WA lawmakers’ ‘year of housing’ could ease the affordability crisis
For years, proposals in the Washington Legislature to address the state’s dire housing availability and affordability crisis have withered and died in the face of opposition – even as the problem worsened. This year was different. On Monday, Gov. Jay Inslee signed 10 housing bills into law. And although the governor’s ambitious $4 billion housing-bond proposal fell flat, lawmakers nonetheless put $1 billion into new state budgets geared at easing the affordability crisis, according to the Office of Financial Management. Continue reading at Crosscut. (Amanda Snyder)

Editorial: The way Washington schools kids in lockup is criminal
Washington spends an enormous amount of time and money wrestling with education — with varying success. This state sweats over what to pay for students with special needs, and where to be more equitable, and how to boost the number of kids going to college. But there is one group of students that inspires no action at all: Kids who are locked up. Only 14% of kids who spend time incarcerated ever graduate from high school, according to a state report issued five months ago. There is no debating where that number leads: to depressed wages, which means fewer taxpayer dollars, and increased spending on prisons or homelessness. Continue reading at Seattle Times.

Inslee Signs Most Comprehensive in the Nation Battery Recycling Bill That Addresses All Battery Types
Governor Jay Inslee signed a new law (SB 5144) May 11, 2023 that will provide battery recycling across Washington under a producer responsibility program. The bill begins the program by recycling small, portable primary and rechargeable batteries first starting January 1, 2027. Washington becomes the 10th jurisdiction to adopt a product stewardship program for batteries and is the most comprehensive. Most of the older laws only cover limited chemistries of batteries. In the last two years, Washington DC and California passed similar laws but are limited to regulating smaller, portable batteries. Washington’s law differs in that medium-sized batteries, such as those in e-bikes, scooters, and larger outdoor power equipment are also included. Continue reading at San Juan Islander.