Capitol Buzz: WA House lawmakers vote to roll back police pursuit laws. Bill heads for concurrence; Lawmakers have until Wednesday to pass bills from the other chamber. Here’s some of what’s passed

ABORTION

• Abortion pill bill draws support, opposition at Senate public hearing (The Center Square)
• Rulings in WA, Texas could set up new Supreme Court abortion debate (Crosscut)
• EDITORIAL: Lawmakers must protect access to abortion pill (The Everett Herald)

AGRICULTURE & WATER

• Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District bill passes (Columbia Basin Herald)
• How is Washington’s snowpack looking this spring? (KUOW Radio)
• OPINION: The Biden Administration’s assault on America’s agricultural producers continues (U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse/The Wenatchee World)

CAPITAL BUDGET

• Money delayed for waterline extension at Lake Chelan airport (KPQ Radio)

CORONAVIRUS

• Washington to end distribution of free at-home COVID-19 tests May 11 (KOMO TV)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• Judge: Some dairy, other USDA loans needed environmental review (Capital Press)

CRIME

• Washington Legislature votes to repeal death penalty (Axios – Seattle)
• Housekeeping bill finds death penalty in WA unconstitutional (MyNorthwest)
• State lawmakers vote to eliminate death penalty (KNWN Radio)
• Blood tubes called into question in three DUI cases (The Wenatchee World)

DAMS

• County officials unite against breaching with letter written to state, U.S. elected officials (The Lewiston Tribune)

EDUCATION

• Walla Walla colleges, K-12 schools experience declining enrollment (Walla Walla Union-Bulletin)

ELECTIONS

• Washington House passes bill to eliminate advisory votes on tax increases (MyNorthwest)
• Bill to end advisory votes on tax increases passes the Washington Legislature (The Center Square)
• Tax advisory votes may soon be history in Washington (Spokane Public Radio)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• Global fusion industry emerging in Seattle’s backyard (Axios – Seattle)
• OPINION: No time to lose on transitioning to clean energy (Kirkland Deputy Mayor Jay Arnold and Issaquah City Councilmember Victoria Hunt/Snoqualmie Valley Record)

GUN RIGHTS

• Republicans lawmakers criticize bill limiting ‘assault weapons’ after state Senate passage (The Chronicle)
• ‘Imported’ gun control bill passes Washington Senate (The Center Square)
• Chelan, Douglas County senators vote against assault weapons ban (KPQ Radio)
• ‘It’s not going to stop’: Washington state sheriffs oppose assault weapon ban (KAPP/KVEW)
• Western Washington gun store owners respond to potential assault weapons ban (MyNorthwest)
• FBI data shows rifles responsible for 1.55 percent of homicides (KONA Radio)
• Local athlete rises to the top in new ‘tactical’ sport: ‘She’s a physical force’ (The Spokesman-Review)
• COLUMN: ‘Stop calling it an epidemic’ with assault weapons ban likely (Bryan Suits/MyNorthwest)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• Inslee signs changes to Death with Dignity Act (KWHT Radio)
• OPINION: If something doesn’t change, rural WA state could become a ‘pharmacy desert’ (Sen. Shelly Short/Tri-City Herald)

HOMELESSNESS

• One camp at a time, a Seattle group is transforming its approach to homelessness (NPR/OPB)
• City officials, local nonprofits to discuss homeless issues in Yakima (Yakima Herald-Republic)

HOUSING

• Washington’s ‘middle housing’ bill has been tweaked a bit. Here’s what’s in it now (KUOW Radio)
• WA Senate OKs assistance for homebuyers affected by racist covenants (The Seattle Times)
• OPINION: Collaboration, funding are key to unlock more affordable housing (Angela Birney, mayor of Redmond, Penny Sweet, mayor of Kirkland, and Lynne Robinson, mayor of Bellevue/The Seattle Times)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• WA House lawmakers vote to roll back police pursuit laws. Bill heads for concurrence (The News Tribune)
• WA House passes police pursuit bill, local reps. divided on vote (KPQ Radio)
• WSP trooper who was shot in the face honored for his service to the state (KING TV)
• Walla Walla trooper who was shot is honored in Olympia (KONA Radio)
• Doctor clears Thurston Sheriff Sanders for limited work (The Olympian)

LEGISLATURE

• Lawmakers have until Wednesday to pass bills from the other chamber. Here’s some of what’s passed (The News Tribune)
• Cold-water shock prevention bill sponsored by state Rep. Peter Abbarno goes to Gov. Inslee for signature (The Chronicle)
• Vancouver Rep. Monica Stonier emerges as strong voice in the House (The Columbian)
• OPINION: Breaking down the three state budgets under consideration this session (Rep. Jim Walsh/The Chronicle)
• COLUMN: Assault weapons ban, late-night dramas, and license plate pile-up (Jerry Cornfield/Everett Herald)
• COLUMN: WA Democrats ban ‘hyper-masculine’ guns while freeing criminals (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• Lack of data, unclear roles hamper King County’s progress on equity (The Seattle Times)
• Leavenworth appeals Chelan County’s denser-zoning denial (NCW Life Channel)

OPEN GOVERNMENT

• EDITORIAL: Veto showdown alert: WA Senate expands on House secrecy bill (The Seattle Times)

OTHER STATES

• Gov. Tina Kotek ‘disappointed’ in Portland, Multnomah County homeless spending plan (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
• Portland mayor orders police to patrol downtown fentanyl market (The Oregonian)

PARKS

• Mount Rainier named best mountain climbing destination in U.S. (The Seattle Times)

SUBSTANCE ABUSE

• Bellingham acts on measure to criminalize drug use in public (The Bellingham Herald)

TAXES

• Bill would let more WA homeowners qualify for property tax breaks (The Seattle Times)
• More Washingtonians could soon pay less in taxes (KNWN Radio)
• OPINION: Washington’s new capital gains tax does not apply to farmland, real estate, IRAs or pensions (Mary Ann Warren, Brownson Lumber, former Wenatchee Chamber of Commerce president/Yakima Herald-Republic)

TRANSPORTATION

• Inslee signs tow truck safety bill sponsored by state Sen. Jeff Wilson (The Chronicle)
• Freeway reopens more than three hours after landslide blocks northbound Interstate 5 near Woodland (The Daily News)
• Eight cent spike makes twelve weeks of price increases in Washington fuel (The Center Square)
• State reschedules repairs to Hood Canal Bridge to accommodate summer rush (The Seattle Times)
• Body of missing pilot, plane found in wooded forests near Queets, WSDOT says (KIRO TV)

WILDLIFE

• ‘Ridiculous’ but graceful: Thousands of sandhill cranes pass through Washington every spring (The Spokesman-Review)