A high-quality learning environment needed for all students; SCOTUS decision could come soon on taking Washington tax lawsuit

AGRICULTURE & WATER

• NCRS adopts original Odessa study EIS for project funding (Capital Press)

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

• WA students flock to computer science, and AI adds to the allure (The Seattle Times)
• After revolt from employees, OpenAI board agrees to resign and reinstate CEO Sam Altman (KING TV)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• State unemployment report for October released (KNDO/KNDU)

COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES

• Traveling across the Northwest for the holidays? Maybe leave the dog safe at home (NW News Network)
• Permitless pro-Palestine protests in Seattle are protected by First Amendment: city (The Center Square)
• Giant pandas are unlikely to come to Washington state (Axios – Seattle)

CONGRESS

• The far right toppled McCarthy over spending. What has it gotten them? (The Washington Post/The Seattle Times)
• Proposed bill would expand gun ban in domestic abuse cases (Columbia Basin Herald)

CORONAVIRUS

• Don’t be surprised by new costs for COVID anti-viral Paxlovid (Kitsap Sun)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• SCOTUS decision could come soon on taking Washington tax lawsuit (The Center Square)
• Kingston man found guilty of 7 charges related to Jan. 6 riot in Washington, D.C. (Kitsap Sun)

COURTS (STATE)

• Ex-deputy prosecutor gets more than $4M in wrongful-firing case against Pierce County (The News Tribune)

DAMS

• Worries grow for ‘secret plan’ on Snake River dams negotiated by Biden administration (Tri-City Herald)
• Electron Dam agrees to $1M fine for artificial turf spill on Puyallup River (The Seattle Times)

DRUG CRISIS

• PNNL research could shape the future of fighting fentanyl (KAPP/KVEW)
• Lummi Tribe fighting fentanyl crisis with a mix of culture and modern medicine (KING TV)

EDUCATION

• OPINION: A high-quality learning environment needed for all students (Reps. Jenny Graham and Joel McEntire/The Spokesman-Review)

ELECTIONS

• 13 uncounted ballots found in out-of-service mailboxes returned to Clark County Elections Office (The Columbian)

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & SERVICES

• Seattle, King County implement changes to mitigate King Tide flooding (KING TV)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• NCW public utility districts to host Clean Energy Expo in Wenatchee (The Wenatchee World)

ENVIRONMENT

• Invasive spongy moths numbers see increase (Skagit Valley Herald)

FISH

• In WA’s northern waters, Lummi keep sustainable, ancient salmon fishing techniques alive (The Bellingham Herald)

GAMBLING

• Major renovation and expansion planned for Tulalip casino (Puget Sound Business Journal)

HANFORD

• Owner of 2 large Hanford site contracts to merge into new publicly-traded firm (Tri-City Herald)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• MultiCare Yakima now requiring masks at hospital, clinics due to influenza surge (KAPP/KVEW)

HIGHER EDUCATION

• COLUMN: WSU AD Pat Chun on the state of college athletics: ‘Broken beyond repair’ (Matt Calkins/The Seattle Times)

HOMELESSNESS

• Council for Homeless gets $5M grant from Bezos Fund (The Columbian)
• COLUMN: After a homeless man’s death, a Seattle neighborhood confronts the limits of helping (Danny Westneat/The Seattle Times)
• EDITORIAL: Safe Stay successful, warrants continued scrutiny (The Columbian)

HOUSING

• Report: Seattle rent decreases 10%-16% following ‘skyrocketing’ increases last year (KING TV)
• ‘Middle housing’ gets a boost from Spokane City Council (The Center Square)
• Granny flats as short-term rentals in Lakewood? Here’s why council punted decision to ‘24 (The News Tribune)
• ‘It makes me cry’: Kitsap mobile home park tenants face significant rent increases (Kitsap Sun)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Behind the badge: Everett’s new police chief plans to stay the course (The Everett Herald)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• Seattle City Council passes 2024 budget, answers few revenue questions (The Seattle Times)
• Seattle City Council narrowly rejects development fees for transportation (The Seattle Times)
• Port of Seattle lays out spending plan for series of projects (Puget Sound Business Journal)
• Vancouver council vote limits large warehouses to heavy industrial zones — like the Port of Vancouver (The Columbian)
• County approves temporary residential zoning regulations for Fall City (Snoqualmie Valley Record)

LONG-TERM CARE

• OPINION: WA Cares Fund webinar outlines many reasons to be leery of program (Elizabeth Hovde, Washington Policy Center/The Chronicle)

MEDIA

• COLUMN: Journalism is endangered around the U.S. Seattle Times publisher has ideas to save it (Rick Larson/Tri-City Herald)
• EDITORIAL: No thank you to ‘news vouchers’ (The Seattle Times)

MENTAL HEALTH

• Washington state invests $30 million to bolster mental health services and reduce wait times (KOMO TV)

MILITARY & VETERANS

• All 9 aboard military plane from Whidbey Naval Air Station that overshot runway escape injury (MyNorthwest)

OTHER STATES

• Voter-approved Oregon gun control law violates the state constitution, judge rules (AP)
• Teachers in Portland march and temporarily block bridge in third week of strike (AP)

SPORTS

• ‘I was sexually assaulted’ at game, Silvertips ex-photographer says (The Everett Herald)

TRANSPORTATION

• Temporary ‘fix’ after landslide on Spirit Lake Highway has failed, WSDOT says (The Reflector)
• Thousands of passengers to board ferries over Thanksgiving weekend, WSDOT says (KING TV)
• For disabled people, taking Tacoma’s extended streetcar line isn’t always a smooth ride (The News Tribune)

WOLVES

• Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission denies conservation groups’ request for less lethal measures against gray wolves (The Wenatchee World)