OLYMPIA — Gov. Bob Ferguson wants state workers to take one unpaid furlough day each month for the next two years as part of a proposal to trim about $4 billion from projected state spending in the face of a budget shortfall.
At a news conference Thursday, Ferguson unveiled the furloughs and an array of other cuts and spending delays throughout state government to help solve what he estimated will be a $15 billion gap between expected taxes and planned spending over the next four years.
“There is still time for our elected officials to do the right thing and reject harmful cuts, facility closures, and employee furloughs by asking the rich to pay their fair share,” said Mike Yestramski, president of the Washington Federation of State Employees, in a statement.
A coalition of liberal and Democratic allied groups has been pushing the Legislature to avoid an austerity budget, saying the state should instead raise taxes on the wealthiest people in the state who have long benefited from its regressive tax code.
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