A prohibition on law enforcement covering their faces, motivated by masked federal immigration agents, is one step closer to becoming Washington law. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/03/03/b...

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson warned Tuesday that the income tax Democratic state lawmakers are pressing to approve in the next nine days might have to wait until next year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/03/03/w...

Big technology companies scored a win in Olympia on Monday, as a sweeping bill to regulate data centers lapsed in the Washington state Legislature. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/03/02/i...

Funding that helps Washington communities plant trees in urban areas is on the chopping block in the state Legislature. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/27/u...

Legislation allowing luxury electric vehicle makers Rivian and Lucid to join rival Tesla in selling directly to Washington customers is on a fast track for action in Olympia. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/03/02/f...

A proposed income tax on household income over $1 million advanced out of a key House committee on Friday. Before it passed, lawmakers stripped out a tax break for corporations making more than $250 million a year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/27/b...

Democrats in the Washington Legislature are pushing bills that include new taxes, fines and oversight for the immigrant detention center in Tacoma. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/27/w...

The heftiest budget cuts Washington Democratic lawmakers are proposing this year focus on day care subsidies for low-income families. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/26/w...

A Washington state Senate bill to lower the legal limit for driving drunk stalled in a House committee on Tuesday, ending the possibility that lawmakers will drop the blood alcohol concentration threshold from 0.08% to 0.05% this year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/25/d...

The Washington Legislature last year approved a new luxury tax on airplanes over $500,000. They're now looking at rolling it back. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/25/u...

Democrats’ main attempt to reduce skyrocketing lawsuit payouts by the state and local governments isn’t moving forward in the Washington Legislature this year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/24/a...

Money from Washington’s new $100 million program to boost police hiring has yet to reach cities and counties. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/24/n...

Newly unveiled House and Senate transportation spending proposals don't include a $1 billion borrowing request from Gov. Bob Ferguson to buy more hybrid electric ferries. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/23/w...

Washington state Democrats are likely abandoning plans for a new tax on employers like Walmart and Amazon, whose workers get health coverage through Medicaid. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/23/w...

Democrats in the Washington Legislature on Sunday proposed tapping the state’s rainy day savings account and slashing hundreds of millions of dollars for a child care program for low-income families to balance the state’s budget into next year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/22/b...

Legislation to eliminate a Washington state tax break for large mortgage lenders and use the revenue to partially backfill wildfire prevention programs is making progress in Olympia. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/19/r...

Legislation to eliminate a Washington state tax break for large mortgage lenders and use the revenue to partially backfill wildfire prevention programs is making progress in Olympia. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/19/r...

The third deadline in as many weeks came Tuesday in the Washington Legislature. It meant the end of the road for numerous bills, including priorities on issues like homelessness, child welfare, gun safety and juvenile detention. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/18/m...

Democratic state senators’ pursuit of new barriers to Washington’s initiative process ended quietly on Tuesday. Dubbed the “initiative-killer” by opponents, it did not get a vote before a 5 p.m. procedural deadline. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/17/f...

Tension rising over how to spend revenue from proposed WA income tax: As Gov. Bob Ferguson calls for sales tax holidays and bigger breaks for small businesses, some fellow Democrats are skeptical. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/17/t...

Washington state budget writers got some rosy news Monday, as they prepare to release their spending plans. Revenue collections are predicted to increase $827 million in the current two-year budget compared to expectations from November. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/16/a...

Majority Democrats in the Washington state Senate on Monday advanced legislation on a 27-22 vote to tax households earning more than a million dollars a year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/16/w...

Four Democrats are on track to battle this year for an open Washington state House seat in a district stretching north from Seattle. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/16/s...

Two members of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission are pushing back on newly surfaced allegations that they shunned government transparency laws and appeared to have colluded with the leader of a wildlife advocacy group on policy matters. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/13/w...

Legislation to force federal immigration agents to get court approval before entering schools and health care facilities cleared the Washington state Senate on Thursday. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/13/w...

Washington could have become the second state in the country to adopt a framework intended to reduce textile waste and hold companies accountable for the lifecycle of their products. But a bill to establish the system has stalled in the Legislature. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/13/w...

The Washington state Senate approved legislation Thursday to set stricter eligibility standards for sheriffs and other police leadership, weeks after a sheriff’s comments on the bill left some lawmakers feeling threatened. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/12/s...

The Trump administration has moved to keep the power plant in Centralia, Wash., available to burn coal. A bill the state House approved Thursday would impose hefty taxes and fees if it fires back up. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/12/c...

President Trump and his top environmental policy officer finalized a move Thursday to undo an Environmental Protection Agency regulation that laid the foundation for federal rules governing emissions of the greenhouse gases that cause climate change. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/12/r...

Democratic state lawmakers in Washington want to make it tougher to challenge a voter’s registration as organized efforts to knock residents off the rolls are on the rise. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/11/t...

A 50-mile stretch of U.S. 2 is now fully open between Skykomish and Leavenworth, more than a month ahead of schedule, after flooding and debris slides left the highway severely damaged. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/us-2-...

With data centers expected to become the largest source of electricity demand in the Pacific Northwest, Washington legislators are pressing ahead with a bill aimed at protecting the grid and offsetting potential hikes for utility ratepayers. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/11/h...

Washington lawmakers moved a step closer Tuesday to make clear it is illegal to vote twice in an election, even if the ballots are cast in different jurisdictions. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/wa-se...

Democrats advanced controversial income tax legislation out of a key Washington state Senate committee on Monday after pledging more proceeds to local public defender costs and increasing a tax break for small businesses. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/09/w...

When the federal government stopped making pennies, it left it up to states to decide how retailers deal with the change. In Washington, lawmakers are trying to come up with a uniform approach for merchants that's easy to understand for consumers. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/09/a...

Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal is calling for the state to use revenue from a newly proposed income tax to pay for public schools and higher education. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/06/r...

Two Washington tribal leaders could soon snag seats on the state’s Board of Natural Resources, which guides logging sales and other management decisions for millions of acres of public land. The idea is in a bill moving ahead in the Legislature. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/06/w...

With the NBA considering a possible expansion, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson met Thursday with the league’s commissioner to offer assistance in returning the SuperSonics to Seattle. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/washi...

Washington lawmakers are considering restrictions to keep cities and counties from criminalizing camping on public property. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/05/s...

Many bills in this year's Washington state legislative session met their end less than a month in, as they failed to pass the first key deadline on Wednesday. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/05/t...

Legislation to regulate the use of automated license plate readers amid concerns over federal immigration agents accessing data the devices collect, passed the Washington state Senate on Wednesday. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/04/w...

A proposal to bar law enforcement in the state from employing former federal immigration agents hired under President Donald Trump won’t move forward this year in the Washington Legislature. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/propo...

Democrats in the Washington Legislature unveiled an income tax proposal on Tuesday that would apply to people earning over $1 million a year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/03/f...

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson headed into this year’s legislative session endorsing the idea of an income tax on higher earners. But he’s not on board with the framework for that tax that Democratic legislators are unveiling on Tuesday. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/03/f...

Washington state Supreme Court Justice Barbara Madsen is retiring, the court announced Monday, adding to significant turnover on the court this year. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/02/a...

Child deaths and critical injuries in Washington’s child welfare system hit a record high in 2025. State lawmakers are looking for solutions. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/02/r...

Washington lawmakers are considering three bills to strengthen regulation of kratom, a psychoactive supplement sold at convenience stores and smoke shops. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/01/31/k...

With a veteran Washington state lawmaker out due to illness, House Democrats are reworking leadership of a key budget committee. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/illne...

Five awardees are on track to receive a combined $12.1 million in federal funding to build and operate electric vehicle charging stations at 14 locations along highways in Washington state. washingtonstatestandard.com/briefs/after...

Lawmakers in the Washington Legislature have a bill to clear up ambiguity about what would count as voting twice in the same election. A recent court ruling has raised questions about the issue. washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/01/29/s...