Gov. Jay Inslee and GOP lawmakers agree on the destination, but not the road to get there

OLYMPIA – Although Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Republican lawmakers agree the state needs better schools and mental health programs, they start the 2017 legislative session far apart on how to get there.

In his second inaugural address Wednesday, Inslee told a joint legislative session there was nothing more essential to Washington’s future than putting enough money into public schools. With Jim Whittaker, the first state resident to climb Mount Everest in the House gallery, he likened it to summiting a mountain with different routes to the top.

“We will not arrive on the summit by chance. This is something we must make happen,” he said.

Inslee is suggesting the state impose some new taxes and close some tax loopholes, but he said if lawmakers have a better route, he wants to hear them.

Republican leaders said afterward they agree the state needs to improve schools, and particularly liked a reference Inslee made to recognizing that not all high school graduates will go to a four-year college so technical and trade schools should be increased. They also agreed with his call to make schools the first priority for more state money.

“We’re not going to be as reliant on taxes as this governor is, I guarantee it,” said Senate Majority Leader Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville.

They contend some tax changes Inslee is proposing will benefit King County and the urban areas more than the rest of the state. As they have in past years, Republicans say raising taxes should be a last resort.

Republicans don’t have an alternative plan for schools yet. Their four members on a special task force on schools said they couldn’t make recommendations by Monday’s deadlines because they needed more information. House Minority Leader Dan Kristiansen, R-Snohomish, said Wednesday House Republicans expect to have that information by the week of Jan. 23 and will release their plan after that.

Inslee listed improvements to the state’s mental health treatment system as his No. 2 priority, and Schoesler said Republicans list it as “darn high” although they have agreed to increased budgets for mental health programs for several years. Rep. J.T. Wilcox, R-Yelm, promised “a ton of commitment, not just in terms of dollars but in terms of getting it right.”

Legislative Democrats gave Inslee strong support during his speech, with standing ovations when he said the state should resist any efforts by the federal government to cut family planning services for women, deport undocumented immigrants who grew up in the state and are now eligible for college aid, or end health insurance for some 750,000 people who get it through the Affordable Care Act. Republicans mostly sat silent during those points, and Wilcox later accused Inslee of serving up “red meat for his side.”

An hour after the speech, the Senate Commerce, Labor and Sports Committee held a hearing on Inslee’s budget, with lobbyists from state business organizations offering views on how his proposed taxes would hurt business.

In the House, where Democrats have a slight majority, support for Inslee’s priorities are stronger, although they also plan to look at other options. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Timm Ormsby, D-Spokane, called the governor’s budget “a good blueprint” but said it was put together on a tight timeline so that lawmakers would have it weeks before the session started.

The Legislature has more time to come up with alternatives, Ormsby said.