OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — House and Senate Democrats have come to an agreement on a new budget proposal, but Senate Republicans say that if majority Democrats try to bring it up on the Senate floor, it won’t pass.
House Democrats’ chief budget writer, Rep. Ross Hunter, introduced a replacement bill Thursday, the last day of the 60-day legislative session. It still includes a one-day delay in payments to school districts to help balance the budget, a move Republicans have said is a non-starter because it kicks the obligation into the next budget cycle.
A Republican-crafted budget passed out of the Senate with the help of three conservative Democrats over the weekend. Senate Republicans have argued that Democrats have refused to talk with them, and note Senate Democrats still don’t have the votes to pass the new proposal out of the Senate.
