New estimates indicate that reduced demand for state services will provide a $340 million windfall for the state budget, Senate Ways and Means Chairman Ed Murray said Tuesday.

A preliminary estimate released last week assumed more than $200 million in savings to the state from reduced demand for services. Further crunching of the data showed a bigger boost to the budget.

This has the potential to be a game changer for budget writers who've struggled to close a $1.5 billion shortfall. There's still a big hole left to fill, but the new money could change the budget equation.

For example, Gov. Chris Gregoire had proposed asking voters to approve a temporary half-cent sales tax increase to raise $500 million for the current budget.

"If you use the governor's budget as the framework, and she put $500 million up for a vote, then two-thirds of that problem has basically gone away," Murray said this morning.

He wouldn't speculate on the implications, noting that saying, "beyond that I have no idea where that takes us ... It will be a very interesting discussion."