Gregoire's spending plan full of painful cuts

OLYMPIA -- Few people had much nice to say Thursday about the proposed state budget put out by Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Not even the author.

"I hate it," Gregoire said. "There is something in there for everybody not to like."

That proved true in the hours after a somber Gregoire proposed slicing, chopping and axing programs in order to erase a projected $5.7 billion deficit in the next state budget.

Gregoire kept her campaign promise to not seek new taxes or fees. She is draining much of the state's emergency reserve, tapping into lottery revenues and counting on receiving $1 billion in federal money in order to balance the 2009-11 budget.

The painful cornerstone of her proposal is $3.3 billion in cuts affecting students, seniors, disabled, the poor and just about everyone else.

Teachers, state workers and long-term care workers won't get promised pay raises and up to 2,600 employees, many in higher education, could lose their jobs under her proposal.

She wants to eliminate a program providing cash grants and medical coverage to thousands of adults unable to work because of a temporarily disabling condition. She is seeking to lop 42 percent out of the state's Basic Health Plan program that helps 105,000 low-wage earners obtain health insurance.

Convicted felons considered low-risk would no longer be placed in community supervision -- unless they committed a sex offense or violent crime. Elderly and terminally ill offenders could get released early from prison.

Gregoire's plan calls for closing at least 13 state parks and seven fish hatcheries, and the visitors center at the state Capitol could close.

Those are only a few items on the chopping block.

"It's what she had to do but it's brutal," said Rep. Hans Dunshee, D-Snohomish, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee that will hold hearings on her budget and then write one of its own.

Her suggestions will get a working over in the Legislature.

"She wrote a budget she could support," said Dunshee, who met with Gregoire shortly before she made the reams of bad news public. "That's a lot different than getting legislators all around the state to support it."

Gregoire did receive praise from an unusual source Thursday -- the ranking Republican on the House budget writing committee.

"I applaud the governor for putting a budget together that is responsible and without new taxes," said Rep. Gary Alexander, R-Olympia.

Senate Democrats worried the $1 billion in federal money that Gregoire is counting on might not materialize.

Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane, called it a "glaring flaw."

Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, a member of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, said: "What is Plan B if the federal money does not come through?"

Overall, Hobbs said he thought the governor's proposal was "going to be a lot worse."

Education did not suffer the deep and wide-ranging cuts he and others predicted.

Gregoire is not seeking pay raises for teachers as laid out in Initiative 732, which did not sit well with Mary Lindquist, president of the powerful teachers union, the Washington Education Association.

"We will be looking at any reasonable suggestions to get that money," she said, adding she has no plans of pushing for a ballot measure for a tax increase.

Gregoire is proposing to continue giving school districts funds under Initiative 728, which is meant to keep classes smaller. Districts use the funds in a variety of ways including hiring teachers, summer school, instructional coaches and all-day kindergarten.

The governor wants to cut the allocation by 24 percent.

Karst Brandsma, the Everett School District's interim superintendent, said it is too early to know if layoffs would result in Everett if the governor's budget were adopted.

"The devil is in the details," he said. "It will be a while before we can get to the details."

Brandsma said there aren't many places in the district's budget to reduce spending that would not affect employees and services.

"Eighty-five percent of every dollar we spend is in the form of people and 70 percent of every dollar we spend comes from the state," he said.

In the Marysville School District, Initiative 728 money accounts for about $5.1 million with Gregoire's proposed cut resulting in a loss of more than $1 million.

"It will be difficult and it will impact our ability to train teachers, but the important thing is 76 percent of it remains and we can still do important work to improve reading and math (achievement)," Marysville Superintendent Larry Nyland said.

Gregoire is looking to pare $342 million out of higher education by carving 13 percent out of budgets of four-year universities and 6 percent from community and technical colleges.

"It could have been worse," Everett Community College President David Beyer said.

Community college leaders had been told in recent weeks that they should brace for as much as a 20 percent budget cut.

Beyer predicts the state Board of Community and Technical Colleges will approve a tuition increase of about 5 percent to help make up for the loss of state revenue.

"The sentiment in the system is we want to avoid raising tuition, but that sentiment came before any of these cuts," he said. "The landscape has changed

For those who thought the governor's budget is ugly, hear this: It could get worse if the economy doesn't improve.

She tried to put a positive spin on it.

"Now is not the time for me to complain about the budget," she said. "It will get better. We will get through it.

Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.