Becky Kramer

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News >  Business

Avista’s electric rates too high, AG says

Fri., March 18, 2016

Avista Utilities’ latest rate case is being challenged by the Washington Attorney General’s Office, which says electric customers are paying too much and the utility’s shareholders are reaping “a windfall.”

News >  Spokane

Teens often ignore dental health

Fri., March 18, 2016

The teen years are hard on teeth. Frequent snacking, sugary lattes and energy drinks take their toll on the enamel of adolescent teeth, whose owners may not be diligent about brushing and flossing.

News >  Spokane

Suicide conference highlights Washington bill creating awareness training for gun dealers

UPDATED: Sat., March 12, 2016

The Zero Suicide conference brought together about 500 health care professionals, law enforcement officers, people who have lost family members to suicide and others to talk about prevention in Spokane Friday.

News >  Spokane

Chesrown’s former ranch could be returned to wetlands in proposed land swap

Wed., March 9, 2016

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game wants to acquire a 1,000-acre ranch along the Coeur d’Alene River through a land swap. The ranch has high wildlife habitat and recreation values, officials say.

News >  Spokane

Tundra swan protection project underway near Rose Lake

Wed., March 9, 2016

A pilot project currently underway south of Rose Lake, Idaho, could help protect tundra swans from future lead poisoning from historic mining waste.

News >  Spokane

Avista could end $3.50 fee for paying bill using plastic

Fri., March 4, 2016

Avista Utilities is proposing to eliminate a $3.50 transaction charge on debit and credit card payments, which cumulatively cost residential customers hundreds of thousands of dollars per year.

News >  Spokane

Avista CEO’s pay fell in 2015

Fri., March 4, 2016

Scott Morris, Avista’s chairman and chief executive, earned $3.6 million in total compensation last year.

News >  Spokane

Groups petition for higher summer flows in Spokane River

Tue., March 1, 2016

State officials must do more to protect summer flows in the Spokane River, which will face increased challenges from climate change and population growth in years to come, environmental groups said Tuesday

News >  Idaho

Man sentenced for shooting dog he mistook for wolf

Fri., Feb. 26, 2016

A Bonners Ferry man who shot two dogs on a Forest Service Road last year after his dad allegedly told him to “shoot the wolf” was sentenced to two years probation and ordered to pay $1,275 in fines and restitution.

News >  Spokane

Windstorm damages add up for Avista

Wed., Feb. 24, 2016

Last November’s gale-force windstorm did nearly $23 million in damage to Avista’s electric distribution system.

News >  Spokane

Idaho sees new wave of hunters and anglers in millennials

Tue., Feb. 23, 2016

As they work to recruit the next generation of hunters and anglers, Idaho officials are targeting food-conscious millennials who want to know where the steak they’re grilling comes from.

News >  Spokane

Avista seeking rate hikes for Washington customers in 2017 and 2018

Fri., Feb. 19, 2016

Avista is asking for permission to raise electric and natural gas rates for its Washington customers beginning in 2017, citing rising capital costs, which include a portion of the repairs from last November’s windstorm.

News >  Spokane

New state rule requires railroads to prove ability to pay for spills

Fri., Feb. 19, 2016

Railroads that ship crude oil through Washington will soon begin reporting information about their financial ability to pay for cleanup costs in the event of a spill or derailment.

News >  Spokane

Wolf kills do lower livestock attacks, UW study says, in contradiction to WSU report

Tue., Feb. 16, 2016

Does killing wolves that attack sheep and cattle reduce livestock deaths over the long-run? That’s an issue of scientific debate, with a new study recently published by University of Washington researchers.

News >  Spokane

Local kidney patients see hospital options dwindle

Mon., Feb. 15, 2016

Kidney patients say they feel like pawns in a power struggle between Spokane’s two competing hospital systems, which have been buying up clinics in recent years.

News >  Spokane

Sacred Heart will build 100-bed psychiatric hospital

Tue., Feb. 9, 2016

Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital has received state approval to build a 100-bed psychiatric hospital in Spokane.

News >  Idaho

Jet boat races could expand to four regional rivers in May

Mon., Feb. 8, 2016

Jet boats could race up the Coeur d’Alene River in May as part of a four-river jet boat championship.

News >  Spokane

Mid-winter snowpack is near normal for the region, surveys indicate

Thu., Feb. 4, 2016

The region’s mid-winter snow pack is near normal. If the snowpack continues to grow through April 1, the Northwest will return to normal water conditions this summer.

News >  Business

Deaconess to open stand-alone ER in north Spokane

Tue., Feb. 2, 2016

Deaconess Hospital is opening a standalone emergency department on Division Street to serve patients in the rapidly growing North Spokane cooridor.

News >  Spokane

Pronghorn reintroduced to north-central Washington

Mon., Feb. 1, 2016

The Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation has released 52 pronghorn to the southwest corner of the reservation. Pronghorn were native to central Washington, but were hunted to extinction by the early 1900s.

News >  Spokane

Spokane’s Waste-to-Energy Plant under scrutiny for greenhouse gas emissions

Mon., Jan. 25, 2016

Spokane’s waste-to-energy plants ranks among Washington’s top emitters of greenhouse gases, releasing about 105,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.

News >  Idaho

North Idaho gun holster manufacturer Tedder Industries buying Post Falls outlet mall

Fri., Jan. 22, 2016

Tedder Industries, a North Idaho gun holster manufacturer, has purchased the outlet mall in Post Falls.

News >  Spokane

Fish hatchery suspected as a source of PCBs in the Spokane River

Wed., Jan. 20, 2016

A state-owned hatchery on the Little Spokane River uses fish food containing cancer-causing PCBs, and its wastewater should monitored as a pollution source, river advocates say.

News >  Spokane

Health district chief’s move to Providence an indirect result of Affordable Care Act

Tue., Jan. 19, 2016

Dr. Joel McCullough’s new job at Providence Health Care is an indirect result of the Affordable Care Act, with some focus on public health a requirement for hospitals to keep their nonprofit status and with money that hospitals used to use on charity care available for other purposes.

News >  Spokane

Proposed oil terminal brings only risk for Spokane, critics say

Thu., Jan. 14, 2016

Building a crude oil terminal in Vancouver, Washington, puts Spokane and other communities at risk from increased oil train traffic, without offering any local economic benefits, opponents of the project told state officials Thursday night.