Budget Sent To Locke In Dramatic Fashion Gop-Backed Rule Change Allows Third Vote, Prompting Angry Demos To Walk Out And Sen. Sid Snyder To Resign

Senate Republicans sent a $19 billion state budget to Gov. Gary Locke on Saturday night, but the procedure they used caused Democratic leader Sid Snyder to resign his Senate seat in protest.

Lt. Gov. Brad Owen, also a Democrat, expressed “extreme disappointment” in the Republicans’ strategy to authorize three votes on the same budget bill. Before the GOP pushed through the rule amendment Saturday night, it was illegal to reconsider a failed bill more than once.

An emotional Snyder, who has been a legislative staffer or senator since the late 1940s, repeatedly pleaded with the Republicans to pass the budget as a new bill, rather than changing the rules. Snyder, the Legislature’s informal historian and chief parliamentarian, at one point thundered, “This is a travesty what you are doing here today. This will come back to haunt you time and time again.”

After the Republicans ignored him and pushed through the rule change on a straight partyline vote, the Long Beach grocer announced his immediate resignation from his 19th District Senate seat. All 23 Senate Democrats walked off the floor before the vote on the budget was taken.

The budget then passed 26-0 and headed to Locke for a likely partial or complete veto.

It was a moment of high drama in the usually staid Senate.

The Republicans had spent two days working their way out of a parliamentary and personality quagmire. The budget plan, the Republicans’ No. 1 priority of the session, had failed in two votes on Thursday as first Pam Roach of Auburn and then Bob McCaslin of Spokane refused to provide the necessary 25th vote.

Owen told Republicans at the time that the budget bill, SB6062, was dead and that they should find another way to pass the budget to the governor. That could have involving grafting the budget onto a brand new bill and either taking it through budget committee or simply calling for an immediate vote on the floor, he said.

That procedure would have required another House vote, and Senate Republican leaders said they wanted the most streamlined and efficient strategy possible - a rule change to simply allow a third vote.

The usually soft-spoken and affable Snyder at times was angry and shouting and other times, his voice dropped to a near whisper and he fought back tears. He repeatedly exhorted his colleagues to leave the rules alone.