The state Supreme Court ruled yesterday that voters can’t have their say about heroin injection sites in their communities. The court said King County Initiative 27 – which sought to let voters decide whether to ban publicly-funded “safe-injection sites” – infringed on the authority of the King County Council and the board of health. “We’ve heard quite clearly from the attorney general of the U.S. that heroin injection sites are illegal,” said Bothell Mayor Joshua Freed. “We shouldn’t have to rely on the federal government to come in and enforce illegal acts committed by city officials.” (Seattle Times)

“Thirty-eight million people will now have a Democratic governor,” Gov. Jay Inslee bragged toRolling Stone. Inslee is taking a victory lap, touting his work leading the Democratic Governors Association, and oh yeah, running for president. “I do think that it is absolutely imperative that the Democratic Party put forth a candidate who will make climate change a principal, front-burner issue, rather than some peripheral back burner,” Inslee said. (Rolling Stone)

A poll by EMC Research shows what most of us already suspected – Seattle voters don’t like the city council and distrust city leaders. The poll was intended to gauge the popularity of an education levy, but also asked about city leaders. “The mayor is well-liked and can be an effective messenger,” the report analysis says, “but visibility from the City Council runs the risk of connecting the levy to voters’ broader concerns about the city.” (My Northwest)

Ken Semko, assuming he can pass a background check, is set to become Lacey’s next police chief. Semko, the former interim chief of the Santa Monica, California, Police Department, will replace chief Dusty Pierpoint. “I was very impressed with Semko’s experience and he met (and exceeded) everything the guild had asked for in a chief candidate,” Lacey police guild president Ken Kollmann said. (The Olympian)

The Yakima City Council voted 6-1 to rezone city-owned land for a permanent homeless shelter. “The process will move forward in a transparent manner that takes into account the needs of the Greenway users, the community and our homeless population,” city manager Cliff Coffey said. There is no specific proposal yet for the property. (Yakima Herald-Republic)

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