Budgeting for beginners
So you’ve decided it’s time to budget your money. Congratulations!
Now, where do you begin?
Well, for starters, you have to identify where your money is going. Perhaps an examination of how you spend it will help you figure out how to make wiser decisions.
(Is it bad that I eat out one of every three meals?)
The bottom line is this: if you can’t clearly identify how your money is being spent, coming up with a budget that actually makes sense is going to be a challenge.
This is the idea behind Washington State Senate Bill 5278, which passed through the Senate on Wednesday. The bill would require the state to clearly identify all programs and services that are using workers’ compensation funds.
In other words, we know that workers’ comp receives money. Senate Bill 5278 simply tells us how that money is being spent.
State Senator Janea Holmquist Newbry sponsored the bill.
“Many employers and employees assume that their workers’ compensation tax payments go only toward the cost of workers’ compensation insurance,” explained Holmquist Newbry. “In reality millions of dollars are appropriated out of the workers’ compensation fund for other programs at the Department of Labor and Industries.
“This commonsense bill is about transparency and letting employers and workers know where their workers compensation taxes go.”
Holmquist Newbry is correct – this is a very commonsense bill. In fact, it passed through the senate with a vote of 49 yeas and zero nays. This is exactly the type of bill we need if balancing the budget is the goal. And it’s an encouraging sign to see it was received with unanimous support.
The state of Washington, 1950
YouTube is just full of surprises. Take a trip back with me 60 years, for a tour of the state in the early 1950’s.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L2xqxejG44[/youtube]
