The minimum wage in King County will increase by 25% to a whopping $20.29 per hour. The new minimum wage was passed by the King County Council on a 7-2 vote with only conservative Council members Pete von Reichbauer and Reagan Dunn choosing to act rationally and voting no. To put the increase in perspective, the current minimum wage for Washington is $16.28 per hour.

The $20.29 per hour wage will impact businesses with 500 or more employees. According to KTTH, “businesses employing 15-499 workers must pay a minimum wage of $18.29. Smaller businesses with fewer than 15 employees and annual gross revenues under $2 million must pay a minimum wage of $17.29.”

The new minimum wage ordinance will take effect on Jan. 1, 2025 for businesses with more than 500 employees. The wage increase for all other businesses will occur “incrementally until 2030 when all businesses will pay the minimum wage with inflation adjustments.” A total of 4,100 businesses will be affected by the new minimum wage.

Of course, consumers can expect the added costs to businesses to be passed on to them. That means higher costs for goods and services – all during a time of historic inflation. Some businesses will survive by increasing prices, others will survive by decreasing staff and automating where possible. And still others will simply have to close their doors.

It’s all very predictable because it’s all happened before. But don’t expect Leftists to have any forethought for the consequences of their own actions. And certainly, don’t expect Leftists to ever learn a lesson – they are much more content repeating past mistakes. Read more at KTTH.

In yet another story about incompetent bureaucrats mishandling hard-earned taxpayers’ dollars, a recent audit of the King County Recorder’s Office (KCRO) revealed significant financial mismanagement spanning six years. Identified as suffering from a “lack of oversight,” the KCRO’s operations were scrutinized from 2018 to 2023, uncovering errors that led to nearly $7 million being misallocated to wrong customers. The agency also overbilled customers by $1 million.

Despite handling essential services such as online records search, marriage licensing, and real estate transactions amounting to over $1 billion annually, the KCRO faces revenue collection changes, including $91,000 lost due to unprocessed bad checks. Moreover, inadequate monitoring of prepaid accounts and lax invoice review processes contributed to further revenue losses and increased the risk of fraud.

In response, auditors issued 17 recommendations aimed at improving financial processes and reducing the office’s vulnerability to financial mismanagement and non-compliance. But, given the level of incompetence demonstrated, it seems like more than “recommendations” are in order. KCRO must be held accountable – but, unfortunately, that’s unlikely to happen and similar mistakes will, likely, continue. Read more at King 5 News.

Last week, the Burien police concluded a two-month investigation resulting in the arrest of a suspected drug trafficker associated with the Sinaloa Cartel. This operation involved extensive surveillance spanning over 100 hours across the Puget Sound region, targeting an individual believed to be involved in transporting narcotics and money for the cartel.

The investigation resulted in police confiscating a shocking quantity of narcotics, including 2.8 pounds of fentanyl powder, 5,000 fentanyl (M-30) pills, and 10 grams of cocaine, along with firearms such as three handguns and an AR-15 style short barrel rifle with a 60-round drum magazine. Additionally, police seized three vehicles and $182,249.00 in cash.

The shocking haul is just another reminder of how the open southern border impacts communities across our state. It’s the consequences of failed far-left policies delivering a blow to public safety and hitting everyday Americans. Read more at The B-Town Blog.

In a shocking turn of events, the Seattle City Council decided against putting a wrench in negotiations with the Seattle Police Department (SPD). As Shift reported yesterday, far-left Council member Tammy Morales attempted to delay a vote on a new contract meant to incentivize new police recruits after years of anti-law enforcement policies led to an unprecedented exodus of officers from the city. The new contract grants officers a significant retroactive raise of 23%, making them one of the highest-paid police forces in the region.

The number of police officers in the SPD have reached historic lows – greatly impacting public safety. It remains to be seen if a new contract is enough to recruit more police officers, or if a drastic change in city leaders’ outlook toward pro-law enforcement policies must also occur. We think the latter but, unfortunately, we also aren’t holding our breath that it will happen. Read more at MyNorthwest.com.

The homeless industrial complex strikes again…

Bob Ferguson’s entire political career summed up perfectly…

UW admin’s moral compass is more than just a little off…

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