Mark knows from his finance days before pizza and ice cream the importance of prioritizing infrastructure investments. The best way to have sustainable long-term growth is to invest and maintain your transportation infrastructure.
Mark knows that we need to break out of our "silo" budgeting mentality where we have large surpluses in the operating budget that we are not investing in the transportation budget. Mark has been a co-sponsor of Senate bills to gradually shift the sales tax on vehicles from the operating budget to the transportation budget so we can maintain our ferries, roads, and transit systems, and also finish the new projects on our list that we can't afford to delay any longer, such as the new I-5 bridge between Vancouver and Portland.
The first operating budget Mark supported in the Senate in 2013 was $34 billion. The budget in April of 2023 was $69 billion. Had we gradually shifted just 10% of this growth in the operating budget to our transportation budget our ferry system would be more reliable, we would not be falling behind on maintaining our streets, our highways would be free of litter and junk, and our transit systems would have more direct routes so folks can get home from work quicker to spend time with their families.
Mark is the only candidate for Governor with a plan to increase investments in our transportation infrastructure without creating new taxes. Mark is a firm believer that the state needs to be a better financial partner with our cities and counties to make sure Washington residents can get to and from work without spending endless hours stuck in traffic.