Natural gas measure still on track to pass in Washington; One month behind the scenes of Spokane’s ongoing fight to end the deadly fentanyl crisis

AGRICULTURE

• Skagit tidegate controversy puts thousands of acres of farmland at risk (Capital Press)
• EDITORIAL: Let them eat mud (Capital Press)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• Federal Reserve is set to cut interest rates again as post-election uncertainty grows (AP)
• Trump’s return could be bad for WA trade and workers, good for tech (The Seattle Times)
• Spokane economy next year likely to grow at slower pace, but these are still ‘uncertain times’ (The Spokesman-Review)

CENSUS

• OPINION: Here are the states from which WA is gaining — and losing — residents (Gene Balk/The Seattle Times)

COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES

• Protesters in Seattle rebuke Republicans and Democrats (KING TV)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• Trump’s election could assure a conservative Supreme Court majority for decades (AP)

COURTS (STATE)

• ‘Unauthorized activity’ knocks out WA, Snohomish County court systems (The Everett Herald)
• ‘We’re flying blind:’ Court records outage expected to last through week (Yakima Herald-Republic)
• State’s court computer system down because of ‘unauthorized activity’ (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)
• Edmonds woman, 82, accused of hate crime, disrupting Trump rally (The Everett Herald)

DRUG CRISIS

• One month behind the scenes of Spokane’s ongoing fight to end the deadly fentanyl crisis (The Inlander)

EDUCATION

• Seattle to host meetings at schools set for closure (The Seattle Times)

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & SERVICES

• EDITORIAL: Heroes are among us, we just need to see them (Yakima Herald-Republic)

ENVIRONMENT

• Train derailment spills hundreds of gallons of diesel into Columbia River near Tri-Cities (Tri-City Herald)
• After more than a decade of litigation, the EPA has released a plan to reduce carcinogenic chemicals in the Spokane River (The Inlander)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE

• What Trump has promised to do on ‘day one’ as president (The Washington Post/The Seattle Times)
• EDITORIAL: The second Trump presidency: How we got here, where we might go (The Seattle Times)

FISH

• Low prices mean a lean year for WA’s commercial salmon fishers (Cascade PBS)

HOMELESSNESS

• Concerns grow in Spokane over homeless encampments after the TRAC shelter closes (KHQ TV)
• Tacoma hotel being converted into housing for people experiencing homelessness (KING TV)

HOUSING

• Economist: Boeing contract will have big impact on housing in Western Washington (MyNorthwest)
• Seattle-area home sales surge as market sends mixed signals (The Seattle Times)
• Spokane rental units are required to be registered, but not everyone knows that; now they might have to pay the fee (The Spokesman-Review)

IMMIGRATION

• Voters were fed up over immigration. They voted for Trump (The New York Times/The Seattle Times)
• 26 from seven countries become new American citizens day after historic election (Tri-City Herald)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Pay system, lingering resentments cited in report that returned Whatcom undersheriff to duty (The Bellingham Herald)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• This Pierce County city plans to raise utility rates, property taxes, budget next year (The News Tribune)

MEDIA

• COLUMN: Olympia bureau plan fizzles, press freedom questions loom (Brier Dudley/The Seattle Times)

MILITARY & VETERANS

• Flags at half-staff to honor Navy pilots killed in crash (FOX 13)

OTHER STATES

• Measure 118, Oregon’s proposed business tax hike, on course to fail (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
• School funding measures struggle to gain favor with Oregon voters (The Oregonian)
• EDITORIAL: Oregon’s proposed rule would put farms out of business (Capital Press)

POLITICS

BALLOT MEASURES

• Natural gas measure still on track to pass in Washington (Washington State Standard)
• ‘Confusing verbiage’ may have influenced WA voters on statewide initiatives, expert says (KING TV)

CONGRESS

• Gluesenkamp Perez keeps lead in key congressional race in Washington (Washington State Standard)
• Michael Baumgartner, Eastern Washington’s congressman-elect, hopes for bipartisanship despite heated election year (The Spokesman-Review)

LEGISLATURE

• Democrats on cusp of expanding majorities in WA Legislature (Washington State Standard)
• Margin narrows between Muzzall and St. Clair in WA Senate race (The Everett Herald)
• Democratic socialist Shaun Scott wins Seattle legislative race (Axios – Seattle)

LOCAL

• Seattle Proposition 1 wins support from voters (The Seattle Times)
• Spokane County school bonds come up short again after failure in February (The Center Square)
• Both competing sales taxes in Spokane appear to pass with 31K votes left to count (The Center Square)
• Pierce County Executive race sees Ryan Mello lead by less than 3% (The Center Square)
• 4 Pierce County Council races split between Republicans and Democrats (The Center Square)
• Snohomish County rejects sales tax to better fund public safety (The Seattle Times)
• Everett voters likely to boost minimum wage among highest in US (Cascade PBS)

STATE

• WA bucks national trend and swings further to the left (The Seattle Times)
• WA Gov. Inslee responds to election results: ‘Their leadership will be crucial’ (FOX 13)

STATE SUPREME COURT

• Mungia, Larson remain in a tight battle for Position 2 seat on WA Supreme Court (The Center Square)

STATEWIDE OFFICE

• Democratic incumbents sweep Washington’s down ballot races (Washington State Standard)
• Nick Brown defeats Pete Serrano in Washington state’s AG race (The Center Square)

NATIONAL

• Harris says nation must accept election results while urging supporters to keep fighting (AP)

RURAL BROADBAND

• State, federal grants to expand broadband access to more than 600 new locations in Lewis County (The Chronicle)
• Construction underway to expand broadband access in Adams County (KHQ TV)

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Australia plans a social media ban for children under 16 (AP)

TRANSPORTATION

• Big money headed toward Seattle’s transportation infrastructure (MyNorthwest)