Stories by Mitchell Roland for the Spokesman-Review

News > WA Government

Budget, voter initiatives and artificial intelligence: Lawmakers ready for upcoming legislative session

UPDATED: Mon., Jan. 12, 2026

OLYMPIA – When the Legislature gavels into session at noon Monday, lawmakers will have 60 days to address the most pressing issues facing the state.

News > WA Government

Proposal to gerrymander Washington congressional maps has little chance in upcoming legislative session

Sun., Jan. 11, 2026

Amid a nationwide battle to redraw congressional districts to make them more politically beneficial, a top Democrat in the state Legislature has proposed an amendment to the state constitution that could allow Washington to join the fight.

News > Sci/Tech

Washington state officials vastly overstated emission reductions from climate law due to ‘data entry error’

UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 7, 2026

The Washington Department of Commerce vastly overstated the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that would be reduced by eight rebate projects funded by state pollution fees in a report published last year, the agency acknowledged Tuesday.

News > Health

Federal appeals court blocks plan that would cut $120 million in federal research funding in WA

UPDATED: Tue., Jan. 6, 2026

A three-judge federal panel has again blocked a Trump administration directive to cut research funding for public universities and research centers nationwide, a plan both the University of Washington and Washington State University have said would deeply impact their programs and likely result in layoffs.

News > WA Government

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson backs an income tax. Will it finally gain traction 94 years after voters once backed it?

Sun., Jan. 4, 2026

OLYMPIA – Ahead of the November 1932 election, organizers in Washington gathered enough signatures to place an initiative on the ballot asking whether the state should adopt a graduated tax on personal and business income to fund schools and other government programs. If approved, the plan called for the state’s property tax to be cut as a way to balance the state’s tax code.

News > WA Government

Gov. Ferguson requests nearly $5 million in budget proposal for federal litigation

UPDATED: Thu., Jan. 1, 2026

Gov. Bob Ferguson’s proposed budget includes nearly $5 million in funding to pay for the state’s lawsuits against the Trump administration.

News > WA Government

Gov. Ferguson requests $11 million for design of new Spokane Veterans home

UPDATED: Mon., Dec. 29, 2025

Gov. Bob Ferguson has requested $11 million from the Legislature for the design and preconstruction of a new 120-bed veterans home in Spokane.

News > WA Government

Governor proposes $13 million in Capitol security improvements following October break in

Fri., Dec. 26, 2025

Gov. Bob Ferguson proposed spending nearly $13 million to enhance security at the Capitol campus following an October break-in.

News > WA Government

Governor proposes $800 million in cuts as part of budget proposal

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 24, 2025

OLYMPIA – Gov. Bob Ferguson has proposed closing the state’s $2.3 billion budget shortfall through a combination of cost-cutting measures.

News > WA Government

Ferguson expresses support for income tax on millionaires in Washington

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 24, 2025

OLYMPIA – Gov. Bob Ferguson said Tuesday he supports a state income tax on those who make more than $1 million a year. The proposal, he said, would be tied to reducing sales taxes on baby and hygiene items, expanding the working families tax credit, increasing K-12 school funding, and lowering the key tax rate for small businesses.

News > WA Government

Sponsor of only bill vetoed by governor frustrated by lack of inclusion in housing task force

UPDATED: Mon., Dec. 22, 2025

The sponsor of the only bill fully vetoed by Gov. Bob Ferguson during his first legislative session said that the governor’s creation of a housing task force last week was “a slap in the face.”

News > WA Government

Ferguson proposes $2.1 billion ‘first step’ to improve aging, neglected infrastructure

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 19, 2025

The work to restore and repair roads may not be “the sexiest thing” when compared to the allure of the ribbon cutting to open a new project, Gov. Bob Ferguson said Friday.

News > WA Government

Gov. Ferguson unveils $244M affordable housing plan

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 18, 2025

Faced with what he described as a “crisis,” Gov. Bob Ferguson has proposed spending $244 million on housing investments across the state.

News > WA Government

Trump Administration orders last coal power plant in WA to remain open

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 17, 2025

The Department of Energy announced Wednesday it has issued an emergency order directing the continued operation of the last coal power plant in the state, delaying longtime plans to shutter its current operations.

News > WA Government

Sen. Murray says move to keep Serrano as top federal prosecutor ‘sets a dangerous precedent’

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 17, 2025

Former Pasco Mayor and candidate for state attorney general Pete Serrano will continue to serve as the top federal prosecutor in Eastern Washington through a workaround that the Department of Justice announced Monday.

News > WA Government

As federal government adopts ‘Trump Accounts,’ WA treasurer promotes similar program

Sun., Dec. 14, 2025

OLYMPIA – The recently passed “One Big Beautiful Bill” established a program designed to give children a leg up when they reach adulthood. It’s an idea similar to one that’s been proposed across the country, including in Washington, but has found limited support.

News > WA Government

As cost of grocery bags rises to 12 cents, WSU study finds bag fee is creating more plastic waste even as number of bags plummets

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 11, 2025

When getting her groceries, Lisa Villella almost always forgets her reusable bags at home.

News > WA Government

‘We just should not ever allow it to happen again’: Bill would make it harder to release serial rapists

UPDATED: Tue., Dec. 9, 2025

OLYMPIA – A new bill spurred by the recent release of Kevin Coe proposed ahead of the upcoming legislative session would make it harder for serial rapists to be released from civil commitment.

News > WA Government

As Ferguson says he’s focused on cuts over tax hikes, some Democrats say cuts would be too deep

Mon., Dec. 8, 2025

OLYMPIA – About five weeks before lawmakers return to Olympia for the 2026 session, the state’s budget deficit remains top of mind.

News > WA Government

State treasurer to again push for financial education requirement for high schoolers

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 4, 2025

OLYMPIA – While State Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti has been in office, he has spoken to thousands of people across the state. Not one, Pellicciotti said Thursday, has told him they feel adequately versed in financial education or financial literacy.

News > Crime/Public Safety

Kevin Coe, known as ‘South Hill rapist,’ dies

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 3, 2025

The man known as the “South Hill rapist,” who stoked fear throughout Spokane starting in the late 1970s, has died, a spokesperson for the Federal Way mayor’s office confirmed Wednesday.

News > WA Government

DOJ sues WA secretary of state to demand voter data

UPDATED: Wed., Dec. 3, 2025

The Trump administration has filed a federal lawsuit against Secretary of State Steve Hobbs to compel the state to turn over information about Washington voters, including names, dates of birth, addresses and either a driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number as part of the White House’s crackdown on electoral systems around the country.

News > WA Government

Attorneys general in Washington and Idaho object to latest attempt to ban state AI laws

Fri., Nov. 28, 2025

A bipartisan group of attorneys general – including Nick Brown of Washington and Raul Labrador of Idaho – is again pushing to stop a federal ban on states regulating artificial intelligence.

News > WA Government

Washington AG sues over cuts and new conditions to permanent housing program

UPDATED: Tue., Nov. 25, 2025

Recent changes to how grants are awarded through a federal housing program are illegal and will limit Washingtonians’ access to long-term housing and other services, state Attorney General Nick Brown alleged in a multistate lawsuit filed Tuesday.

News > WA Government

Spokane native Colleen Melody selected for state Supreme Court

UPDATED: Mon., Nov. 24, 2025

OLYMPIA – Colleen Melody, a Spokane native and graduate of Ferris High School, will fill an upcoming opening on the Washington Supreme Court, Gov. Bob Ferguson announced Monday.

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