Senate Democrats just passed a bill allowing Sound Transit to issue 75-year bonds — because apparently a 30-year mortgage on a late, over-budget rail project just isn’t long enough.

Senate Bill 6148 comes after Sound Transit admitted its 2016 voter-approved ST3 light rail plan is tens of billions over budget and can’t be completed under current debt limits. So instead of scaling back, lawmakers are being asked to stretch the debt out for generations.

Supporters like Sen. Marko Liias argue the move simply expands financing tools through the federal TIFIA program to speed up construction. Critics say it’s financial gymnastics that will dramatically increase long-term interest costs — turning a 25-year plan into something much longer and making tax rollbacks virtually impossible in anyone’s lifetime.

Even Democrat Sen. T’wina Nobles broke ranks, saying her constituents already feel Sound Transit overpromises and underdelivers. Republicans were blunt, with Sen. Phil Fortunato comparing the plan to the infamous WPPSS nuclear bond disaster — warning it could saddle five generations with debt.

Meanwhile, Sound Transit already collects more than $2.5 billion a year in taxes, holds $5.8 billion in reserves, and charges the average household over $1,700 annually.

The bill passed the Senate with all Republicans and Nobles voting no. It now heads to the House — where lawmakers will decide whether Washington’s light rail should come with a 75-year payment plan. Read more at Center Square.

The Washington Policy Center is urging Washingtonians to sign a petition opposing a state income tax, warning that Olympia’s latest “millionaire tax” pitch follows a familiar pattern — sell it as targeted today, expand it tomorrow.

Critics point to a growing list of tax proposals, including the soda tax revival and PFML tax changes, as signs lawmakers are quietly building new revenue streams. The biggest concern is that Washington’s spending growth makes it unlikely any income tax would stay limited to high earners for long.

Even House Deputy Majority Leader Larry Springer recently admitted the public probably shouldn’t trust promises that an income tax would remain narrowly targeted — a moment critics say confirms exactly why voters should be skeptical.

The petition asks lawmakers and the governor to halt any push for a state income tax before it spreads beyond its “millionaire-only” label. Sign the petition here.

The King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) is bracing for yet another increase in homelessness numbers, even as taxpayers continue funneling massive funding into the agency. The upcoming 2026 Point-in-Time Count hasn’t been released yet, but leadership is already signaling the numbers will likely rise — chalking it up to both growing need and “better data collection.” Translation: the problem isn’t getting worse… they’re just getting better at finding it.

The numbers paint a less flattering picture. The 2024 count found more than 16,000 people experiencing homelessness — a 23% spike since 2022 — all while the agency has been operating on budgets hovering around $200 million per year. Seattle alone is throwing well over $100 million annually into the effort, with King County steadily increasing its contributions as well.

Meanwhile, critics say the money isn’t producing results. Andrea Suarez of We Heart Seattle points to five years of volunteer cleanup work that’s hauled away millions of pounds of trash, needles, and drug paraphernalia — only to see the crisis evolve rather than shrink. She argues policies that remove consequences for addiction and crime are keeping people stuck in cycles rather than pushing them toward recovery or housing stability.

Policy analysts echo those concerns. Washington Policy Center’s Mark Harmsworth argues much of KCRHA’s spending focuses on services and shelters instead of getting people permanently housed, while potentially attracting more people to the region with generous benefits and lax enforcement. A Discovery Institute study even suggests Seattle has become a homelessness “magnet,” with most of the homeless population originating outside the region.

Adding to the dysfunction, the agency has struggled with its own finances. A 2025 state audit found KCRHA ran a negative $35 million cash balance, racking up overdraft and interest fees. Now, after burning through temporary federal pandemic money, the authority is cutting staff to deal with a new budget shortfall — while homelessness continues climbing.

In short, despite years of progressive policymaking and massive taxpayer investment, the region’s homelessness response appears stuck in a familiar loop: spend more, measure more, and somehow end up with more homelessness than before. Read more at Center Square.

Washington State Democrats are advancing a bill that dramatically raises the bar for challenging voter eligibility — moving in the opposite direction of national efforts by Congressional Republicans, like the SAVE Act, which seeks to require proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections.

Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1916, backed by Democratic lawmakers, would require challengers to prove voter registrations are improper “beyond a reasonable doubt,” the same legal standard used in criminal murder trials. Current law only requires a “clear and convincing evidence” standard, often using public voter data.

The Democratic-backed bill also mandates that if challengers fail to meet this nearly impossible threshold, the ballot must be accepted as valid. It adds additional restrictions by requiring government officials to determine probable cause before a challenge can even proceed and introduces misdemeanor penalties for challengers who are deemed to file without reasonable cause.

Supporters of the bill, including Democratic Rep. Beth Doglio, argue the measure protects voters from improper challenges and intimidation. Opponents, primarily Republican lawmakers and election integrity advocates, argue it effectively makes removing ineligible voters nearly impossible and discourages oversight by threatening legal consequences.

Critics say the contrast is clear: Republicans nationally are pushing policies aimed at verifying eligibility before voting occurs, while Washington Democrats are raising barriers to removing ineligible registrations after they are discovered, sparking concerns about election transparency and voter confidence. Read more at Seattle Red.

Washington Senate Democrats just passed a bill that would let a state board remove elected sheriffs — on a straight party-line vote. Senate Bill 5974 hands that power to the Criminal Justice Training Commission, despite the fact that 38 of 39 counties elect their sheriffs directly.

Democrats claim it’s about “accountability” and updating old laws. Republicans — and sheriffs from across the state — call it a direct attack on local voters and one of the last independently elected law-enforcement offices not already under Olympia’s thumb.

Sheriffs warned the real issue is politics, not misconduct, with critics saying the bill targets sheriffs who don’t reliably follow the Legislature’s agenda, especially when state and federal laws conflict. GOP lawmakers argued it undermines democracy and won’t solve the underlying problems Democrats created.

The bill passed 30–19, all Democrats in favor, all Republicans opposed. It now heads to the House — where voters may learn their sheriff serves at Olympia’s pleasure, not theirs. Read more at Center Square.

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