OLYMPIA – For months, legislators have waited anxiously for the Washington Supreme Court to answer a political question that has roiled the state for two decades: Can voters make them pass any tax increase with a two-thirds majority? No, a divided court said Thursday, not…
OLYMPIA – Legislative Republicans say they will not vote for a gas tax increase or other new vehicle taxes until the state makes major reforms in the way it builds big road projects. Gov. Jay Inslee, who has urged the Legislature to find new money…
Jay Inslee prepares to sign SB 5147 with prime sponsors Sen. Jim Hargrove, left, and Rep. Tina Orwall, right. OLYMPIA -- Gov. Jay Inslee signed his first bill today, a new law that requires youth shelters to notify parents of the state welfare offices after…
Pete Carroll signs an autograph for Rep. Reuven Carlyle at the House rostrum. OLYMPIA -- In a bold move, the Legislature came out officially in favor of the Seattle Seahawks today, with resolutions in both chambers congratulating the team for making the playoffs, and lauding…
OLYMPIA -- Legislators will pause from the long slog of bills on spending and taxing this morning to pass resolutions honoring the Seahawks, with Head Coach Pete Carroll in the House (and Senate). Carroll is scheduled to be present when the chambers pass resolutions of…
OLYMPIA – A proposed constitutional amendment gave a Senate panel another chance to argue whether democracy is helped or hurt by requiring legislative super-majorities to approve tax increases. Definitely helped, Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn, the sponsor of the amendment, told the Ways and Means Committee.…
U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers seems “misinformed” in her recent request to delay a government recommendation on the proposed Spokane tribal casino on the West Plains, the tribal chairman told a federal agency this week. But the tribe won’t object to the requested 45-day delay,…
OLYMPIA -- Non-profit gun clubs want the Legislature to tell the state to stop double-taxing them for the targets that skeet shooters use. The club pays a sales tax when it buys the clay pigeons in bulk, and is required to charge target shooters another…
If you're on Facebook, someone has probably sent you a link to this video, with Jimmy Fallon and Michelle Obama doing the evolution of Mom Dancing. Not to be outdone, conservative pundit Michelle Malkin now has her own video, which she calls The Evolution of…
OLYMPIA -- There are many different attempts to cement a requirement for a two-thirds supermajority for taxes into law. Today, the Senate Ways and Means Committee has a hearing on a proposed constitutional amendment that would do that. The same panel also has a hearing…
WASHINGTON — Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., will begin today's legislative day in Congress with a tradition dating to Washington state’s first days as a part of the union. The reading of President George Washington’s Farewell Address , first published in the Philadelphia Daily American Advertiser…
Mike Fagan’s response to criticism of the language in that e-mail is that he was not expressing himself as a city councilman; rather, he was expressing himself as a tax-fighting activist. That raises a question: Is a councilman, or any elected official, ever NOT in…
OLYMPIA – The massacre of first graders and educators at Sandy Hook Elementary may result in some major national gun-control legislation this year. Too soon to tell. But it may also block some smaller gun-related legislation in Washington state. At least that’s what several Senate…
OLYMPIA -- Rep. Susan Fagan and Spokane City Councilman Mike Fagan don't share any constituents, but both do have voters in the Spokane area. And the Pullman legislator wants them to know that she is not the Fagan who called Gov. Jay Inslee a "lying…
Spokane Mayor David Condon has issued statement criticizing a letter signed by City Councilman Mike Fagan that calls Gov. Jay Inslee "a lying whore." “Words like this have no place in public discourse," Condon said in a prepared statement released this afternoon by the city.…
A majority of the Spokane City Council is calling on Councilman Mike Fagan to apologize for the letter he signed calling Gov. Jay Inslee "a lying whore." The council's three Democratic-leaning members issued a statement condemning Fagan's letter this morning. Now two of the council's…
OLYMPIA -- On a mostly party-line vote, the House passed the Reproductive Parity Act, sending it to the Senate on a 53-43 vote. Both sides argued that they were defending "choice." Supporters said women should have medical insurance that allows them to choose abortion, regardless…
OLYMPIA The Reproductive Parity Act is a "simple, technical fix", its sponsor said in introducing the debate. It doesn't change anything right now, but it would protect the right to choose abortion if that becomes a problem under the federal Health Care Act changes. Rep.…
OLYMPIA -- Debate over the Reproductive Parity bill starts after a pair of caucus meetings. First up, a call for a Republican amendment with a "conscience clause" to be inserted into the bill. That allows an organization to keep from offering abortion as part of…
OLYMPIA -- The House is expected to debate the Reproductive Parity Act this morning, likely passing a bill over to the Senate that Republicans in that chamber have worked very hard to ignore. The RPA, as some folks call it, would require any insurance plan…
The federal government should delay its decision on a proposed tribal casino on the West Plains an extra 45 days to allow Spokane County to voice its objections, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers said Thursday. In a dw-ah letter to a high-ranking Interior Department official,…
OLYMPIA -- The cannabis plant could provide Washington state with two new agricultural crops: One for smoking, and one making rope and fabric. Different strains of the plant would be used for the different products, and different state agencies would control the different crops. But…
OLYMPIA -- "Vapor" cigarettes, which deliver nicotine without the need to light up tobacco, would be illegal for minors in Washington under a bill that got unanimous support from a House panel this morning. The House Government Accountability and Oversight Committee voted 8-0 to put…
OLYMPIA – A proposal to raise the state’s gasoline tax by 2 cents per year for five years and impose or hike other taxes would provide some $420 million for further work on the North Spokane Corridor. The long-running road construction project – sometimes called…
OLYMPIA – A bill requiring almost all gun buyers in Washington to undergo a background check passed a key House panel Tuesday and will likely be part of a package of gun laws up for a floor vote in March. Despite heavy criticism last week…
The Spokesman-Review's political team keeps a critical eye on local, state and national politics.
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