Last week Republican state Senator Doug Ericksen won a victory for Big Oil when the legislature passed, and the governor signed, SB 5296, which weakened the Model Toxics Control Act. The legislation was the result of a deal between the state House and Senate in which the Senate agreed to pass a fix to the…

Sometimes it just makes sense to sit back, look around, and be thankful we live in the state of Washington. The Cascades and the Olympics frame the sky, the air is clear, cool and invigorating, and the days are long and gentle. Last week I drove across the state. The I-90 corridor was brilliant with trees…

By Beau Morton of the Transit Rider’s Union As transit riders, it can be hard to look beyond the particular stops and routes that we use most often to the larger transit issues in our state. Time and again riders have shown the willingness and ability to rally around service restructures and save those most-used routes…

he fourteen tax breaks proposed by the state Senate – despite a revenue shortfall and $1 billion funding deficit in K-12 education – beg the question: can we really afford this? Some loopholes have their place, but as the state legislature tries to put together a budget that preserves essential state services with limited resources,…

Late last night, legislators came to an eleventh hour agreement to choose Washington kids over multimillionaires. By fixing Washington state’s estate tax, lawmakers have prevented the loss of nearly $160 million in resources that go to educating children. Closing the estate tax loophole is a good place to start, but much more still has to…

I read an excellent article in The Nation by Eric Alterman, “Cuomo v.s. Cuomo.” Alterman describes how Andrew Cuomo (current governor of NY and son of former governor Mario Cuomo) is socially liberal and, unlike his father, economically conservative. Andrew Cuomo passed gun control and gay marriage. But he’s extremely anti-tax. He cut taxes and…

We banned the box! On June 10th, Seattle City Council voted unanimously to pass the Jobs Assistance Ordinance. With it’s passage, employers in Seattle can no longer ask about criminal history on a job application or reference criminal history in advertising. This law will give thousands of people with a criminal record a second chance…

From Finnish Lessons, by Oassu Salberg: “The Finnish experience shows that consistent focus on equity and cooperation — not choice and competition — can lead to an education system where all children learn well. Paying teachers based on students’ test scores or converting public schools into private ones (through charters or other means) are ideas…

[Revised and corrected. 2013/06/23] Thursday night the state legislature passed a bill, SB 5296, that weakened the Model Toxic Control Act. I got email from Washington Conservation Voters asking me to thank legislators who opposed the bill. See Support our kids; end the Big Oil Tax Loophole. According to Washington Environmental Council, the weakening allows…

Sam Seder nails it about libertarians and their puerile fantasies. Building codes needed to protect against earthquakes?   “Are people in Haiti more free because they’re out from under the scourge of building codes?”  Government needed for safe water and food? A fire department? “If you’re lucky you’ll be able to convince the rest of the…