Monday, May 6

Rep. Greg Nance: From Kitsap, with best wishes for success, some tips for the new ferries chief
Steve Nevey, congratulations on your appointment as assistant secretary for Washington State Ferries. You take the helm of our iconic ferry fleet amid significant headwinds. You’ve inherited a tough job, as every canceled sailing causes hardship with neighbors missing work, missing school and missing medical care. There is good news: The WSF crew cares deeply and is working around the clock to restore reliability. Ferry riders also care deeply and have ideas to help us improve. The Legislature is making bipartisan investments in our maritime workforce and ferry fleet. Continue reading at The Seattle Times. (Erika Schultz)

---

‘It’s hard not to give up.’ The homeless scatter across Washington state as cities ban them from public spaces
In the past year, at least five Washington cities and two counties responded to increased homeless populations with camping bans. Smaller Washington cities like Clarkston are increasingly confronting the housing crisis more commonly associated with densely populated, urban areas. That could be a preview of what’s to come, not just in Washington but nationwide, following a U.S. Supreme Court decision expected in June. Justices are considering whether to overturn lower-court rulings in Oregon and Idaho that protect homeless people from being ticketed, charged, or arrested for sleeping on public property when there is no shelter available. Continue reading at KUOW. (InvestigateWest)

---

Her best friend died after getting kicked out of treatment. She passed a law to address ejections
It’s a rainy, grey winter morning, and Representative Lauren Davis is trying to get into her parking spot at the state capitol, while also attending a Zoom meeting on drug policy. It’s day one of the 2024 Washington legislative session, which leadership have declared will be focused heavily on fentanyl. Preliminary reports from 2023 show drug deaths are rising faster in Oregon and Washington than anywhere in the country. Davis is one of the many Washingtonians who lost someone fighting addiction last year: Her best friend, Ricky Klausmeyer-Garcia. Continue reading at KNKX. (Jennifer Wing)

---

Aberdeen Daily World
Most mountain goats died after airlift from Olympics

Capital Press
Tax shift unexamined as Washington reviews wind project

Columbian
Clark County’s drug court is quiet in wake of Blake Decision, say officials
Elderly Clark County residents are more likely to be financially exploited by relatives
These cities raised taxes — for child care. Parents say the free day care ‘changed my life’
Center for Biological Diversity hopes to protect Washington’s Ashy pebblesnail and shortface lanx
Child care staff often make less money than retail workers. That’s causing staff shortages and long waitlists at daycares

News Tribune
Puyallup developer will pay thousands to settle water quality violations in Gig Harbor

Seattle Times
Seattle has 25 new curbside chargers for EVs, with more on the way
PSE may turn off power in parts of WA to prevent wildfires this year
WA State Patrol fined $750,000 for failing to disclose public records after crash
Editorial: SPD’s defensive tone in face of allegations makes need for review clear
Opinion: Housing First is our best tool among many to combat homelessness
Rep. Greg Nance:  From Kitsap, with best wishes for success, some tips for the new ferries chief

Walla Walla Union Bulletin
Dixie school levy approved in final special election results
Bree Black Horse formally sworn in to prosecute MMIP cases in federal court

Washington Post
How EVs became so polarized
Chemo can be brutal. This FDA effort aims to make it less so.
DEI is getting a new name. Can it dump the political baggage?
Ultrasound technology is used in many ways. Addiction is the next frontier.

KING 5 TV (NBC)
Seattle couple honors son’s memory by helping youth battling mental illness
What the reclassification of marijuana means for Washington’s cannabis industry
Boeing firefighters picket outside of Renton facility after company locks them out amid contract negotiations

KIRO 7 TV (CBS)
Wildfire concerns prompt Washington National Guard to step up
As US spotlights those missing or dead in Native communities, prosecutors work to solve their cases

KNKX Public Radio
Coal transition: Raising fish and a workforce with an economic development grant
Her best friend died after getting kicked out of treatment. She passed a law to address ejections (Davis)

KUOW Public Radio
The ‘Better FAFSA’ was not, but the University of Washington says it’s getting there
AI should be used in class, not feared. That’s the message of these Seattle area teachers
‘It’s hard not to give up.’ The homeless scatter across Washington state as cities ban them from public spaces
Drug use in Washington state is changing. More people are smoking and when they look for help, it’s hard to find

KXLY (ABC)
Moses Lake police officer and suspect shot, both injured

Cascadia Daily News
Lummi Nation accuses fire district EMS of inadequate emergency services

MyNorthwest
Recent utility vandalism impacts residents in Kitsap, King counties

Waterland Blog
Sen. Karen Keiser honored, legislative and City Manager recruitment updates at Thursday night’s Des Moines City Council (Keiser)

West Seattle Blog
‘Give Them Space’: How boaters can help Southern Resident Killer Whales this season, even before new law takes effect