In 2021, the Legislature withdrew $1.820 billion from the state’s restricted budget stabilization account (BSA) even though revenues had not declined. Most of the funds went to the unrestricted Washington rescue plan transition account (WRPTA), where they were held until the WRPTA was spent down in 2023–25.

Total reserves are expected to decline by more than half in 2023–25. The BSA balance has grown since 2021, but it has not recovered its pre-pandemic level.

During the pandemic, the state took advantage of BSA rules to shift substantial funds from the protected BSA to unrestricted accounts. Once the money was in the unrestricted accounts, and once much of the economic uncertainty had passed, the Legislature spent it. (The WRPTA was emptied just three legislative sessions after it was opened.) The constitutional restrictions on the BSA do not make withdrawals impossible, but they are an effective constraint that ensures reserves will be available when they are needed. The case of the WRPTA shows that the same cannot be said of unrestricted reserve accounts.

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