Washington in Focus

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee delivered his 11th and final state-of-the-state address Tuesday before a joint session of the state Legislature. “We will always be the strongest state in the nation; in fact, the state of our state is stronger than ever,” Inslee said as he opened his midday speech. The governor touted many accomplishments, including the increase in the state minimum wage while he’s been in office.

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Gov. Jay Inslee has long known that a carbon tax could significantly increase gas prices in Washington state, contends the conservative Washington Policy Center think tank, which says it has the receipts to back up that claim. In a Thursday morning blog post, WPC Environmental Director Todd Myers notes that reports from Inslee’s 2014 Carbon Emissions Reduction Task Force, or CERT, showed a carbon tax could result in a significant hike in the price at the pump.

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The Vancouver City Council approved a short-term rental ordinance that requires short-term rental operators to obtain a business license and a short-term rental permit. The operators will be required to pay $50 for the business license and $250 for the permit. Applicants will have to apply for a one-time permit by Feb. 15, 2024. Prior to the recently passed ordinance, the city’s land use and development code did not allow short-term rentals in residential zones except as expressly authorized under the bed-and-breakfast provisions.

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Let’s Go Washington has sent a cease-and-desist letter to three organizations it’s accused of illegally interfering with its signature gathering efforts for initiatives to be placed on the November 2024 ballot. The letter, written by former State Attorney General Rob McKenna, accuses Fuse Washington, SEIU 775 and Washington D.C.-based Fieldworks of engaging in “a coordinated intimidation campaign against contractors for our client, Let’s Go Washington, and voters, to disrupt and prevent the collection of voter signatures for several initiative petitions in Washington.”

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Less than a month from the start of the next legislative session, Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee on Wednesday afternoon released his 2024 supplemental budget proposal. The governor’s supplemental budget would add $2 billion in spending to the $69.8 billion operating budget the Legislature passed during this year’s session. “There are some numbers attached to it, but the numbers aren’t important,” Inslee said at a press conference announcing his supplemental budget. “What’s important are the lives. There’s a lot of lives that are going to be improved because of the proposals that we are making.”

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While the U.S. Supreme Court has yet to announce whether it will take up a case regarding whether or not a Washington state capital gains tax is an income tax, it is currently reviewing the legality of a federal tax that poses its own legal challenge. The lawsuit filed by a Washington couple disputes whether they owe $15,000 under a one-time tax enacted in 2017 that applies to the earnings of U.S. residents who generated income from shares in foreign companies.

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The Association of Washington Business is leading a lawsuit against the federal Environmental Protection Agency, contending it has imposed water quality standards on Washington state that are “impossible” to achieve, conflict with the agency’s own guidance, and have no basis in “real-world data.” AWB filed its complaint Monday in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. Plaintiffs also include the Northwest Pulp & Paper Association, the American Forest & Paper Association, Greater Spokane Inc., and Food Northwest, a food processing trade association.

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The Governor’s Office has “ascertained a few very preliminary, tentative findings” regarding a former state economist who says he had to resign after suffering retaliation for his analysis that Washington’s cap-and-trade policy would significantly increase gas prices. Under the Climate Commitment Act of 2021, emitters are required to obtain “emissions allowances” equal to their covered greenhouse gas emissions at quarterly auctions hosted by the Department of Ecology.

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Despite issuing a state of emergency to address a large encampment of asylum seekers in Tukwila, the number of asylees has continued to increase. Tukwila Mayor Allan Ekberg originally issued a state of emergency last month when the original estimate of the number of asylum seekers living at the Riverton Park United Methodist Church was more than 200 people.

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The Washington Supreme Court has been asked to consider discretionary review of a lower court order that currently grants control of the Pac-12 Conference to Washington State University and Oregon State University. On Tuesday, Supreme Court commissioner Michael E. Johnston granted a stay in proceedings based on emergency motions sought by the University of Washington and the Pac-12 itself.

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