Bill would give WA jails independent oversight
After wrongful death claims shuttered one Washington jail last year and threatened to close another, a lawmaker is again trying to create an independent oversight board for the state’s 50 local jails. Little is known of what happens behind many jail walls in Washington state. At least 64 people have died in local jails since 2022, after the Washington State Department of Health began collecting this information. But not all jails report these deaths or the reasons for them to the department. Continue reading at Seattle Times. (Galanda Broadman law firm)
Federal cuts threaten Washington crime victims’ advocacy programs
Advocates and agencies are asking lawmakers in Olympia to provide stable funding for crime victims’ support services after several years of declining federal funding. The instability comes from funding dependent on income generated by prosecutions, which can vary from year to year, leading advocates to ask the state to provide a consistent commitment. Continue reading at Crosscut. (Genna Martin)
Progress on student isolation & restraint
During the 2023-24 sessions, the House Education Committee devoted itself to building a bipartisan solution to ban the use of student isolation and chemical restraint in public schools. House Bill 1479 from Rep. Lisa Callan, D-Issaquah, passed the House with a bipartisan vote but died in the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee last year for a second time in the last biennium. Despite the blow to the legislative ban last session, money was divvied out to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction to help school districts phase out the practice. Continue reading at Washington Observer. (Disability Rights Washington)
Axios
Seattle drivers face growing traffic woes
Life and loss among southern resident orcas
Over one-third of Seattle-area home listings top $1M
Capital Press
Tariffs could create trade benefits, after initial pain
Washington greenhouse gases rise after COVID drop
Beekeepers face downward trends for pollination services
Group 1, 2 herbicides bordering on obsolete, researchers say
The Daily News
Boschma family eyes donating Ridgefield property for a new home for regional law enforcement training academy
Everett Herald
Lynnwood Council VP resigns from post
Edmonds seeks community input on police chief search
Bothell pharmaceutical company to pay $4 million to resolve allegations
Islands’ Weekly
Child care and early learning central to debate over how to close WA budget gap
Kitsap Sun
Conservation effort in North Kitsap continues with $6.3 million purchase of forest
News Tribune
With spending outpacing revenue, Pierce County calls on Legislature to fund services (Jinkins, Bronoske, Mena, Conway, Nobles, Krishnadasan, Leavitt)
New York Times
Live Updates: Meta to End Fact-Checking Program in Shift Ahead of Trump Term
Olympian
WA tribes crucial to salmon recovery, conservation throughout decades of work with state
Puget Sound Business Journal
Amazon lends $22M for project near Spring District
Major player in Moses Lake battery tech boom to shut down factory
Downtown Seattle tops peer cities for residential building — for now
Seattle Times
Meta moves to end fact-checking program
Bill would give WA jails independent oversight (Saldaña)
Fault lines emerge as Seattle Council takes up housing plan
DNR board to vote on future of net-pen fish farming in WA
Seattle police officer who killed Jaahnavi Kandula with patrol car fired
Editorial: Diesel or hybrid ferries? How about simply reliable
Skagit Valley Herald
Guemes Island Ferry returns to service
Battery energy storage facility near Burlington approved
Public hearing held on extending moratorium on agritourism businesses
The Skanner
Boeing Still Needs a Culture Change to Put Safety Above Profits, According to the Head of the FAA
Spokesman Review
Spokane to pay $500,000 to fiancee of man killed by police in 2022
Outgoing state Sen. Andy Billig appointed to Spokane Airport Board (Billig, Riccelli)
Northwest lawmakers reflect on Capitol riot as Congress certifies Trump’s win 4 years later
A University of Washington study on menopause revealed health disparities between rural and urban women
‘Every neighborhood should have one of these’: The NATIVE Project to open new Children and Youth Services Center next month
Washington Post
Indians slam MAGA ‘war’ over H-1B skilled visas as ‘racist’
CFPB issues rules to remove medical debt from consumer credit reports
Trump, Republicans prep ambitious but fraught plan for tax cuts and more
Zuckerberg ends fact checks on Facebook and Instagram, calling election a ‘tipping point’ on free speech
WA State Standard
After 24 years as WA insurance commissioner, Kreidler prepares to retire
Reward up to $20,000 offered for information on each of three WA wolf killings
Health insurers limit coverage of prosthetic limbs, questioning their medical necessity
Wenatchee World
Chelan County Sheriff’s Office implements new patrol supervisor policy
Yakima Herald-Republic
City eyes education to address Yakima’s most dangerous intersections
Broadcast
KING 5 TV (NBC)
Seattle’s 20-Year housing plan sparks debate
How Jan. 6 changed Olympia’s Capitol Campus (Dhingra)
SPD fires officer who hit and killed woman in crosswalk, calling incident ‘tragic on every level’
KIRO 7 TV (CBS)
Group defaces Mercer Island school with ‘anti-Semitic and racist’ graffiti
Meta replaces fact-checking with X-style community notes
Seattle traffic worsens: Drivers lose 63 hours to congestion in 2024
Washington AG suing T-Mobile over alleged failure to secure sensitive data
GI Bill education benefits expanded for millions of veterans
WSU researchers taking steps to protect apples from climate change
WSU wins lawsuit filed by former football coach Nick Rolovich over vaccine mandate
KOMO 4 TV (ABC)
Seattle expands school zone speed cameras to curb traffic violations
Seattle police officer who fatally struck Jaahnavi Kandula fired from department
KNKX Public Radio
Officials inspect Tacoma ICE detention center after legal battle
KUOW Public Radio
What will WA lawmakers accomplish this year?
Biden ban puts more of Northwest off limits to oil drilling
$20,000 reward offered after third endangered gray wolf killed in Washington state
KXLY (ABC)
Judge rules in favor of Washington State University in Rolovich vaccine case
Spokane City Council approves $1 million project for safer school intersections
Spokane City Council approves half million-dollar settlement for police shooting
Spokane officials aim to curb overdoses through proposed alcohol impact area downtown
Web
Cascadia Daily News
Potential tariffs could impact annual WA imports of $7 billion from B.C.
Crosscut
Federal cuts threaten Washington crime victims’ advocacy programs
MyNorthwest
Seattle Police Department fires officer who hit and killed Jaahnavi Kandula
The Stranger
The Legend of the Ninety-Nine Lawsuits
Seattle Police Department Fires Officer Kevin Dave for Killing of Jaahnavi Kandula
The Urbanist
WSDOT Report Proposes Expansion Path for Washington’s Intercity Bus Network
Opinion: Washington State’s Path to Tax The Rich in 2025 (Frame)
Washington Observer
Nguyễn tapped to run Commerce (Alvarado)
Progress on student isolation & restraint (Callan)
West Seattle Blog
BEACH WARNING: Stay out of the water at Fauntleroy’s Cove Park, after pump-station overflow
TRAFFIC CAMS, WEATHER, TRANSIT: Tuesday info