In a press conference on Thursday, House Democratic leaders, joined by Senate Democrats, announced they have formally asked the Republican-led Senate to start negotiations on the state’s 2017-19 state operating budget.

Both chambers have passed budget bills (SB 5048 and a version amended by the House), but the proposals differ sharply in their approach to providing additional basic education funding, as well as issues such as pay increases for state workers. The proposals are just under $2 billion apart in total spending, but the House Democratic version relies on $3.5 billion in new taxes, which House members have yet to vote on. Senate Republicans say they cannot begin negotiations in earnest until the House votes on the tax bill (HB 2186) that Democrats need to fund their version of the state budget.

Meanwhile, with 16 days to go in this regular session, House and Senate leaders have moved hundreds of bills to their respective floor calendars for action by the full membership. They have until next Wednesday to pass bills sent to them by the opposite chamber. After that, only the budget and legislation related to it may be considered.

To date, 85 House bills have passed the Senate, and 60 Senate bills have passed the House. More than 500 bills previously passed by each house remain before the opposite chamber.

The Senate passed SB 5893 on Thursday, to change the way regional transit authorities calculate car tab fees increases, approved by voters as part of Sound Transit’s 2016 $54 billion initiative. The bill was introduced in response to widely reported outrage over the formula Sound Transit officials use to drastically exaggerate vehicle values and thus collect more in taxes.  The bill would require Sound Transit to use Kelley Blue Book or National Automobile Dealers Association values, whichever is lower, to reflect the fair market vehicles for collecting car tab fees.

The bill passed 25-24.  It now heads to the House for consideration. Other bills have also been introduced to “reign in an unaccountable agency,” as Sen. Steve O’Ban (R-Pierce County), sponsor of SB 5893 put it. He said the legislation would provide relief for taxpayers who would be hit with car tab increases along with property and sales tax increases. Sales tax rates under Sound Transit’s jurisdiction in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties are now more than ten percent, making it one of the highest sales tax rates in the country.

In his news conference on Thursday, Governor Inslee called the public reaction to Sound Transit’s tax increases “sticker shock,” but insisted that “if we don’t build this (transit) system, we are going to drown.” "This traffic is going to stop the growth of our economy, it's going to make it impossible for us to drive our kids to soccer practice and you can't ignore this problem, or it will get much worse,” he said.

The Senate also unanimously passed SB 5096, the state transportation budget on Thursday and sent it to the House, which has placed its own transportation budget bill, HB 1174, on the calendar for action by the full House. Minority House Republicans said today they would bring the Sound Transit tax issues up for a vote as amendments to the House transportation bill.

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