Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke is joining a growing group of prominent Democrats and business leaders not holding back their sharp criticism of state lawmake
Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke is joining a growing group of prominent Democrats and business leaders not holding back their sharp criticism of state lawmakers over spending, taxes, and the direction of the state.
“Olympia simply needs budget discipline,” Locke said in an interview with KOMO News on Monday. “They have not shown that in the last several years. ”Locke, who also served as US Commerce Secretary and Ambassador to China, argued that lawmakers have created long-term obligations with federal COVID relief and other one-time funding, without identifying sustainable ways to pay for those programs after the temporary money disappeared.
“You cannot take one-time money, whether it’s COVID money or any federal funding, if it’s one-time, and use it to pay for permanent, ongoing programs,” Locke said. “Because if the money is only for one year, how are you going to pay for the program the next year, the second year, the third year, the fourth year?
” Locke said many of the educational, social service and economic development programs created by lawmakers may be worthwhile, but he said launching them without a permanent funding source ultimately forces the state to raise taxes, cut other services or eliminate programs after publicly promising they would continue.
“If you don’t have the money to pay for it, you’re creating a lot of distrust and disappointment with the voters,” Locke said. Locke’s comments came on the heels of similar comments made at a roundtable hosted by the Association of Washington Business. During one panel discussion, One Roof Sports and Entertainment CEO Tod Leiweke delivered an unusually pointed warning about the direction of the state.
Leiweke, who also serves as CEO of the Seattle Kraken, said he has never felt as much fear among business leaders as he does today.
“My concern is that the average taxpayer is not getting their money’s worth,” Leiweke said. “When you spend without consequence, as we have, and your spending is now outpacing your means, then you’re going to do things that are going to have consequence. ” Leiweke said he personally expects to pay Washington’s newly enacted tax on income above $1 million if upheld by voters and is “okay with that.
” But he argued the broader concern extends beyond any single tax and centers on whether state spending is sustainable. The 9.9% tax applies to household income above $1 million and is scheduled to begin in 2028. A campaign is seeking to repeal it through a statewide initiative in November. Leiweke said he knows business owners who are considering leaving Washington and warned that corporate departures would also affect smaller companies, charitable organizations and the state’s overall tax base.
“We’ve got to wake up,” Leiweke said. “This isn’t about the millionaires tax. This is about an insatiable appetite for spending beyond your means. ” “I’ve been a lifelong Democrat,” he added.
“I’m telling the Democratic Party it is time to wake up. We can be a blue state that has a fiscal plan. Today, we’re a blue state without a fiscal plan. ” Washington’s June revenue forecast also showed a complicated financial picture.
Tax changes approved during the 2026 legislative session increased projected revenue, but weaker economic activity reduced the underlying forecast by nearly $1 billion compared with February. The state Office of Financial Management said the forecast added to an expected shortfall in the coming budget cycle.
“You cannot hope for money that’s not going to come in,” he said. “You really have to make sure that you use the numbers put forth by the State Forecasting Council. ” Locke said the Legislature should return to an approach he used as governor known as “Priorities of Government. ” The process requires policymakers to identify the state’s most important responsibilities, rank programs against one another and fund the highest priorities first.
“It’s not enough to say that this is important for every single department,” Locke said. “You have to rank them all against each other and say, ‘This is how much money we have. ’” His criticism closely echoes warnings delivered in May by former Gov. Christine Gregoire, another Democrat who argued that Washington has “a spending problem, not a revenue problem.
” “When you know how much revenue you’re going to get next year and you intentionally spend beyond that, you have a problem,” Gregoire toldGregoire said the state operating budget had grown from roughly $32 billion when she left office to approximately $82 billion. She also questioned lawmakers’ reliance on reserves and warned that Washington could be poorly positioned to respond to another major recession.
Locke declined to take a direct position on whether voters should preserve or repeal the millionaires tax. Instead, he said voters should focus on whether lawmakers will keep their promises about how the new revenue will be spent.
“The real issue really isn’t whether or not you should have the millionaires tax,” Locke said. “The question is: What will Olympia do with that money if the voters say yes? ” Locke said the state is projected to face continued financial pressure even if the tax remains in effect, raising the possibility that lawmakers could seek additional revenue, cut existing services or redirect money away from the purposes promoted during the tax debate.
“They’ve made these promises about how they’re going to use the millionaires tax, but they also don’t have enough money to pay for existing programs,” Locke said. “Will Olympia be breaking its promises to the people? ”A man was killed in an overnight shooting in the Fairwood area of Renton on Sunday night, according to the King County Sheriff’s Office. The shooting happened atDeputies are investigating a shooting reported in SeaTac.
A 15-year-old boy was seriously hurt in a crash involving an electric scooter and a vehicle in Milton on Saturday afternoon, according to yhe Pierce County SherAs a heatwave approaches Western Washington, there is a new state law renters should know about portable cooling units. Senate Bill 6200 went into effect on Jun
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