Sen. Andy Hill to continue budget leadership role

Published 2:58 pm Wednesday, December 10, 2014

The Majority Coalition Caucus announced Tuesday evening the reappointment of Sen. Andy Hill as chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee and chief Senate budget writer. Hill was re-elected to his second four-year Senate term in November and expects to build on key successes from 2013 and 2014 by passing a sustainable budget that prioritizes education.

“As chair, I’ve worked hard to provide a profound change of course for the state budget,” Hill said. “We’ve shown that you can work together to produce real bipartisan results that put kids first, balance the budget and protect the most vulnerable. I’m ready to continue this new way of doing business in Olympia.”

Hill was appointed chair of Ways and Means in 2013 when the state faced a $2 billion deficit. The final negotiated plan added an additional $1 billion to K-12 education, froze college tuition and protected the social safety net without raising taxes. The 2013-14 budget passed 44-4 in the Senate – the most votes for a biennial budget since 1949.

When Hill was selected to head the Ways and Means committee he established a bipartisan budget-writing process, a departure from previous way of doing business in Olympia.

The Legislature is scheduled to convene on January 12 for a 105-day session.