Sen. Murray issued the following statement regarding the budget approved by the Legislature early Wednesday morning:

"Months ago when we began our work on this budget, we faced the prospect of making deep cuts to all state services. Instead, the Senate Democrats’ proposal in February was the first to fully protect education. Today we passed a budget that held the line on education. We passed a budget that preserved services that keep the most vulnerable Washingtonians safe and healthy. We protected family planning, food assistance and other services that had been targeted for cuts or outright elimination.

"It’s taken longer than I would have liked to reach this point. Much of the difficulty and expense of the past special session could have been avoided. But if the price of protecting our students, seniors and vulnerable neighbors was a month of difficult negotiations, it was well worth it.”