OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Chris Gregoire says the White House is pushing for Washington state to get an additional $435 million through President Barack Obama’s budget.
Gregoire says the money will be tied to Medicaid, which is jointly bankrolled by the state and federal governments. Congress still needs to approve the money. But Gregoire says she’s fairly confident that it will be delivered.
The Democratic governor plans to use Medicaid money to reduce the size of a tax package she’s working on to help fill the state’s $2.6 billion budget deficit.
Overall, Gregoire’s proposed budget would cut about $1 billion in state spending, while rescuing about $780 million in government programs. The rest would be made up with short-term fixes.