WA Legislature to consider requiring union talks over government use of AI
Washington state lawmakers next year are set to again discuss whether public sector unions can bargain over their employers’ adoption of artificial intelligence technology. House Bill 1622 looks to require government employers to bargain with unions over the use of the technology if it affects wages or worker performance evaluations. This past session, the bill passed the House mostly along party lines, with Democratic support, before stalling in the Senate. Continue reading at WSS. (Leon Neal)
Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with ‘suspicious’ travel patterns
The U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide in a secretive program to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious, The Associated Press has found. The predictive intelligence program has resulted in people being stopped, searched and in some cases arrested. A network of cameras scans and records vehicle license plate information, and an algorithm flags vehicles deemed suspicious based on where they came from, where they were going and which route they took. Federal agents in turn may then flag local law enforcement. Continue reading at King 5. (AP)
Washington state’s obesity rate is up, but still ranks low
Nearly one-third of adults in Washington state qualified as obese last year, an increase from 2019. Why it matters: Obesity is tied to several health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, COVID-19 complications and more, Axios’ Alex Fitzpatrick writes. By the numbers: The obesity rate in Washington state was 31.5% in 2024, according to a new “State of Obesity” report from the nonprofit Trust for America’s Health. That’s up from 28.3% five years earlier. Continue reading at Axios. (Alex Fitzpatrick)
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