WA’s high cost of child care hits single moms hardest
A new report finds the average annual cost to send a toddler to a child care center in Washington state has risen to more than $14,000. Only five other states — Connecticut, Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York — and Washington, D.C., had a higher average annual cost for child care. And it’s especially burdensome for single mothers. The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s “KIDS COUNT” report, based on 2022 census data, found that the average single mom in Washington spends nearly 40% of her income on child care. For married couples, meanwhile, it’s about 12%. Stephan Blanford is the executive director of Children’s Alliance, a statewide advocacy group. He says the soaring cost for child care pushes women out of the workforce. The study found about 12% of Washington families were forced to switch jobs last year because of child care problems. Continue reading at KUOW. (Megan Farmer)

WA auditors flag $1.2B in federal aid over incomplete records
Insufficient documentation and tracking of federal dollars — mostly pandemic aid — resulted in nearly $1.2 billion in spending across Washington state agencies that fell short of federal rules in fiscal year 2022, according to a new state auditors’ report. The Office of the Washington State Auditor recently outlined 70 “findings” against 14 different state-level agencies over their handling of federal grants or COVID-19 relief money between July 2021 and June 2022. Auditors did not identify any fraud, but concluded some agencies spent money outside of allowed uses or did not comply with federal fraud-prevention policies such as background checks. Sadie Armijo, director of state audit and special investigations, said many findings resulted from missing or incomplete records of how state agencies spent federal money. “All of these federal programs, they’re really important,” she said. “You can see that these programs are for the most vulnerable people. We’re doing what we can to hold governments accountable.” Continue reading at Crosscut. (Lindsey Wasson)

Dangerous beauty: Cosmetics marketed to minorities come with cancer risk
The State of Washington is cracking down on what’s called “dangerous beauty” – the use of harmful hair chemicals targeting women of color. For many black women the pressure to “fit in” is increasing their risk of cancer. New product testing conducted earlier this year in state labs confirmed the presence of cancer-causing chemicals in many cosmetic products marketed and sold to women of color in Washington including lipsticks, foundation, lotions and chemical hair relaxers. “We detected formaldehyde in 26 out of 30 of those products,” said Marissa Smith, a senior regulatory toxicologist with the State of Washington. “We found lead in three out of 20 of the products that we tested. During development, our brains are so sensitive to lead exposure that there is no known safe dose according to the CDC. Washington’s “Toxic-Free Cosmetics Act” will ban PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing agents by 2025. It will also provide incentives for small businesses to make safer cosmetics. Continue reading at KING5.