OLYMPIA, Wash. — Tuesday is the deadline for Gov. Bob Ferguson to sign Washington state’s nearly $78 billion, two-year budget passed by the Legislature last month.
Ferguson said he would review the budgets “line by line” before signing. Ferguson does have the power for line-item vetoes with budget issues.
By law, the state has to have a balanced budget.
If Ferguson decides to veto part of the budget and it causes an imbalance, it’s possible lawmakers could be called back to Olympia for a special session.
The budget includes $8.7 billion in new taxes to close a $16 billion budget shortfall. It also includes a $7.5 billion capital improvement plan, funding construction and infrastructure projects across the state. The plan marks an investment in affordable housing, public school construction, and the protection of natural resources.
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The budget also scraps a proposal to furlough state employees one day a month.
The new taxes hit businesses in particular, including raising two business and occupation tax rates on banks.
Another applies retail sales tax to services the state hadn’t targeted before, like temporary staffing, security, and advertising.
The transportation funding plan, passed with bipartisan support, includes a $15.5 billion allocation for highway projects, road repairs, and the state ferry system. The plan introduces a six-cent increase in the state’s gas tax, that would be effective in July.
As part of the budget, Ferguson expressed his support for maintaining the state’s rainy day reserve fund, citing potential federal budget cuts.
“I appreciate that the budget, at my insistence, protects our Rainy Day Fund,” Ferguson said in an April 27 statement after the state Legislature passed the budget. “Federal funding makes up 28 percent of our state budget. The Trump Administration is weaponizing funding to punish those it disagrees with to force them into compromising their values.”
Ferguson is expected to sign or veto the operating budget, along with several other bills, at 3 p.m. Tuesday, according to the governor’s bill action schedule.
