Happy new fiscal year, Washingtonians. Forget about making resolutions, but remember to get a new tab for your boat, or a Discover Pass if you plan to be spending time in state parks. If you’re a state employee, your paycheck gets smaller starting today. Some…
OLYMPIA -- Gov. Chris Gregoire is ending her term as president of the National Governor's Assocation and starting her term as chairman of the Western Governors Association. That sounds a bit backwards, going from the national to the regional, but remember that Gregoire was picked…
Thurston County Auditor Kim Wyman announces 2012 campaign for Secretary of State. OLYMPIA -- After waiting a respectable 48 hours after her old boss got out of the 2012 Secretary of State race, Thurston County Auditor Kim Wyman got in it Thursday. Wyman told a…
Mayoral candidate Barbara Lampert is lucky Spokane's famous yellow-bellied marmots don't vote. At the first significant mayoral debate of the election season, Lampert listed controlling Spokane's varmint population among her priorities. "Varmints bring disease," Lampert said Tuesday at the forum sponsored by the nonprofit group…
President Barack Obama, fulfilling the number one presidential duty of congratulator-in-chief, had the WNBA champion Seattle Storm over to the White House this afternoon for some high fives and kind words. He introduced the coach, joked around with the players and talked about how he…
Former Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg says he's made up his mind on what state office he wants to seek in 2012 and it's... State Supreme Court justice. Not state attorney general. Ladenburg's campaign operation sent out word that he is shutting down his "exploratory…
U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee appeared to criticize his fellow Democrats when introducing his campaign for governor to Spokane on Tuesday. "Frankly, we need some new blood in Olympia," Inslee said in his speech. "Having not been in Olympia, I think I'm in pretty good shape…
Sam Reed says he won't run for re-election at a press conference today. OLYMPIA -- Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed is calling it quits after three terms in that office and more than 34 as an elected official. Reed, a Spokane native and a…
Spokane will borrow more than $1 million from the state to help prevent untreated sewage from spilling into the Spokane River. The City Council on Monday agreed to accept a low-interest loan from the state Department of Ecology to pay for a combined sewage overflow…
Spokane voters can get an early look at their choices for mayor Tuesday night at a candidate forum focused on environmentally friendly businesses. Four of the five candidates for mayor will be at the candidate forum sponsored by Sustainable Resources INW, a nonprofit that assists…
U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee officially got into the 2012 governor's race today, making the announcement at a morning press conference in Seattle and following up with another campaign stop in Yakima. He'll be in Spokane, Vancouver and Tacoma on Tuesday. The Spokane event is scheduled…
Here's some extra detail on Spokane County Commissioner Districts developed for Sunday's story. For a larger version, click on the link below. (Individual population numbers are in each precinct.) To read the story, go inside the blog.
This map provides some extra details for Sunday's story on local redistricting. For a larger version, click on the link below. (The population numbers are in each precinct.) To read the story, go inside the blog.
Washington Republicans tried last week to wring every last drop out of a connection between the state and Rep. Anthony Weiner's bad behavior, however tenuous it was. Earlier in the month, the state GOP criticized Jay Inslee, a Washington congressman who would like to be…
When the wind is blowing and the Columbia River is flowing, wind turbine operators in Washington have a problem they are looking to France and Germany for help. Gov. Chris Gregoire, who is in Europe for a 10-day trade mission, said she met Thursday with…
Spokane leaders are seeking applications for a new board to oversee the use of the city’s new $20 vehicle tab tax. The Citizens Transportation Advisory Board will have seven members. It was modeled after the Citizens Street Advisory Committee, which oversees projects paid for by…
OLYMPIA — A state board in charge of money for recreational projects rejected a plea from supporters of a whitewater park in the Spokane River and refused Thursday to extend a $500,000 grant. The project will probably take longer than supporters estimate, and the city…
The League of Women Voters will bring Spokane's candidates head to head -- or in some cases head to head to head to head -- next week as they tape forums to be played through July and into August in advance of the primary. The…
The City of Spokane is looking for three people willing to review its council district boundaries and decide whether they need to be adjusted as a result of the 2010 Census. Think that's you? You have until July 1 to decide. Here's the criteria: You…
Women in Spokane County can expect to live about a year longer than women a quarter century ago, and Kootenai County women about two years longer. Those averages are contained in a new study by the University of Washington which shows that while women in…
State Sen. Jeff Baxter is holding a campaign kickoff Wednesday night at the Mirabeau Park Hotel. This may seem a bit late, considering Baxter announced more than a month ago he was running for the seat to which he was appointed after Bob McCaslin retired.…
Washington Republicans are trying to wring every last drop out of any connection Washington may have to Anthony Weiner's bad behavior, however tenuous it may be. Last week the state GOP criticized Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., for accepting a $1,000 contribution from Weiner, saying the…