Government | The Spokesman-Review

Featured Stories

Spokane County Commission to consider public safety sales tax that wouldn’t need voter approval

Spokane County leaders will consider boosting the sales tax to help fund criminal justice efforts as budgetary woes deepen.

Rob, Rob and Bob face off for Valley state House seat

Spokane County Commission to consider public safety sales tax that wouldn't need voter approval
Officials christen new county park in a rural but fast-growing corner of Spokane County
A complicated funding tool helps a West Central business make public investments

‘We know the shortfall will be significant’: Ferguson warns of budget cuts

Trump formally nominates Blanche to be attorney general

Kootenai County GOP elects former Post Falls mayor as chairman, ending Brent Regan’s tenure in effort to halt infighting

Ferris seniors place second in world in environmental science competition for research on smoke and agriculture

Reorganization stirs controversy as pressures on higher education close in on Gonzaga University

Updated 10:43 a.m.

Getting There: Construction and closures on Maple Street Bridge, South Walnut Street and Greene Street Bridge

Sailor in custody after fatal shooting aboard John F. Kennedy aircraft carrier

Latest Stories

News > Federal Government

Trump administration urges judge to reject bid to block White House UFC event

UPDATED: Tue., June 9, 2026

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump's administration asked a judge on Tuesday to reject an effort to halt an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on the White House lawn this weekend, arguing that the event was lawful and the challengers had waited too long to sue.

News > Local Government

Spokane County joins its largest city in considering public safety sales tax to aid ailing finances

UPDATED: Wed., June 10, 2026

Spokane County leaders say they’re crossing their T’s and dotting their I’s to try and fill a deficit closing in on $30 million, according to the latest estimates.

News > Federal Government

GOP immigration funding bill clears House, heads to Trump

UPDATED: Tue., June 9, 2026

WASHINGTON — House Republicans cleared a $70 billion reconciliation package Tuesday to fund immigration enforcement agencies for the rest of President Donald Trump’s term. On a party-line vote of 214-212, the House cleared the reconciliation bill that the Senate passed last week. Independent Kevin Kiley of California, who caucuses with the Republicans, voted no. Final passage of the measure ...

News > Federal Government

Justice Department seeks to strip U.S. citizenship from convicted Feeding Our Future fraudster, 16 others

UPDATED: Tue., June 9, 2026

MINNEAPOLIS — The federal government announced it is seeking to strip U.S. citizenship from 17 foreign-born residents accused of serious offenses, among them a Minnesotan charged in the Feeding Our Future fraud scandal. The U.S. Department of Justice said on Monday that the Immigration and Nationality Act allows for naturalized citizenship to be revoked if that status was illegally acquired by ...

News > Federal Government

U.S. intelligence employees brace for cuts under new director

UPDATED: Tue., June 9, 2026

NEW YORK – Staff at the office of the top U.S. spy have been told by managers to expect extensive cuts in the coming months following comments by President Donald Trump that he wants the new interim director to shrink the agency’s ranks, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters.

News > WA Government

Gov. Ferguson backs statewide ban on cellphone use during school day

UPDATED: Wed., June 10, 2026

SPOKANE – Gov. Bob Ferguson said Tuesday one of his “top priorities” in the next legislative session will be a statewide ban on K-12 students using their cellphones during school hours.

News > WA Government

‘We know the shortfall will be significant’: Ferguson warns of budget cuts

UPDATED: Mon., June 8, 2026

OLYMPIA – The state will again face “significant budget shortfalls” during the upcoming legislative session, according to a memo released by Gov. Bob Ferguson’s office.

News > Local Government

Spokane County Commission to consider public safety sales tax that wouldn’t need voter approval

UPDATED: Mon., June 8, 2026

Spokane County leaders will consider boosting the sales tax to help fund criminal justice efforts as budgetary woes deepen.

News > Federal Government

Trump formally nominates Blanche to be attorney general

UPDATED: Mon., June 8, 2026

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday formally nominated Todd Blanche to serve as attorney general, moving to install his former personal lawyer as the top U.S. law enforcement official.

News > Local Government

Local fire departments, law enforcement spending soars amid high diesel prices

UPDATED: Mon., June 8, 2026

Local fire departments preparing for wildfire season are getting clobbered by diesel fuel prices.

News > Federal Government

Lawsuit seeks to shut down UFC White House event

UPDATED: Sun., June 7, 2026

A week ahead of an event the promotion says is not political and not transactional, an effort is being made to shut down UFC Freedom 250. A lawsuit has been filed by, in part, a military veteran from Virginia that says the UFC's show at the White House is "deeply corrupt," ⁠in part because Donald Trump is giving his friend, UFC CEO Dana ‌White, and the UFC "unfettered access to the White House and Lincoln Memorial to stage a private, for-profit sports event, with all the promotional and branding opportunities that accompany such access."

News > Federal Government

U.S. Supreme Court poised to rule on gun laws and transgender athletes

UPDATED: Sun., June 7, 2026

WASHINGTON – Disputes involving President Donald Trump's policies on tariffs, immigration and firing regulatory officials have drawn a lot of attention during the Supreme Court's current term, but the justices also are poised to decide major cases concerning U.S. "culture wars" issues such as guns and transgender athletes.

News > Local Government

Rob, Rob and Bob face off for Valley state House seat

UPDATED: Tue., June 9, 2026

Three Roberts are vying for a seat in the state House of Representatives to represent Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake.

News > Federal Government

Trump looms large as 11 candidates vie to replace Dan Newhouse in central WA’s 4th Congressional District

UPDATED: Mon., June 8, 2026

MOSES LAKE – For the first time in a dozen years, Rep. Dan Newhouse won’t be on the ballot when voters in central Washington cast their votes in November to choose who will represent the state’s 4th Congressional District.

News > Federal Government

U.S. eyes Iranian assets for Gulf allies’ reconstruction, source says

UPDATED: Sat., June 6, 2026

WASHINGTON – The U.S. government will attempt to redirect Iranian assets to Gulf states for rebuilding and repairs of future damage caused by Iran, a source familiar with the matter said on Saturday, a day after a wave of attacks by Iran against Kuwait and Bahrain.

News > Federal Government

Judge halts Trump SNAP funding restrictions in lawsuit by 20 states

UPDATED: Sat., June 6, 2026

A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from enforcing new conditions on billions of dollars in federal nutrition funding, siding with a coalition of Democratic-led states that argued the requirements threatened programs serving low-income families. U.S. District Judge Myong Joun granted a preliminary injunction sought by 20 states and the District of Columbia, temporarily halting the U.S. Department of Agriculture's effort to tie funding to compliance with a range of federal policy priorities, according to ⁠reports from AP News, Newsweek and Reuters.

News > Federal Government

Trump pardons former GOP congressman convicted of insider trading

UPDATED: Sat., June 6, 2026

President Donald Trump has issued a full pardon for Steve Buyer, a former Indiana Republican congressman who was convicted of insider trading in 2023, following appeals from Republicans who claimed he was the target of a politically weaponized justice system.

News > Federal Government

Top Trump artificial intelligence adviser to leave the White House

UPDATED: Sat., June 6, 2026

A tech investor who shaped the Trump administration’s pro-industry artificial intelligence policies will depart the White House at the end of the month. Sriram Krishnan has informed administration officials that he plans to leave his post as the White House senior policy adviser for AI to start an outside institution that will influence technology policy, according to a person familiar with his plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the private discussions.

News > Federal Government

FISA reauthorization stalls in early-morning Senate vote

UPDATED: Fri., June 5, 2026

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans early Friday could not muster enough votes to move forward on a long-term reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, leaving the key surveillance power, which expires next week, in limbo as both chambers leave the Capitol for the weekend. The Senate voted 47-52 on the motion to proceed to the measure, with a bipartisan cohort ...

News > Federal Government

Hegseth directs DOD to drop hundreds of faiths from recognized religion list

UPDATED: Sat., June 6, 2026

The Department of Defense moved this week to dramatically reduce the number of recognized religions, faiths and belief systems from more than 200 all the way to 31. The move was announced to troops in a memo signed by Anthony Tata, under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness of the United States, and shared with USA Today by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF).

Older ›