2007 Policy Agenda: establishing a blueprint for prosperity

Overview

Washington state is benefiting from a growing economy. Employment has returned to pre-recession levels and state revenues have been rising. Unless decisions are made now, however, that build instead of borrow from a prosperous future, Washington will return to a cycle of fiscal shortfalls and competitive disadvantage.

Policymakers must acknowledge the realities of the global marketplace and our state’s sobering long-term fiscal projections – currently masked by a short-term surplus – and develop a focused blueprint for the future. The projected slowdown in state revenue growth, due to the softening real estate market and other factors, make this particularly critical. 

The Washington Roundtable calls on state leaders to practice fiscal restraint, limiting bow wave (the cost of maintaining services into the future) and reigning in unsustainable health care spending growth that is crowding out funding for other priorities critical to the long term prosperity of the state. We also urge policymakers to improve the quality of K-12 and post-secondary education and continue the progress made in recent years to upgrade transportation infrastructure.

Adopt a biennial budget that is sustainable and directs resources to services most critical to ensuring a prosperous future.

• Leverage the Priorities of Government framework to ensure the 2007-09 biennial budget is results-based, prioritizes education and transportation and does not increase the bow wave.
• Align growth in state health care spending with the long-term state revenue growth rate so that unsustainable increases no longer crowd out funding for services like education and transportation.
• Rebuild the state budget reserve to five percent of the general fund biennial budget.

Strengthen public education to position Washington state as the standard for world-class quality.

• Create school readiness indicators and a uniform rating system to evaluate the quality of early learning settings and state funded providers.
• Maintain and expand upon WASL graduation standards to ensure students are prepared for college and work. 
• Improve teacher credentialing in math and science and reduce out-of-field placements.
• Increase requirements to ensure achievement of Algebra II at a minimum by the end of high school.
• Identify or create state-approved curricula in math with incentives for use, including aligned course materials and professional development. 
• Implement the Science Matters plan to engage students in effective and relevant K-12 science education.
• Provide all 11th graders access to the Washington Math Placement Test or a similar exam to assess readiness for college-level math and facilitate 12th grade course-taking decisions


• Strengthen higher education to benefit students and the economy.
• Increase baccalaureate degree production in high demand fields, particularly in math, science and engineering.
• Improve state funding for higher education, including tuition flexibility.
• Enhance state investments and improve commercialization of university research. 

Provide Central Puget Sound with the tools required to address high-priority, high impact transportation projects.

• Create a regional governance structure for Central Puget Sound that enables the region to prioritize transportation projects that are most critical to mobility, safety and economic health and provides the tools necessary to finance those projects.