Here's where we're at in the final four days of session.

The 2010 legislative session is set to adjourn its regular session Thursday. If they can’t come to agreement on a budget and revenue package, they would go into special session.

The Senate over the weekend passed and sent to the House a revenue package. Meanwhile, the House passed its version of the budget sent them by the Senate (ESSB 6444) and sent it back to the Senate. The House and Senate now must go into conference committee negotiations to see if they can reach a final compromise by 11:59 p.m. Thursday.

To recap Saturday’s message:

"the version of the budget passed by the House has gone the farthest in raising revenue and funding services with less balancing on your backs."

The pendulum could be swinging away from the anti-state employee crowd now that even the Seattle Times has busted the myth of “high paid” state employees.  (see next article)

Here are a few more details about what was in the budget (ESSB 6444) passed by the House Friday:

• On institutions closures, the House does not close RHCs or JRA facilities, but the House budget would close one cottage at Maple Lane School and two wings of a cottage at Green Hill School and Green Hill residents would be double bunked. The House, unfortunately, sticks to its original plan to close Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women in Medical Lake. 

• On furloughs, a note of caution. The furlough bill, SSB 6503, is still technically alive on the House floor with several proposed but still unadopted floor amendments, including one to take away personal holidays (which would require negotiations). But the budget passed by the House Friday stripped out budget language mandating furloughs, instead directing state agencies and higher education institutions to reduce state compensation costs by $48 million. Here is what the effect statement on that amendment says:

EFFECT: Deletes the section reducing appropriations related to SSB 6503 (temporary layoffs), and directs the Office of Financial Management to develop a schedule of reduced compensation expenditures of state agencies by $48,648,000 million General Fund-State and $51,975,000 from all other funds. The reductions are to be distributed to each agency and institution of higher education proportionately based on each state agency and institution's share of the total compensation of all state employees.

FISCAL IMPACT: 
Reduces General Fund-State by $434,000.
Increases Other Funds by $40,066,000.

• On health insurance, the House adopted amendments that increase funding for your health benefits, but calls on the governor to go to the bargaining table to push for a change in the share of premiums the state and employees pay. Currently, the state pays 88 percent, employees 12 percent. Here is what the effect statement on that amendment says:

EFFECT: Increases the monthly employer funding rate charged to participating employers for the Public Employees' Benefits Board (PEBB) health and insurance benefits for fiscal year 2011 from $768 to $863 per eligible employee, and requires the PEBB not to adopt a plan for expenditures on benefits and administration that would project a total reserve level for the end of fiscal year 2011 of less than $90,000,000.

The intent of the Legislature is that the Governor immediately request to commence bargaining a corresponding increase in the employee share of health premiums with the coalition of all the exclusive bargaining representatives with which health care benefit funding is bargained.

Transfers $30 million from the Data Processing Revolving Fund (fund 419) and $13 million from the Public Works Assistance Account (fund 058) to the Salary/Insurance Increase Revolving Account (fund 406). This amount is appropriated for agency charges due to the increased monthly employer funding rate in lieu of an appropriation from the state general fund.

FISCAL IMPACT:
Increases General Fund-State by $22,340,000.
Increases Other Funds by $111,554,000.
Transfers $43 million in funding between accounts.

• The House also restored funding for seven positions at Eastern State Hospital and seven at Western State Hospital: 

EFFECT: Restores 14.0 direct care vacant positions that were eliminated in the DSHS mental health psychiatric hospitals. The FTEs restored are 7.0 at Eastern State Hospital and 7.0 at Western State Hospital.

FISCAL IMPACT:
Increases General Fund-State by $2,434,000.

• And the House budget restored budget reductions:

EFFECT: Restores budget reductions in the following agencies:
Department of Commerce

• Restores $625,000 in General Fund-State for Growth Management Act technical assistance. 

Department of Health 

• Restores $200,000 General Fund-State for environmental health programs related to grants to local health jurisdictions for monitoring on-site sewage systems.

Department of Ecology 

• Restores $500,000 from the State Toxics Control Account for the Hazardous Waste Cleanup Program; 

• Restores $273,000 from the State Toxics Control Account for the Solid Waste Cleanup Program; 

• Restores $3,501,000 from the State Toxics Control Account for the Toxic Cleanup Program;

• Restores $300,000 from the General Fund-State for the Air Quality Program;

• Restores $75,000 from the General Fund-State for the Water Quality Cleanup Program;

• Restores $75,000 from the General Fund-State for the Water Quality Monitoring Program;

• Restores $354,000 from the General Fund-State for the Shorelands Program; and

• Restores $5,309,000 from the General Fund-State for local watershed planning.

Recreation and Conservation Office

• Restores funding for the Biodiversity Council ($92,000 General Fund-State) and for salmon recovery data coordination ($78,000 General Fund-State).

Department of Fish and Wildlife

• Restores funding for wildlife disease monitoring ($162,000 General Fund-State); scientific assistance for salmon recovery($250,000 General Fund-State); and land management ($264,000 General Fund-State).

Department of Natural Resources

• Restores $75,000 General Fund-State for the Natural Heritage Program.
  
  FISCAL IMPACT:
  Increases General Fund-State by $7,859,000.
  Increases Other Funds by $4,274,000.

Again, the Senate and House must work out their differences. And on institutions closures, furloughs, health care and other key areas, the differences are significant. So stay tuned.