As reported here by The Associated Press, a federal judge tossed out the Washington state Pharmacy Board’s dispensing rule today, which required pharmacies to stock and dispense medications such as Plan B – a morning-after birth-control bill. The ruling by Judge Ronald Leighton was a victory for the Stormans family that refused to stock the pills – citing religious objections – at its Olympia pharmacy.
There’s no call-in number for the “tele-town hall” at 6:15 p.m., but many constituents will receive phone calls. To be added to the list, call (360) 786-7650.
Kilmer is a Democrat representing the 26th district, which includes Gig Harbor and Port Orchard. He said he’ll talk about “the state budget, education, tolls on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, government reform, the state’s business climate, veterans’ issues and other topics of interest.”
Here’s the title of a title-only bill that Sen. Pam Roach is introducing tomorrow:
Relating to prohibiting a child custody award to a suspect in an active murder investigation.
It’s not clear what standard would be used to consider someone a “suspect” before they are charged with a crime. The bill so far has no content other than a title. Roach is having a press conference Thursday with Chuck and Judy Cox, the grandparents of the slain Charlie and Braden Powell, to talk about “serious problems” within DSHS.
Deadlines for moving legislation have already passed, so this will likely have …
House Republicans agreed to it. House Democrats put it in their budget. It even briefly became the focus of one lawmaker’s attempt at an economic-stimulus plan (more on that later). Now it seems there may also be support in the Senate.
I’m talking about the tax exemption for big banks. They don’t pay B&O tax on interest from a home’s original mortgage. There’s a bipartisan House consensus that benefit shouldn’t go to big out-of-state banks anymore.
We’re still awaiting a budget to emerge from bipartisan negotiations in the Senate — likely next week — but Republicans are finishing up their version …
Three-quarters of the way through the 60-day session, budget fixes have finally come into focus. House Democrats released their spending plan Tuesday, which leans heavily on more than $400 million in delayed payments to schools and roughly $100 million in cuts that hit local governments.
At its 3:30 p.m. meeting today, the Senate Ways and Means Committee could take up two controversial bills. It will hold a hearing on requiring health plans that cover maternity care to also cover an abortion. And it could vote on a plan to consolidate health insurance for public school employees from hundreds of school …
Unless you’re a big bank or you use a machine to roll your cigarettes, state House Democrats’ budget doesn’t raise your taxes.
Instead, their plan cuts cities and counties and allows them to make up the money by raising your taxes.
The plan unveiled today would take a big step — in what may become a historic shift — away from support for local government programs.
Chief House budget writer Ross Hunter said the state no longer can afford local-government costs taken on in the past two decades — particularly after voters led by Tim Eyman, and then the Legislature, …
The House Democratic budget is formally on the table: The $30.66 billion supplemental spending plan lops some $81.6 million in local government aid, delays $405 million in funding for K-12 public schools into the 2013-15 biennium, and makes roughly half the cuts to welfare programs that Gov. Chris Gregoire and House Republicans have proposed.
House Ways and Means chairman Ross Hunter, D-Medina, is explaining the cuts in a press conference that began at 9:15 a.m. A summary of his budget gore and glory is here.
Like the House Republican plan outlined Friday, the budget assumes $18 million from ending a mortgage-interest tax break that benefits large out of state banks. It also assumes $13.1 million in new revenue from passage of legislation to tax makers of roll-your-own cigarettes. But it also cuts into the Department of Corrections’ budgets, reducing community supervision of released offenders and chemical dependency treatment while adding money for prison radios.
And it cuts criminal justice and courts funding for local governments, while assuming legislation passes to give those governments more local tax options.
Higher education is hit again, to the tune of $65 million for institutions and $10 million for State Need Grants. But Hunter’s plan adds money for some science and technology degree programs, leaving a net $51 million cut for institutions, according to his highlights paper.
And like the GOP, the Democrats propose cutting the $850 per employee monthly allocation for health and other insurance benefits to $800. Gregoire proposed $825. Both House plans cut the state contribution to the Public Employee Benefits Board by about $33 million, but the Democrats do not call for the 24-day furloughs that the GOP did. UPDATE: On the other hand, the budget preserves state payments into the pension system.
UPDATE: Counting the liquor privatization approved by voters last November, the budget would reduce state government jobs by 1,554, Hunter said in his presentation.
Democrats and their allies took grim pokes over the weekend at a House Republican budget plan that slashes welfare benefits and asks most state employees to take 24 days off work without pay in the next year.