It is unlikely that Washington will experience another special session this year. Early this week, Democratic leaders in the Washington Senate and House ruled out holding a sepcial legislative session to fill budget gaps related to a lack of federal aid and declining state revenues.

Governor Gregoire had set a noon deadline on Monday for Democratic leaders to determine whether or not they could bring their caucuses for a short special session to remedy the looming budget gap.

Though the spokeswoman for the Governor did not announce how the budget gap will be bridged, the alternative is to require across-the-board cuts of up to 4 percent to solve the budget gap.

The question of whether to hold a special session or implement across-the-board cuts would be eliminated if Congress acts. The U.S. Senate is considering an extension of $16.1 billion in federal medical assistance funding and $10 billion in aid for schools to avert teacher layoffs for states.

Action on the added funding was delayed from Monday to tomorrow (Wednesday). Even if the Senate approves the funding it is required to go to the U.S. House for final approval.