One of the most baffling things in this session is the majority’s insistence on raising and creating new taxes. Despite predictions to the contrary, we have continued to see additional revenue come into the state. In the largest positive quarterly forecast change on record, the March forecast released yesterday increased revenue projections by $3.3 billion through the upcoming 2021-23 biennia, and $5.2 billion over the four-year outlook time frame. Put simply, since the budget must balance over four years, legislative budget writers now have $5 billion more available in state funds than what was forecast in November.
On top of that, the federal government had put an additional $1.9 trillion on our children and grandchildren’s credit card with the signing of the latest COVID-19 relief and stimulus bill. Washington is slated to get nearly $15 billion more under the plan.