The fact that there is no budget deficit indicates there is no need to raise taxes.

 


Source: ShiftWA.org

This week’s highly informative Newsmaker Interview is with Senator Lynda Wilson (Vancouver), the ranking Republican on the Washington State Senate’s Ways & Means Committee and the budget leader for the GOP caucus.  The Senate Republicans released their 2021 – 2023 budget last week, and it contained no new taxes, incentives for school districts to reopen, and assistance for those who have been most impacted by Governor Jay Inslee’s random and unscientific “emergency” orders.  When asked why the Senate Republicans released their budget so early in the process, Senator Wilson replied that she wanted to provide transparency, so the public had time to examine their proposal, and because Democrats “keep claiming there is a massive deficit, to justify their own call for more taxes.  But that is false.  Just look at the four-year budget outlook from the governor’s own budget office.” (Click to read full Newsmaker Interview and Senate Republicans 2021 – 2023 Budget Proposal)

While Governor Inslee and Democrats are slapping themselves on the back for acting quickly to provide COVID-19 relief, the reality is they took 40 days to pass a bill allocating money which the federal government had previously sent.  Today, the Governor is finally signing HB 1368, which allocates $2.2 billion in federal aid for the state’s COVID-19 response. If the Democrats had followed the advice of the Republicans, many community leaders, and several newspaper editorials, they would have called a special session last year and this money would already have been distributed, because it all came from the federal government. And even if they refused to hold a special session, why didn’t the liberals in charge in Olympia have this bill prepared to be passed during the first week of the legislative session? Democrats have solid majorities in the legislature, but they can’t pass a bill quickly to give away someone else’s money to their own constituents in need? (Cornfield Report/Everett Herald and Washington Legislature Bill Summary)

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