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Washington lawmakers diverge on how to close $750 million shortfalls as 2026 session nears
Summary
State lawmakers on a Seattle panel framed affordability and the budget as the top issues for the coming legislative session, debating whether to pursue revenue measures or structural spending reforms to close near-term $750 million shortfalls in 2026 and 2027.
A panel of Washington state lawmakers at a Seattle conference split sharply on how to handle near-term budget shortfalls and longer-term structural reforms as the legislature approaches the 2026 session.
Sen. Yasmin Trudeau (D-27th), chair of the Senate capital budget, said the state must address structural revenue weaknesses while protecting vulnerable residents. “We have to think about every Washingtonian top to bottom,” Trudeau said, arguing that investments in rehousing and supportive services can reduce larger social costs down the road.
Republican lawmakers on the panel emphasized different fixes. Sen. Chris Gildon (R-25th), the Senate Republican budget lead, said immediate fixes must supply cash now and proposed efficiency measures he said would not be “cuts,” including limiting concurrent paid family and medical leave collections, aligning mileage reimbursements with state fleet costs, cleaning up duplicate Medicaid enrollments and tying state spending growth to median wage growth. Gildon said, “We have a problem in 2026 of about $750,000,000,” and warned that long-lead revenue sources such as a wealth tax or other new levies would not address that immediate hole.
Rep. Drew Stokesberry (R-31st) and Rep. Joe Fitzkewin (34th) criticized repeated tax increases and urged structural discipline; Fitzkewin said an income tax is a missing tool Washington lacks but warned that new taxes would not solve short-term timing gaps. Fitzkewin also flagged risks from federal policy shifts—he attributed steep Medicaid and SNAP changes at the federal level to additional pressure on state budgets.
The panel debated tradeoffs: some members argued for immediate revenue or targeted reductions, while others warned that cuts or furloughs could harm frontline services and raise liability costs. Panelists cited specific figures during the discussion: a prior session’s $9.5 billion in new taxes, a $750 million cut to Medicaid in the last session, and a cited $260,000 per-year average cost to house an individual in juvenile rehabilitation versus roughly $60,000 in the Department of Corrections—figures used to underline tradeoffs in spending choices.
Panelists said they expect the governor’s budget to provide a clearer problem statement in the coming weeks and urged constituents to engage as lawmakers weigh revenue options and spending reforms.
