Hundreds show up to talk about state budget

Last night was the first of four public budget hearings hosted by Governor Chris Gregoire.

More than 450 people crowded the room UW-Tacoma to hear presentations from the Governor's budget guy, Marty Brown, the Governor herself, and staff from the Office of Financial Management.

Attendees were given a 10-page overview describing our budget situation and the six "values" driving budget decisions: student achievement, protect health and vulnerable people, economic development, effective government, public safety, and natural resources.

About 40 people were able to testify of the 140 who had signed up. Many of the comments were pleas to continue funding for various programs, though some people offered up ideas on how to address the budget shortfall. Suggestions included:

• Take away the $5 million tax exemption for the TransAlta coal plant and make more progress on climate change
• Close down state institutions for people with developmental disabilities and put resources in community
• Set up a state bank like in North Dakota
• Re-negotiate state employee collective bargaining contract and cut salaries
• Set up waiver programs and low-interest repayment plans for businesses that can’t afford to pay state taxes
  

The Governor has also set up a website where the public can post comments. It went up yesterday, and as this blog post is being written, there are nearly 400 suggestions. You can take a look and vote to agree or disagree or comment on the ideas posted.

You can also take a look at this morning’s News Tribune story about last night’s hearing .

Three public meetings remain:

• Tomorrow, July 21 at 7 p.m. – Everett (Everett Community College, Parks Building, Multi Purpose Room, 2000 Tower Street)
• Tuesday, July 27 at 7 p.m. —Vancouver (WSU-Vancouver, Administration Building Room 110, 14204 NE Salmon Creek Avenue)
• Thursday, July 29 with time TBA—Spokane (Spokane City Hall, City Council Chambers, 808 W. Spokane Falls Boulevard)
  

Will there be a fish kill in Lower Hood Canal this year?

Recent media reports, like this one in the Kitsap Sun, describe oxygen depletion in Hood Canal. Researchers are concerned that if the oxygen deficit increases, fish kills may occur within “dead zones.”

This week, members of the House Ecology & Parks Committee got an update on current conditions in Hood Canal, and heard about ongoing research to track “dead zones” and determine what effect humans (mainly via residential on-site septic systems) have on lower oxygen levels in the water. Dr. Jan Newton, from the University of Washington, gave a presentation showing annual variations in oxygen levels at various spots along Hood Canal. Dr. Newton heads the Hood Canal Dissolved Oxygen Program, which has determined so far that although the input of nitrogen into Hood Canal from residential septic systems is small compared to the marine input (nitrogen from ocean water coming into the canal),it is enough to potentially cause a “tipping point” depending on the background concentration of nitrogen for that year. In other words, some years it might not make a difference, and other years it most definitely could.

This year, oxygen levels in Lower Hood Canal are at the lowest levels based on record-keeping, which means 2010 could be the year of sudden fish kills within the Canal. It’s too early yet to tell if that will happen, but what is clear is that minimizing human input of nitrogen into Hood Canal is important. This is an issue that the Committee will continue to track during the interim, because the economies of many communities along Hood Canal are dependent on a healthy marine environment for fishing, shellfish harvesting, and recreation.

Unemployment rate falls to 8.9%; third straight month it’s fallen

Some good news for the state and those looking for work: the unemployment rate dropped to 8.9 percent.

The 8.9 percent rate for June is down from 9.2 percent in May. Here is more about where the jobs are coming from:

Industries that added jobs in June were education and health services, up 1,300; construction up 1,000; retail trade, up 900; professional and business services, up 700; leisure and hospitality, up 700; other services, up 400; information, up 300; and manufacturing, up 100.

Jobs were lost in government, down 8,000; financial activities, down 500; wholesale trade, down 300; and transportation, warehousing and utilities, down 100

More information can be found through the Employment Security Department’s press release and in the Seattle Times article.

Upbeat summer: CNBC ranks Wash. highly for biz climate, ahead of Oregon, Idaho

It’s easy to focus on all the economic chasms that have opened in recent years, but good news does surface from time to time. Business news network CNBC just analyzed all 50 states to determine which ones are best for business, and Washington came in at a healthy 15th place, up one notch from last year. Our neighbors Oregon and Idaho showed up further down at spots 23 and 26, respectively, while Montana and California registered in the 30s.

Unlike other rankings that focus on one metric, the CNBC analysis takes a holistic account of business competitiveness—factors such as technology & innovation, workforce, cost of living, economy and more. Washington ranked particularly high in the areas of access to capital (placing 5th), technology & innovation (5th) and quality of life (8th). We also got high marks for the overall economy (18th) and education (22nd).

Check out the full report here.

Washington’s strong business climate isn’t a new trend, nor is this study an outlier—we’ve covered this long-standing theme several times before.

Retail sales down, largely due to construction

The Department of Revenue released its revenue report for the first quarter of 2010. There are some gains since this time last year in sales of cars and food service, but those small gains were overshadowed by a huge lag in the construction sector.

The overall decline in taxable retail sales is 2.9 percent. This is disappointing news for a state that relies on these sales for about 40 percent of state revenues. But it isn't unexpected, given the slow and bumpy economic recovery so many states are trying to manage.

For more information, you can check out DOR's numbers here.

Monday will be a quiet day at many state agencies

Next Monday marks the first of ten mandatory furlough days for workers at dozens of state agencies. Need to call someone at DSHS? The only ones there on Monday will be the child protective services workers. Have a licensing question or need to talk to someone at L&I? Try again Tuesday.

The furloughs (time off with no pay) are just one of many cost-cutting measures taken by the Legislature this past session. Some agencies have opted to find equivalent savings in other ways, but many are going the furlough route.

You can check out the full schedule of which agencies will be closed and when over the next 12 months.

The "Transforming Washington's Budget" roadshow starts in two weeks

A couple weeks ago Governor Gregoire announced a new budgeting process that would take place with the help of a committee made up of public- and private-sector experts in economics, industry, labor and more.

The new process is also designed to include the help of Washington residents via a series of public hearings. For anyone interested in learning more about our budget challenges and, more importantly, providing feedback on ways the state can do more with less in these difficult times, these meetings are a rare chance to do it in person.

Here's the July schedule:
July 19: Tacoma, 7-9 PM (UWT-William W. Phillip Hall, Milgard Assembly Room, 1900 Commerce Street)

July 21: Everett, 7-9 PM (Everett Community College, Parks Building, Multi Purpose Room, 2000 Tower Street)

July 27: Vancouver, 7-9 PM (WSU-Vancouver, Administration Building Room 110, 14204 NE Salmon Creek Avenue)

July 29: Spokane, Time TBA, (Spokane City Hall, City Council Chambers, 808 W. Spokane Falls Boulevard)