Capitol  Buzz

ABORTION

• Lawmakers hear from Washingtonians on abortion bills (The Seattle Times)
• State lawmakers hear slew of abortion protection bills following 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade (The Spokesman-Review)
• Bills to protect abortion rights heard at public hearings Tuesday (Tri-City Herald)
• Podcast | What has changed in Washington since the fall of Roe (Crosscut)
• ‘Ask for Jane:’ Who were the pre-Roe underground abortionists? (Crosscut)
• Amendment ensuring abortion rights in state constitution introduced in Olympia (KING TV)

AGRICULTURE & WATER

• Washington & Oregon Potato Conference draws in thousands this week (KEPR TV)

BUSINESS, ECONOMY & LABOR

• A recession might be coming. Here’s what it could look like (NPR/OPB)
• Legislature mulls bill to give unemployment recipients more flexibility (MyNorthwest)
• Bill would require government and nonprofit Washington employers to pay interns (The Olympian)
• Washington state ranked 17th in the nation for drop in unemployment claims (The Center Square)
• Justice Dept. sues Google over digital advertising dominance (AP)
• Boeing powerbroker rebuilding Capitol Hill clout lost in 737 MAX crashes (The Seattle Times)
• Microsoft’s profit drops, but cloud computing drives growth (The Seattle Times)

COMMUNITY & FAMILY ISSUES

• Seattle convention center expansion sparks hope (Axios – Seattle)

COURTS (FEDERAL)

• Again, court refuses to hear case challenging Washington’s ban on conversion therapy for minors (KUOW Radio)

CRIME

• Suspect dead after three killed in Yakima convenience store shooting (Yakima Herald-Republic)
• Tacoma works to formalize position on how to fix state’s drug possession laws (KOMO TV)
• OPINION: WA state truckers are making a difference in the fight against human trafficking (Sheri Call is the president and CEO of Washington Trucking Association/The Bellingham Herald)

EDUCATION

• Washington student learning loss prompts bill to add one week to school year (The Center Square)
• Washington bill would make school meals free for all students (KUOW Radio)
• ChatGPT banned by Seattle schools — for now (Axios – Seattle)
• Discovery Lab students will talk to Gov. Inslee about shrub-steppe ecosystem (Daily Record)
• Clark County to get 1st charter school (The Columbian)

ELECTIONS

• What if voting were not just a right, but a legally required duty? (NW News Network)

ENERGY & UTILITIES

• Nuclear fusion company exploring Lewis County coal plant property (KING TV)

ENVIRONMENT

• Washington House bill would outlaw toxic chemicals in cosmetics, personal care products (KAPP/KVEW)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT & THE WHITE HOUSE

• Analysis | Biden’s handling of secret documents complicates the case against Trump (The New York Times/The Seattle Times)
• Feds seize $50 million from Farmington State Bank tied to Bankman-Fried (The Spokesman-Review)
• Treasury takes another ‘extraordinary’ step on debt limit (AP)
• FDA proposes limits for lead in baby food (The New York Times/The Seattle Times)

HANFORD

• Workers start emptying radioactive waste from massive, leak-prone Hanford tank (Tri-City Herald)
• Waste retrieval underway on last tank in Hanford’s AX farm (KNDO/KNDU)

HEALTH CARE & HOSPITALS

• New report gives WA state 3 ‘F’ grades out of 5 categories for tobacco control policies (The News Tribune)
• Amazon announces new RxPass to deliver medications to your door. Here’s how it works (The Bellingham Herald)

HIGHER EDUCATION

• BBCC trustees meet with legislators (Columbia Basin Herald)

HOMELESSNESS

• Legislation to claim RVs as homesteads muddies Seattle’s homeless problem (MyNorthwest)
• Safety concerns grow over encampment along I-5 express lanes in Seattle (KOMO TV)
• For Camp Hope closure, new Spokane County sheriff wants everyone at the table (The Center Square)
• Annual homeless count aims to give snapshot of housing crisis (The Everett Herald)
• Vancouver seeks site for new Safe Park as people living in vehicles prompt concerns (The Columbian)

HOUSING

• Washington state might nix-single family zoning (Axios – Seattle)

LAW ENFORCEMENT

• Police pursuit bill has Washington Democrats at odds (FOX 13)
• Washington state sheriffs, police chiefs shift gears for police pursuit bills (The Center Square)
• Puyallup police officers hit by gunfire during standoff with man in apartment building (The News Tribune)
• Public safety is focus of new prosecutorial units (Axios – Seattle)

LEGISLATURE

• Ybarra works through week three of session (Columbia Basin Herald)
• ’Issues’ with leader caused this WA state lawmaker to leave the Republican caucus (The News Tribune)
• EDITORIAL: New WA law would shut the door on puppy-mill suffering (The Seattle Times)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

• King County’s top prosecutor prioritizing gun violence, sexual assault (The Seattle Times)
• King County still paying over $330,000 a month for vacant hotel (The Center Square)
• Seattle will give free transit cards to all public housing residents (The Seattle Times)
• Spokane council blasted for hiring spouse of member as policy advisor (The Center Square)
• Spokane County withdraws lawsuit over Camp Hope in show of good faith (The Spokesman-Review)
• Spokane County’s attempt to make unions bargain in public officially over (The Spokesman-Review)
• Tacoma-Pierce County health director to retire. He oversaw department during COVID-19 (The News Tribune)
• Regional Sports Complex feasibility study likely to be completed by January 2024 (The Wenatchee World)
• OPINION: King County should not adopt antisemitism definition used to censor speech (Liora R. Halperin, author and professor of International Studies and History, and the Distinguished Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies, at the University of Washington/The Seattle Times)

MENTAL HEALTH

• EDITORIAL: Mental health plan questions should’ve been answered long ago (Yakima Herald-Republic)

MILITARY & VETERANS

• Computer problems slow Spokane VA after Defense Department update to electronic health record system (The Spokesman-Review)

NATURAL RESOURCES

• DNR resists running some leases past oversight board (Capital Press)

OTHER STATES

• Oregon Senate Republicans plan delay tactics to press GOP agenda (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
• 300,000 Oregonians at risk of losing state health insurance. Here’s why. (The Oregonian)

RURAL BROADBAND

• High-speed internet is coming to part of rural Pierce County. Here’s the $5 million plan (The News Tribune)
• Pierce County reaches $5M agreement to expand internet access on Key Peninsula (The Center Square)
• EDITORIAL: Broadband service for all should be a priority (The Columbian)

SCHOOL SAFETY

• Bellingham school administrators’ trial dates set as district reviews these policies (The Bellingham Herald)

STATE GOVERNMENT

• Accused violent offender still awaiting competency restoration several months later (KOMO TV)

SUBSTANCE ABUSE

• Increasing overdose deaths stress King County morgue (KUOW Radio)
• New drug law would provide alternate route for those with addictions (MyNorthwest)
• Washington state lawmakers again consider legalizing ‘shrooms’ (KUOW Radio)

TAXES

• OPINION: Make no mistake: A tax on capital gains is an income tax (Jason Mercier, Washington Policy Center/The Spokesman-Review)

TRANSPORTATION

• Gas prices have been creeping up, but who’s responsible? (MyNorthwest)
• Why are Washington gas prices rising after weeks of declines? (KPQ Radio)
• Washington lawmakers push stricter .05 DUI limit amid record road deaths (KUOW Radio)
• Breathalyzer bill would lower threshold for DUIs in Washington from .08 to .05 (The Center Square)
• Eying pedestrian safety, bill would curtail free right turns at red lights (KNWN Radio)
• Aviation fuel project eyeing Grant County (Columbia Basin Herald)

TRANSPORTATION BUDGET

• Wenatchee Valley Chamber opposes Gov. Inslee’s transportation plan (KPQ Radio)

WILDFIRE PREVENTION & RESPONSE

• Artificial intelligence helps Northwest scientists better understand wildfire emissions (NW News Network)