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“We really prioritized avoiding the most harmful cuts, avoiding cuts that would jeopardize people’s lives, jeopardize people’s ability to stay housed, to receive health care.”
“We tried to make selections of revenue options that focused on the wealthiest households and the highest-grossing businesses.”
“Capping property tax at 1% when inflation is way above 1% is functionally a decrease in revenue year over year.”
Those quotes from Joe Fitzgibbon (D-West Seattle), House Majority Leader.
On the other side, Travis Couture (R-Allyn), Ranking Minority Member on the House Appropriations Committee:
“It hits our family budgets as well… I just don’t understand how we’re trying to balance our budget on the backs of those folks.”
“This budget falls short, not just of balancing the budget, but in a lot of ways it harms regular, everyday Washingtonians.”
“These taxes are job killers.”
In the closing weeks of the legislative session, Washington state lawmakers are debating the next biennial budget, as House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon (D-West Seattle) and Representative Travis Couture (R-Allyn) offered sharply contrasting visions during a recent episode of Inside Olympia. The state faces a multi-billion dollar shortfall – now estimated at $15 billion – and both leaders presented different paths to addressing it while maintaining essential services.
House Democrats have put forward a budget plan that raises revenue through taxes on wealthier households and large businesses while implementing strategic cuts and delaying policy expansions. Fitzgibbon defended the proposal, emphasizing that it prioritizes shielding vulnerable populations from severe impacts.
“We really prioritized avoiding the most harmful cuts,” Fitzgibbon said on Inside Olympia. “Avoiding cuts that would jeopardize people’s lives, jeopardize people’s ability to stay housed, to receive health care.” The plan delays increases to nursing home rates and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits while seeking revenue from large corporations and wealthy individuals. Fitzgibbon argued that the approach balances maintaining public services without undermining Washington’s economic competitiveness.
In sharp contrast, Couture, the ranking Republican on the House Appropriations Committee, condemned both the spending increases and new tax measures, calling them burdensome to working-class families. “I pay property taxes, and I’m not wealthy,” Couture said. “This budget falls short, not just of balancing the budget, but in a lot of ways it harms regular, everyday Washingtonians.”
One of the most contentious issues is a proposed increase in the property tax cap from 1% to 3%. Fitzgibbon contended that local governments are struggling with the current cap, which does not keep pace with inflation. “Capping property tax at 1% when inflation is way above 1% is functionally a decrease in revenue year over year,” he said. Couture pushed back, describing the proposed increase as a blow to taxpayers. “It hits our family budgets as well… I just don’t understand how we’re trying to balance our budget on the backs of those folks,” he argued.
The debate also touched on the revenue side, with Fitzgibbon defending taxes on wealthier households and high-grossing businesses as necessary to maintain public services. Couture warned that such measures could lead to job losses, particularly among lower-wage workers. “These taxes are job killers,” he said.
With the legislature facing an April 27 deadline to pass the budget, both parties acknowledge that compromise will be essential. The outcome will determine whether the final plan leans toward higher taxes on the wealthy or deeper spending cuts.
On the same episode, Don Jenkins, a veteran Capitol Press reporter covering agriculture in the Pacific Northwest, detailed the challenges facing rural Washington. Jenkins pointed to issues such as the Climate Commitment Act, which has yet to fully exempt farm fuel from cap-and-trade taxes. He also pointed to concerns over worker rights, trade disruptions, avian flu, and wolf management.
Jenkins noted that while the intent behind mandating overtime pay for agricultural workers was to protect them, many farmers feel burdened by the added costs. Meanwhile, trade policy shifts and avian flu outbreaks continue to pose economic threats, and debates over wolf management remain contentious.