No end in sight as Washington lawmakers edge toward a third special session
OLYMPIA — Washington lawmakers are nearing the end of their second special session, and with no signs that an agreement on education funding is near, a third overtime session seems all but inevitable.
In addition to satisfying a state Supreme Court ruling on increasing state money to basic education, lawmakers also face a more imminent deadline: If the broader two-year state operating budget isn’t signed in law by midnight June 30, the state faces a partial government shutdown starting July 1.
Gov. Jay Inslee said he met with leaders from each of the four caucuses Monday to insist that they start face-to-face negotiations on the overall budget, something he said they agreed to do, starting Tuesday.
“I appreciate the complexity of this challenge,” Inslee said at a news conference. “If there was an easy way to do this, indeed it would have been done already.”
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