Millions included in capital budget for wildfire damage


Legislator: Rep. Richard DeBolt
Run Time: 44 seconds
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The supplemental capital budget, released this week, targets three key areas, education, mental health, and wildfire damage sustained in Washington last summer.  Ruth Johnson reports from Olympia.

Johnson:  The widespread fires that charred over a million acres of land in Washington left behind expenses many would not have predicted.   Richard DeBolt, a Republican Representative from Chehalis says it is crucial to make a significant investment in forest health, and help the communities devastated by the wildfires of 2015.

DeBolt: “We're spending about $5 million on capital construction to replace a failed watershed.  We're looking at building a new network of communications that will allow our firefighters to communicate.  And then we are rebuilding some of the buildings that were destroyed.”

Johnson: The supplemental capital budget includes $200 million to increase the number of classrooms in the state.  It also allocates monies for mental health beds in communities statewide.

Ruth Johnson, Olympia.

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