The release of the $69.2 billion state operating budget comes less than 36 hours before the end of this year’s 105-day legislative session, giving the public – and lawmakers themselves – little time to actually read the spending blueprint before it is voted into law on Sunday.
The operating budget deal struck between House and Senate lawmakers in the Democratic majority distributes spending on a range of programs across Washington, from K-12 schools, prisons and the mental-health system, to social services, parks, wildfire response and environmental programs.
Leaders in the Democratic-controlled House and Senate have focused on boosting pay to attract state workers in a tight labor market still experiencing
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