It sounds so simple. Unemployment is up, state revenues are down. The Legislature is looking for new revenue to avoid another round of devastating cuts.
While I agree on the need to repair and, in some cases, replace levees along the Green River, I want to expand on the issue to discuss proper mitigation work that is needed on many rivers in King County.
You can hear the frustration in their voices, see the concern on their faces.
We revel in citizen initiatives and referendums that ignite debate and give balance to what does or doesn’t happen in Olympia.
Moments after taking office, in his inaugural address to the people of the United States and the world, President Barack Obama called for a new era of cooperation, solemnly proclaiming “an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.”
Boeing engineering manager by day, poet by night, that’s Dan DeVries.
Olympia is full of ideas about jobs. But some ideas are better than others.
As young as 3 and as old as 17, she was caught in the agony and despair of an ugly, dysfunctional home life. Her stepfather, and later a boyfriend, savagely, repeatedly, beat and abused her.
U.S. House and Senate Democrats have passed two sweeping 2,000 page bills that would fundamentally and dramatically change our health care. There are significant differences between the two bills, but the more moderate Senate bill has the best chance of passing through the conference committee and being signed by the President. Both bills passed on a strict party-line vote, with essentially no support from minority Republicans.
To add insult to injury to working America, in came the earnings reports from Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase. At these mega banks, balance sheets are healthy, profits are up and bonuses for top executives are bigger than ever. JPMorgan Chase just reported $11.7 billion in profits and $26.9 billion in compensation and bonuses. Goldman Sachs made a record-high profit of $13.4 billion in 2009 and is slated to hand out $16.2 billion in compensation and bonuses.
More than 320,000 people in Washington are out of work, the highest unemployment in our state in more than two decades. In November, nearly 6,500 people filed for unemployment benefits within the 31st Legislative District. To put that in perspective, that’s far more people unemployed in the district than the entire city of Buckley.
Last session, Senate Bill 5808 was passed and signed into law. It created an additional way for counties and cities…
Last year, in our tough economy, many of us asked for necessities and basics as holiday gifts. Among the gifts that would mean the most to families is the passage of the Healthy Families Act, introduced by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, along with Rep. Rosa DeLauro, in the 111th Congress this past May.
Rain poured relentlessly as Cyndi and Bruce Fields gazed out the window of their dark and empty restaurant. Some lunch-pursuing…
The Washington state Legislature convenes Monday. Its members face a daunting task the state’s projected deficit is $2.6 billion.
