Washington State Wire has posted an interview with Senator Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, who chairs the Law & Justice Committee and serves on three other committees including Ways & Means.
The wide-ranging and timely interview looked forward to how the Legislature could solve its projected $8.8 billion revenue shortfall over the next three years and the possibility of raising taxes. Pedersen explained why he didn’t think the current COVID-19-related recession was as big a state budget challenge as the Great Recession of a decade ago and how the Legislature could justify creating a capital gains tax on the sale of personal assets.
He also commented on how the outcome of this year’s Presidential election could influence how much federal aid is available to Washington to balance its budget.