Making Changes Families Can Count On
Governor Gregoire and Legislature Focus on Education, Demand Accountability and Results

For Immediate Release: April 22, 2007

OLYMPIA � Governor Chris Gregoire today praised the Legislature for their commitment to world-class education, children�s health insurance and other top priorities including fiscal responsibility, quality health care and job creation. Governor Gregoire and legislators set aside differences to make changes that will make Washington a better place to live and work.

�This legislative session was marked by strategic and responsible changes that Washington families can count on,� said Governor Gregoire. �Washingtonians asked us to set a new agenda by investing in and reforming education, addressing our health care crisis and helping to create family-wage jobs. We are delivering.�

House Speaker Frank Chopp agreed. �We are now leading the nation in children�s health care coverage,� he said, �and we are making record investments in school construction and transportation projects all over the state. This has clearly been a great session for One Washington.�

�Senate Democrats have had our eye on securing Washington�s future today, and we feel we�ve passed a budget and several forward-thinking policies to help make that happen,� said Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane. �In particular, I�m proud that we approved, in a bipartisan way, the Rainy Day Fund and the offender re-entry bill. And thanks to our efforts this session, Washington will be leading the country in addressing climate change and making steps toward paid family leave.�

Legislation passed this year will reward nationally certified teachers, expand all-day kindergarten, ensure smaller class sizes, help struggling students meet standards, make tuition more predictable at our colleges and universities and provide more financial aid for low-income students.

�We have started on a path toward a world-class education system that will help Washingtonians succeed in the global economy. This includes a stronger focus on math and science, more affordable college tuition, comprehensive early learning and support for teachers,� said Governor Gregoire.

�More children will have access to health insurance and more veterans will have better quality health care; communities will be safer with evidence-based programs to reduce the risk of offenders returning to crime; we have taken major steps to reduce dependence on foreign oil and make Puget Sound cleaner for our children and grandchildren; and we are building on our strengths and our reputation for quality to ensure Washington continues to have a strong economy with stable, family-wage jobs.�

With Governor Gregoire�s leadership, the Legislature passed measures that will:

• Safeguard savings in a constitutionally-protected Rainy Day Fund;
• Fundamentally change educational expectations, delivery and results with a substantial investment at all levels, from early learning through K-12 to higher education and job training, including making school construction a top priority;
• Provide access to health insurance for an additional 38,500 children who are currently not covered and takes steps toward providing higher quality, more affordable health care;
• Create jobs by investing in tourism, small business support, research, promotion of Washington products, infrastructure improvements and local and regional workforce training across the state;
• Keep family farms and forests profitable and productive;
• Commit to significant, steady reductions in global warming pollution, a reduction in fossil fuel imports and more jobs in the clean energy sector;
• Offer financial help for new parents bonding with a child; and
• Target investments to protect and restore Puget Sound.

These accomplishments build on the successes of the Gregoire administration. Governor Gregoire since 2005 has worked with the Legislature to:

• Restore funding for voter-approved initiatives to reduce class sizes and provide more individual attention to students;
• Invest in early learning by consolidating services and creating a private public partnership so Washington children arrive in kindergarten ready to learn;
• Support students who are struggling to meet academic standards with tutoring and mentoring;
• Spur an increase of more than 155,000 jobs. Over half of these additional jobs are high-paying jobs in construction and professional services, such as employment and legal services, accounting, architecture and computer design;
• Make major progress toward ensuring every child has health insurance by 2010 - when Governor Gregoire took office, nearly six percent of children had no health insurance. Currently, only 4.4 percent are uninsured;
• Sign an $8.5 billion, 16-year transportation package, which was approved by the voters, to improve safety and cut congestion on Washington roads;
• Support research and advancement on global health issues by creating the Life Sciences Discovery Fund;
• Create the Energy Freedom Loans to increase production and use of bio-fuels and reduce our dependence on foreign oil; and
• Set aside $947 million last year to help make pension payments, pay for growing health costs for children and low-income adults and continue to reduce class sizes in public schools.

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