The big four
Education
Gov. Chris Gregoire is backing a broad slate of changes: phasing in all-day kindergarten, expanding prekindergarten learning programs, adding thousands more college students, increasing teacher pay and shrinking class sizes.
Where things stand: There’s a lot of similarity between the three budget proposals – the governor’s, the House’s and the Senate’s – on most aspects of education. Each plan would add 8,000 to 10,000 more spaces for college students, particularly in high-demand majors such as engineering and science. Each would either freeze community college tuition or cap increases at 2 percent a year. At other colleges and universities, tuition increases would be capped at 5 percent to 7 percent. And each puts millions of dollars more into college scholarships, especially for math and science.
Health care
Gregoire has already signed a law to enact one of her top priorities: adding 38,000 more children to state-paid health coverage. She has also proposed spending $26 million over the next two years to deliver more childhood vaccinations. Another new law will require insurers to provide the same coverage for mental health care that they do for medical care.
Where things stand: In debate Wednesday night, the House approved changes to the state’s medical marijuana law, which began as a voter-approved initiative in 1998. The bill aims to better define legal medical use of the drug, which remains illegal for any purpose under federal law. But late this session, numerous medical-marijuana users backed away from the bill, saying it hurts them more than helps. A key point of concern: the bill’s order that state health officials define what a typical 60-day supply of the drug is. Patients say they don’t want anyone but a doctor determining how much marijuana they need.
Same-sex marriage
Proponents want it, or at least domestic partnerships that would include many of the legal rights of married people. Critics are countering with a call to write the state law banning gay marriage into the state constitution – an unlikely move that would require approval from a legislative supermajority as well as voters statewide.
Where things stand: The Senate has passed a bill to set up a state domestic partnership registry that would provide rights such as the right to visit each other in the hospital, inheritance rights in the absence of a will, and the right to make medical decisions for an incapacitated partner. Gay and lesbian couples, as well as heterosexual couples with at least one partner over 62, would be eligible to sign up.
Environment
Among other proposals, Gregoire wants to spend $200 million toward the $9 billion problem of cleaning up Puget Sound.
Where things stand: Budget writers are considering spending as much as $100 million over the next two years on an array of state park renovations, habitat prevervation and land purchases for trails and other outdoor recreation. Looking likely: at least half a million dollars more for a Spokane River whitewater park. Still in play but not certain: another $1 million for work at the Chewelah Peak Environmental Learning Center.
One worry for Spokane-area environmentalists, however, is a bill to remove Clark County and Whatcom County from a three-county ban on phosphate automatic dishwasher detergents approved last year. The companies that make Electrasol and Cascade want the ban to apply only in Spokane.