Speaker Chopp's opening day speech

This morning, Speaker Frank Chopp took up the gavel on the opening day of what promises to be an extremely tough session.

The Speaker challenged legislators to balance the budget in a balanced way, and he reminded House members that the budget is more than just a table of numbers, but a moral statement about our concern for the struggling people of our state.

Speaker Frank Chopp's opening day speech (as written):

As we begin this session, I would like to offer a perspective on the work at hand.

For weeks now, many people have been saying to me: “What a tough session this will be. What a tough job you must have.”

I understand this will be a challenging session.

And I appreciate the hard work each of you will do to represent the people in the people’s House.

As legislators, we have many decisions to make, and there are many demands on our time, but let’s put our work in perspective.

We all understand that our job is not as tough as an emergency room nurse, acting quickly when a life hangs in the balance…

A construction worker, tying rebar in the driving rain…

A child protective services worker, balancing the needs of too many children…

A veteran, returning home with wounds to heal…
Or a police officer…

This became painfully clear when we heard the shocking news on Halloween night
And then again…
And again…

Soon, this legislature will formally honor our officers. But for now let us have a moment of silence to remember their sacrifice and the sacrifice of their families.

As we go forward, we need to remember the daily struggles of people across our state.

Those who have lost their jobs, spent down their savings, and are relying on unemployment checks and food stamps to make ends meet.

The young parents losing sleep, worrying about a sick child, and the bills that will follow.

The homeless veteran, coping with a mental illness.

To help meet the challenges facing our people, we must make choices that fuel a smart recovery. To do that, we must build on what we have already achieved.

In national, independent surveys, Washington ranks at or near the top as the best state for starting a business and for doing business. We have the best prospects for future growth and we have the most productive workforce in the nation!

What can we do in this economy to build upon that record?

We can best position our people for the recovery by providing opportunities in education.

We will focus on student success, by beginning to restore resources to our classrooms.

Despite our difficult budget, we need to bring reality, not just rhetoric, to our constitutional duty!

We will re-define basic education to include early learning, the best investment we can make by providing a smart start for our kids.

Early learning is the basis for educational success and we should consider it
a fundamental part of basic education.

Through Opportunity Pathways, we will provide students at our colleges and universities, with the tools to join in the economic recovery.

Now is not the time to make cuts in the state need grants or Opportunity Grants or apprenticeships for our students.

This economic challenge can be turned into an Opportunity Express by giving unemployed workers the training for good paying jobs in clean energy, nursing, advanced manufacturing, and other jobs in high demand.

The doors to a better future must be kept open!

We can create tens of thousands of family wage jobs, while making our schools more energy efficient and productive. We can do this by approving the JOBS Act of 2010.

Jobs, Opportunities, Better Schools!

All of this will complement the investments we have made in transportation, which are already employing thousands of workers, and boosting our economic recovery, all across the state.

As we work to balance the budget, we cannot slash funding for education, health care, and public safety ----and then expect a better future for our people.

The people of this state have voted, through five initiatives, to mandate more spending for student achievement, the basic health plan, and care for the elderly and persons with disabilities.

We should also take note, that for many years now, when actions taken by this legislature were referred to the voters, the people sustained us.

Whether it was a revenue increase for the Education Legacy Trust Fund, or the largest investment in transportation in state history, or a civil rights law for domestic partners, the people agreed!

This session will challenge us to identify priorities and efficiencies.

We need a priorities of government process that applies not just to spending, but to our revenue as well.

A basic question should always be asked:
Is this particular tax incentive, exemption, or loophole more important than funding for schools, health care, and public safety for our people?

Our challenge is to balance the budget in a balanced way.

Responding to the immediate needs of our people but also investing in the long-term success of the economy and our future.

Through Apple Health for Kids, the best children’s health program in the nation, we are keeping our promise to make sure that all our children have health care by the end of this year.

In order to do well in school, students need to be healthy and ready to learn, every day.

Through a partnership with the federal government, we hope to have the opportunity for new health care remedies, to expand coverage to those without insurance, and prevent economic ruin for thousands of people facing bankruptcy from a health care catastrophe.

We will transform a strong thread of our safety net into the Disability Lifeline, to provide just that: a lifeline for tens of thousands of people with disabilities.

A majority are battling mental illness, many are homeless, and a large share are veterans who have served our country.

These reforms will save lives, save money, and make “general assistance” more understandable to the general public.

Many of the actions we will take in the next 2 months, will not receive much attention as the story of the budget is told.

But the budget is much more than a table of numbers.

It is a moral statement of our concern for those who are struggling ---- and our commitment to giving a fair shake to all people.

Despite the challenges before us, I am optimistic about the future, and I am honored to serve with you.

When I began my remarks, I mentioned those who have jobs much more difficult than ours. And we remembered those who have given their full measure for the people of our state.

The best way to honor them and the people we represent, is to give full measure to our duties.

Our job is to serve the people and to lead the way.

And we will do so.

Let’s get to work!