Oregon Public Broadcasting

The Washington House plans to pass a two-year budget Friday that cuts $4 billion in spending. But so far, majority Democrats have released only some details of their budget agreement.

The deal includes nearly $800 million in cuts to public schools. Most of those savings would come from suspending voter-approved initiatives that increased teacher pay and reduced class size.

Senate Budget Chair Margarita Prentice says she’s tired of “whining and complaining” about the budget.

Margarita Prentice: “I just feel we’ve got a plan and we’ve got to carry it through and I’d like to have a whole lot more money but you know what we don’t have and we’ll have to live with what we have and I think we’ve done a good job in trying to protect what we’ve got in this state.”

Democrats would also cut nearly 10,000 enrollment slots in higher education and remove 40,000 people from the  Washington’s Basic Health Plan. But the budget would not close any prisons or juvenile lock-ups.

Minority Republicans say they’ve had no role in writing the budget and do not plan to vote for it.

The legislature is scheduled to adjourn on Sunday.