Backing away from an earlier proposal to cut millions of dollars from the state's public-school system, anti-tax activist Tim Eyman is instead launching an initiative to cut $550 million from local property taxes."It's a bigger tax reduction than the original proposal," Eyman said. "People are…
New Olympia words, none of which exist, according to our copy of the American Heritage Dictionary:-"Defund," which recently appeared in a press release from Citizens for Parks and Recreation. The group gets extra points, however, for managing to use the word as both a verb…
Starting Jan. 1, state tax officials will consider bottled water to be food, and will therefore stop taxing it.The change is among several tax revisions as Washington and 40 other states try to streamline and simplify their sales tax rules.Simplicity, however, ain't so simple. Among…
State Sen. Dino Rossi, R-Samammish, announced Friday that he's quitting his Senate seat in order to focus on his run for governor. But it's not just a matter of having more time to prep for debates.By quitting, Rossi avoids a state campaign-finance law that bans…
"I for one am pretty happy to see him go, because when he's gone, we're going to get a new junior senator and I will no longer be the rookie." Sen. Dale Brandland, R-Bellingham
State lawmakers have killed next March's presidential primary, but what was expected to be a quick, mild-mannered vote turned into an 11th-hour fight in the state Senate.Most lawmakers -- Democrats and Republicans both -- voted to cancel the primary, since the national Democratic Party doesn't…
Spokane's not alone in its worries about cross-border competition for business. Oregon retailers are advertising in Olympia, urging Washingtonians to make the two-hour drive to Portland, where there is no sales tax. "Shop Portland: tax-free, every day," read the ads.Washington's firing back, touting its multi-state,…
Two more candidates for attorney general threw their hats in the ring this week. King County Councilman Rob McKenna and Issaquah "Super Lawyer" Mike Vaska, both Republicans, announced their candidacies this week. They face two well-known Democrats: former state insurance commissioner Deborah Senn and former…
Short takes and breaking news from the Washington Legislature and the state capital.
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