Governor Inslee signed multiple pieces of elections and voting legislation into law. The package, a priority of the new liberal majority in Olympia, includes: automatic voter registration, same-day voter registration, and pre-registration for 16 and 17 year olds which takes effect the day they turn 18. A chorus of people on the Left took to social media hailing this as a major achievement of the legislative session that fixes major “ballot access” issues. (Q13 FOX)

With many announced retirements, the Legislature will have a slew of new faces come January. Nearly a dozen state legislators announced their retirements this month, and the result is that more than 1/10 of state House seats will have new occupants. Retirements include GOP House Minority Leader Dan Kristiansen and three Democratic committee chairs. Although many of these seats are considered “safe”, both parties are licking their chops at potential pickup prospects. (Seattle Times)

During a trip to Vancouver for the “Pacific Coast Collaborative,” Governor Inslee questioned the expansion of Canada’s Trans Mountain oil pipeline. Speaking at a press conference with B.C. Premier John Horgan, Inslee not surprisingly came out against expansion of the pipeline, because that’s what Jay Inslee does. Canadian columnist Tristin Hopper called Inslee’s stance “hypocrisy.” (Spokesman-Review)

The King County Council is taking an expanded oversight role over 4Culture, the non-profit that distributes millions of taxpayer dollars to arts and culture organizations. The council voted 6-3 to give itself powers to approve senior staff, appoint a majority of board members, and oversee the budget and bylaws. The measure does not give the council any part in the grant awarding process. (Seattle Times)

In a move that might sound surprising for a Seattle Mayor, Jenny Durkan is asking for departments to cut their budgets and stop deficit spending. Pointing to slowing revenue growth, Mayor Durkan is looking to “efficiencies” from department heads to rein in spending, with an eye toward maintaining the general-fund surplus the city started with in 2017. The city is burning through those funds, but Durkan needs the money to fund new initiatives like her taxpayer-funded college scholarship program. (Seattle Times)

The “kayaktivists” are back, bobbing in Puget Sound to protest the Kinder Morgan oil pipeline in Canada. About 30 radical environmentalists traveled from West Seattle to the Duwamish waterway to protest the expansion of the pipeline, saying they’re concerned about additional tanker traffic. Lest we forget, protesters ironically caused environmental damage back in 2015 when they were protesting arctic oil drilling. (Seattle Times)

Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart wants greater council involvement in hiring and a salary cap for top employees. Stuckart says no city employee should earn more than four times the median household income of Spokane, or $182,000 annually. Currently, this cap would only impact the Chief of Police and the Fire Chief. Other proposed changes include council approval before jobs can be advertised, written permission for exceeding minimum salaries for new hires, and a requirement that non-union city positions be filled within 60-days of vacancy. (Spokesman Review)

Yakima County’s chief criminal deputy says he’s running to succeed his boss as sheriff. Robert Udell, a 28-year department veteran, said, “We’ve been doing a good job, and I want to keep on doing better.” He joins Dave Simmons, former police chief of the Zillah and Wapato departments, in the race. (Yakima Herald-Republic)

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