The Walla Walla Union-Bulletin Editorial Board thinks it’s time to nix the Washington Citizens’ Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials. The Commission members are chosen through a lottery and it operates without any oversight from the legislature – and by extension – the public. They argue that the legislature should be the ones setting salaries of their members and state elected officials. (Union-Bulletin)

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal says legislators need to “get more courageous” and change bond supermajority requirement. Currently for school district bonds to be approved, it requires a 60 percent “supermajorty” vote to pass. The legislature currently has proposals to drop the requirement to 55 percent and 50 percent. Not shockingly, many Republican legislators are against changing the requirement. (News Tribune)

Half of Seattle’s child care businesses have been affected by the minimum wage increase. The University of Washington study states that when the businesses were forced to $13 per hour, they raised their prices or fees and/or reduced their staff. “This study illustrates how singular policies can affect more than just payroll and can shape organizational structure and service delivery,” said lead author Jennifer Otten. Go figure! (KING 5)

Nearly every measles case in Washington state right now is a child who is unvaccinated. KING 5 analyzed vaccination data across the state and found that immunization rates in hundreds of schools aren’t high enough to protect those who are unvaccinated. For measles, it requires 83-94 percent vaccinations in a community to have “herd immunity.” Washington schools have a goal of 95 percent, but many fall short. (KING 5)

The Seattle Times Editorial Board says it’s time for Seattle to stop playing politics with the homelessness crisis. They admonish Councilmember Kshama Sawant, the city’s human services committee chair for holding up the Mayor’s appointee to head the social services department. Additionally, they call out the city for their gross mismanagement of the city’s human services budget, specifically the waste and mismanagement with their vendor-driven system. (Seattle Times)

The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a threat against Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich over his statements about I-1639. The threats were posted on Facebook which promised death to Knezovich and the other county sheriffs who took a similar pledge. “sheriffs that are non compliant will be shot. by me.” and “Ozzie Knezovich is gonna get a bullet in his skull.” were found posted a few places. Knezovich said just days ago, “I-1639 doesn’t give a sheriff anything to enforce.” (YakTriNews)

John Smith, a 36-year veteran of Kittitas Valley Fire and Rescue retires as Fire Commissioner. Smith was a volunteer firefighter in Kittitas County for 16 years and a commissioner for 20 years. He said his desire to help his community led to him making this his career. “It’s like going to a whole other wife and family here. There are a lot of different personalities that you have to mesh together. Happy work makes the days go easier and I thought that I could make a difference,” Smith said. (Daily Record)

Do you like The Morning Briefing? Forward this to a friend! It helps us grow our community and serve you better.

If you feel we missed something that should be covered, email us at [email protected].

If you don’t want to receive this email each morning, click here to opt-out of The Morning Briefing.