Sen. Brown wins leadership position on Ways and Means

State Sen. Sharon Brown has been named a vice chairwoman of the key Senate budget-writing committee — Ways and Means — for the 2017 legislative session.

The Senate Ways and Means Committee is the Senate’s primary fiscal committee, responsible for developing the operating and capital budgets and considering bills related to tax and pension policy.

Brown, R-Kennewick, said one of her priorities will be passing a fiscal-reform measure to establish a new way of assessing economic effects of large-scale revenue measures.

Her “dynamic fiscal notes” bill passed the Senate unanimously during the 2016 session, but was not considered in the House.

Currently, fiscal notes prepared by the governor’s budget office only ask agencies to determine the cost of implementing a bill. Brown wants a fiscal statement that would consider how people would shift economic activity as a result of a bill, to give lawmakers and the public a more accurate idea of the net impact of major revenue proposals.

This story was originally published December 10, 2016 at 5:22 PM with the headline "Sen. Brown wins leadership position on Ways and Means."