With lawmakers facing a difficult budget-writing session in the new year, Gov. Jay Inslee sounds much different from candidate Jay Inslee.
A little more than two years ago, while running for governor, Inslee said, “I would veto anything that heads the wrong direction, and the wrong direction is new taxes in the state of Washington.” But on Thursday, Inslee is expected to unveil a proposed state budget that will include at least $1 billion in new revenue. And in government-speak, “new revenue” means taxes.
Certainly, the needs of state government can change over time. The economic landscape continually evolves, and state revenue forecasts can be fluid. But, given the status of the economy, Inslee’s change of heart is all the more curious. For the coming biennium, budget writers are expected to have $3 billion more than in the current biennium, thanks to an improving economy. True, they have been handed a multi-billion-dollar bill to adequately fund K-12 public education — but that invoice was handed down in early 2012 and comes as no surprise. In other words, little has changed to trigger Inslee’s flip-flop. But government’s insatiable desire to perpetuate itself through the contributions of taxpayers has remained inviolate. This, despite repeated messages from voters that should be easy to interpret.
In 2012, 64 percent of statewide voters approved Initiative 1185, making it more difficult for lawmakers to raise taxes. Portions of the initiative were declared unconstitutional in 2013, but the will of the people was clear. Then, in 2014, Republicans made gains in elections in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Considering that Republicans have clung to a mantra of “no new taxes,” it should be easy for Inslee to interpret the will of the electorate.