EXECUTIVE ORDER  69-09

Revenue - Expenditure Balancing Program

WHEREAS, the 41st Session and Extraordinary Sessions of the Legislature appropriated $10.1 million more than the revenue forecasts in the Governor's Budget and failed to appropriate funds for certain essential activities;

WHEREAS, employment is currently declining in the State of Washington to levels below that forecast for the 1969-71 budget and this decline in employment will adversely affect state revenues so that the excess revenue forecast by the Legislature does not appear to be available; and

WHEREAS, in order to continue the operation of state government on a sound fiscal basis, it has become necessary to reduce expenditures to the extent that revenues and expenditures are balanced.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Daniel J. Evans, Governor of the State of Washington, by virtue of the power vested in me by law as set forth in Chap. 43.88 RCW and Chap. 282, Laws of 1969 Ex. Sess., do hereby establish for Washington State agencies the following administrative measures designed to control expenditures:

1. Out-of-State Travel Curtailment. All out-of-state travel by state employees is hereby limited to that which is critically necessary to carry out the programs of the State. No out-of-state trips are to be taken for the purpose of attending conferences, conventions, or skill improvement training programs unless the attendee is a formal part of the program delivering an address or is a convention officer whose attendance is mandatory. In addition, each agency bead is hereby directed to personally review and approve that out-of-state travel which is critically necessary before forwarding to the Director of the Office of Program Planning and Fiscal Management for final approval. It is my objective to reduce out-of-state travel to no more than 25% of the level we have experienced during the past year.

2. Agency Staffing. Agencies are hereby directed to fill no more than 25% of those new positions which have been authorized to be filled between October 15, 1969, and June 30, 1970. Agencies are also directed to fill no more than 50% of those positions which are vacated during the period of October 15, 1969, to June 30, 1970, as a result of death, retirement, resignation from state service, or authorized leave of absence. I have asked the Office of Program Planning and Fiscal Management to provide all possible assistance to agencies in the re-scheduling of new positions. I have also asked the State Department of Personnel to issue instructions relative to the preparation and processing of personnel transaction requests which will identify compliance with this portion of this directive. Further, I am asking the directors of all agencies to instruct their personnel officers to be responsible for monitoring and controlling the filling of vacated positions within the categories set forth above to assure that the imposed limitations are not exceeded.

3. Salary Range Adjustments, Reallocations, and Establishment of New Classes. All agencies are asked not to submit requests for study and possible revision upward of existing class salary ranges through June 30, 1970, independent of the overall study now being conducted by the Department of Personnel. It is the responsibility of each agency to control the assignment of duties and responsibilities in each position in such a manner as to assure that the need for reallocation to a higher class does not occur. Requests for the study and establishment of new classes prior to July 1, 1970, shall be initiated within the limitations of the agency staffing authorization set forth in 2. above only. Those salary range adjustments, reallocations and establishment of new classes that have been submitted to the Department of Personnel will not be affected by this Order.

4. Promotions, Transfers, and Reassignments. Each agency must rigorously control all promotion, transfer, and reassignment movement of individuals within state service so that relocation or movement expenses are kept to a minimum.

5. Deferment of Equipment Purchases. The purchase of all replacement equipment and new equipment which is not critically necessary to the conduct of the state programs shall be postponed for an indefinite period of time. I hereby direct agency directors to personally review equipment requests from their agency and to defer all equipment purchases which are not essential for the successful operation of their agency. I will ask the Department of General Administration for monthly reports on the compliance of all state agencies with this restriction.

6. Curtailment of Capital Improvement Projects. The Office of Program Planning and Fiscal Management has been directed to review capital project priorities with agency heads and to jointly recommend to me a listing of those lower priority capital projects which can be deferred.

7. Other Executive Expenditure Reduction Actions. I hereby request that agency directors reduce wherever possible the use of overtime, other premium pay work, and the use of outside consulting services.

8. Applicability. In order to assure consistency in the administration of state government, the directives contained in this Order are equally applicable to all state agencies, regardless of source of funding.

9. Exceptions. All exceptions to this directive will be made by me and exceptions are to be requested only by the agency head.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set
my hand and caused the seal of the State of
Washington to be affixed at Olympia this
10th day of October A.D., Nineteen hundred and sixty-nine.

Daniel J. Evans
Governor of Washington

BY THE GOVERNOR:



Secretary of State

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