The Columbian

Northwest

DOJ to meet with families of Max crashes’ victims as Boeing probe intensifies

April 2, 2024, 9:33am Business

The U.S. Department of Justice will meet this month with the families of victims of two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes, as federal prosecutors consider whether to move forward with a criminal case against the aerospace giant Read story

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee speaks during a signing ceremony in Washington, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. Inslee closed out the final day of his last legislative session, Thursday, March 7, 2024, as Washington state governor by describing it as a banner year in the state’s fight against climate change.

New Washington budget boosts state spending by $2B

April 2, 2024, 8:30am Latest News Free

Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday signed the final operating budget of his tenure, approving an extra $2 billion during the second half of the state’s two-year budget cycle for education, mental health services, housing and more. Read story

WA timber sale blocked as judge orders climate change study

April 2, 2024, 7:57am Business

Washington state can’t auction an East King County forest for logging without first analyzing the local project’s climate change impacts, a judge ruled last week, blocking the controversial timber sale and putting officials under pressure to change how they evaluate public lands for harvesting. Read story

North Idaho College has one last shot to fix accreditation

April 2, 2024, 7:57am Northwest

North Idaho College has exactly one year left to return to good standing, or it will lose accreditation per federal rules. A final report this fall could be its last chance. Read story

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, seated, honored Eduardo Carrillo with a special proclamation for his work as the designated “bill crier.” With a booming voice, Carrillo called out each bill Inslee was about to sign so people who came to watch could make sure they were present.

Inslee reflects on ‘lives changed’ with a pen in a conference room

April 1, 2024, 7:53pm Northwest Free

Gov. Jay Inslee entered the conference room next to his Capitol office Thursday morning, took a seat at the end of a long rectangular table, and set about to turn legislation into law. Read story

FILE - A gray whale dives near Whidbey Island as seen from a Pacific Whale Watch Association vessel, May 4, 2022, in Washington state. Federal researchers indicate the gray whale population along the West Coast is showing signs of recovery five years after hundreds washed up dead on West Coast beaches, from Alaska to Mexico. (AP Photo/Ted S.

West Coast whale population recovers 5 years after hundreds wash ashore

April 1, 2024, 5:45pm Northwest

Federal researchers indicate the gray whale population along the West Coast is showing signs of recovery five years after hundreds washed up dead on beaches from Alaska to Mexico. Read story

Oregon governor signs a bill recriminalizing drug possession into law

April 1, 2024, 4:02pm Latest News

Oregon's Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek on Monday signed into law a bill that recriminalizes the possession of small amounts of drugs, ending a first-in-the-nation experiment with decriminalization that was hobbled by implementation issues. Read story

FILE - Chad Daybell sits during a court hearing, Aug. 4, 2020, in St. Anthony, Idaho. The trial of Daybell, who is charged with the deaths of his wife and his girlfriend’s two youngest children, is set to begin in Idaho on Monday, April 1, 2024, serving as a second act in a bizarre case that has drawn worldwide attention and already resulted in a life sentence for the kids’ mother.

Chad Daybell on trial in deaths of wife and 2 children found buried in Idaho

April 1, 2024, 1:30pm Latest News

The trial of a man charged with the deaths of his wife and his girlfriend's two youngest children began with jury selection in Idaho this week, serving as a second act in a bizarre case that has drawn worldwide attention and already resulted in a life sentence for the mother of the children. Read story

Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is photographed in the press room at the State Capitol, on March 13, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. In an interview with The Associated Press, the Democrat discussed the proposed Minnesota Voting Rights Act, and noted that he signed other measures last year to make voting easier.

States move to shore up voting rights protections after courts erode federal safeguards

April 1, 2024, 9:30am Latest News

An appeals court ruling that weakened a key part of the Voting Rights Act is spurring lawmakers in several states to enact state-level protections to plug gaps that the ruling opened in the landmark federal law aimed at prohibiting racial discrimination in voting. Read story