By John Stang
Crosscut.com
Democrats will give up roughly 78 percent of the new tax revenue that they originally wanted in order to reach a budget compromise with the Republican-oriented Senate.
It’s hard to say what the Senate’s Majority Coalition Caucus — 23 Republicans and two Democrats— thinks about the new Democratic position.
Majority coalition leaders were in meetings and generally could not be reached for comment Wednesday in Olympia. Coalition caucus leader Rodney Tom, D-medina, issued a short press release.
Tom’s press release said: “I am disappointed that this House budget proposal is balanced on the backs of Washington’s school kids. Our children deserve our first dollars, not our last dime. We in the Senate will continue to work with our House colleagues to seek a workable compromise, but we will not let political expediency stand in the way of fulfilling our obligation to provide for our schools.”
Tom’s press release did not elaborate beyond that statement, and it did not address specific points and concessions in the new Democratic House proposal.
However, while speaking on a panel at an event co-sponsored by Crosscut on Wednesday evening, he said legislators are closer to agreement than is generally perceived. He also continued his criticism of the compromise offer’s education spending, saying the Senate budget had more money for schools.
(To read the full article, go to
crosscut.com/2013/06/06/democrats-offer-state-budget-compromise )
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