Voters in the 45^th District – Duvall, Kirkland, Redmond, Sammamish and Woodinville – will make or break the balance in Olympia during their special election this fall to replace former Senator Andy Hill, who passed away last October. Jinyoung Lee Englund – who has worked for Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Spokane), a nonprofit in Africa, and was a product manager – is connecting with voters. “We are learning when we talk to people, this overzealous taxation being pushed by certain Seattle-style politicians is really upsetting on the east side.”

Up against Englund is Democrat-backed leftist Manka Dhingra – who seems to rely more on ignorance and slander than actual discussions to come to her own conclusions about voters. (Read more.)

Are State Ethics Rules Keeping Up With Social Media?: In a column by Tod Newcombe, the $220,000 in fines levied against Melanie Stambaugh (R-Puyallup) for embedding rather than linking videos to her Facebook page show that maybe lawmakers should update their archaic rules to reflect our social media age. “People want ethics and want government held to an ethical standard, but the application of these ethics standards does not meet the goal of an open and transparent government,” explains Stambaugh.

King County Metro fares cover less operating costs than the national average, which is 36%. The bus fares only cover around 31% of actual operating costs – the rest are covered mostly by taxes. By comparison, San Francisco’s BART fares cover 75.6% of operating costs and the New York City area MTA fares cover 36.8% of operating costs.

Seattle’s Police Department has been urging city councilmembers to change the police-accountability legislation that will soon be voted on. Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole wrote she was, “struck by the abject complexity of the proposed model, which seems destined to mire what should be a simple, efficient process for ensuring timely and collaborative dialogue in a tangle of bureaucratic process,” and said the changes left her with “a series of arrows pointing every which way.”

King County Metro buses are toting advertisements that say, “Safer is better. Supervised consumption spaces prevent fatal overdose.” We agree with KIRO Radio Host Dori Monson when he wrote, “Not being a heroin junkie is better.” Rather than advertising safe injection sites, advocates would spend their money better to help fund mental health care and addiction recovery programs in the county.

March saw almost 3.9 people per day dying from suspected drug overdoses in Vancouver, British Columbia – 120 total. This number is 51.9% higher than last March. Vancouver’s safe injection sites may not be the model King County wants to follow. As Kipp Robertson put it, “Instead of spending time searching for places where people can use the drugs that are destroying their lives, perhaps our city and county leaders should pump more effort into lowering the cost of treatment and helping people end their addictions.”

BNSF is appealing an environmental review that overstated risks a coal-export terminal built near Longview would bring to neighborhood residents. Spokesperson Courtney Wallace has argued, “there is no basis to say that (locomotive diesel emissions substantially increase risks of cancer), so it’s concerning for us to have that out there in the public domain,” including there are “no credible scientific studies,” to back the notion co-written by Cowlitz County officials.

Former WSDOT Secretary Doug MacDonald said I-5 congestion is “not just an SDOT problem; it’s not just a WSDOT problem. It’s a regional problem…” when he spoke with KIRO’s Dave Ross. MacDonald has pointed out that more people use I-5 to get around Seattle than was ever intended and said that the changes soon to happen downtown involving the Metro will “further clog the downtown streets.”

Everett may be expanding areas of the city that are off-limits to those of convicted drug crimes. “The goal is there are certain parts of the city that are high drug trafficking areas, and if you have been charged with and convicted of a crime related to drug trafficking, then you are not permitted to go back into those areas,” said Hil Kaman, Public Health and Safety Director. A park and high school would be included in the areas off-limits to criminals.

Tacoma may have to pay Wal-Mart $1.8 million if they do not win their appeal with the 9^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The city was sued in 2014 by Allenmore Medical for engaging in “irrational actions” that allegedly prevented Wal-Mart from gaining proper permits so they could open a Wal-Mart there.

Yakima police have urged city councilmembers to work with youth to prevent gangs. “The Police Department is kind of a fail-safe. If everything else in the community hasn’t interceded in that child’s life, it’s up to us to pick up the pieces. We’re probably not the best place, as an agency, to deal with gang intervention,” Capt. Jay Seely said during a meeting.

Spokane’s Steam Plant will be renovated with $1.5 million this summer. The Steam Plant is on the National Register of Historical Places. Renovations will include updates to the landmark stacks as well as updates to the rooftop event center.

WSDOT is holding an open house to ask the public for help doing their job. Thursday, the public is invited to help brainstorm ways to reduce traffic congestion on I-90 through Spokane.

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