With the state strapped for cash, Democrats’ chief budget writer in the Washington Senate has told colleagues there’s no money available for new spending they might desire next year.

Don’t even bother asking, Sen. June Robinson, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, warned fellow lawmakers in an email Tuesday.

“I will not be soliciting or accepting any member requests for the operating budget in the upcoming session,” she wrote. “Please help set expectations around this with your constituents and advocates as you meet with them.”

Early each session, lawmakers typically submit requests to budget writers for new or additional funding for programs and services. Wish lists are the product of legislators’ conversations with a wide berth of individuals and interests.

Robinson, an Everett Democrat, said in an interview Wednesday she reached out before any submissions arrived in hopes of tamping down expectations. 

“We don’t have money to pay for what is needed, let alone new spending that members might request,” she said. 

Recent economic forecasts show a steep decline in tax receipts in Washington, sending the two-year state budget spiraling toward a deficit. This is in spite of billions of dollars in new and higher taxes approved earlier this year by the Democratic-controlled Legislature and Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson.

Robinson shared her email with Sen. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, the lead Republican on the budget writing committee. Gildon, in turn, forwarded it to members of his caucus Wednesday evening.

“I thought she did a good job in making clear that the budget is not in good shape,” he said. “It was a wise move to set expectations, not just among legislators but among all the interest groups who might be planning to come forward with requests.”

Rep. Timm Ormsby, D-Spokane, chair of the House Appropriations Committee and Robinson’s budget-writing counterpart, said Wednesday he’s not sent any emails but tries to deliver a similar message when meeting with those in his caucus.

“We have in the past explained that we are in really tight times and are really discouraging member requests,” he said.

The operating budget Ferguson signed in May calls for $77.8 billion in spending over two years across government, including public schools and colleges, health care, social services, housing, corrections, and environmental protection. It also funds new two-year collective bargaining agreements with most, but not all, public employee unions.

It relied on about $4 billion from new and higher taxes and transfers from other accounts into the general fund, the central pot of money used to pay for most state spending. It projected the state would end the fiscal cycle with $225 million in cash reserves and $2 billion in its emergency, or rainy day, fund. 

That picture is evolving. The September forecast showed revenue fueling this budget will be $74.3 billion, including new and higher taxes that legislators and Ferguson approved.

Federal cuts, tariffs and the economic effects of the ongoing government shutdown further complicate the ledger as Ferguson and legislators prepare to make changes to the current budget in the 2026 session.

Ferguson will get the ball rolling with his proposal due in December. It will serve as a template for lawmakers in the 60-day session that begins Jan. 12.

“It’s really bad,” Robinson said. “I don’t walk around with a number in my head. It’s billions and it’s going to require cuts.”

If the fiscal challenge doesn’t deter a lawmaker from making a funding request, the prospect of a gubernatorial veto might.

The list of items Ferguson vetoed before signing the budget in May spanned 15 pages. Many member requests were among the casualties.

This story is republished from the Washington State Standard, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet that provides original reporting, analysis and commentary on Washington state government and politics.