Budget bills in WA Legislature would tap rainy day fund, spend heavily on legal payouts

OLYMPIA [Jake Goldstein-Street and Bill Lucia] —Democrats in the Washington Legislature on Sunday proposed tapping the state’s rainy day savings account and slashing hundreds of millions of dollars for a child care program for low-income families to balance the state’s budget into next year. But under their plans, the state’s main operating account would have a more […]

Gov Ferguson ‘skeptical’ of tax increases in 2026

LYNNWOOD [Bill Lucia]—Washington Governor Bob Ferguson on Wednesday indicated that he’s reluctant to support major new tax increases in the legislative session that begins in January. The first-term Democrat also said housing and road maintenance are two areas he plans to focus on. “We did raise billions of dollars in revenue earlier this year, and […]