In the News

Republican Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, of Vancouver, joined Washington’s six Democratic U.S. House representatives on Thursday in opposition to renewal of the federal government’s warrantless surveillance program. Herrera Beutler was one of 45 Republicans who voted against the bill, which reauthorized U.S. spy agencies to conduct surveillance on foreign targets abroad, but also… Read more »

The House of Representatives has passed a bill extending the National Security Administration’s warrantless surveillance program for six years, rejecting a years-long effort from a bipartisan group of lawmakers to make changes that would protect the privacy of American citizens. The law allows the NSA to obtain the communications of foreigners from American companies like Google and… Read more »

MOUNT VERNON — U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene visited Wednesday the Summerlynd neighborhood, an affordable housing development that’s unique in Skagit County. The development on Summerlynd Lane in Mount Vernon has 11 affordable family homes. Seven were built by Skagit Habitat for Humanity, and four were built by the Home Trust of Skagit, which owns all of the land. Summerlynd is the… Read more »

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is criticizing a Trump administration decision to rescind an Obama-era policy that paved the way for legalized marijuana to flourish in numerous states. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Session's move would leave it to U.S. attorneys where pot is legal to decide whether to aggressively enforce federal marijuana law. Inslee said Thursday that would be a mistake.… Read more »

In 2013, Diana Borland and 129 of her colleagues filed into an auditorium at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Borland had worked there for the past 13 years as a medical transcriptionist, typing up doctors’ audio recordings into written reports. The hospital occasionally held meetings in the auditorium, so it seemed like any other morning. The news she heard came as a shock:… Read more »

WASHINGTON — Congressional Republicans delivered an epic overhaul of U.S. tax laws to President Donald Trump on Wednesday, bringing generous tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest Americans while providing smaller cuts for middle- and low-income families. In a re-vote due to a last-minute hiccup, the House passed the massive $1.5 trillion tax package that affects everyone’s taxes… Read more »

When the decision came down in last week’s 3-2 vote by the Federal Communication Commission to dismantle the Open Internet rules that had been adopted by the FCC in 2015, no one noticed a change in online speeds or the cost of services. But the “net neutrality” protections are gone, or are nearly so. The government will no longer regulate high-speed internet services as a utility.… Read more »

Washington’s congressional delegation split predictably along partisan lines in Tuesday’s 227-203 vote to approve the Republican tax bill. Voting yes were all the state’s Republican representatives: Dave Reichert, R-Auburn; Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane; Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside; and Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Vancouver. Nationally, a dozen Republicans broke with the GOP to oppose the… Read more »

The GOP tax bill hit a procedural snag Tuesday. Democratic lawmakers say three provisions in the $1.5 trillion tax package violate Senate rules and will need to be amended or removed, before the upper chamber votes. The House will then need to re-vote on the measure, likely on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, the Republican led House passed the most significant overhaul of the tax code in… Read more »

A House Democrat unveiled legislation on Monday that would prevent businesses from deducting the costs of buyouts for employees accused of sexual misconduct to lower the amount of taxes owed. Rep. Carolyn Maloney's (D-N.Y.) proposal would expand a provision tucked into the GOP's final tax reform legislation that comes amid the national reckoning over sexual harassment. Under the GOP tax… Read more »