Bill to ramp up recycling a top priority for green coalition in 2022 Washington state legislative session
A state Senate bill that seeks to improve Washington’s waste and recycling systems will be one of the top priorities of environmentalists for the 2022 legislative session. Senate Bill 5697 includes provisions that would shift the burden of curbside recycling costs from consumers to packaging producers. It also would require all packaging and paper products sold in Washington to be designed for reuse, recycling or composting by 2031. Continue reading at The Seattle Times. (Ellen M. Banner)
Washington students’ test scores drop significantly
Washington students took their first state exams since the pandemic began last fall and their scores dropped. The Seattle Times reports that between 2019 and 2021, the overall percentage of students who met state standards on the math portion of the exam fell by 20 percentage points. Just 30% of children — public school students enrolled in grades 4 through 11 — met standards in math. In English, the portion of kids who met the standard fell by 9 percentage points. Continue reading at The Associated Press.
‘No shortage of questions to be answered’ for region’s shrinking orca population
While scientists, wildlife managers and others continue to untangle the complex web of fish, boat and water quality issues that affect the health of Southern Resident orca whales, the population remains endangered — and continues to shrink. The National Marine Fisheries Service published a five-year review of the species on Jan. 4 in which it recommended the orca’s status under the federal Endangered Species Act remain unchanged. The species uses West Coast and Salish Sea habitat and eats the region’s salmon. Continue reading at Skagit Valley Herald.
Associated Press
Washington students’ test scores drop significantly
Bellingham Herald
Changes on the horizon for Whatcom nonprofit connecting Latinx families with outdoors
During the pandemic Whatcom bankruptcy filings have tumbled to record lows. Here’s why
Courier-Herald
Can’t get a COVID test right now? Here’s what to do
Omicron continues to surge in Enumclaw
The Daily News
Port of Kalama marketplace moves forward as latest tourism booster
Everett Herald
Free mass-vaccination site opens Tuesday at Everett Mall
Annual homeless count could shed light on pandemic’s impact
Cornfield Report: Ports and potties, and a delay in long-term-care payroll tax (Liias)
Lawmakers consider Snohomish County request for 2 more judges (Lovick)
What we know: Washington coronavirus outbreak at a glance
WaPo Comment: Survey shows link between racism, election views
WaPo Comment: Those with compromised immune systems need our help
Editorial: Keep ‘Mockingbird’ on Mukilteo ninth-graders’ list
Letter: Lawmakers should restore public employees COLA
The Facts Newspaper
It has been a week of firsts in the Washington State Legislature. (Slatter, Dhingra, Trudeau, Das)
Inslee provides support to hospitals to fight Omicron variant
Kent Reporter
Shoreline senator’s bill would close loophole on police disciplinary actions (Salomon)
Kitsap Sun
Washington State Ferries cancels final Friday night Bremerton sailings with little notice
Bremerton’s Jackson aiming to ‘change the game’ for serving homeless (Simmons)
New York Times
Covid Live Updates: Omicron May Be Peaking in Parts of U.S., but Hospitals Are Strained
Senate Democrats Press Ahead With Debate on Voting Rights Bill
Martin Luther King Jr.’s Family Tells Senate to Legislate, ‘Not Celebrate’
Marchers Honor King and Call on Senate to Pass Voting Rights Legislation
Olympian
Gov. Inslee, Washington Democrats push election bills as they weigh threats to democracy (Frockt, Saldana)
Providence caring for record number of COVID-19 patients, but fewer need critical care
Peninsula Daily News
Nearly 100 hospital workers kept home
WHAT WE KNOW: Coronavirus outbreak at a glance
Puget Sound Business Journal
Meta to hire thousands more in Puget Sound area over ‘next couple of years’
Light rail won’t save downtown Bellevue from heavy traffic, analyst says
Opinion: Community colleges and apprentice programs can bridge skills gap
Seattle Times
Washington students’ test scores drop significantly in first exams since pandemic began
Bill to ramp up recycling a top priority for green coalition in 2022 Washington state legislative session (Das, Carlyle)
Second woman sues King County, claiming deputies failed to protect her during prostitution probe in 1990s
Jay Inslee executive order could restore some affirmative action policies in Washington state government
Abuse allegations mount against South King County politician charged with domestic violence
Opinion: Washingtonians deserve equitable access to infertility care
Skagit Valley Herald
‘No shortage of questions to be answered’ for region’s shrinking orca population
Number of new COVID-19 cases in Skagit County eclipses 1,000
Maritime academy announces move to Anacortes
Tribal Tribune
Revitalizing the nselxcin language “Our children, our sovereignty, our future”
Chief Joseph Hatchery update
Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business
Defendants have a right to counsel, but Tri-Cities struggles to hire enough lawyers
Washington Post
How coal holds on in America
They relied on rapid coronavirus tests to gather safely. Some wish they hadn’t.
Texas’s six-week abortion ban remains in effect after federal appeals court ruling
Yakima Herald-Republic
Spokesman-Review: New program at Heritage University aims to narrow attorney shortage in Central Washington
Spokesman-Review: Lawmakers to consider multiple gun control proposals this session (Kuderer)
Broadcast
KING 5 TV (NBC)
Mandatory nurse overtime, too many patients the targets of proposed Washington bills
DNR map shows if your home is in an area susceptible to landslides
‘He is the reason why I dream’: Martin Luther King Jr. mural a sense of pride in the Central District
Inmates describe ‘The Hole’ as they testify in support of bill limiting solitary confinement
Election worker harassment could lead to prison, big fine under Senate-approved bill (Frockt)
KIRO 7 TV (CBS)
How Tonga volcano eruption pushed out Seattle fog from nearly 6,000 miles away
Events celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
KOMO 4 TV (ABC)
Gov. Inslee readies $600M stepped up plan to address climate change
Photos: Seattle honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with rally and march
On MLK Day, Seattle marchers honor slain civil rights leader, talk school inequality
Mass COVID-19 vaccination site opens at Everett Mall amid case count surge
KXLY (ABC)
Has Washington’s omicron surge peaked?
Web
Crosscut
Ways to fix the child care system in Washington state
MyNorthwest
Child rapist lost in backlog gets max sentence nearly 20 years after Torchlight attack (Orwall)