“Legislators tonight approved a great budget for Washington state. It makes the investments we need to move the state forward and follows spending priorities I set out when the Legislature convened in January. This budget allows us to take a big step toward meeting our obligation to K-12 education, including all-day kindergarten, smaller class sizes in lower grades and a teacher mentoring program. We fully funded collective bargaining agreements to give state workers a raise and funded long overdue cost-of-living adjustments for teachers. We boosted programs that care for people with mental illness and added caseworkers who protect vulnerable children.
“There is much here that will help Washingtonians across the state. It makes a bold statement about what we value. I thank lawmakers for working with me to find the middle ground, even when that meant some tough sessions and long nights.
“The only major complaint I have with this budget is we’re talking about it on June 29. This should have happened two months ago.
“My staff will immediately begin a careful review of the budget, and we plan to take action on it tomorrow afternoon.”