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Mental health treatment capacity would expand dramatically with behavioral health bonds

Legislation sponsored by Sen. John Braun and Sen. David Frockt asks voters to approve $500 million in state bonds to greatly expand community mental health treatment facilities statewide. This comes as reports and analysis show Washington’s inadequate options for people facing a variety of mental health crises.

“Treating people with mental illness in their community keeps them closer to their family and improves long-term outcomes,” said Braun, R-Centralia, who serves as ranking minority member of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. “It’s critical that we provide the facilities to deliver a variety of evidence-based services throughout our state. Combining one of the lowest national rates of available treatment facilities with some of the highest need is a recipe for the crisis we see today.”

Washington has taken steps to invest in community treatment facilities over the last four years to the tune of an additional $50 million in the previous two capital budgets.

“We have a crisis in mental health in this state. We are under court order to improve the system in a variety of ways, and this includes expanding the entire range of facilities,” said Frockt, D-Seattle. “This bill would create a transformational funding plan over many years to address these dire needs. This measure ensures that people suffering from mental illness can be treated close to home, keeping them connected to the support systems that they’ll rely on as they recover.”

A 2015 report by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy showed that Washington ranked 49th of 50 states for the availability of psychiatric beds. The same report also highlighted that the state ranks in the top three nationally in adult prevalence of mental illness and serious mental illness.

“While we’ve made progress in recent years, it’s clear that the scale of problems demands a more widespread and flexible approach,” said Braun, who sponsored the 2017 state operating budget, which also made significant investments in mental health treatment and care.

The proposed legislation authorizes up to $500 million in general obligation state bonds to pay for capital improvements that increase behavioral health services in community settings. Funds could be used for a variety of treatment options including evaluation and treatment centers, crisis and stabilization centers, detoxification centers, transitional housing or other appropriate options.

With the bonds, the Legislature would be able to appropriate the money raised from the “Community Behavioral Health Bond Account,” a dedicated fund created in the bill. The specific capacity that could be expanded would depend on what types of facilities future Legislatures choose to invest in as well as the amount of matching or grant funds available for individual projects.

“I am looking forward to working with Sen. Braun and the bipartisan group that is sponsoring this measure,” Frockt said. “As the new Democratic chair of the capital budget, I plan to schedule hearings for this bill once we have passed a capital budget. Addressing this crisis is one of my top priorities. Good ideas know no party, and it’s time for both parties to come together to address these long neglected needs.”

The measure would be subject to a vote in the state’s 2018 general election.

Education funding update

Last year I provided many updates on what lawmakers proposed and ultimately passed to provide a high-quality education for all children. The end result was a historic investment that not only amply funds our public schools but also makes education more equitable throughout the state.

Since 2012, the Legislature will have increased state funding for public schools from $6,639 per student to $11,996 by the 2019-20 school year. That translates to an additional $13 billion in total state funding for K-12 education.

In November, the Washington State Supreme Court issued a ruling in the McCleary education funding case that largely endorsed the bipartisan reforms.

One area the court disagreed was that the 2019 date for full state funding doesn’t match the Legislature’s original plan to have changes in place by 2018. The transition timeline resulted from the complexity of implementing reforms.

There are still items that can be improved in K-12 education funding like special education. But the solution we passed last year sought to address our responsibilities in a way that worked best to improve outcomes for students, not the desire of the court.

The governor’s supplemental budget proposal highlighted the difficulty in making the overall transition for 295 school districts in 39 counties. The governor sought to meet the court’s 2018 deadline by raiding our budget reserves, which I don’t believe is responsible or necessary. As a result, the governor’s plan would actually put school districts on a budget roller coaster with most schools receiving less money in the 2019-20 school year than in the previous year.

Last week I had the opportunity to join with other education funding leaders from each of the four legislative caucuses to discuss these issues as part of the annual Associated Press Legislative Preview. If you would like to watch the panel discussion you can click here. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

Property tax relief for all Washingtonians

The share of property taxes paid by homeowners compared to commercial properties has increased significantly in recent decades. I proposed legislation to provide equitable tax relief by creating a homestead property tax exemption. The policy would exempt the first $100,000 of a homeowner’s assessed value from state property taxes.

If passed a home worth $200,000 would only be charged the value of $100,000 for state property taxes — a 50% reduction. By implementing this in a progressive manner instead of based on a tax rate, it would be much more impactful to lower value properties as compared to a $1 million home in Seattle that only sees a 10% reduction.

My proposal also includes enshrining this in our state’s constitution to protect this critical reform well into the future. This would result in a median value home in a majority of the state’s 39 counties seeing a 50% reduction in state property taxes. Rural communities where home values have not increased as much and where job opportunities are not as prevalent would see the greatest benefit.

2018 session underway

State lawmakers returned to Olympia on Monday for what is scheduled to be a short 60-day session. Since we adjourned in July, the dynamic has shifted as Democrats won a special election in November, giving them a narrow majority in the Senate for the first time since 2012.

We accomplished a great deal over the last five years, including historic reforms for education funding, the first tuition cut in state history, and incredible fiscal restraint. We also defeated several unnecessary tax increases proposed by the governor and House Majority. Regardless of the change, I am still working together with all of my colleagues toward policies that improve job opportunities — especially for rural Washington — and protect the historic education investments and tax reforms passed last year. I will continue leading on budget issues for the Senate Republican Caucus as the ranking minority member of the budget committee.

Below you’ll find some information on two pieces of legislation I’m working on this year to help our community as well as an update on the most recent state Supreme Court ruling on education.

If you have any questions or need assistance navigating an issue with state government, please contact my office at John.Braun@leg.wa.gov or by calling 360-786-7638. Also, please note that if you are visiting the Capitol, my office location is now 403 on the fourth floor of the legislative building.

Braun proposes separate districts for House elections

Legislation increases ability of lawmakers to contact voters and diversifies geographic representation in Legislature

With this year’s Legislature set to review a variety of voting reforms, Sen. John Braun is calling for the state to divide legislative districts into two distinct House districts under a bill released today. Two House members are currently elected from each of the state’s 49 legislative districts that elect one senator.

“Smaller legislative districts improve a representative’s ability to reach the people they represent,” said Braun, R-Centralia. “Increasing geographical diversity brings broader perspectives and local knowledge into play. Smaller districts also bring communities together and reduce the influence of money in campaigns given the ability to directly contact voters.”

Washington is only one of five states along with Arizona, Idaho, New Jersey and South Dakota, where House and Senate seats have the same boundaries. States including Oregon, Montana, Alaska and seven others already have House districts divided up within a Senate district.

Braun’s plan directs the 2021 Washington State Redistricting Commission to establish the new boundaries for the 2022 election. The same guidelines that currently apply to the redistricting process including equal population and contiguous boundaries would apply to the newly drawn House districts.

You will also find an interesting breakdown on how each state sets up its legislative representation courtesy of research by the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Braun’s plan is similar to a 2011 proposal sponsored by Rep. Hans Dunshee, a former Democratic Representative from the 44th legislative district.

Braun has requested the chair of the Senate State Government, Tribal Relations & Elections Committee hold a public hearing on the measure.

Students invited to apply for 2018 Senate Page Program

The Washington State Senate is currently accepting applications for the 2018 Senate Page Program, where students ages 14 to 16 spend one week at the Capitol working in the Senate. Sen. John Braun encourages students to apply for the program, which provides a front-row seat to the legislative process.

“With one of the finest page programs in the country, local students can learn how decisions made in Olympia impact their community back home,” said Braun, R-Centralia, who represents Washington’s 20th Legislative District, which includes parts of Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis and Thurston Counties. “Pages pack a once-in-a-lifetime experience into one week and play an important role in keeping things running smoothly. For many the highlight is the chance to draft their own bill and work to pass it in a mock floor debate.”

While at the Capitol, students are responsible for transporting documents between offices and delivering messages and mail. Pages spend time in the Senate chamber helping lawmakers by delivering bills and amendments and attend page school to learn about parliamentary procedure and the legislative process.

The 2018 regular legislative session goes from January 8th through March 9th. In addition to completing an application, students must also obtain a letter of recommendation from a teacher, principal, advisor, or mentor.

Details on the program, an application, and an informational video can be found via the Senate Page Program web site.

Pages must be sponsored by one of their local state lawmakers. Students can contact Braun’s office about sponsorship by calling 360-786-7638 or sending an email to John.Braun@leg.wa.gov.

Court recognizes Legislature’s historic education investments

A ruling today by the Washington State Supreme Court largely endorses the bipartisan school-funding reforms recently adopted by the Legislature in line with the 2012 McCleary ruling, according to Sen. John Braun.

“Providing students with the support they need and deserve required us to solve a generational problem with a generational solution, which resulted in a historic funding infusion for our schools,” said Braun, R-Centralia, who served as a member of the bipartisan education funding negotiating team. “The Legislature brought this situation on itself by shirking its responsibility to public schools for decades. Over the past five years we have demonstrated that only by making education our top priority could we pay for schools in a way that works for students, teachers and taxpayers. Judging from today’s ruling, our way also works for the court.”

Since 2012, the Legislature will have increased state funding for public schools from $6,639 per student to $11,996 by the 2019-20 school year, according to Braun. That translates to an additional $13 billion in total state funding for K-12 education.

Lawmakers also passed property tax reforms earlier this year to address an overreliance on local property-tax levies to pay for what is ultimately the state’s responsibility to fund basic education.

Today’s court decision pointed out how the 2019 date for final funding doesn’t match the Legislature’s original plan to have changes in place by 2018. Braun said the later date resulted from the complexity of the bipartisan reforms.

“The court has clearly played a critical role in getting the attention of lawmakers and the public with its original ruling and continued oversight,” said Braun. “However, implementing historic funding increases that actually work across 295 school districts and reforming property-tax collections throughout 39 different counties forced us to develop this specific timeline. The final agreement enabled us to make historic education investments that would be stable and practical to implement, as opposed to the alternative of years of roller coaster budgets for schools.”

Braun recently published a compendium of the Legislature’s actions on K-12 education funding since 2012 in the latest edition of “Economic Sense” which can be viewed at SenatorJohnBraun.com.

Last call for internship applications

It’s final call to college juniors and seniors interested in the Legislature’s 2018 internship program.

The deadline for applications is Wednesday, October 18th at 8 p.m.

Each year, 70 students are selected to participate and spend the legislative session on the Capitol campus working in legislator offices. Students are paid during their time in the Legislature and must be able to receive college credit.

Interns play a valuable role in keeping offices running by tracking legislation, developing support information, helping constituents with issues, and meeting with stakeholders.

The program web site provides a great deal of information. If it’s too late this year, or if you know someone who will be a junior next year, keep this program in mind in the future.

Visit Intern Program web site

Watch Intern Program video

Improving access to higher education

With all of the attention on K-12 education this year, some other important issues didn’t always receive the public discussion and recognition they deserve. One of the many important items we continued tackling this year was our state’s tuition policy.

As I’ve mentioned in previous emails, the decade before 2013 saw students at state colleges and universities play the role of piggy bank for lawmakers who wanted to grow government elsewhere or fill budget gaps. By reducing state support for higher education and increasing tuition to make up the difference, students and families were subject to a hidden, but expensive tax increase.

For example, an in-state student at Central Washington University paid $3,027 for tuition in 2003. By 2012, tuition increased to $7,245. Some lawmakers defended this by claiming it was due to the difficult spending choices following the Great Recession. However, this pattern began well before the economy turned, even as general government spending increased significantly.

Even with the dramatic increase in tuition at Central, students at the University of Washington, Washington State University and Western Washington University saw even higher percentage increases.

As you can see on the chart below, students and their families faced an increasingly difficult barrier to access higher education in our state, at a time when more jobs require some sort of training after high school.

Time for a change

In 2013, we were successful in implementing the state’s first freeze of college tuition rates in more than 30 years. Two years later, we successfully sponsored and funded a tuition cut ranging from 5 to 20 percent.

With rising student loan debt a serious issue facing young adults throughout the country, our prioritization of higher education caught national attention.

However, less discussed following four years of frozen or reduced tuition, was the long-term policy we created to prevent lawmakers from balancing the budget on the backs of students in the future.

Beginning this school year, in-state undergraduate tuition at all of Washington’s public colleges and universities is capped at the average growth rate of the state’s median hourly wage.

This means schools were permitted — but not required — to increase tuition by a maximum of 2.2% this year and 2% for the 2018-19 school year. By tying tuition growth to wage growth, institutions are still able to collect tuition that aligns with potentially rising costs, while students and their families are protected from the frequent double-digit increases seen between 2003 and 2013.

Despite a small increase tied to real world economic conditions, students at Central Washington will have seen a net 15% reduction in tuition between 2013 and 2019. This stands in stark contrast to the 139% increase Central students saw between 2003 and 2013. While it varies from school to school, this example plays out similarly at other state colleges and highlights how we’ve prioritized accessible higher education since 2013.

Below you can see the percentage increase or decrease in tuition for each of the state research institutions, four-year colleges, and community and technical colleges.

By stopping dramatic increases in tuition, and even turning it around, we’ve been able to make school more affordable for current students, and provide more predictable costs for future students.

While the actual tuition cut received much of the attention, this long-term tuition limiting policy will help thousands of students for years to come.