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POSTED: Thursday, Dec. 04, 2008

Linville becomes chairwoman of state budget-writing committee

Rep. Kelli Linville was selected as the chairwoman of the House Ways and Means Committee Thursday, Dec. 4, by the House Democratic Caucus.

The Bellingham Democrat now has the keys to the major budget-writing committee in the state House of Representatives.

"It's gonna be a big challenge," she said. "I'd always hoped I'd have a chance to influence the budget. I didn't think it'd be in a year where there was an enormous deficit, but you take the year that comes."

Linville, 60, replaces longtime Seattle Rep. Helen Sommers at a time when the state is facing a projected deficit of $5.1 billion.

The Ways and Means Committee is the new House Appropriations Committee, which was restructured, Linville said, by the Committee on Committees.

Linville sat on the Appropriations Committee and was the chairwoman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government and Audit Review. That committee is largely focused on trying to find more efficiencies in current state programs through budget recommendations.

One such recommendation, which Linville worked on with 40th Legislative District Rep. Jeff Morris, D-Mount Vernon, was cutting $8 million in electricity costs for state computers over a two-year period and also holding off on spending $30 million to $50 million until the state's major technology agency developed better efficiency plans.

Now Linville will oversee the entire budget-writing process and will work closely with the chairpersons of the three appropriations committees, which have been somewhat restructured, though it appears in name only.

The selection is a big deal for the area, said Bellingham Mayor Dan Pike, who hopes Whatcom County residents understand that.

"Appropriations is where the money passes through," he said. "It's not that we'll have more projects that get funded, but it means we'll get more consideration. (Linville) has more chips to trade, if you will."

The representative also confirmed that there had been "a little bit" of discussion locally about her perhaps running for Whatcom County executive. Though it was "nothing serious," Linville said, it definitely won't happen now.

"I really always had the goal of getting this opportunity," she said. "If in fact the vote would have turned out differently, then it would have been time for me to decide how much longer I wanted to stay" in the House.

She added that so far there isn't much she's not looking forward to as chairwoman, but she knows there will be challenges with other legislators who have pet projects and budget items. Everyone will have to work together, Linville said.

"It's going to be painful," she said, "but it's going to be shared pain."