WSDOT: State highway system in ‘early stages of failure’; Boeing to furlough tens of thousands of workers as Machinists strike bites

AGRICULTURE

• Northwest pear crop will be the smallest in 40 years. Here’s what happened (Tri-City Herald)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• Boeing to furlough tens of thousands of workers as Machinists strike bites (The Seattle Times)
• Boeing to begin furloughs, leadership takes a pay cut, as machinist strike continues (KUOW Radio)
• Machinists strike comes at perilous time for Boeing (KNKX Radio)
• Furloughed in WA? Here’s what you need to know (The Seattle Times)
• Federal Reserve cuts key rate by sizable half-point, signaling end to its inflation fight (AP)

CANNABIS

• How potential federal reclassification could impact Washington state’s lucrative cannabis industry (KING TV)

CONGRESS

• Electric bus program concerns highlighted by oversight subcommittee (The Center Square)

CORRECTIONS & JAILS

• ‘Better off without it’: Washington closes execution chamber at state penitentiary (KOMO TV)

COURTS (STATE)

• 14-year-old charged with killing Tri-Cities classmate while playing with a gun after school (Tri-City Herald)
• OPINION: To protect the public, we must reduce public defender caseloads (Austin Field, former Army infantry officer, current public defender and political action co-chair for SEIU Local 925/The Seattle Times)

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY

• ‘A very serious situation:’ WSP warns of ‘bump-jackings’ (MyNorthwest)
• Three recent carjackings on I-5 have State Patrol on alert in Pierce and King counties (The News Tribune)
• Police look to stop new theft trend happening across Olympia (KIRO TV)
• Former ICE agent will spend a decade in federal prison for trying to meet a 13-year-old girl for sex (The Spokesman-Review)

CYBERSECURITY

• Justice Department disrupts vast Chinese hacking operation that infected consumer devices (AP)
• Hackers demand $6 million for files stolen from Seattle airport operator in cyberattack (AP)
• U.S. Senate panel presses for answers from Sea-Tac airport following cyberattack (The Center Square)
• Cantwell: Russian criminal organization requested $6 million of Bitcoin from Port of Seattle in ransomware attack (KING TV)

DRUG CRISIS

• Bill to reduce open-drug use in hotspots passed by Seattle City Council (The Center Square)

EDUCATION

• Washington has the best public education on west coast, top five in US, new study says (The Olympian)
• Parents protest Seattle Public Schools closure proposals (The Seattle Times)
• ‘Don’t do this to our kids’: Hundreds of Seattle parents rally against school closures (KUOW Radio)
• SPS considers closing its only K-8 school for the deaf, public meeting lacks ASL interpreter (KING TV)
• Special administrator appointed to oversee Marysville School District’s finances (KING TV)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• Proposed utility rates in Spokane could hike residential bills over 10% by 2026 (The Center Square)

ENVIRONMENT

• Robots to the rescue: WA’s high-tech solution for seagrass restoration (FOX 13)

FISH

• Great news: Washington sockeye runs have rebounded (KPQ Radio)

HANFORD

• Transport of radioactive liquid waste from Hanford Site draws concern from Spokane, Oregon officials (The Spokesman-Review)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• States, hospital systems try less punitive drug testing of pregnant women and newborns (Washington State Standard)
• Whooping cough is on the rise in Snohomish County (The Everett Herald)

HOMELESSNESS

• King County Regional Homelessness Authority’s new CEO is ‘undaunted’ (The Seattle Times)
• Proposed contract would close Trent Shelter by Oct. 31, costing $16.8M since 2022 (The Center Square)
• Bellingham city officials ask court to order Walmart encampment be cleared by new year (The Bellingham Herald)
• Kennewick council latest to toughen laws on illegal campers in city parks and more (Tri-City Herald)

HOUSING

• Here are 4 ways the Federal Reserve’s big rate cut could change the housing market (NPR/Oregon Public Broadcasting)

INVASIVE SPECIES

• Dark beetles on the march across south Tri-Cities. Here is why there are so many (Tri-City Herald)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Thurston County to spend millions on a new building for the Sheriff’s Office. Here’s why (The Olympian)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• How will Seattle’s new SODA and SOAP ordinances be enforced? (KING TV)
• New ‘loitering’ penalties targeting Seattle drug and prostitution zones approved by City Council (KUOW Radio)
• Chelan-Douglas Health District drops COVID, flu vaccine requirements for employees (KPQ Radio)
• Kittitas County considers rate fee for new EV charging stations (Daily Record)
• Bellingham City Council votes to formally oppose Kroger-Albertsons supermarket merger (The Bellingham Herald)
• Lacey Mayor Andy Ryder announces he has cancer at city council meeting (The Olympian)
• COLUMN: Spreading the wealth, spreading the burden (Sue Lani Madsen/The Spokesman-Review)

MEDIA

• Honoring service through story: Marine Corps vet Peter O’Cain recognized for investigative journalism on veterans’ mental health (The Wenatchee World)
• COLUMN: Alarm raised about biased experts, plus the joy of journalism (Brier Dudley/The Seattle Times)

OTHER STATES

• Gov. Tina Kotek proposes expanding Hillsboro’s growth boundary to make room for semiconductor facility (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
• Judge upholds Idaho voter ID law (The Lewiston Tribune)
• EDITORIAL: Oregon shouldn’t sidestep land-use laws (Capital Press)

SCHOOL SAFETY

• Police: 2 Cowlitz County teen arrests show ‘wave’ of school threats across US (The Daily News)
• School absence linked to higher youth gun crimes (Axios – Seattle)

TRANSPORTATION

• WSDOT: State highway system in ‘early stages of failure’ (The Center Square)
• WSDOT faces $900 million funding gap by 2027-2029 biennium (The Center Square)
• Good news for commuters: Cars can again drive across this Tacoma bridge after repairs (The News Tribune)
• Treasury rule would expand tax credits for installing electric vehicle chargers (The Columbian)
• Electrifying Washington’s ferry fleet could cost $4.4 billion or more (The Center Square)
• New fast ferry could come to Kingston-Seattle route by 2027 at the earliest (Kitsap Sun)
• Brake fault causes morning light rail delays (The Everett Herald)
• SEA Airport again ranks among worst ‘mega’ airports for customer satisfaction by J.D. Power (KING TV)

WATER

• Vancouver receives $10M loan to remove ‘forever chemicals’ from water supply (The Columbian)

WOLVES

• Biden administration seeks to remove gray wolf protections in Lower 48 (Washington State Standard)