But that’s not entirely accurate. About $340 million of the K-12 savings in Gregoire’s budget is a one-day shift into the next budget cycle – not an actual reduction in money that eventually lands in the school house.
Even so, Republicans say their approach is a new one that in light of the recent Supreme Court ruling, which found the state was not meeting its constitutional duty to amply fund basic education, is needed.
Rep. Bruce Dammeier of Puyallup said the state was found to be failing its education duty in 1977 and again in 2012 – which means Washington needs to “change the way the Legislature behaves.’’
Dammeier met with reporters along with Republican Reps. Gary Alexander of Thurston County, Cathy Dahlquist of Enumclaw and Charles Ross of Naches. Dahlquist said past moves to retroactively cut school funding hurt local districts and the goal is to give “certainty” to districts.
And Ross said there is no question that the state has enough to cover basic education.
But what else would they cut that Gregoire did not? That’s a big question Republicans are keeping secret – at least for now.
Alexander, who is the House Republicans’ top voice on the budget, said he is working with his Democratic counterpart, Rep. Ross Hunter, on a plan to bridge the state’s $1.5 billion budget gap. Alexander said he won’t reveal his full budget publicly unless his ongoing talks with Hunter fall apart.
Until then, Alexander offered his word that he can write an overall supplemental operating budget that includes the K-12 budget and – importantly – also won’t harm public safety or the state’s vulnerable populations.
Gregoire’s plan cut funding for K-12 schools, higher education and health care programs, and she is proposing to “buy back” many of those cuts with a half-cent sales-tax package that would be sent to voters this spring. Alexander said that if Democrats want to find money to pay for things his version of the budget would leave out – those are the things that should be tied to the funding mechanism.
The only detail Alexander did mention was cutting the Disability Lifeline. That is a program that provides health care and housing vouchers to people who are temporarily disabled and unable to work. Alexander said those with true disabilities could qualify for another program, dubbed GA-X, that helps people as they wait for federal disability payments.
Rep. Hunter, the House Ways and Means Committee chairman, said he agrees with the general concept of bringing more transparency to the education budget process. But he said he thinks it is not practical to write one piece of the budget in isolation.
Hunter, a Medina Democrat, put out a statement in response to the document Dammeier and his caucus members circulated, showing how their spending would differ from Gregoire’s. It said:
Asked later about the additional cuts Alexander has shared with him, Hunter declined to say on grounds he had agreed to keep them confidential. Asked if he believes Alexander really can balance a budget without causing harm to public safety, schools and the vulnerable, Hunter said:
“I’m not going to comment on that. I’m saying that you have no basis to believe that. You might believe it. It’s ‘Trust me.’ I’m Ronald Reagan, baby: Trust but verify.’’’
Details about the House GOP plan are here.
One last detail: Rep. Kathy Haigh, D-Shelton, said her education appropriations committee will not be forwarding Dammeier's fund-education-first policy bill, House Bill 2533, which got a hearing yesterday.
I am writing a story for print editions of the Friday papers.
