As Jim Brunner of the Seattle Times reported this morning, the governor said she wants the Legislature out of here by Sunday.
Wishful thinking. The sheer mechanics of passing a budget probably won’t allow it. The Senate is planning on voting their revenue package over to the House this afternoon (the first official move by either chamber during the special session to get the ball rolling on wrapping up the budget), and a capital budget still needs to be agreed on. Not to mention all of the policy stuff, like the Disability Lifeline, or General Assistance for the Unemployable, which we updated you on here. That’s hitting the House floor this afternoon.
Considering the fact that capital budget negotiations between Rep. Hans Dunshee (D-44) and Sen. Karen Fraser (D-22) have stalled since Saturday, and that there’s still no discernible progress in the sales tax debate between the House and Senate, legislators will be lucky to get out of here before Monday or Tuesday.
It’s totally up to them, too. The governor has no power over how long they stay, or what bills they pass. They could be here for another three weeks.
