The following editorials appear in the Sept. 22, 2009, Yakima Herald-Republic.

Lawmakers will face a troublesome task when they reconvene in January. But it's something they knew was bound to happen -- further budget cuts.

That's certainly what it looks like following the latest revenue figures from the state's chief economist. Last week, Arun Raha reported further weakening in consumer spending that will translate into $238 million less for the state's coffers, and more red ink during the next two years.

While the recession has bottomed out, as many economists across the nation concur, the prospect for a quick recovery is not in the offing. Slow and not-so-steady are the watchwords for a bounce back in the tax revenues that fuel the state's budget. There is one good sign: an upswing in foreign trade. Whenever that occurs, Washington tends to benefit.

Most encouraging in the wake of these new revenue forecasts is the nearly unanimous call from lawmakers to reduce spending. No one has yet expressed interest in suggesting a tax increase, nor is there a clamor for a special session.

These are both good signs. This is certainly not the time to entertain any type of tax increase nor is the revenue projection a cause for panic.

In the interim, we anxiously await the return of consumer confidence. A strong Christmas sales season would be a boost, not only in the belief that the worst is behind us, but also in added tax revenues. That would make the lawmakers' task ahead a bit easier to handle.

It's time to terminate Legislature's exemption on public records

Nestled in the state's public records act is an exemption that keeps all e-mails of the Legislature secret.

We know all too well that this exemption does not extend to locally elected officials. A recent uproar over e-mails exchanged among Yakima City Council members who were trying to line up votes for a new budget policy testifies to that.

But in Olympia, legislative correspondence, including e-mails, are exempt from public scrutiny. That's why during the last legislative session, where millions of dollars had to be lopped off the state's future two-year budget, scant information was released by lawmakers detailing what type of options they were considering. They didn't have to. The only documents they had to make public were official actions of the Senate and the House.

Hopefully that will change, and we have the Sunshine Committee to thank for that. In 2007, the Legislature set up the this committee, made up primarily of lawmakers and news media representatives, to review more than 300 exemptions contained in the Public Records Act.

Meeting last month, the committee passed a recommendation asking lawmakers to repeal the exemption of personal records of the Legislature. That would open up for public review legislative e-mails and correspondence -- just as the state's Public Records Act requires of all other legislative bodies in Washington.

It's high time the Legislature dealt with this egregious exemption. Lawmakers often claim they are exceptional arbiters for the public good. But that doesn't translate into an exception in the Open Records Act. If they have nothing to hide, then prove it.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.