News from the Caucus
NEWSFLASH: In the Hole…Right back where we were this time last year
Watch Sen. Keith Wagoner give the Republican perspective after the governor’s State of the State speech today. Can the majority live within its means? As the governor delivered his annual State of the State address earlier this week, we were reminded that, just last year, he said he didn’t want to end up...
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NEWSFLASH: Legislative Democrats ignore the advice of many and raise $12.5 billion in taxes just for the operating budget
Session ends with long debate on $77.9 billion operating budget After long and heated debate, the majority passed the 2025-27 operating budget without a single Senate Republican vote. The document, which was released Saturday for a Sunday vote, is more than 1,300 pages long and spends nearly $80 billion over the next four years....
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NEWSFLASH: No word on the budget, but plenty of taxes to go around
Silence: Still no word on budget negotiations How much will the 2025-27 operating budget increase state spending and taxes? How much will the 2025-27 operating budget increase state spending and taxes? That’s a good question. We’re not sure yet what the full scope of the budget and its taxes will be because...
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NEWSFLASH: Even MORE tax bills are moving forward – VOTING SATURDAY 4-19
Republicans provide a no-new-tax budget option Democrats ignore our fiscally sound approach It’s official. The Senate Republican operating budget proposal known as $ave Washington is now an official bill and could easily be adopted by the Legislature. Senate Bill 5810 does not rely on ANY new or higher taxes. It also does not make...
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NEWSFLASH: Democrats announce nearly $20 billion in new and higher taxes
Republican budget leaders on Senate Democrats’ record-setting tax package “A new kind of March madness” OLYMPIA… Sen. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, and Sen. Nikki Torres, R-Pasco, offered this reaction to the $20 billion, four-year tax package proposed by the Senate’s majority Democrats today, ahead of the anticipated Monday rollout of their 2025-27 operating-budget proposal. From...
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A bill to overregulate wood stoves due to be voted out of committee tomorrow
HELP STOP SENATE BILL 5174 “This is ridiculous overreach!” – 4th LD Constituent Wood-burning stoves are a critical home-heating source for many homeowners across Washington. Rural families depend on them more than those who live in bigger cities. Lower-income families, seniors on a fixed income, and anyone else trying to make ends meet while energy...
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Broken Inslee promise stalls behavioral-health treatment facility
CENTRALIA… Efforts to build a behavioral-health treatment facility in Lewis County are being pushed back another six months by what Lewis County lawmakers say is another broken promise from Gov. Jay Inslee’s administration. Sen. John Braun and Rep. Peter Abbarno, both R-Centralia, are particularly frustrated because the governor’s office assured them an important cost-saving change...
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