The state Senate just passed the $667 million tax package and now will try, for a third time tonight, to pass the bond bill. If that’s a problem, they can always try to pass the operating budget which the House sent over.
By my calculations it’s down to the capital budget and the bond bill. Rep. Hans Dunshee, the sponsor of the bond bill, has always said it would be one of the last votes to be taken. It looks like he’ll be right.
Here’s the vote:
Yeas: 25 Nays: 21 Absent: 0 Excused: 3
Voting Yea: Senators Berkey, Brown, Eide, Fairley, Franklin, Fraser, Gordon, Hargrove, Hatfield, Haugen, Jacobsen, Kastama, Keiser, Kline, Kohl-Welles, McAuliffe, McDermott, Murray, Oemig, Prentice, Pridemore, Ranker, Regala, Rockefeller, and Shin
Voting Nay: Senators Becker, Benton, Brandland, Carrell, Hewitt, Hobbs, Holmquist, Honeyford, Kauffman, Kilmer, King, Marr, Morton, Parlette, Pflug, Roach, Schoesler, Sheldon, Swecker, Tom, and Zarelli
Excused: Senators Delvin, McCaslin, and Stevens
Moments after the vote, the Washington Beverage Association issued a blistering press release.
It begins:
The Washington Beverage Association today called the Legislature’s action to hit consumers with higher taxes on beverages and grocery items a backroom money grab to pay for more state spending on the backs of Washington families, who can’t afford any more taxes during these tough economic times.
And this excerpt of a quote from the president:
“The decision to tax soft drinks, bottled water and other groceries to pay for more government spending – all for the expediency of being able to go home – shows a disregard for the struggles of hard-working Washingtonians in a harsh economy,” said Tim Martin, president of the Washington Beverage Association.
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