Supreme Court upholds billions of dollars in transit funding
The state Supreme Court on Thursday upheld vehicle registration tax increases in the Puget Sound area, a decision that preserves billions of dollars in voter-approved money earmarked for light trail and other projects. Seven people had sued to overturn a rate increase by the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, known as Sound Transit. Continue reading at Peninsula Daily News. (Elaine Thompson/The Associated Press)
State Senate passes bill to ban guns at childcare facilities
Childcare facilities would carry the same prohibitions on deadly weapons as K-12 schools under legislation passed Thursday by the state Senate. “When parents send their kids off to school, they expect these facilities and grounds to be safe and secure,” said Sen. Claire Wilson (D-Auburn), the bill’s sponsor. “The state already prohibits people from possessing firearms on K-12 school campuses. This bill simply extends that same common-sense policy to childcare facilities.” Continue reading at KOMO News. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Major expansion of sports gambling only at Indian casinos moves forward in Legislature
By a large margin, the state House of Representatives on Thursday night approved a bill to allow legal sports gambling sports only at tribal casinos. An expansion of gambling requires at least a three-fifths majority vote in each chamber. The House easily cleared that bar, approving HB 2638 by a 83-14 vote. The measure moves to a Senate committee. The Senate has a companion bill that it could send to the House, giving lawmakers two options to get a bill to Gov. Jay Inslee for his signature. Continue reading at The Olympian.
Associated Press
Supreme Court upholds billions of dollars in transit funding
Trump ignores AG Barr’s request to stop tweeting about DOJ
U.S. open jobs fall sharply for second straight month
American and Alaska strike deal around Seattle flights
Alaska pot shops to be among 1st in U.S. to allow consumption
Virus outbreak in China poses a new problem for Boeing
Federal budget does not fund volcano debris dam, monitoring
Washington state salmon hatcheries damaged by heavy rains
Lawmakers open groundwater fight against bottled water companies (Carlyle)
US brings new charges against Chinese tech giant Huawei
Newspaper chain McClatchy files for bankruptcy protection
NASA’s space snowman reveals secrets: few craters, no water
Auburn Reporter
Senate passes Wilson bill to make childcare facilities gun-free zones (Wilson)
Changes in education funding leads to higher King County property taxes in 2020
Bellingham Herald (subscription required)
Major expansion of sports gambling only at Indian casinos moves forward in Legislature (Peterson)
Whatcom bankruptcies continue to drop, but are residents still financially stressed?
Is the CDC overreaching with its coronavirus quarantine? These experts think so
Capital Press
Western Innovator: Lobbyist offers on-the-farm perspective
‘Washington Grown’ TV show to return for eighth season
Everett Herald (subscription required)
By a razor-thin margin, Mukilteo school bond passes
State high court upholds Sound Transit vehicle excise tax
Cornfield Report: Sound Transit in court, Inslee on climate, milk on the menu (Hobbs, Fey)
Bill to allow sports betting advances to state House floor (Peterson)
Boeing and engineering union agree on new, extended contract
Federal Way Mirror
El Centro de la Raza comes to Federal Way
Attorney and community volunteer Jamila Taylor running for state House seat (Pellicciotti, Wilson)
The Inlander
After Washington state Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber’s son was diagnosed with diabetes, she was horrified by the cost of insulin (Jinkins)
Islands’ Weekly
Person in San Juan County under investigation for Novel Coronavirus
Rick Larsen to host Presidents Day Town Hall on Orcas
Issaquah Reporter
New Issaquah utility rates, assistance programs
Journal of the San Juan Islands
Person in San Juan County under investigation for Novel Coronavirus
Kitsap Sun (subscription required)
Defense department awards $89 million contract for Bangor pier for Seawolf submarines
Kent Reporter
State House passes bill banning solitary confinement for juveniles (Peterson, Senn, Frame)
News Tribune (subscription required)
Homes are selling in Tacoma at fastest rate in nation, Redfin says in new report
Wrongful death lawsuit against state representative and her company settles out of court
New York Times
Trump Claims ‘Legal Right’ to Interfere in Justice Dept. Cases
Trump’s Path to Weaker Fuel Efficiency Rules May Lead to a Dead End
Olympian (subscription required)
Major expansion of sports gambling only at Indian casinos moves forward in Legislature (Peterson)
Peninsula Daily News
Groups sue state over Cooke steelhead farms
Wild Olympics passes House, heads to Senate
Puget Sound Business Journal
Big Tech’s ‘buy and kill’ tactics come under scrutiny
As Boeing jets sit idle, Airbus can’t make planes fast enough
With $10B JEDI contract suspended, this is what’s at stake for Microsoft and Amazon
Seattle biotech leads work on coronavirus vaccine candidate
Opinion: Washington businesses can be part of the solution to the child care crisis
Seattle Times (subscription required)
Keep on paying: Washington state Supreme Court sides with Sound Transit in car-tab case (Liias)
Friday snow could bring ideal ski conditions for 3-day weekend
FYI Guy: Seattle ranks near top for coupled-up young adults
Washingtonians are falling for romance scams — here’s how to protect yourself
State lawmakers flood Olympia with bills over water marketing, transfers after Seattle Times report (Rolfes, Solomon, Van De Wege, McCoy)
In surprise move, Boeing and engineering union agree on new contract proposal with changes to pay, family leave
Did you see a trooper get pushed from a moving car on I-90? State Patrol wants to speak with you
How doctors and nurses at an Everett hospital handled the nation’s first novel coronavirus patient
Washington state Supreme Court sides with Sound Transit in car-tab case
‘We’ll never get to perfect’: SPS Human Relations chief responds to investigation into teacher misconduct
Orcas Island couple finally end two-week odyssey aboard cruise ship barred from ports over coronavirus fears
Washington House OKs bill to overhaul gun background check system
Schools should drop active-shooter drills, say national education unions and major gun-control group (Hansen)
Op-Ed: End the discriminatory tampon tax in Washington state
Editorial: Sawant must follow all campaign and ethics laws
LTE: Juvenile justice: Support youth
Sports gambling a step closer in Washington after nighttime vote in state House (Petersen)
Seattle Weekly
Sports gambling bill passes in nighttime Washington state full House vote (Peterson)
Shoreline Area News
AG Ferguson’s bill banning solitary confinement as punishment for juveniles passes House with bipartisan support
Skagit Valley Herald
Mount Vernon parking limits to affect homeless
School levies continue to pass
Spokesman Review
As tenants, landlords tackle housing laws behind closed doors, councilman Michael Cathcart calls for transparency
‘We live on a finite planet’: Gonzaga students hold sit-in to push university to divest from fossil fuel industry
USA Today
Trump claims he has ‘legal right’ to intervene in criminal cases, including over Roger Stone
Global warming: The Earth just had its hottest January in recorded history
Washington Post
Trump declares ‘legal right’ to seek intervention in criminal cases
Will you die for the church? Will you kill for it? Congregations turn to armed volunteers for security.
Economic fallout from virus mounts around world
Opinion: Barr’s ABC News interview is deeply damning. Here’s what must come next.
Turtles the size of a car once roamed Earth. Scientists just found their fossils.
‘Nobody talks about it because everyone is on it’: Adderall presents esports with an enigma
U.S. population will decline faster without steady immigration, Census report says
Thieves are using peer-to-peer car rental apps to find their next ride
Wenatchee World
State House OKs bill to centralize gun background checks (Hansen)
Opinion: Don Millar and Jim Brown: It’s time to fully fund the state Department of Fish and Wildlife
Western Front
Employees would be allowed to retake failed drug tests, “safety-intensive” workers exempt from bill (Kloba)
Yakima Herald Republic
Years-long debate over motorized prospecting in Washington rivers continues
Sen. Curtis King will take questions during town hall meeting Feb. 20
ELECTION: Yakima School District levies gain support; capital levy remains below 50%
Broadcast
KING5 TV (NBC)
Washington bill would lower punishment for intentional HIV transmission (Jinkins, Macri)
San Juan County person being tested for 2019 coronavirus
Washington bill to legalize sports betting at tribal casinos clears state House
Watch tree activists break into song at Seattle City Council meeting
KIRO7 TV (CBS)
WA lawmakers working on major reforms to criminal justice system (Goodman, Pedersen)
Delta announces plans to go carbon-neutral
Amazon fulfillment center coming to Bremerton
State Supreme Court upholds billions of dollars in transit funding
Bill banning solitary confinement as punishment for teens passes state House (Peterson)
KHQ (NBC)
Sports gambling bill passes in nighttime Washington state full House vote (Peterson)
KOMO4 TV (ABC)
State Senate passes bill to ban guns at childcare facilities (Wilson)
Washington bill allowing sports betting passes state House
Angry former Seattle punk rocker sings to save the city’s trees
Official says US, Taliban reach Afghan truce agreement
KNKX FM
For the first time in three years, King County opens waitlist for low-income vouchers
KUOW FM
Attorney General Says Trump’s Tweets About DOJ Make His Job ‘Impossible’
Canadian Pipeline Protest Forces Closure Of Major Rail Link
Between President Trump’s Border Wall And The Rio Grande Lies A ‘No Man’s Land’
Trump Administration Diverts $3.8 Billion In Pentagon Funding To Border Wall
Officials In Australia’s New South Wales Celebrate: ‘All Fires Are Now Contained’
Yovanovitch Says State Department ‘Is In Trouble’ And Leaders Lack ‘Moral Clarity’
Senate Democrats Accuse Justice Department Of Politicizing Immigration Courts
House Votes To Revive Equal Rights Amendment, Removing Ratification Deadline
Free Seattle health clinic draws hundreds (and screens for coronavirus)
CBP admits Washington border officers ‘overzealous’; critics say Iranians and others targeted
NW Public Radio
Idaho Rep., A Former Basketball Player And Coach, Seeks To Bar Transgender Girls In School Sports
Q13 TV (Fox)
San Juan County resident being tested for coronavirus
Coronavirus fears are impacting some Asian-American businesses in western Washington
Judge blocks Microsoft from starting Pentagon cloud contract, handing early win to Amazon
Web
Crosscut
Make way for duplexes: Washington bill would mostly ban single-family-only zoning (Das, Macri)
Opinion: My daughter died in the Parkland mass shooting. A few extra seconds could have saved her life
Washington considers faster pathways to restoring rights for some felons (Kuderer, Dolan, Hansen)
Schmudget
KIDS COUNT: Invest in assets to build economic security for kids of color
Stronger local tools are needed to address homelessness
Kids and parents deserve a stronger WorkFirst/Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program
Seattle P.I.
The state of Seattle’s downtown: A look at the city’s economic growth and challenges
Slog
The Home Grow Bill Is Dead (Blake, Ormsby)
Ask Me Your Questions About Seattle’s Moratorium on Wintertime Evictions
Washington Democrats Are Damn Right to Remove Congestion Relief from Transportation Goals
How One Company Gets Around Laws on Pot Delivery
Sawant’s Winter Eviction Moratorium Was Amended to Protect Against Legal Challenges, Council Member Says
City Says Cops Acted Appropriately When They Killed Intoxicated Man Inside Queen Anne Apartment