Locke to unveil 'deep and painful' budget cuts
Spending plan to pare back all but essential services

David Ammons
Associated Press

OLYMPIA _ Advocates for education and anti-poverty efforts, public employees and others braced for Gov. Gary Locke's "deep and painful" proposals for budget cuts today.

The Democratic governor said he's aware that howls of protest will result, but the recession has made it necessary to pare back all but essential government services.

As for the cutbacks that are required, "those are all good programs, too," Locke said in an interview. "That's the hard part about the $2 billion-plus shortfall that we face."

A lingering recession, coupled with rising school enrollment and state caseloads, created the huge gap between the projected revenue and the costs of government services for the next two years.

Locke's budget proposal, as required by state law, will be balanced within existing revenue. He has not ruled out supporting, or even proposing, a tax increase later on, but said, "We're facing a shortfall of $2 billion and there's no amount of sin taxes or general tax increases that could make up that shortfall."

Aides said Locke is concerned that a sizable tax increase could cause the state's economic recovery to falter.

Locke's budget rollout today marks the debut of "POG." That's his new style of budgeting he has dubbed "Priorities of Government." Rather than close the budget gap with across-the-board cuts, Locke assigned budget teams to rank state services in descending order of importance by subject area.

In short, the essential programs, like basic education, higher education, prisons and some "safety net" programs get funded. Services that the administration deems to be of a lower priority will get less money or be eliminated.

"This is very, very different," Locke said. "We didn't focus on changes to the existing budget, but said `What are the priorities of government within the dollars available?' and then purchasing those things that are of highest priority.

"For me, it makes more sense. ... It's not easy to establish priorities, but you've got to do it. Families do it. Businesses do it. You've got to get back to your core functions."

Interest groups were braced for the worst.

"I will be floored," predicted Tim Welch, spokesman for the Washington Federation of State Employees, AFL-CIO, the largest state employee union. "I know I can't conceive of the level of budget cuts he's talking about."

He said the buzz around town is that Locke will impose a pay freeze for at least another year and will lay off between 2,000 and 3,000 people in Thurston County alone.

"I wouldn't expect the governor to propose any kind of pay raise or improvement in health benefits," he said.

Locke already has telegraphed his intention to propose dramatically fewer higher education enrollment slots -- about 1,550, compared with about 6,000 in the current biennium.

Some education programs are likely targets for trims, but the basic aid to local schools is protected by the courts. Teachers already have scheduled a march on Olympia on Jan. 14.

The governor is expected to slash the Department of Social and Health Services budget by several hundred million dollars, not counting the loss of federal matching dollars. Social service activists worry about health care cuts, including hearing, vision and dental services and coverage for the working poor.

Advocates for the Children's Alliance fear that a number of prevention services will be cut or wiped out.

The state library, recently downgraded from full agency status and tucked into the secretary of state's office, is fighting the budget knife again.

Locke said last week he's hoping to trim prison costs by changing drug-sentencing laws.

Evergreen Freedom Foundation, a conservative think tank that strongly endorses Locke's budget process, is suggesting that the state close the greenhouse on the Capitol Campus and turn the state liquor stores over to the private sector.

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