Budget rollout comin' atcha ... 3-2-1
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It's the biggest story in town this legislative session -- really, the only story -- and most of the backstage work on filling a $9 billion budget gap has been behind closed doors and in corridor conversations. But some of the details are starting to leak out, and lawmakers finally have released their timeline for next week's public rollout of the competing Senate and House plans.
First, the timeline:
The Senate Democratic operating budget comes out Monday morning at 10:30. Before the ink is barely dry, House Democrats respond with their own proposal on Tuesday morn' at 10.
The separate construction and transportation budgets have their own paths and timetable, natch. The Senate already has paraded out a bipartisan transpo budget and the House will release a rival plan on Monday. The construction budget, also called the capital budget, will emerge first in the House, on Wednesday and in the Senate a day or two later...
By protocol, all three budgets start first in the Senate this year. The House then will substitute its own versions and pass them back over to the Senate. Negotiators will hammer out deets.
Leaders have begun laying out some of the highlights to expect. Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, for instance, tells reporters the Senate plan will cut nearly a half-billion from higher ed and that K-12 layoffs and cuts also are coming. Salaries freezes are coming and state employees likely will have to pay more for health care coverage. Cuts are coming in the Basic Health Plan and General Assistance-Unemployable welfare.
One bit of good news: Stimulus Bucks from Uncle Sam seem to be multiplying. GovGreg had initially hoped to get $1 billion -- and now it's looking more like $10b! That from our new stimulus czar, Jill Satran, in an appearance at The Olympian editorial board. She succeeds the widely admired Dick Thompson, who was doing the job pro bono for the last three months. He joked "I think I'm one of the few czars who has been dethroned and is still alive."
And did we mention? A tax package for the statewide ballot is widely expected. Deets still under deep wraps.
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Secretary of State
Steve Hobbs
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