Washington state bill would set new standards for wood stoves
Washington State Standard — Republican senators argued the bill would overregulate wood stoves and make a crucial heat source more expensive, ultimately leading to a ban on them. State Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy, questioned whether the Department of Ecology could meet the responsibilities outlined in the bill. “Ecology doesn’t have the bandwidth for this,” she said. “They don’t have the knowledge base. I don’t think they are prepared for this.”
Does WA need a new state flag? Proposed bill would create a state flag redesign committee
The News Tribune — Voters would ultimately need to approve the revamped design in a referendum. But not everyone loves the idea. “The Democrats have a bill … that would cancel George Washington off of our state flag,” state Rep. April Connors, a Kennewick Republican, said in a video posted Feb. 16 to X (formerly Twitter). $
AGRICULTURE
- Billions of dollars at stake for farmers hit by Trump funding freeze, pause on foreign aid (States Newsroom/Washington State Standard)
- Can Washington’s agriculture industry survive on H-2A workers? (Cascade PBS)
COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES
- OPINIOIN: Legislature must fund supported living services (Dena Kopczynski, lives in Spokane and leads the coordination of care for her developmentally disabled nephew alongside multiple members of her family/The Spokesman-Review) $
- EDITORIAL: Shut down flavored tobacco’s gateway to youths (The Everett Herald) $
CONGRESS
- Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez asks House leaders to fund Secure Rural Schools program (The Reflector)
CORRECTIONS & JAILS
COURTS (STATE)
- WA lawmakers discussing bill to reform pre-trial release policies (FOX 13)
- WA courts work to vacate hundreds of thousands of illegal drug convictions (InvestigateWest/Daily Record) $
- Former Zillah mayor pleads guilty to child sexual abuse (KNDO/KNDU)
CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY
- Cracking down on organized retail theft: Lawmaker hopes to lengthen perpetrators’ prison sentences (KING TV)
- Lawmakers weigh increased penalties for people who try to elude police (FOX 13)
- Pasco Senator pushing bill to increase punishment for eluding police (KHQ TV)
- Second chances with strings attached: DUI record vacation bill clears key hurdle in Washington (MyNorthwest)
- Search continues for suspects after 2 shot on Metro bus in Southcenter (MyNorthwest)
EDUCATION
- Educators and parents call on WA lawmakers to up school funding (Washington State Standard)
- Teachers, supporters rally at the capitol to demand more school funding (MyNorthwest)
ENVIRONMENT
- WA legislators push for kelp conservation, recovery efforts (The Wenatchee World) $
- Seattle’s air quality is getting worse (Axios – Seattle)
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE
- Some 2,000 protesters blast Trump at President’s Day protest: ‘No billionaires, no kings’ (The Olympian) $
- ‘It’s a terror campaign.’ Federal workers in Seattle area describe snitching, secrecy under Trump (KUOW Radio)
- Top Social Security official leaves after Musk team seeks data access (The New York Times/The Seattle Times) $
- Cantwell criticizes FAA firings amid safety concerns (KOMO TV)
HIGHER EDUCATION
- U.S. Education Department threatens yanking funds for schools that use race in decisions (States Newsroom/Washington State Standard)
- A federal ‘clown show’: WSU board of regents warns of cuts to research amid Trump federal grant chaos (The Spokesman-Review) $
HOMELESSNESS
- King County nears goal for housing formerly homeless people (The Seattle Times) $
- Spanaway homeless village breaks federal, county wetland rules but staves off appeal (The News Tribune) $
- COLUMN: Seattle homeless population is imported, almost half are outsiders (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest)
HOUSING
IMMIGRATION
- Push for inspections at Tacoma immigration detention center reemerges in WA Legislature (Washington State Standard)
- Washington state lawmakers want to crack down on bounty hunters acting as immigration agents (KIRO TV)
LAW ENFORCEMENT
LEGISLATURE
- Washington’s Legislature has more Black members than ever (Axios – Seattle)
- Washington lawmakers debate removing first president from state flag. Critics call the move ‘un-American’ (The Oregonian) $
- What’s in a name? WA wants to officially be ‘The Evergreen State’ (KXLY TV)
- State moves to ban known carcinogen in cosmetics (The Chronicle)
- COLUMN: Washington Representative weighs in on one of most controversial bills this session (John Curley/MyNorthwest)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
OPEN GOVERNMENT
OTHER STATES
- Movement to break off part of Oregon to join with Idaho has legs again (MyNorthwest)
- Oregon may exempt H-2A employers from unemployment tax (Capital Press) $
SECURITY
- House report: 60 Chinese espionage cases, 224 espionage incidents in three years (The Center Square)
STATE GOVERNMENT
TAXES
- More of Democrats’ plans to eat the rich (The Washington Observer) $
- TurboTax turbocharges the Working Families Tax Credit (The Washington Observer) $
- OPINION: Amid high costs for employers, voters say more taxes a bad idea (Kris Johnson, Association of Washington Business/The Reflector)
TRANSPORTATION
- Clearing the confusion on the pay-by-mile system (MyNorthwest)
- State’s pay-by-mile program would require drivers to voluntarily opt-in (KIRO TV)
- Gluesenkamp Perez, Newhouse invite new Secretary of Transportation to visit I-5 Bridge (The Reflector)
TRIBAL ISSUES
WILDLIFE
- Local law enforcement can’t use dogs to find bad bears, wolves, cougars under new bill (MyNorthwest)
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