Education reforms top first week of legislative session
The first week of the 2012 legislature draws to a close this cool Friday the 13th of January. Encouragingly, education reform has found substantial bipartisan support. In the Seattle Times, Brian Rosenthal has a good overview of yesterday’s action. Declaring that traditional methods have failed, a bipartisan group of lawmakers formally introduced a pair of […]
January 12 , 2012 - Kriss Sjoblom
State Revenue Collections Remain On Track
The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council released the January Economic and Revenue Update yesterday. Here is the summary: The U.S. economy is performing as expected in the last forecast, but downside risks remain extremely high. Washington’s economy is benefitting from solid performances by aerospace, software and agriculture. But overall growth is being held back by […]
January 09 , 2012 - Richard S. Davis
A longer-term look at state budget gaps
Sunday the Seattle Times editorial board released a series of reforms necessary to guide the state back to a sustainable budget. It’s a smart list, including a number of ideas that we have written about in the Thrive Washington series and in various WRC policy briefs. As important, the editorial examines the growing gap between […]
December 30 , 2011 - Emily Makings
The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and Workers' Comp Audit
The State Auditor’s Office has released its 2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) Summary. Total government expenses declined 7.42 percent from 2010, with the largest reductions coming from workers’ compensation (-71.44 percent) and unemployment insurance (-21.97 percent). Unemployment compensation activity reported operating income of $171 million in fiscal year 2011 versus a loss of $985 […]
December 15 , 2011 - Kriss Sjoblom
OFM Posts 6-Year Outlook
The Office of Financial Management has posted a new six-year outlook for the state budget. OFM's analysis shows that, even with the cuts that Gov. Gregoire has proposed to close the deficit in the current biennium, the state faces budget deficits in the following two biennia under current law. The main culprits are restoration of […]
December 12 , 2011 - Emily Makings
Legislative 2012 Supplemental Budget Proposal
The legislature released a proposed 2012 supplemental budget today (PSSB 5883 or PSHB 2058). As we discussed in our brief on the governor’s proposed supplemental, the state has about a $2 billion problem to solve. Legislators don’t propose getting anywhere near that figure during the special session. Instead, they would begin by cutting the problem […]
December 12 , 2011 - Kriss Sjoblom
Scant Good News for Budget Writers in Report on November 11 to December 10 State Revenue Collections
The Washington State Economic and Revenue Council (EFRC) today issued its December Economic and Revenue Update. Here is the summary: The U.S. economy continues to “muddle through.” The risk of a renewed financial meltdown stemming from the European sovereign debt crisis remains high. We continue to expect Washington’s economy to outperform the U.S. in the […]
December 05 , 2011 - Emily Makings
New Brief: Governor's 2012 Supplemental Budget Proposal
In a new brief, we detail Governor Gregoire’s proposed 2012 supplemental budget. Not only does the governor propose a long list of spending cuts and fund transfers, she also recommends a number of revenue raisers — including, of course, an increase in the sales tax. Should voters and the legislature agree to increase taxes, the […]
December 01 , 2011 - Emily Makings
WA One of Four States with Current Year Budget Shortfall
Today the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) released a Fall 2011 State Budget Update: Better revenue performance is driving the improvement in state finances. Collections in most states have stabilized or are growing, and the general revenue outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year reflects confidence in continued modest growth. However, recent global […]
November 30 , 2011 - Richard S. Davis
Perspective on changes in state revenue collections
In my column this morning, I discuss how and why state revenues have fallen as a share of the economy. State revenues have fallen as a share of the economy. But it’s mostly because taxpayers rejected the higher burdens. Please go to the column for context. And, yes, revenues have even fallen since 1995 on […]