OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - A House committee has passed a budget plan that seeks to trim $479 million from the state's $1.4 billion deficit.
The House Ways and Means on Tuesday passed the budget bill on a 24-1 vote. The full House is expected to vote on it Tuesday afternoon or evening.
Top lawmakers are seeking to send the measure to the governor later this week, though they will have to return in January to make deeper cuts.
The largest reductions lawmakers are examining would save $50 million by delaying school bus payments by several months, pushing one payment into the next budget cycle. Meanwhile, the budget will save $23 million by delaying new rules for mental health assessments, which were expected to increase reliance on psychiatric care.
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