Sen. Jeannie Darneille, D-Tacoma, and chair of the Caseload Forecast Council today issued the following statement after the release of the latest caseload forecast:
"Today’s news was another reality check. Because of the Legislature’s timing and delay of the largest policy bill, the budget, and other smaller policy bills, we are faced with having a forecast that doesn’t have as much information as we would know if we had a budget.
"We will need to have an additional caseload forecast meeting after those policy bills and the budget have been passed so we can figure out what the caseload will actually be.
"For instance, in our prison setting, if we do pass a bill that addresses people who drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, it has been estimated that we will need about 350 additional beds in our prisons for those who have had more than five DUIs. Shocking as that number sounds, we are going to need to build our caseload to reflect the Legislature’s policies when they pass.
"There are some serious challenges ahead in human services and corrections if no budget is passed. We have a limited amount of time and are swiftly approaching our deadline."
