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Amazing Foster Kids
This morning I attended the Foster Youth and Alumni Leadership Summit put on by The Mockingbird Society. This was one of the most amazing presentations I’ve ever attended. Groups of foster youth from each of the regions spend the conference organizing presentations on how to improve the foster care experience. The presentations were powerful, as…
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Education Funding
I’ve received hundreds of email messages this session urging me to not cut education funding. I agree. I tried very hard this year to have the least impact on K-12 as possible in the budget process. The House budget proposal was better for K-12 than either the Senate’s or the Governor’s proposals. In the final…
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Public Safety Pensions
This year we faced a daunting problem: balancing a budget with a precipitous decline in revenue due to the ongoing recession. We made cuts to everything, including healthcare for children, public education, mental health care, and compensation for employees. As a new budget chairman, I entered the job with a handful of principles: Nobody was…
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520 Update
The Eastside project (405 to the landing in Medina) is underway. They are removing some trees now and expect to continue to do work for the next few years. If you go to the project website you can sign up for newsletters which will alert you to closures and other useful bits of knowledge. http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR520Bridge/…
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Slowing the Growth of Medicaid
New York state has a process for meeting an attractive goal: slowing the growth of Medicaid spending to the level of medical inflation. The New York Times opined positively on it in March. The article is worth reading and it sounds really great, but you have to understand what it means. Medicaid cost growth has…
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House Budget Proposal
Earlier this month I released the House budget proposal for 2011-13. Just before the end of the regular session, the Senate released their proposal. I asked for the job of chairman of the budget committee, but it’s clear my timing with the economy might have been better. This budget is responsible, thoughtful, and sustainable. I’ve…
