{"id":2467660,"date":"2025-07-28T11:14:09","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T15:14:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fiscal-fallout-2026-legislative-session-could-be-worse-yet-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-07-28T11:16:35","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T15:16:35","slug":"fiscal-fallout-2026-legislative-session-could-be-worse-yet-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fiscal-fallout-2026-legislative-session-could-be-worse-yet-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Fiscal Fallout: 2026 legislative session \u2018could be worse yet\u2019 &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffiscal-fallout-2026-legislative-session-could-be-worse-yet-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2467660&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses Washington state&#8217;s looming fiscal crisis, with forecasts indicating the state could run out of money by 2027 and face a budget deficit by 2028 despite recent historic tax increases and record revenue. Some officials blame federal changes, specifically the &#8220;Big Beautiful Bill&#8221; (BBB) concerning Medicaid funding, for the state&#8217;s financial troubles. However, Senator Ron Muzzall argues that this federal legislation is a distraction and that the true cause lies in the state&#8217;s own budget management, pointing to excessive spending and lack of savings by the legislature. Washington&#8217;s operating budget has significantly increased over the past decade, largely due to Medicaid and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" ><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/neb-gov-ricketts-says-only-documented-workers-will-receive-vaccine\/\" title=\"Neb. Gov. Ricketts says only documented workers will receive vaccine\">long-term care<\/a> costs<\/a>, including expanded healthcare coverage for undocumented immigrants. While the BBB will alter Medicaid eligibility, the financial impact of these changes is already known and anticipated. Governor Bob Ferguson has criticized the federal bill but also signed the current state budget that contributes to the financial challenges. the article highlights Washington&#8217;s worsening budget situation and the debate over its causes.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Fiscal Fallout: 2026 legislative session &lsquo;could be worse yet&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2183431\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square)&nbsp;&ndash; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/washington\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Washington<\/a> state is currently&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/washington\/article_6db70777-2e6a-46fb-ba76-cbc087d31f42.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">forecast<\/a>&nbsp;to run out of money by 2027 and experience a fiscal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/budgets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">deficit<\/a> by 2028 despite the largest <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/taxes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">tax<\/a> increase in state history this session, in addition to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washingtons-operating-budget-could-reach-87-billion-by-the-2027-2029-biennium-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Washington\u2019s ... could reach  ...ion by the 2027-2029 biennium - Washington Examiner\">record revenue levels<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While some elected and appointed state officials have highlighted the impacts of President Donald Trump&rsquo;s One Big Beautiful Bill Act on Medicaid funding for the combined operating budget, one lawmaker says it&rsquo;s a distraction from how the state actually got to this point.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3483690\/nevada-attorney-general-aaron-ford-gubernatorial-bid-joe-lombardo\/\">Nevada Democratic AG Aaron Ford launches gubernatorial bid to oust Joe Lombardo<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3483700\/mike-collins-launches-bid-for-georgia-senate\/\">&#8203;&#8203;Mike Collins launches bid for Georgia Senate<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3483627\/trump-disputes-netanyahu-gaza-starvation\/\">Trump disputes Netanyahu&#8217;s dismissal of starvation in Gaza<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;The BBB (Big Beautiful Bill) is giving them the ability to say, &lsquo;This is all federal, this is so unfair,&rsquo;&rdquo; Sen. Ron Muzzall, R-Oak Harbor, told The Center Square.<\/p>\n<p>Muzzall is the ranking minority member of the Senate Health &amp; Long-Term Care Committee. At the committee&rsquo;s recent&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/washington\/article_d8d459fd-a3de-4000-8e19-96bc923b7827.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">meeting<\/a>, Gov. Bob Ferguson&rsquo;s Senior Health Policy Advisor&nbsp;Caitlin Safford opined that the state was &ldquo;in the worst budget crisis we&rsquo;ve ever had.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>However, Muzzall said that within the context of federal Medicaid funding reductions, talking about a budget crisis is &ldquo;transferring the responsibility to a bill from the feds that won&rsquo;t take effect until 2027.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He said the emphasis on federal Medicaid spending reduction &ldquo;is incredibly frustrating, this hyperbole. We are in a budget problem in the state of Washington, but it is all our responsibility. The Legislature put us in this position by not putting away money and spending too much.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It has been said &hellip; this last one [legislative session] was the worst ever. I think this next one could be worse yet. We don&rsquo;t have the reserves that we should have.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Center Square recently&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/washington\/article_8d11d348-4dcd-46a5-845a-83e542462438.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>&nbsp;that Washington&rsquo;s combined state and federal spending in the operating budget has increased by more than 116% since the 2013-15 biennium. Much of that increase has been due to Medicaid spending along with long-term care, which now composes half of the state Department of Social and Health Services&rsquo; budget. Among the new Medicaid spending by the state has been an expansion program to offer illegal aliens free health care, at the cost of $150 million over the current biennium.<\/p>\n<p>The Big Beautiful Bill makes changes to those who qualify for Medicaid enrollment. While critics have argued it could remove hundreds of thousands of current recipients in the state, others have argued that these people were added on who shouldn&rsquo;t qualify.<\/p>\n<p>With regard to the state&rsquo;s budget crisis, Muzzall says the federal bill&rsquo;s passage is nothing new.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We knew that this end of the 2025 legislative cutoff date,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;This is nothing new to anybody who&rsquo;s been involved in this process.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3475709\/federal-judge-blocks-anti-catholic-washington-law\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS ANTI-CATHOLIC WASHINGTON LAW<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While Ferguson has called the Big Beautiful Bill a &ldquo;big betrayal of a bill,&rdquo; Muzzall said Ferguson signed the current state operating budget in April &ldquo;knowing full well what it was going to cost Medicaid and the state of Washington and now the healthcare system.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Center Square reached out to Ferguson&rsquo;s office for comment on Muzzall&rsquo;s remarks regarding the Big Beautiful Bill and the governor signing the state&rsquo;s operating budget, but did not receive a response.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thecentersquare.com%2Fwashington%2Farticle_d42c06e9-639a-4690-902a-9c9470cd86c2.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2183431\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2183431\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fiscal Fallout: 2026 session may bring worse budget crisis<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2467661,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/AP24014160623172-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[60082,60083,38510,32076],"class_list":["post-2467660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-2026-legislation","tag-budget-impact","tag-fiscal-policy","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/AP24014160623172-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2467660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2467660"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2467660\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2467664,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2467660\/revisions\/2467664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2467661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2467660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2467660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2467660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}