Law enforcement seizing a lot more fentanyl pills, especially in West, study says; New 150-bed UW psychiatric hospital opens to serve hard-to-treat patients

AGRICULTURE

• Potato prices remain down, especially on fresh side (Capital Press)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• Boeing orders tumble as troubled aircraft maker struggles to overcome its latest crisis (AP)
• Justice Department: Boeing violated deal that avoided prosecution after crashes (MyNorthwest)

COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES

• One woman’s tragedy propels statewide campaign on water safety for kids (KNKX Radio)

CONGRESS

• New list rates the most bipartisan members of Congress—and the least (States Newsroom/Washington State Standard)

DAMS

• 9 new bills filed to reverse Biden administration’s Snake River dams agreement (Tri-City Herald)

DRUG CRISIS

• Law enforcement seizing a lot more fentanyl pills, especially in West, study says (Washington State Standard)
• Fewer US overdose deaths were reported last year, but experts say it’s too soon to celebrate (AP)
• More than $7 million in settlement funds designated to help Kitsap address opioid epidemic (Kitsap Sun)
• Thirteen people indicted in drug trafficking operation that included seizure in Lewis County (The Chronicle)

EDUCATION

• Parents open to exploring options to save Seattle schools from planned closures (The Center Square)
• State: Marysville school plan ‘does not comply,’ must be fixed by Wednesday (The Everett Herald)
• Levy failures, accounting errors lead to layoffs in Moses Lake schools (The Center Square)
• Moses Lake superintendent placed on admin leave (Columbia Basin Herald)
• Wenatchee School Board votes to close Columbia Elementary (The Wenatchee World)
• Oak Harbor schools may cut 53 positions (Whidbey News Times)

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & SERVICES

• Could a WA volcano erupt again in our lifetime? What would happen and how you can prepare (The News Tribune)

ENVIRONMENT

• Environmentalists sue over timber project in Pend Oreille County (The Spokesman-Review)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• Two weeks after strike, there is no contract between Providence and Sacred Heart technical workers (The Spokesman-Review)
• OPINION: Don’t relax vaccine vigilance (Julia C. Bennett, research consultant at the University of Washington School of Medicine, and Helen Y. Chu, professor of medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine/The Seattle Times)

HIGHER EDUCATION

• UW student workers reach a deal with university after one-day strike (The Seattle Times)
• Pro-Palestinian demonstrators set up encampment at Western Washington University (KOMO TV)
• ‘THIS IS NOT A DRILL’: Clark College goes into lockdown after report of stabbing (The Columbian)

HOMELESSNESS

• Spokane may spend millions keeping TRAC open amid shift in homeless strategy (The Center Square)
• ‘You can have a brand-new life’: Once-homeless veteran becomes first graduate of Kiggins Village Safe Stay (The Columbian)

HOUSING

• Are home sellers on strike in Washington? Realtors speculate on the market (The Center Square)

INSURANCE

• Why is car insurance so expensive? (The New York Times/The Seattle Times)

INVASIVE SPECIES

• In the Lower Yakima Valley, state agriculture department seeks to wipe out Japanese beetles (Yakima Herald-Republic)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Seattle City Council approves police contract with big raises, big hopes (The Seattle Times)
• Seattle passes contract with SPD amid concerns over lack of public comment (MyNorthwest)
• Seattle Police may expand license plate reading technology to entire fleet (The Center Square)
• Seattle police officer who hit, killed Jaahnavi Kandula misses deadline to pay infraction (KOMO TV)
• Bellevue PD is teaching women to fight back with self-defense (MyNorthwest)
• COLUMN: Privacy vs. finding stolen cars: Seattle considers expanding license plate readers (Matt Markovich/MyNorthwest)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• King County Council approves raising minimum wage to highest in nation (The Seattle Times)
• King County Council raises minimum wage in unincorporated areas (KUOW Radio)
• King County recorder misdirected millions in funds, audit finds (The Seattle Times)
• Tacoma ups penalties for littering. Some worry the law could hurt people already down (The News Tribune)
• Councilmember’s father has history of intimidating Woodinville officials (FOX 13)

MENTAL HEALTH

• New 150-bed UW psychiatric hospital opens to serve hard-to-treat patients (The Seattle Times)
• Department of Health launches WA-specific 988 crisis website (FOX 13)

MILITARY & VETERANS

• Navy jet noise could mean long-term health impacts for Whidbey Island (The Seattle Times)
• PSNS locked down temporarily Tuesday due to suspicious package (Kitsap Sun)

OTHER STATES

• Fentanyl’s deadly impact on Oregon’s most populous county revealed in new report (The Oregonian)
• How to access and use the opioid overdose reversal drug Narcan (The Oregonian)
• California to make $3.3 billion available for mental health, substance use treatment centers (AP)

SCHOOL SAFETY

• South Kitsap High School closed Tuesday after social media threats of potential shooting (Kitsap Sun)

TRANSPORTATION

• Tolls on existing I-5 bridge will help pay for the new span linking Oregon and Washington (Washington State Standard)
• WSDOT’s plans for North-South Freeway’s final stretches unveiled | Boomtown (KREM TV)
• Avoiding peak season purgatory on Washington ferries (Axios – Seattle)
• Sea-Tac Airport’s facelift means upgrades … and work zones (The Seattle Times)

TRIBAL ISSUES

• Billy Frank Jr. statue sculptor ‘honored’ to work on project (The Chronicle)

WATER

• Elevated ‘forever chemicals’ found in Kennewick’s drinking water (NW News Network)

WILDLIFE

• Environmentalists seek protections for marmots on Olympic Peninsula (Washington State Standard)
• Squirrels before the homeless? Opponents of micro village argue habitat might be at risk (The News Tribune)
• Cougar caught on camera at 137th and Padden Parkway in Orchards (The Columbian)