State budget proposals delayed as deficit outlook worsens

Legislative leaders have given no clear indication of when the House and Senate will roll out their proposed state budgets for the next two years, even as they enter the final weeks of a 105-day session clouded by predictions of a deepening deficit.

The Olympian newspaper reported Tuesday that House leaders had originally scheduled to roll out their budget this week, but those plans have been scrapped because of a worsening economic outlook.

Earlier this month, the state's chief economist said the state will take in $780 million less in the next two years, plunging the deficit to about $5.3 billion.