Should the top elections official in Washington state officially be a nonpartisan? That's one difference between the top two finalists running for Washington Secretary of State. Continue Reading No labels: Some Read More
A quartet of independent candidates on the ballot this November in Oregon and Washington state will test voter appetites for a centrist “third way.” They are experienced contenders running for state senate, Oregon governor and Washington Secretary of State. Unaffiliated candidates are popping up around the nation too, with a common theme of being fed up with a divisive Read More
An investigation by the King County Sheriff’s Office into a ballot drop box surveillance effort organized by conservative activists has wrapped up without criminal charges. Continue Reading No Charges In Washington Ballot Drop Box Read More
Earlier this summer, the Washington State Patrol did something it’s never done before: close one of its eight regional communication centers used to answer 911 calls and dispatch troopers and other first responders to emergencies. Continue Read More
Democratic incumbent Steve Hobbs and independent challenger Julie Anderson were leading Washington’s top two primary for Secretary of State after the initial ballot count Tuesday night. Republican Bob Hagglund, who has never held public office, was in a close third place. Read More
Washington legislative Republicans were taking stock Wednesday of their less than dazzling performance in the initial returns of the August primary. Continue Reading Despite Early Attacks By Read More
For nearly six decades, Republicans held Washington's top election post — Secretary of State. That streak ended last November when Kim Wyman resigned to take an election security post with the Biden administration, and Gov. Jay Inslee appointed Democratic state Sen. Steve Hobbs to the post. Read More
In March 2003, a 17-year-old girl from McCleary, Washington was kidnapped, driven to a remote location and raped. Continue Reading DNA Samples And Genetic Sleuths Helped Solve WA Cold CasesRead More
A former caregiver charged in connection with the 2019 poisoning death of a developmentally disabled woman has been acquitted of third degree felony assault. Continue Reading Judge Acquits Caregiver In 2019 Vinegar Death In SpokaneRead More
Two new laws aimed at reducing mass shootings and cracking down on the proliferation of so-called "ghost guns" go into effect July 1 in Washington. Majority Democrats in the state Legislature passed the new restrictions earlier this year. Continue Reading Read More
Protesters gather in Seattle after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe V. Wade CREDIT: Casey Martin / KUOW Photo Listen (Runtime 4:16) Read While the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned… Read More
Mason County Auditor Paddy McGuire has spent nearly two decades helping run elections, including stints as Oregon deputy secretary of state and at the Department of Defense, ensuring military service members overseas could vote. Read More
The top Democrat and the top Republican in the Washington state Senate called Thursday for elected Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler, a 78-year-old, six-term Democrat, to resign. Continue Reading Top State Senators Call On Washington Read More
The office of Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler has fired a top aide who in February formally complained that Kreidler had bullied him, used crass language and was increasingly “antagonizing staff.” Read More
Since January of this year, more than 900 drivers have failed to stop for a Washington State Patrol trooper trying to pull them over. The patrol and other police agencies around the state say they’ve never seen such blatant disregard for their lights and sirens. The change in driver behavior comes after state lawmakers passed strict new rules on when police can engage in Read More
Some parents with kids in crisis in Washington are making a heart wrenching decision. They’re sending their children to out-of-state therapeutic boarding schools. And taxpayers are picking up the tab. While these are outlier cases, they highlight ongoing gaps in in-state services — gaps that were laid bare during the COVID pandemic. Read More
There are more questions than answers in the case of a missing former foster child from Grays Harbor County. Five-year-old Oakley Carlson has been unaccounted for since February of last year. Police say her parents aren’t cooperating with the investigation. Oakley’s former foster mom questions why Oakley was sent back to live with her parents after more than two years in Read More
Three large opioid distributors will pay the state of Washington $476 million as part of an agreement to end litigation that began more than three years ago. Continue Reading Washington Attorney General Announces $476M Settlement Read More
A Sumner, Washington seafood company that makes imitation crab and other products has been fined $56,000 in connection with a 2021 COVID outbreak that left one employee dead. Continue Reading Washington Seafood Company Fined Following COVID DeathRead More
In recent years, Washington’s Legislature has grown more diverse. And majority Democrats have emphasized diversity and equity as core values. But now three members of color, out of nearly 30, are stepping down from the Legislature after serving just one full term. One of them describes the legislative work environment as toxic. Read More
Washington’s long-time elected insurance commissioner has used offensive terms in the workplace to describe people of different races and ethnicities, as well as people who are transgender. That’s according to former agency insiders who’ve come forward in recent weeks. Meanwhile, other former employees are giving new accounts of what they say is Commissioner Mike Read More
Read Daylight saving time starts early Sunday morning, so remember to set your clocks ahead by an hour this weekend. That’s despite the fact that Oregon and Washington have passed… Continue Reading Daylight Saving Time Read More
Mike Kreidler, Washington’s longtime insurance commissioner, is facing allegations that he verbally mistreats staff. Current and former employees say it’s part of a pattern that’s gotten worse in recent months and is contributing to high turnover in the office. Kreidler says he has high standards for his staff, but said he will work to be more careful in how he deals with Read More
A controversial tax on Washington State fuel shipped to other states was shot down by lawmakers CREDIT: Mark Lennihan/AP Listen Read A proposed tax on gasoline and diesel delivered to… Continue Reading Out-Of-State Fuel Tax Runs Out Of Gas in WA Read More
Washington State is looking to attract more film making to the state Listen Read The Washington Legislature looks set to invite more movie sets. A proposed increase in motion picture… Continue Reading “And Action!” WA Read More
Plug-in cars charge up at the Washington State Capitol Campus. CREDIT: TOM BANSE Listen Read If you were holding off buying an electric car in hopes of getting a generous… Continue Reading WA Legislature Sends Proposed $7,500 Electric Read More
The 400-mile Olympic Pipeline carries gasoline, diesel and jet fuel from refineries in northern Washington state, such as BP Cherry Point shown here, to a distribution hub in Portland, Oregon.… Continue Reading WA Dems Ignore Complaints About Read More
In an act of labor solidarity, scores of Democratic staffers in the Washington Legislature staged a “sick-out” Wednesday after a bill that would have allowed them to unionize failed to advance before a key cutoff deadline. Continue Read More
In an act of labor solidarity, scores of Democratic staffers in the Washington Legislature staged a “sick-out” Wednesday after a bill that would have allowed them to unionize failed to advance before a key cutoff deadline. Continue Read More
A measure backed by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee that would have made it a crime for elected officials and candidates for office to incite lawlessness by making false statements about elections appears to have died in the state Legislature. Continue Read More
Democrats in charge of the Washington Legislature are proposing a new tax on gasoline and diesel fuel destined for Oregon, Idaho and Alaska to partially pay for a cornucopia of highway, transit, rail, bike trail and ferry construction across Washington state. The "exported fuel tax" was included in a transportation spending and revenue package unveiled Tuesday in Olympia. Read More
The Move Ahead Washington transportation package was announced February 8. Continue Reading Washington Lawmakers Unveil 16-Year Transportation PackageRead More
As the 2022 midterm elections loom, a partisan battle over access to the ballot box continues to be fought in Congress and in state legislatures across the country. Red states are passing new restrictions, while many blue states are making voting more accessible. That includes Washington. Read More
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Thursday signed into law a bill that delays the start of a controversial long-term care benefit program known as WA Cares for 18 months. A second measure signed by Inslee will allow certain workers to opt out of the first-in-the-nation program. Read More
A proposal in the Washington Legislature would make it a crime to use or sell a fake COVID-19 vaccination card. The sponsor says he wants to deter people from even considering the ruse, but he also wants to send a signal to prosecutors to prioritize these cases as a matter of protecting public health. Read More
Firefighters say toxic chemicals in their protective equipment are a big concern and need to be replaced with safer alternatives. Continue Reading Firefighters Hope Washington Bill Will Help Remove Toxic Chemicals From Read More
Following widespread criticisms and voter pushback, the Washington state House on Wednesday voted to delay the collection of a new payroll tax to fund a state-run, long-term care insurance program called WA Cares. Continue Reading Washington Read More
Following the lead of Oregon and other states, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced Thursday that he will deploy 100 members of the National Guard to assist hospitals struggling to respond to a spike in COVID-19 patients due to the highly-contagious omicron variant. Read More
Washington state senators are trying a new gambit to stop the twice-yearly ritual of changing our clocks from standard time to daylight time and back again. A previous effort to move the whole West Coast onto permanent daylight saving time failed to win requisite congressional support. So now, a bipartisan group of state lawmakers is pushing for Pacific Standard Time to be Read More
Guns and other weapons would be banned from election-related locations and at school board meetings in Washington under a pair of proposals that received a public hearing in the Democratically-controlled state Legislature on Wednesday. Read More
A year ago, a chain link fence, National Guard members and scores of state troopers surrounded the Capitol in an unprecedented show of defensive force. The temporary bulwark and troop deployment was a response to the January 6 pro-Trump mob attack on the U.S. Capitol, a major security breach that same day at the governor’s residence in Olympia and threats by far-right Read More
So much for the best laid plans for Washington’s 2022 legislative session. The highly contagious omicron variant of COVID-19 has upended what was supposed to be a mostly in-person start to the 60-day session, at least in the House of Representatives. Read More
For the second time, Washington lawmakers are suing Gov. Jay Inslee over his use of the veto pen. In a lawsuit filed Monday in Thurston County Superior Court, the Legislature asserts Inslee exceeded his veto power earlier this year when he line-item vetoed parts of the state transportation budget and eliminated a subsection of a low carbon fuels bill. Read More
Longtime Washington state Sen. Doug Ericksen, a Whatcom County Republican, has died following a COVID-19 diagnosis while traveling in El Salvador last month. Continue Reading Washington State Senator Doug Ericksen Dead At 52; Follows Read More
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Democratic leaders in the Legislature announced Friday a delay in the collection of a payroll tax to pay for a new long-term care insurance benefit for workers. Continue Reading Inslee Orders Delay In Read More
It's a growing problem in Washington: kids with developmental disabilities and complex behaviors who are stuck in the hospital with no reason for being there. Usually, they end up in the hospital after a crisis or an incident. But once the child is medically cleared to leave, their parents or their group home won't come get them citing inadequate supports to manage the Read More
Mysterious bruises. An unreported burn. Two vulnerable clients left alone overnight. These are just some of the complaints that families are leveling against Aacres WA — a troubled residential care provider that gets tens of millions of dollars a year from the state to care for people with developmental disabilities. Now state officials say they’re investigating. Read More
In a surprise order Friday morning, the Washington Supreme Court declined to take on the job of drafting new congressional and legislative maps. Instead, the court declared that the state's Redistricting Commission had finished its work on time last month. Read More
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Thursday that he would support a delay in the implementation of a new payroll tax to fund a first-in-the-nation long-term care benefit program called WA Cares. Continue Reading Inslee Read More
For months, minority Republicans in the Washington Legislature have called for limits on the governor’s emergency powers. But now even some Democrats are expressing concerns about the open-endedness of the COVID-19 state of emergency and the limited role of state lawmakers. Read More
