Wylie: House budget ‘reflects our collective values’

House Democrats in Olympia on Monday proposed a budget that Rep. Sharon Wylie, D-Vancouver, said “reflects our collective values” while supporting families and teachers.

“It makes our taxes more progressive,” she said. “That was one of my criteria before we could support it.”

The $44.6 billion budget includes a 20 percent increase on business and occupation taxes for the state’s highest-grossing businesses, as well as a 7 percent capital gains tax on the sale of some stocks, bonds and other assets. In total, the budget would create $3 billion in new revenue for the state. The biggest challenge facing the Legislature this year is fully funding K-12 education in compliance with the 2012 McCleary decision, in which the state Supreme Court ruled the state was failing in its constitutional duty to do so.

The Senate last week approved its own $43 billion two-year state budget, which creates a state property tax earmarked for education while cutting some social services.

Clark County Republican Reps. Brandon Vick, Liz Pike, Paul Harris and Vicki Kraft, and Rep. Monica Stonier, D-Vancouver, did not return requests for comment on Monday, though Senate Republicans criticized the budget as creating more regressive policies.

Centralia Republican Sen. John Braun, whose district represents a small swath of north Clark County, questioned whether the plan had the Democratic votes to make it off the floor of the house at all.

“Once the House Democrats demonstrate that a majority of the House stands behind this plan, we can view it as a serious proposal,” Braun said in a statement. “Until then, it is a wish list that does not deal with the realities of governing.”

The House is slated to vote on the budget on Friday, likely absent the tax bills.

“Forcing the vote as soon as possible is the most responsible thing to do, because it starts the conversation earlier rather than later,” Wylie said.