OHH!

Everyone in Olympia knew that once the election was over, Gov. Chris Gregoire would need to start talking honestly about the state budget. What's surprising is that it is the P-I who is noting the obvious: Gregoire's Cuts Mirror Rossi's

OLYMPIA -- During her re-election campaign, Gov. Chris Gregoire blasted Republican challenger Dino Rossi for decisions he made as the Senate's lead budget writer in 2003 -- such as suspending teacher pay raises mandated by voter initiative and cutting funding for children's health care.
Gregoire said such moves were out of step with Washington's values.
But after winning re-election Gregoire proposed balancing the next state budget with the same types of cuts -- suspended pay raises and reduced eligibility for children's health coverage.

Rossi said the budget sets up an end game in which the Legislature can ask voters to approve new taxes.
"In the end, if they really get weak-kneed, which they probably will, they are going to shift out things that people want instead of facing up to some of the constituencies that helped get them elected and call for a tax increase to pay for it," he said.
By creating a new tax proposal with a referendum, Democrats can shield themselves from political fallout because the burden moves to the voters, he said.

Oregon is in the news again with their proposal to replace the gas tax with a tax on drivers for every mile they drive. Some legislators here in Washington think it's a good idea, but it would have the bizarre effect of reducing taxes for drivers who drive gas-guzzling cars and trucks. Other problems are explained in this editorial:

Plan to track and tax mileage of Oregonians is outrageous
The technology needed for this plan could someday be used to track where motorists drive.
By the Union-Bulletin Editorial Board

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski is out of touch with reality if he believes Oregonians will tolerate his plan to equip every vehicle in the state with a GPS system so that it can be tracked by the government as a way to impose a mileage tax.

The proposal is a disaster on several levels.

Most troubling is the threat this government surveillance poses to our privacy. The state Department of Transportation official in charge of the project assured the Albany Democrat-Republican newspaper, which was the first to report on the proposal, that the technology would not be used to track where motorists go, only how many miles they drive.

Tracking locations might not be in the plans now, but that doesn't mean it won't happen sooner or later. When the technology (and temptation) is there, abuses happen.

Beyond that -- which is difficult to get beyond -- taxing mileage doesn't seem as fair as the gasoline tax. The purpose of the gas tax in Oregon and elsewhere is a user fee. Those who use the roads should pay to use them.

No, a gasoline tax isn't perfect, but it generally forces those with larger vehicles, those that create the most wear and tear on the roadways, to pay more than those with little vehicles. In addition, the gasoline tax is assessed on all who drive on Oregon's roads, not just on those who live in the state.

But this plan wouldn't replace the gasol ine tax, only reduce it a few pennies. And how long would it be before the slight savings are gone and the overall tax cost is higher? One year, two years?
Finally, this plan is predicated on the project's task force partnering "with auto manufacturers to refine technology that would enable Oregonians to pay for the transportation system based on how many miles they drive."

Hmmm, does Kulongoski or anybody else at the capital think that U.S. automakers are going to put one penny into this effort as they struggle to stay in business? If they do, Oregon has even bigger problems than this outrageous proposal.

Oregonians don't want Big Brother Kulongoski or anybody else knowing where they go and when they go there. It's as simple as that.

This proposal should be rejected.

One more sign that this recession is different than we've seen before: it looks like the Seattle P-I may stop publishing.

The Seattle P-I is being put up for sale, and if after 60 days it has not sold, it will either be turned into a Web-only publication with a greatly reduced staff or discontinued entirely.

The start of the Legislative session is one of the few occasions for pomp and circumstance in Olympia’s marble halls – it is more likely to be the site of hushed phone calls and assemblies of children than of honor guards and formal presentations.

New members of the Legislature were sworn in today. Most were taking over open seats, after the incumbent retired. But there were a few who defeated sitting members.

The Senate had only one “giant killer” -- Senator Randi Becker (R-Second District), from South Pierce County, who defeated 22-year veteran Marilyn Rasmussen.

On the House side, there were musical chairs in Spokane’s swing Sixth District. John Driscoll (D-6th District) is replacing the doorbelling dynamo Republican John Ahern. In the same Sixth District, coffee entrepreneur Kevin Parker replaced the incumbent Democrat, Don Barlow.

In SW Washington, the legislative embarrassment known as Jim Dunn was defeated in the primary by Joseph James, who in turn was defeated by Democrat Tim Probst in the general. In Snohomish County, Republican Mike Hope defeated Liz Loomis.

There were other hard fought contests, but these races that defeat incumbents are the most essential for a healthy democracy. Most incumbents lose not because they have stuck their necks out on a matter of principle -- but because they have aged, grown tired, or distanced from the community that elected them. The survivors -- tough old dogs like Sen. Bob McCaslin and Mary Margaret Haugen -- stay in touch with their districts and work hard.

The House Republicans had not gained a seat since 1994, so there were plenty of smiles to go around today as they added one new member.

After two years of hand-wringing, the Governor and her fellow travelers have finally agreed on a deep-bore tunnel to replace the earthquake damaged Alaskan Way Viaduct. It's a remarkably good decision.
It's good for all the reasons outlined two years ago when Sen. Cheryl Pflug (R-Maple Valley) suggested the same thing. It will allow construction to proceed without disrupting downtown and waterfront traffic, it opens up the waterfront, and it is cost-effective.
What's remarkable about the decision is that the state, city, and county politicians had to go through two years of meaningless studies, public hearings, and even a phony ballot proposition for Seattle, before finally reaching this announcement.
Now, hopefully, our elected leaders can get into the diamond lane and move forward quickly, together, without any more detours.

Gregoire gave her Second Inaugural address today, and although pleasant, it was lacking in detail. Lincoln's Second Inaugural sets a high standard:

With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds

Despite a bleak financial outlook, Gregoire said this is a time to seize the "huge opportunity" also at hand.
"More than ever, the people of Washington do not want partisan politics. They want us to work together to build a better state for them and their children," she said. "So I will challenge all of us today -- and throughout the session -- to join together. Let's use this crisis. Let's summon the courage to make the hard decisions."

In the House Ways and Means hearing on the budget the first week of the 2009 session, the head of Governor Gregoire's budget office gave this testimony:

"We knew prior to the November forecast that we would have a shortfall of more than $3 billion." -- Victor Moore, Director, Office of Financial Management (OFM) in Monday's (1/12/09) House Ways and Means hearing.

With apologies to Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers:

"REALLY?" You knew about a $3 billion deficit before the November 12th revenue forecast?

REALLY? And up until the election on November 4th your boss, Christine Gregoire, was saying that we were one of the few states in the union that had a surplus.

REALLY? And Gregoire was also saying we were 'the envy of the country!'

REALLY? A surplus? One day we had a surplus and a week later we had a $3 billion deficit?

REALLY? What did we lose some change in the seat cushions?

REALLY? Did we go a little crazy buying cranberry sauce for the Governor's mansion Thanksgiving dinner? THREE BILLION dollars in one week?

REALLY?

Senator Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, proposed a better Rainy Day fund for the future. Just like his original Rainy Day Fund legislation, this one has drawn support from Democrats:

Senate Joint Resolution 8209 already has gained bipartisan support, with Sen. Lisa Brown, Senate Democrat leader, at the top of the list of co-sponsors. She worked with Zarelli in 2007 to get the rainy-day fund amendment put on that year’s ballot, where it passed overwhelmingly.

Senator Rosa Franklin introduced an income tax today, as reported by the KIRO website:

The idea of a state income tax is back on the table again.
Senator Rosa Franklin (D) says it's time to revamp the entire tax system and talk about a more sustainable way of funding the state budget.
Franklin would like to put a bill before the voters in the next general election. "Whenever you mention taxes, nobody likes to pay taxes. My goal in putting it forward is to have a discussion," Franklin told KIRO Radio's Dori Monson.

That's the headline in today's Seattle Times, about the announcement by two major Washington businesses that they were laying off more employees - 10,000 at Boeing and 6,700 at Starbucks.
Coming on the same day -- and just a short time after Microsoft announced layoffs -- brings home how fragile the economy has become.
For Washington state legislators, its another warning sign that the budget deficit -- now pegged at $6.5 billion is likely to grow to over $7 billion, or $7.5 billion or more.