Washington utilities call keeping grid up to snuff ‘moon shot’; Gun buyer background checks restart as WA courts’ online systems are running again

AGRICULTURE

• Northwest growers could find sweet spot with sweet potatoes (Capital Press)

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

• AI is everywhere. How should schools handle it? Teachers’ different approaches show its potential — and limits (The San Diego Union-Tribune/The Columbian)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• Unemployment claims in Washington increased last week (Kitsap Sun)
• Moratorium remains for wine-tasting rooms in rural King County. Could it be the final pour? (KUOW Radio)
• Seattle named 9th most expensive city in U.S. (FOX 13)
• Boeing layoffs will include nearly 2,200 workers in Washington (Washington State Standard)
• DOJ will push Google to sell Chrome to break search monopoly (Bloomberg News/The Seattle Times)

CONGRESS

• Hakeem Jeffries wins reelection as House Democratic leader despite party’s losses (AP)
• EDITORIAL: U.S Senate must pass PRESS Act now (The Seattle Times)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• COLUMN: Judge claims ‘female only’ Olympus Spa is akin to ‘whites only’ business (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest)

COURTS (STATE)

• WA courts’ network back online 2 weeks after ‘unauthorized activity’ (The Seattle Times)
• WA state’s court system suffered two-week data outage. Here’s where things stand now (The News Tribune)
• Washington state courts’ online system back up; Walla Walla staff scrambles to catch up (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
• Trial for man accused of shooting trooper delayed again (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
• EDITORIAL: Daunting fix to fund right to public defenders (The Everett Herald)

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY

• Seattle mayor expands downtown public safety emphasis team following crime spike (The Center Square)
• ‘It’s unbelievable’: 11-year-old among trio arrested in connection to Seattle convenience store robberies (KING TV)
• Cuts to domestic violence prosecution center because of Vancouver budget woes imperil public safety, say officials (The Columbian)
• OPINION: Crime rates are up in WA but victim support is falling (Tiffany Attrill, victim advocate, worked for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and appointed to Washington State Criminal Sentencing Task Force in 2020/The Seattle Times)

DAMS

• WSDOT looking at dam removal impact (Pacific Northwest Ag Network)

DRUG CRISIS

• Fentanyl report shows drug’s impact on Central WA (Columbia Basin Herald)

EDUCATION

• Marysville School District releases 3 school closure proposals (FOX 13)
• COLUMN: Why school should be more than just meeting a standard (Ed Palm/Kitsap Sun)

ELECTIONS

• Same-day voter registrations hit new high mark in Washington (Washington State Standard)
• Recount expected in Washington state’s tight 18th LD Senate race (The Center Square)
• Lewis County voter admits to signing two ballots (KING TV)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• Washington utilities call keeping grid up to snuff ‘moon shot’ (Capital Press)
• Legal clashes loom over gas initiative (The Washington Observer)

ENVIRONMENT

• See where state money is funding environmental work in Snohomish County (The Everett Herald)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE

• Sources confirm FEMA told to avoid ‘Trump’, ‘white’ households (KONA Radio)

FISH

• Carkeek Park’s record-breaking salmon run — and how to see it (The Seattle Times)

FOOD SAFETY & SECURITY

• E. coli outbreak linked to carrots sickens Tri-Cities area person, dozens nationwide (Tri-City Herald)

GUN RIGHTS

• Gun buyer background checks restart as WA courts’ online systems are running again (Washington State Standard)

HIGHER EDUCATION

• WSU raises tuition as enrollment declines (The Center Square)

HOMELESSNESS

• New Pierce County executive reflects on what it will take to address homelessness crisis (The News Tribune)
• Vancouver officials approve business tax to expand homeless services with proposed ‘bridge shelter’ (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
• COLUMN: Washington Democrat pushes bill that makes being homeless a civil right (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Spokane COPS may close shop after over three decades due to lack of funding (The Center Square)
• Thurston County sheriff responds to string of injuries, fatalities following pursuits (The Olympian)

LEGISLATURE

• McClintock makes education a priority in second term as rep (The Reflector)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• Q&A: Dow Constantine on his proudest success and biggest regrets (The Seattle Times)
• Seattle mayor, City Council look to loosen rules on JumpStart tax spending (The Seattle Times)
• Commissioner Emily Clouse tried to get herself reinstated Monday. Here’s what happened (The Olympian)
• Everett expands buffer zone prohibiting sitting, lying in some public spaces (KOMO TV)

MEDIA

• Associated Press will offer buyouts, lay off staff to cut workforce by 8% (AP)

MILITARY & VETERANS

• Trump confirms plans to use the military to assist in mass deportations (The New York Times/The Seattle Times)

NATURAL RESOURCES

• ‘Like an avalanche’: Landslide creates large wave in Lake Roosevelt that damages docks (The Spokesman-Review)

OTHER STATES

• Oregon surpasses 100,000 registered electric vehicles, remains one of top EV states (The Oregonian)

POLITICS

STATE

• COLUMN: King County voters’ fairly rosy outlook on WA not shared across state (Gene Balk/The Seattle Times)

SOCIAL MEDIA

• What is Bluesky, why has it gained 1M users since the election? (AP/FOX 13)

SPORTS

• Central Valley School Board passes transgender sports resolution (KXLY TV)

TAXES

• Snohomish County homeowners push back against proposed 8% property tax hike (FOX 13)
• OPINION: King County Council tax plan will benefit clinics, not Harborview (Reagan Dunn, vice chairman of the Metropolitan King County Council and member of the King County Board of Health/The Seattle Times)

TRANSPORTATION

• What to know about Sean Duffy, Trump’s choice to become transportation secretary (AP)
• OPINION: Washington is in a record traffic-safety crisis, especially from impaired driving (Sen. Mike Padden/Tri-City Herald)

TRIBAL ISSUES

• More support for families in place to address crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people in WA (Yakima Herald-Republic)
• Murder trial begins for two men suspected in crime spree across Colville Reservation (The Spokesman-Review)
• Cowlitz Tribe receives federal grant to develop road safety plan (The Chronicle)

WATER

• Chehalis Basin Strategy progress in review: Pump station investments to protect 5,100 properties in lower Chehalis River Basin (The Chronicle)

WEATHER & CLIMATE

• What is a bomb cyclone? Everything WA residents need to know (FOX 13)
• Seattle’s warming winters, charted (Axios – Seattle)
• Will this frigid wind bring rain and snow to Eastern WA and the passes? Latest forecast (Tri-City Herald)

WILDLIFE

• The owl hunters: the deadly campaign to save a Pacific Northwest icon (The Seattle Times)