SR.com Blogs | Eye on Olympia

And they're in...

I-1029 has turned in nearly 317,000 signatures, according to campaign manager Jeff Parsons. ( Full post )

I-1029's starting to look like a nail-biter...

After planning to submit their signatures an hour ago -- and with today's 5 p.m. deadline looming -- proponents of I-1029 are reportedly working their way south on an Interstate 5 crowded with holiday traffic. ( Full post )

SEIU's Initiative 1029: Uh-oh...

In 50 minutes, proponents of Initiative 1029 are scheduled to deliver thousands of petitions to the Secretary of State's office in Olympia. Presumably, they'll have enough signatures to get the measure -- which would mandate more training and background checks for some health workers -- on the ballot. ( Full post )

Supremes to prisoner: You have the right to see that public record...AFTER you get out of prison...

Interesting ruling out of the state Supreme Court this morning. ( Full post )

Eyman: "We're the Rodney Dangerfields of politics..."

Controversial initiative pitchman Tim Eyman, whose been booted from meetings and once got pied in the face by political opponents, this week faced a new challenge: the lawnmower man. ( Full post )

With I-1000 filing, Washington steps to center stage on assisted suicide debate...

From this morning's paper: ( Full post )

BIAW shifting ad strategy to TV...

Gov. Chris Gregoire's campaign says that the Building Industry Association of Washington, fresh from a month of radio ads, appears poised to launch new anti-Gregoire ads on TV. The group's been checking media-buy records at TV stations. ( Full post )

I-985's apparently made it...

( Full post )

Some Democrats taking aim at Seattle's ban on guns on city property?

Half a dozen Democratic state lawmakers -- all of them from districts with large rural areas -- today called on the state's attorney general to weigh in on whether a city can ban otherwise-legal firearms from city property. ( Full post )

What is the GOP Party?

That's what the latest Elway Poll asked hundreds of registered voters in Washington recently. ( Full post )

California (cars), here we come...

Starting with the 2009 model year, new cars sold in Washington must meet strict California emission standards. Buy a car that doesn't and you're in for a shock: You won't be able to register it in Washington. ( Full post )

Roundup...

-Joe Turner reports that this week, thousands of Washingtonians are about to lose Medicaid coverage because they can't show proof that they're U.S. citizens. ( Full post )

Teachers' union, Semler endorse Dorn...

Not a lot of suspense on this one, but the Washington Education Association has endorsed Randy Dorn, a (different) union official running to oust state Superintendent of Public Instruction Terry Bergeson. ( Full post )

Meanwhile, Pierce County presses ahead with Instant Runoff Voting...

The new Top Two primary isn't the only big change in elections going on out there. ( Full post )

With smoking rates still high among low-income folks, Medicaid in WA to cover nicotine patches, etc.

Starting this week, Washington smokers covered by Medicaid can get more help quitting, including things like nicotine-replacement patches or gum. ( Full post )

Insurer-backed poll: Hey, how about a tougher cell-phone ban?

More... ( Full post )

TVW: new Inside Olympa host...

Teen jobs available, but fewer looking, state says

Let's see what's in the e-mail in-box, shall we? ( Full post )

Democratic Party ad draws ire of Italian-American group...

In a new twist on the governor's race, a decades-old Seattle Italian-American club on Wednesday blasted the state Democratic Party for using the Sopranos TV theme song as the backdrop to a recent video critical of Republican Dino Rossi. ( Full post )

Gregoire counters with new ad...

In a new ad that seems designed to counter the Building Industry Association of Washington's radio spots painting the Gov. Chris Gregoire as soft on sex offenders, Gregoire's campaign is now running an ad that blasts opponent Dino Rossi on the issue. ( Full post )