I think I have found a few ways to reduce the state’s budget shortfall.

First, I think we should put the Seattle Waterfront Tunnel on hold. All elected and employed workers should take a 50 percent cut in pay and have to pay their own medical benefits.

The Washington State ferries should also stop paying overtime. Having people earning 100 percent more than their wages is wrong. We should also put the new State Route 520 bridge on hold again — we are spending money we do not have.

Why can the state spend more than it has? I am one of those people — you know at the bottom of the people food chain. I have lived in this state 35 years and I am one of those people who are unemployed. So while I do not have a job, I pay my bills on time and also my taxes.

Why must we always overspend? Why must we do more than one big-ticket project at a time? Why can’t we live within our means? I have been doing it for the past two years and I still have a reserve fund for unexpected expenses.

James Burdon, Redmond