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…
On Wednesday, the 38th day of what has now become the longest teacher's strike in state history, Gov. Gary Locke jumped into the fray."It is unacceptable that this strike has continued for so long," the governor said, after meeting privately with both the Marysville school…
Gov. Gary Locke has a new chief of staff, and he's no stranger. It's Tom Fitzsimmons, who has been the head of the state Department of Ecology since 1997. Fitzsimmons starts his new post Oct. 1.Fitzsimmons will be paid $130,668 a year, the same as…
"Until the 13th century, priests were beheaded for this."-former Spokane County prosecutor Don Brockett, urging lawmakers to remove the statute of limitations for child abuse cases.
Republicans in the state House of Representatives have elected Rep. Richard DeBolt, a Republican from the rural Western Washington town of Chehalis, as the top GOP lawmaker in the House.DeBolt will take the reins from Rep. Cathy McMorris, R-Colville, who's giving up the leadership position…
The state's campaign-finance watchdog, the Public Disclosure Commission, has just issued its annual "Fact Book" for the last election cycle: 2002.The book is mainly a profile of state legislative races, including who gave how much cash to whom. It also includes information on political committee…
U.S. Rep. George Nethercutt, a Republican, said Wednesday that he's going to try to unseat Democratic Sen. Patty Murray.The state Democratic Party promptly blasted Nethercutt with both barrels, unleashing a four-page press release that described Nethercutt as opposing everything from homeland security to school lunches…
Spokane-raised Ron Sims, who has been King County Executive for the past seven years, announced Tuesday that he's running for governor.Announcing his candidacy on a Seattle pier, Sims touted his Eastern Washington roots, and promised to work hard to improve the economy throughout the entire…
Saying that being a good husband and father is more important to him than being governor, Gary Locke said Monday morning that he will not run for re-election next year."After much thought and careful deliberation with my family, I have decided not to seek a…
Foes of new state rules about workplace repetitive-motion injuries on Tuesday took a big step toward overturning those rules. They delivered roughly 260,000 signatures to the state Secretary of State's office. That's more than enough, if validated by spot checks, to give voters a chance…
Several transportation taxes are increasing Tuesday, but a price increase in liquor won't take effect until September. (It's not a tax, it's a price increase, straightfaced lawmakers maintain. Also: It's not liquor, it's "spirits.")The price will go up 42 cents a liter.
Gov. Gary Locke on Thursday signed the state's controversial two-year, $23 billion budget into law. He used his veto pen to restore about $20 million in spending that lawmakers had wanted to cut. Among the saves: -About $20 million in administrative cuts to state agencies,…
Conspicuously absent in the Legislature's waning days is Senate Majority Leader Jim West. The Spokane Republican is home, undergoing chemotherapy treatments in Coeur d'Alene for the colon cancer that doctors discovered about a month ago. He's not expected back before the Legislature wraps things up…
You might not know it from the empty parking lots (and empty restaurants) around the capitol, but the state Legislature is technically in session.In reality, only a handful of budget negotiators are actually here. They're doing the same thing they've been doing for weeks: batting…
Remember that apartment deposit you never got back? Or that Christmas Club bank account you never tapped?Thousands of people have unclaimed property -- uncashed paychecks, dormant bank accounts, forgotten safe deposit boxes -- that's been left in the hands of the state Department of Revenue.The…
Some prison inmates will be released early, under a bill signed into law recently by Gov. Gary Locke.Senate Bill 5990 will save taxpayers about $50 million -- and will toughen some penalties for the most violent criminals."It turned out to be good policy while saving…
The union representing 26,000 state-paid home health aides said Tuesday that lawmakers are at an impasse over whether to approve the $97 million contract, and so are rejecting it. Lawmakers want the workers and their union, Service Employees International Union, to return to the bargaining…
Lawmakers have voted to repeal much of the three-year-old ban on body-gripping traps. The bill's now sitting on the desk of Gov. Gary Locke, awaiting his signature -- or his veto. A spokeswoman said the governor's office is still researching the bill.The most effective lobbyists…
On Wednesday, Gov. Gary Locke signed into law a bill granting some tax exemptions for construction and equipment used to make bio-diesel, a much more environmentally-friendly form of diesel fuel that's made from crops like rapeseed. Proponents want to build a manufacturing plant in Spokane…
Short takes and breaking news from the Washington Legislature and the state capital.
