Is it a myth to say the state of Washington has a budget deficit? Or is that statement a myth in and of itself?

Confused already? Don’t feel bad — that can be a symptom of trying to understand the disparate positions between Republicans and Democrats in Olympia, who convene for a 105-day legislative session (and maybe a little more) on Monday.

Legislative leaders and Gov. Jay Inslee met in a forum with reporters Thursday, and offered plenty of evidence of how little each party agrees heading in.

Senate Majority Leader Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, said he would oppose a cap-and-trade program that would generate about $1 billion annually by taxing industries on their carbon emissions. Inslee has made this program a centerpiece of his first-term environmental agenda, and proposes to put $800 million into schools and bridge projects.

House Speaker Frank Chopp was noncommittal on his support for the program, saying House Democrats would examine its merits and work with the governor on a plan to address climate change.

Nor was there any accord on a capital gains tax, which Inslee has also included in his budget proposal. Rep. Bruce Chandler, R-Granger, called it the first step to an income tax, while Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina and Chair of the Appropriations Committee, said he has concluded the state has to raise taxes. A capital gains tax would be preferable to a sales tax hike, he said.

Senate budget writer Andy Hill, R-Redmond, argued that the state budget is in surplus, with forecasts predicting $3 billion in additional revenue beyond the current budget of $34 billion.

Sen. Andy Hill

That 8.5 percent growth would be cause for popping champagne in the private sector, Hill said, and he labeled the belief that the state’s facing a deficit a myth. Hill’s budgeting includes $36 billion to cover the ongoing costs of state government, and another $1 billion on top of that to address legally required teacher pay and McCleary mandates.

But Sen. Karen Fraser, D-Olympia, said “that ‘deficit myth’ is a myth.” The $37 billion doesn’t do enough to restore cutbacks to state programs from the economic recession or put enough new money into schools. Gov. Jay Inslee’s budget proposal includes more than $100 million in costs related to lawsuits the state’s been hit with —not counting McCleary — which Democrats argue result from inadequate funding for state programs.

Rep. Ross Hunter

Hunter said the numbers Hill is using don’t align with his. They will have to sync up before lawmakers head home this year, but one area of potential dispute stood out — almost $600 million in pay raises for state employees, part of their new contracts negotiated in collective bargaining.

Hill said that in his most recent re-election campaign, “no one told me that the No. 1 priority was to give state employees a pay raise.” Hunter responded by saying, “You get what you pay for – you will stand in line for a driver’s license for a very long time.”

An area of agreement was the lack of money the state has to pay for a voter-approved initiative, I-1351, that cuts class sizes for grades K-12 and could cost $4 billion to fully implement, not counting the capital costs associated with school construction.

Hunter noted that it would need a two-thirds majority to suspend the measure, and while it passed with a slim margin statewide the initiative had stronger support — more than 60 percent — in some Democratic districts. Inslee’s tactic, laid out in his budget proposal, is to fund the first part of it, which is reducing class sizes for grades kindergarten through third grade. That’s also required in the McCleary ruling, although not until later.

“When you look at things that can’t be funded, they won’t be,” Hunter concluded.

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