Dear Friends,

Rainy Day fund

At Gov. Chris Gregoire’s request, I have introduced Senate Joint Resolution 8206, which would create a constitutionally mandated Rainy Day fund.

On Tuesday, I, along with Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, and Sen. Rosa Franklin, D-Tacoma, testified in favor of creating this mechanism.

I made three quick points about why I think it’s important for Washington to have this mechanism.

1. Sustainability. There is nothing more important for structural sustainability. This is a systematic way to build up funds in good times so that we can draw on them in bad times.
2. Timing. I sat on the Gates Tax Structure Committee in 2002, and one of our recommendations at that time was to create a Rainy Day fund. The problem with doing that back then was that we were in a deficit. It’s difficult to create a Rainy Day fund in bad economic times. But the economic growth we’re experiencing now make it an ideal time.
3. Improving budget performance. I did some research on the Internet and found that states that have adopted similar proposals have improved their bond ratings. In fact, just the announcement that Washington is considering this has led to a potential improvement from Standard & Poor’s.

Early learning

On Thursday, I addressed a rally held by ECEAP and Head Start on the front steps of the Capitol.

I talked about the importance of investing in early learning and outlined the early learning provisions of the governor’s omnibus Washington Learns bill, which would:

• Establish an Early Learning Advisory Council to work with the Department of Early Learning on a statewide early learning plan.
• Implement, through the Department of Early Learning, a five-star voluntary rating system for licensed or certified child care centers and homes, and early learning programs, to provide information to parents about the quality of the programs and to increase that quality.
• Direct the Department of Early Learning to work collaboratively with public-private partner Thrive-by-Five to seek public and private funds for the partnership.

Later, in my office, I spoke with Spokane district’s Head Start Director Chris Miller as well as ECEAP teacher Maggie Wheeler and parents of ECEAP students from Spokane about the value of both programs.

Passing more bills

On Friday we passed a handful of bills, including:

• Establishing a veterans’ cemetery in Eastern Washington. The Washington Department of Veterans Affairs is considering two possible sites: McFarland Road near Fairchild Air Force Base, and Salnave Road off Interstate 90 near Medical Lake.
• Streamlining the sales tax. Washington is dependent on the sales tax, probably more so than any other state. Joining with 21 other states in this nationwide effort to simplify our tax structure is the right thing to do for the business community and helps our economy in the long run.

Gubernatorial appointments

On Friday, the Senate unanimously approved the gubernatorial appointments of Spokane’s Kristianne Blake and her father, Bill Gates Sr., to the University of Washington’s Board of Regents. We met in my office afterwards to catch up.

Stay tuned for next week’s edition!

Sincerely,

Stay tuned for next week’s update.

Sincerely,

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