John Braun

An unprecedented increase in teachers has occurred over the last four years, exceeding growth during all preceding years of the 21st century. Over 6,000 more classroom teachers than four years ago Take a look at that chart for a minute because what it conveys is remarkable: Since the Majority Coalition...

Sen. John Braun was presented with the Legislator of the Year for Career and Technical Education award today by the Washington Business Alliance for his work to support career opportunities and skills training in the new state budget. Braun, who serves as chief budget writer in the Senate, fought for...

Sen. John Braun shared great disappointment that Gov. Jay Inslee vetoed legislation that supports middle-class families by improving job opportunities in the manufacturing sector throughout the state. The Legislature overwhelmingly approved a new state budget that included a uniform statewide business and occupation tax rate for manufacturing businesses, the only...

Public education will account for more than half of state spending for the first time since 1983 under a new budget sponsored by Sen. John Braun, which today passed the Washington State Legislature. The $43.7 billion two-year operating budget will cover the day-to-day costs of state government from July 1,...

Lawmakers are currently in a special session to complete work on education funding and a new state budget. While it’s disappointing we were not able to get done on time, it’s important to understand what happened during the regular session to get us to this point. In January, I sponsored...

Earlier this month I had the opportunity to sit down to talk about the budget with The Daily News. State budget update – The Daily News, April 19  I also had a chance to speak with the Centralia Chronicle on a variety of items including funding for local flood protection...

Repairing an Unconstitutional K-12 Funding System Education Equality Act: Ample, Equitable & Student-Centered “It is the paramount duty of the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within its borders.” – Art. IX, Sec. 1 of the Washington State Constitution. Bottom Line Up Front Unconstitutional...

Sen. John Braun says the 2017-19 operating budget proposal released today by House Democrats asks for $8 billion more from state taxpayers without promising much in the way of improved outcomes. “Demanding that working families and job creators send $8 billion more to Olympia, without expecting much in the way...

The Senate Majority Coalition Caucus released a two-year operating budget proposal Tuesday that puts its emphasis on education and services for the state’s most vulnerable, while avoiding general tax increases. The Senate proposal boosts K-12 education funding by $3.7 billion, raising its share of the state budget to more than...