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Alexander supports legislation to prioritize
budget process
In 2003 a budgeting
approach called “priorities of government” helped state lawmakers erase
a huge budget deficit without a general tax increase.
Rep. Gary
Alexander, R-Olympia, today voted for legislation which would recall
that taxpayer-friendly approach by requiring the state budgeting process
to focus on outcomes and priorities. But Alexander said House Bill 1242
would be stronger if it forced the state budget office to pay more
attention to the cost of agency programs, and he pointed to two measures
that would give budget-writers more incentive to identify which
state-funded services are truly important.
“This bill’s overall
objective is to put more performance management into the budget process.
State agencies would have to explain, in their budget requests, how
their various programs support the priorities of state government – and
whether each program is making progress. That’s long overdue,” said
Alexander.
But if the Legislature is serious about determining and supporting the
priorities of government, Alexander said, it should look at House Bill
1835 and House Joint Resolution 4210. Together the bills would restore
the state’s spending limit and create a constitutionally protected
“rainy day” reserve.
“If the Legislature and
governor had to fit an operating budget to a spending limit, instead of
bending the limit to meet the desired level of spending, and couldn’t
tap the reserve without a 60 percent majority vote, they would figure
out pretty quickly what the real priorities are,” said Alexander,
ranking Republican member of the House Appropriations Committee. He
introduced HB 1835 and is the first co-sponsor of HJR 4210.
“If you went shopping with
only the money in your pocket to spend, you’d have a different set of
priorities than if money was no concern and you could put wants ahead of
needs. The state’s budget process should be no different, because
there’s a limited amount of revenue to spend on services without raising
more through higher taxes,” Alexander explained.
While HB 1242 represents
enough of an improvement that it deserves to become law, Alexander said,
the budgeting approach it would codify is not the same approach used by
former Sen. Dino Rossi to successfully prevent a general tax increase
two years ago.
“Even though this bill has
a pretty heavy fiscal note -- $500,000 for two full-time employees -- it
really represents a lightweight version of the priorities of government
approach. It doesn’t acknowledge that the value of a service is
determined in part by its cost, and that cost should be a major factor
in setting priorities,” Alexander said.
HB 1242 passed with a 95-2
vote and now goes to the state Senate for consideration.
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For more information, contact:
Brendon Wold, Public
Information Officer: (360) 786-7698
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