with Democrats having the numbers to pass a capital budget along party lines. Nonetheless, Republicans in both houses emphasized that they remained deeply involved in the process.
“Despite this dynamic, Republicans remained fully engaged in budget negotiations, working across the aisle to secure meaningful investments that reflect statewide priorities and responsible financial stewardship” read a news release from Washington state House Republicans.
While the budget has been approved by both houses it now heads to the governor's desk for final approval. Gov. Bob Ferguson provided a news release Sunday evening after the budgets had been passed thanking lawmakers for their work and signaling that he will now take the time to review the budgets in detail before signing them into law.
“I want to thank our legislators, staff and my team, for all their hard work this session as we faced a $16 billion budget shortfall,” reads Ferguson's statement. “I look forward to carefully reviewing the budgets line by line over the next few weeks. When that review is complete, I will share my thoughts with the public in greater detail.”
While the budget has received wide support from both parties it remains to be seen if any part of the new budgets will be struck down, potentially forcing the Legislature into a special session.
