Phew. Last year was one of those years we are glad to see in the rear-view mirror. Now, as the unpleasantness of 2016 fades from view, we’re looking ahead and hope to see these four things occur in 2017:
1. A solution to the school funding crisis. The state’s paramount duty — you can look it up in the state constitution — is to fully fund the public schools. But the Supreme Court has ruled this isn’t happening, and now it’s become Washington’s paramount problem. Today, schools are funded from state and local resources, including substantial school levies. To shift the burden as ordered by the court will require billions of additional dollars in state revenue. Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposed budget puts the cost at $3.9 billion for the next two years; a report commissioned by the Legislature and due this month may have some different figures.
Proposals to meet this paramount duty run the gamut from increasing taxes to rewriting the constitution so that fully funding schools is no longer a requirement. The best plan is yet to emerge. But after five years of studying and dithering, it’s time for a solution. We need a predictable tax and education structure so that we can plan for our families and our businesses.
2. Progress on affordable housing. We all know Clark County is a great place to live. Unfortunately, it’s also an expensive place to live. Since the end of the Great Recession, home prices and rents have soared. Though it has created a lot of equity for homeowners, it’s made it very difficult for working- class people and the poor. While the free market has much to do with housing prices, government can encourage development of more affordable housing with zoning and incentives. The passage of Vancouver’s Proposition 1 in November will provide some seed money. A plan should emerge this year.
