The state budget the Legislature approved earlier this year in unsustainable especially due to the slowdown the coronavirus pandemic will cause for the state economy, a new Washington Research Council policy brief warns.
The approved supplemental budget appropriation is 20.5% higher than in the 2017-19 biennial period.
In response to the pandemic and stay-at-home order, many Washington State businesses are closed and have laid off thousands of employees, leading to record claims for unemployment insurance.
“Even in a booming economy, we would consider such a high increase to be unsustainable,” the brief reads. ‘It is almost certain that the budget is based on revenues that will not be collected.”
As of this writing, despite speculation to the contrary, Gov. Jay Inslee has not called for a special legislative session to address the budget or any other issue.
