With the GOP in the minority, what are your top three legislative priorities for this session, and how do you plan to gain bipartisan support to advance those goals?
Our first priority is to stop the job- and economy-killing tax policies state Democrats are secretly working on (and accidentally sent to half the Legislature). Their proposals include a litany of taxes that would hurt business, eliminate good-paying jobs, further increase housing costs, and force entrepreneurs and innovators to flee our state. Some of their ideas are so bad that even progressive Democrats like Nick Hanauer, who happily supported the capital gains tax, are publicly criticizing their tax plans. However, convincing a few smarter-than-average Democrats outside the Legislature isn’t enough. We need to convince Democrat legislators of their folly.
Our second priority is to address Washington’s $10+ billion budget deficit through structural budget reforms, not new taxes. No serious economist believes we are in a recession. The economy is growing, as are state tax collections. We’ll collect more tax revenue this year than last year, and more next year than this year. We don’t need more government. We need smarter government. House Republicans will be offering legislation to increase transparency and accountability when it comes to state spending to ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely—not just spent.
Finally, we will continue offering pragmatic solutions for the catalog of crises confronting our state. Washington has become one of the most dangerous states in the nation, our children our failing to meet math and reading standards at unprecedented levels, we have some of the highest drug overdose rates in the country, and our state has become the fourth-most expensive state to live in. While state Democrats remain fixated on President Trump and national politics, House Republicans are focused on solving the very real crises that have been facing our state for years.
Washington is facing a significant budget shortfall, with Democrats likely to propose tax increases to close the gap. What is the Republican caucus’s approach to addressing this shortfall without burdening taxpayers further, and where do you believe the state’s spending priorities need to be adjusted?
Despite what will likely be said by our Democrat counterparts and echoed by many others: this deficit is not the result of a revenue problem, but a spending problem. State tax collections have grown by almost 40% since 2019. Tax collections have been consistently increasing, even after adjusting for inflation and population growth. Yet, while state budget writers have benefited from record tax revenue growth, taxpayers have been burdened by record inflation. Instead of using some of that revenue to lower taxes and help offset rising costs, Democrats spent every dollar expanding state government—even depleting the state’s “rainy day” fund to finance even more government growth. In the end, they made promises for new programs and services they couldn’t afford then—and certainly can’t afford now.
We are not in a recession. The era of explosive revenue growth is over and state tax collections are returning to a more normal pace, yet the public is being sold stories about austerity budgets and devastating cuts. There is nothing austere about a $72 billion budget. We don’t need new taxes. We need structural budget reforms.
We believe spending should be focused on key priorities with clearly defined goals and outcomes. Right now, state budget writers have a “fund it and forget it” mentality, where programs are funded indefinitely with no review of whether they are achieving their expected outcomes. For example, for the past decade, the state has funded a program at DCYF that has been proven to have a negative benefit-cost ratio with zero chance of achieving a positive outcome. Yet it continues to be funded. Our approach would allow us to eliminate ineffective programs and replace bad policies with better ones.
We are also focused on other key reforms, including reinstating the state spending limit, fixing inefficient structures, and reducing excessive bureaucracy in state agencies and institutions.
Bob Ferguson is now the governor of our state. How does the Republican caucus view his influence on legislative priorities, and what would you do to counterbalance it?
If Governor Ferguson governs as he campaigned and spoke in his inaugural address, there will be plenty of opportunities to find common ground. Despite his reputation as a far-left attorney general, he ran for governor as a moderate Democrat—even including several Republican ideas as key tenets of his campaign and referencing others in his inaugural address. I’m encouraged by his support for several long-standing Republican priorities, such as:
- Local law enforcement funding (HB 1435, Rep. Abell)
- Homes for Heroes (HB 1022, Rep. Connors)
- Emergency ferry procurement (HB 1377, Rep. Caldier)
- Governor Emergency Power Reforms (HB 1221, Rep. Volz)
In an interview with The Seattle Times, Governor Ferguson stated that new taxes are a last resort. He instead supports reducing the size of government through savings, efficiencies, and the elimination of unproductive state agencies.
House Republicans stand ready to work with the new governor to oppose the Democrats’ tax agenda and focus on growing the economy. That said, Governor Inslee also made campaign promises, such as opposing new taxes, but ultimately advocated for some of the largest tax increases in state history. In the end, actions and results will matter more than words. However, for now, in his first few weeks in office, Governor Ferguson’s public statements offer much more promise than the rhetoric we’ve heard from Jay Inslee and legislative Democrats over the past decade.
Homelessness remains a persistent crisis in Washington. What Republican-led initiatives can Washingtonians expect to tackle the challenge, and how do they differ from current policies?
Under Democrat control, our state’s homeless population has exploded, driven by years of misguided land use policies that have pushed housing costs to some of the highest in the nation. We have also seen chronic underinvestment in mental health services and the complete decriminalization of drugs play a role in this crisis. The issue is not a lack of spending—state spending on homelessness prevention and solutions has increased by 883% over the last decade, with $4 billion spent in just the past four years. Despite this massive investment, the homeless population has more than doubled, demonstrating that the current approach is failing. (Source: Housing Facts).
House Republicans believe we have a duty to care for both the individuals experiencing homelessness and the communities affected by homeless encampments. True compassion means lifting people out of dangerous and inhumane conditions, not enabling them to remain there. We will continue to fight for rational changes, such as requiring the removal of encampments near water aquifers, schools, and parks, and recriminalizing the possession of hard drugs like fentanyl and heroin. We will also aim to increase the availability of and access to secure detox facilities, recognizing that tackling homelessness requires addressing the underlying issue of drug addiction.
Crime and public safety have become growing concerns for small business owners and residents alike. What legislative solutions will Republicans bring to the table to ensure public safety?
Address vehicle theft and retail theft. Right now, our state ranks #1 for retail theft and #2 for vehicle theft. These crimes obviously hurt businesses and vehicle owners, but they also have serious downstream effects for all Washingtonians. High retail theft leads to higher prices on goods sold in our state, and high vehicle theft results in increased car insurance costs for everyone. While state Democrats are focused on protecting criminals, House Republicans are focused on protecting crime victims and everyday citizens.
Address the fentanyl crisis. Washington is at the epicenter of the fentanyl overdose crisis, and the Democrats’ solution is to decriminalize drugs, making them easier to access—a strategy that has already failed in Vancouver, BC, and Portland. House Republicans propose a three-pronged solution to:
- Remove fentanyl from the streets by toughening penalties on dealers (HB 1000);
- Treat addiction by increasing availability and access to secure detox facilities (HB 1787); and
- Protect children from deadly situations by removing them from homes where caregivers are abusing fentanyl (HB 1092).
Support police. Washington ranks dead last in officers per capita and has for more than a decade. Democrat leaders began the 2024 session claiming they wanted to “grow the number of officers in Washington state.” However, they ultimately ignored multiple bills that would have increased law enforcement funding and instead prioritized a bill that would make it easier to sue police officers in their personal capacity while doing their jobs.After years of “defund the police” rhetoric and anti-police legislation, Washington has become one of the most dangerous states in the nation. The lack of funding and support for law enforcement is the obvious link, and Republicans want to reverse that.
Democrats have held control of the state legislature for years. What do you believe is the biggest failure of their leadership, and how would Republicans provide an alternative vision for Washington’s future?
The Democrats’ biggest failure is not a single failure, but rather the series of crises they’ve created that are hurting millions of Washingtonians. In the past decade, their policy priorities and decisions have caused a decline in nearly every key area of government:
- Affordability (third-highest gas prices, fourth-highest grocery prices, fourth-most expensive state to live in overall)
- Crime (third-highest crime rate, 51st in officers per capita, highest motor vehicle theft rate, most burglaries per capita)
- Drugs (largest numerical increase in drug overdose deaths between May 2023 and April 2024, 199% increase in overdose deaths since 2019)
- Housing (third-most expensive state to buy a home, largest increase in home prices over the last 40 years at 828%, last in housing units per household)
- Education (60% of students are failing math grade standards and 50% are failing reading and writing standards, 48th in college enrollment after high school)
- Child care (Seventh-least affordable state for infant care, families spending over 35% of their income to send two children to child care. Over the past decade, the cost of infant care has risen 74%, and toddler care has increased 83%. The annual cost of sending a toddler to daycare now exceeds the cost of tuition at UW)
This isn’t partisan rhetoric. These are facts. House Republicans have offered numerous solutions that would directly address the six major crises facing average Washingtonians (see House Republican priorities). Unfortunately, legislative Democrats have shown little interest in our ideas, likely because doing so would force them to acknowledge the actual results of their misguided policies. Even so, House Republicans remain intently focused on improving life for working-class Washingtonians. We have innovative ideas, are willing to work across the aisle with those who want to help fix Washington, and are not afraid to acknowledge when something isn’t working and adjust course.
Given the GOP’s minority status, what can Washingtonians realistically expect from your caucus this session? How will you measure success if advancing legislation remains an uphill battle?
Advancing Republican bills has been a challenge for many years, but we’ve still achieved incredible success. Last session, we got three of the six citizen initiatives passed through the Legislature during session, along with several key Republican bills, including a tax exemption for affordable housing and a new graffiti cleanup program.
However, unlike the ruling Democrats, our caucus does not believe more laws and more spending is always better. Sometimes, we measure success by what we defeat. Last year, we defeated countless policies that would have made life more expensive for Washington families, including: SB 5770, which would have tripled local property taxes; HB 2276, which would have increased the real estate excise tax, making it more expensive to buy and sell a home; and HB 2409, which would have raised the cost of household goods and groceries.
Now for a little fun: If you had a magic wand and could instantly fix one issue facing Washington State, what would it be, and why?
I would love to wave that magic wand more than once. However, if I had to choose, my top priority would be addressing the homelessness crisis. Homelessness has skyrocketed in our state, far outpacing the national average. It has led to countless encampments in public spaces, raising serious concerns about public health, hygiene, and safety.
State spending on preventing and addressing homelessness has grown by 883% over the past decade, yet our homeless population has more than doubled. The most recent HUD report showed that Washington now has the third-largest homeless population in the country and also experienced the largest increase in chronic homelessness of any state.
Democrats will tell you that a lack of investment is the problem, but that is simply wrong. Other major cities have solved this problem. There was a time when Houston had one of the country’s largest homeless populations. However, the city overhauled its homeless services system, used data effectively, and redirected resources from underperforming programs to those that delivered results. This shows that an effective crisis response system is essential for combating homelessness. We don’t need more money. We need strong leaders who will prioritize facts over feelings and make data-driven decisions.
