When you need more water, you go back to the well. And when a local government body needs more money, they often go back to the Washington state Legislature.
The Chehalis Basin Board on Thursday, Sept. 4, voted unanimously to recommend the state Legislature allocate more money for the Office of the Chehalis Basin.
The request calls for a budget increase for the office of $5 million, which would boost the office's total budget for the 2025-27 biennium to $80 million.
According to the budget request, the additional $5 million would allow the office to fund a laundry list of additional projects.
That includes the construction of more pump stations in the lower basin, more habitat restoration projects, additional home elevation work and, finally, advanced design and analysis for a number of potential large scale flood prevention projects, including a flow-through dam and a levee system around Centralia and Chehalis.
The office received slightly more funding this year than in the past. The state Legislature allocated $75 million for the agency that has received $70 million in previous budget seasons. But that allocation was still $5 million shy of the board's recommendation.
Before approving the supplemental budget request, the board's facilitator Ken Ghalambor asked board members if they had any concerns over the request or if they felt it was an appropriate request for the Legislature.
In response, board member Glen Connelly, who represents the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, said he thought the request seemed reasonable but wondered how members of the state Legislature would feel.
Board member J. Vander Stoep chimed in saying that supporters in the Legislature recommended the board pursue the additional $5 million in funding through the supplemental budget process.
“I believe we were close to having our $80 million request funded,” Vander Stoep said. “Some of the people who are our strongest supporters recommend that we come back this coming year and ask for the remaining ($5 million). We had a reason for all those funds.”
According to Ghalambor, the request also had the support of the board's chair, Vickie Raines, who was absent from the meeting.
Now that it has been approved, the supplemental budget request will go to the state Legislature. Despite not being an odd-numbered year when the state Legislature lays out its two-year budget plan, the Legislature can propose changes to the budget during the 2026 short legislative session that could help secure additional $5 million in funding for the Office of the Chehalis Basin.
