A bill that creates a, “request to remove trespassers,” form for landlords to send to police for evicting squatters from their property heads to Gov. Inslee. The bill passed both houses last week and will take place 90 days after being signed. “We do protect the rights of legitimate tenants on the property, but for people who are squatting and have no business being on that property, we make it clear that they will face removal,” bill sponsor Senator Hans Zeiger (R-Puyallup) said.

SB 5289, which would prohibit use of phones while driving, passed through both chambers. Gov. Inslee is expected to sign the bill into law. It would also prohibit the use of any other handheld electronic device while driving.

SB 5131, which would enforce rules outlining what can and cannot appear in marijuana billboards, passed through both houses. Gov. Inslee will sign the bill into law. It will outlaw depictions of marijuana plants or products on the advertisement as well as prohibit companies from using, “images that might be appealing to children,” on their billboards.

Former Attorney General Rob McKenna calls Washington lawmakers out for not allowing transparency in their negotiations. “State legislators are not required to turn over their documents to the public,” although all other public officials are. “It’s inconsistent to treat this class of elected officials differently from every other. There’s simply little justification to exclude legislators from a law that applies to everyone else,” wrote McKenna.

Special Session will be called to order at 10:00am today, after lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on a budget deal. Members to remain in Olympia throughout the Special Session are expected to be primarily those involved with budget negotiations.

Echoing KIRO reporter Jason Rantz, thank you to the Seattle Police Department – and other cops out there – for the work that you do to keep our communities safe. Rantz called out the leaders in Seattle for remaining silent in the aftermath of a shooting in downtown Seattle last weekend that left officers injured. “If you pay attention, the trend is clear: when talking about cops, the council and other Seattle city leaders tend to be negative,” he wrote.

West Point Treatment Plant is finally on track to resume full operations by the end of April. The treatment center has been damaged since an electrical failure in early February led to the dumping of hundreds of millions of untreated wastewater into the Puget Sound.

Shoulder driving on northbound I-405 will be allowed starting today in Bothell. The decision was made because of, “a big bottleneck there at [State Route] 527,” said spokesperson for the WSDOT, Craig Smiley. They hope that the allowance of driving on the shoulder during peak hours will help to decrease congestion.

Inspectors have determined that problems remain at the Western State Hospital. While state officials are saying progress is being made, a psychiatrist at the hospital, Dr. Joseph Wainer, disagrees. After penning a letter to the editor, Wainer was put “under investigation.” A judge has now required the hospital address the pattern of retaliation against staffers.

Spokane area schools are struggling with “chronic absenteeism.” Chronic absenteeism is missing 10% of school days, which is 18 days a year total or more than two days per month. 17% percent of Spokane Public School students suffer with this and therefore are less likely to graduate.

$4 million Trinity Catholic School will be built in Spokane for students pre-kindergarten to eighth grade. St. Anthony Catholic Parish will be contracting Garco Construction to build the facility.

9,000 acres in Eastern Washington will be burned to help prevent uncontrolled forest fires this year. The controlled burns will take place in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.

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