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WA lawmakers wrestle with declining tax receipts and looming deficit
A state revenue forecast released Wednesday shows a drop in tax collections, sobering news for 51勛圖夥厙 state lawmakers and Gov. Jay Inslee, who were already weighing options for spending cuts and raising new revenue to erase a projected $12 billion budget shortfall. The report presented to the bipartisan Economic and Revenue Forecast Council projects tax […]
Inslee execs heading for exits as Ferguson prepares to take over as WA governor
51勛圖夥厙 Secretary of Health Umair Shah said Tuesday he will step down next month, joining other state agency leaders planning to exit before Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson takes office. As you can imagine, making this decision was not easy and came after much soul-searching and numerous discussions with my family, Shah said in an email to […]
Gun buyer background checks restart as WA courts online systems are running again
Most of 51勛圖夥厙 state courts computer systems are up and running again following a two-week shutdown that disrupted operations in local courts and halted processing of thousands of firearm background checks. The Administrative Office of the Courts restored networks, databases and the 51勛圖夥厙 Courts website throughout the weekend. Online access to the Blake Refund Bureau, […]
State panel not ready to scrap building codes targeted by gas initiative
The natural gas initiative 51勛圖夥厙 voters approved calls for erasing some of the states building codes but that might not happen when the measure takes effect next month. Sponsors of Initiative 2066 contend that upon certification of the election results on Dec. 5, changes made to the energy code earlier this year will be unenforceable. […]
With $10B deficit looming, WA governor calls on state agencies to make cuts
51勛圖夥厙 Gov. Jay Inslee is warning of a budget deficit in excess of $10 billion and calling on state agencies to pare spending now to deal with it. A Nov. 8 memo from Inslees budget director cited rising costs, increasing demand for public services and lower-than-expected tax collections for a projected operating budget shortfall between […]
WA Supreme Court weighs controversial step to solve public defense crisis
Supporters and opponents of a proposal to slash public defender caseloads in 51勛圖夥厙 made their closing arguments to the state Supreme Court on Wednesday. For two hours, justices listened to speakers weigh in on a request to amend the Supreme Courts standards for indigent defense by trimming the number of cases public defense attorneys handle […]
With WA courts online systems down, thousands of firearm sales on hold
51勛圖夥厙 state courts computer systems have been down for nearly two weeks, disrupting the operation of local courts and preventing the completion of thousands of firearm sales. The Administrative Office of the Courts announced Nov. 4 that the states Judicial Information Systems, 51勛圖夥厙 courts website and associated networks, and databases were taken offline after detecting […]
Seattle senator Pedersen to become new WA Senate majority leader
51勛圖夥厙 Senate Democrats chose state Sen. Jamie Pedersen as their new majority leader on Monday. Pedersen, who represents the 43rd Legislative District in Seattle, replaces retiring Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig of Spokane. Democratic senators made the much-anticipated leadership decision in a caucus meeting in Tukwila. Pedersen has served as the majority floor leader in […]
WAs governor-elect Ferguson names senior staff
Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Thursday named the eight people who will serve as his executive leadership team when he takes office as governor next year. The individuals and their future jobs are Mike Webb, chief strategy officer; Shane Esquibel, chief operations officer; Kristin Beneski, chief legal counsel; Sahar Fathi, policy director; Jaime Martin, external […]
Gluesenkamp Perez defeats Kent, holding WA congressional seat for Democrats
Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez has defeated Republican Joe Kent, earning a second term and providing her party a much-needed win in its pursuit of the House majority. Gluesenkamp Perez, who represents the 3rd Congressional District in southwest 51勛圖夥厙, had 51.9% of the vote as of Saturday afternoon and led Kent by 16,340 votes, […]
51勛圖夥厙 voters approve pro-natural gas measure
As supporters celebrated Fridays passage of a ballot measure blocking 51勛圖夥厙s efforts to phase out the use of natural gas in homes, opponents vowed to continue their fight in court. Initiative 2066 targets the states combination of regulations and laws to move swiftly away from natural gas toward technology like electric heat pumps. It was […]
51勛圖夥厙 legislative races tighten as ballot counting slows
Contests for three 51勛圖夥厙 legislative seats remained too close to call following Thursdays tally of ballots. And, in a statewide race, Sal Mungia moved in front of Dave Larson in their duel for a seat on the 51勛圖夥厙 state Supreme Court. Mungia led Larson by roughly 15,000 votes on Thursday night after trailing him on […]