An unusually astringent editorial from the Olympian this morning sizes up the sorry state of the paid family leave program in our state:
Here’s a little advice to Democrats: When you’ve dug yourselves into a hole, stop digging.
Democratic lawmakers have totally mishandled efforts to create a family-leave law in this state.
They created a program in 2007 that gives employees paid time off to care for a newborn or adopted child. Lawmakers, however, were unable to figure out how to cover the $40 million to $45 million in annual costs for the family-leave program.
Legislators booted the funding decision to the 2008 Legislature, where they promptly stumbled again. The session is over and there’s still no funding source to cover the $45 million in annual expenses. Legislators did decide to go ahead and spend millions of dollars on a new computer system to operate the family-leave program — even though that computer system might never be used.
It’s time to stop digging.
But will they stop? The Daily O seems to think no:
Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson, D-Seattle, champion for family leave, said a funding solution will be found in the 2009 session.
Don’t count on it. We’ve heard that before. Besides, most of the funding talk has centered on a payroll tax. Gov. Chris Gregoire has drawn a line in the sand saying any payroll tax must first be put to a vote of the public.
So when Democrats are on the campaign trail this summer and fall and they tout their creation of the family-leave law, ask them how they’re going to pay for it.
Then stand back and watch them dig.
