Capitol Buzz: WA Democrats ditch bill repealing voter-backed cap on property tax hikes; Critics: Police deadly use of force bill will worsen Washington staffing crisis Washington House Republicans sent this bulletin at 02/10/2024 01:20 PM PST Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page. Capitol Buzz: February 10, 2024 AGRICULTURE & WATER Is Washington’s farmworker overtime law working as intended? (Oregon Public Broadcasting) BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR At aerospace gathering in Lynnwood, Boeing urges workers to ‘speak up’ (The Everett Herald) COLUMN: Strippers, strip club owners deserve equity under state law (Travis Mayfield/MyNorthwest) COLUMN: Kitsap economic agency focused on impact over the coming five years (Joe Morrison, Executive Director Kitsap Economic Alliance/Kitsap Sun) EDITORIAL: Waterfront Gateway a vital link for Vancouver (The Columbian) CAP-AND-TRADE PROGRAM Bill to pave way for linking Washington’s carbon market to CA-Quebec advances (The Center Square) COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES Detectives renew call for information on Oakville girl Oakley Carlson’s disappearance (The Chronicle) COLUMN: Students fight ‘period poverty’ for ‘menstruators’ in Gaza (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest) CONGRESS Local politicians and leaders reflect on Rep. McMorris Rodgers’ surprise retirement announcement (The Spokesman-Review) Congress is looking at expanding the child tax credit again. Who would benefit? (States Newsroom/Washington State Standard) War in Gaza divides Seattle’s Jayapal, Smith on strategy, politics (The Seattle Times) Washington will participate in Medicaid-covered plan to reduce homelessness (KNDO/KNDU) COURTS (FEDERAL) EDITORIAL: The Boldt decision’s enduring legacy, 50 years on (The Seattle Times) COURTS (STATE) Domestic violence victims and advocates press for family court system reform (The Center Square) OPINION: End ‘juvenile points’ sentencing that disproportionately harms Indigenous people (Jarred-Michael Erickson, chairman of the Colville Confederated Tribes/The Seattle Times) CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY Washington worst in the nation for retail theft per capita (KVI Radio) Kent mayor says Legislature needs to act as city struggles to address crime (KOMO TV) State patrol refers charges on five protesters who blocked I-5 in Seattle for hours (KING TV) COLUMN: WSP refers anti-Israel Seattle protesters for charges, hunts down others (Jason Rantz/MyNorthwest) COLUMN: The ‘terrifying’ teen hit-and-run case shows: We still need locks (Danny Westneat/The Seattle Times) DAMS Judge signs off on dams agreement (The Lewiston Tribune) Judge grants Snake River dam litigation stay through 2028 (Capital Press) DRUG CRISIS Snohomish County Council weighs drug contamination testing in low-barrier housing (KING TV) Nehring proposes routine drug contamination testing for county shelters (The Everett Herald) EDUCATION House unanimously adopts financial education as new high school graduation requirement (KLCK Radio) House resoundingly passes Rep. Skyler Rude’s bipartisan legislation to include financial education as a graduation requirement for high school students (KCLK Radio) Many Washington voters will decide fate of old schools in February election (KNKX Radio) Bainbridge school district stops process to potentially close schools (Kitsap Sun) North Kitsap SD superintendent on paid leave after allegedly stealing campaign signs (KIRO TV) Inslee visits Vancouver elementary school, talks special education challenges with teachers, staff, parents (The Columbian) COLUMN: New LGBTQ history mandate is latest legislative overreach (Brian Mittge/The Chronicle) ENERGY & UTILITIES House advances bill giving nuclear energy manufacturers more time for tax exemptions (The Center Square) Controversial energy project moves closer to breaking ground (NW News Network) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE EPA agrees to work with USDA on pesticide regulations (Capital Press) FISH Waters’ fish barrier adoption plan passes House (KIHR Radio) Plan to restore salmon population in the Upper Columbia River Basin moves ahead (KHQ TV) HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS Controversial proposal to regulate hospital mergers advances in Legislature (Washington State Standard) Senate advances controversial hospital merger measure (The Washington Observer) Washington Senate passes bill limiting mergers between religious and secular hospitals (KHQ TV) HOUSING Seattle region’s home prices up in January, with largest gain in Kitsap County (Puget Sound Business Journal) Kit homes could be part of housing crisis remedy in Washington (The Center Square) HUMAN TRAFFICKING Torres’ human-trafficking training bill unanimously passed in Senate (KNDO/KNDU) INSURANCE Washington sees sharp rise in auto insurance premiums (KING TV) LAW ENFORCEMENT Critics: Police deadly use of force bill will worsen Washington staffing crisis (The Center Square) Dash camera video shows WA State Patrol trooper arresting woman suffering brain bleed (The News Tribune) Seattle Police is a ‘good old boys club’ where women struggle to get ahead, report says (KUOW Radio) Vancouver Police Department lauds year-old body cam program, but some critics still wary (The Columbian) LEGISLATURE Passing bills, bills, bills: Highlights from week 5 in the WA Legislature (NW News Network) Clergy reporting, stripper safety and fake images ban. Here’s what passed in the WA Legislature this week (The Olympian) Cheers! Accelerated liquor license bill advances through the Washington Senate (The Spokesman-Review) 35th District lawmakers to host telephone town hall (The Chronicle) Washington State Senate pays tribute to former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll (KOMO TV) OPINION: Lawmakers dismiss concerns for well-being of boys, men (Philip W. Cook Global Initiative For Boys and Men/Everett Herald) LGBTQ Personnel turmoil prompts temporary closure of center serving Tacoma’s LGBTQ community (The News Tribune) LOCAL GOVERNMENT Bellingham City Council suspends remote public comment periods after hate speech incidents (The Bellingham Herald) MEDIA COLUMN: An ever bigger threat to local news and democracy (Brier Dudley/The Seattle Times) MILITARY & VETERANS Bill to require early registration period for military members passes House, heads to Senate (The Chronicle) OTHER STATES Oregon’s college students call for more state funding to meet basic needs (Oregon Public Broadcasting) Idaho Senate narrowly passes bill that would allow residents a six-month supply of contraceptives (Spokane Public Radio) SCHOOL SAFETY Ingraham High students arrested for trying to rob classmate at gunpoint (MyNorthwest) STATE GOVERNMENT State leader calls for investigation of Green Hill School after latest KING 5 report (KING TV) Sen. Braun again asks Gov. Inslee to investigate Green Hill School in new letter (The Chronicle) TAXES WA Democrats ditch bill repealing voter-backed cap on property tax hikes (Washington State Standard) WA bill aimed at raising property taxes dies in Senate (FOX 13) Bill to raise cap on local property taxes to 3% from 1% dies in state Legislature (The Center Square) Washington lawmakers won’t move forward with proposal to raise property tax cap (KING TV) ‘Battle royal’ over Washington property tax hike that will raise rents and mortgages (KVI Radio) Wash. lawmakers abandon proposed statewide property tax hike (MyNorthwest) Update: Legislature will not move forward to raise cap on property tax increase (The Chronicle) King County pleaded for help from the Legislature. Olympia said no (The Seattle Times) Fiscal note: Washington initiative to repeal capital gains tax would cut nearly $6 billion in state education funding (The Chronicle) OPINION: Democrats’ continued crusade for higher property taxes proves they no longer respect will of the people (Sen. John Braun/The Chronicle) TRANSPORTATION Bill to study electric vehicle battery fires on fast track in Olympia (The Center Square) EDITORIAL: Boeing safety failures draw more eyes on its jets (The Everett Herald) TRIBAL ISSUES Virginia Beavert, influential Yakama linguist and elder, dies Thursday at 102 (Yakima Herald-Republic) WILDFIRE PREVENTION & RESPONSE Elk residents recall terrifying moments as flames approached their home (KXLY TV) Cause of Oregon Road fire undetermined, DNR says (The Spokesman-Review) WOLVES WDFW proposing to reclassify gray wolves from ‘state endangered’ to ‘sensitive’ (The Center Square)
