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Isn’t that special, The South rises, immigration reform update…

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

 


STATE GOVERNMENT

 

► In today’s Columbian — The next question: Special session? — The Legislature’s constitutionally mandated final day of this year’s 105-day session is April 28. But with a $1.2 billion budget disagreement between the GOP coalition in the Senate and the Democrats in the House, many legislators are wondering if a special session will be needed.

wizard-of-oz-tom► In the Seattle P-I — The Dream Act’s death: Sen. Tom washes his hands — Senate Majority Leader Rodney Tom has come up with a Pilate-like washing of hands explanation for the bill died:  He is blaming Democratic colleagues who sponsored and supported it. Sen. Jeanne Kohl Welles (D-Seattle) responds: “He’s the most powerful member of the Senate and yet he can’t get a bill out of committee, a committee he sits on, on a bill that he publicly stated he supported, and when he knows that a solid majority of the Senate wants to pass it on the Senate floor.”

► In today’s (Everett) Herald — State faces $1.9 billion bill for new culverts — More than 800 state-owned culverts in Western Washington will have to be replaced or removed to make the streams more fish-friendly, according to a recent federal court ruling. Where the state will get the money to fulfill its own obligation has yet to be determined, but U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez said it has to be done.

► In today’s Kitsap Sun — Changes likely coming to newest state ferries — Design changes will allow WSF to avoid Coast Guard requirements for increased staffing.

payday► In the Olympian — Moneytree’s giving grew prior to beneficial proposal — Seattle-based payday lender Moneytree and its executives funneled nearly $200,000 into state lawmakers’ 2012 campaigns – with 98% of that money going toward Republican candidates — just months before a proposal emerged in the Legislature to create a new type of high-interest consumer loan.

EDITOR’S NOTE — I know I linked to this yesterday, but this version lists which candidates got what.

► In today’s Seattle Times — Months after election, McKenna campaign fund kept spending — The Friends of Rob McKenna fund spent $61,615 this year before dissolving March 8 — about $43,000 of which, according to the documents, went to “consulting” by former McKenna campaign manager Randy Pepple and his wife, who works with him.

 


BOEING

 

► In today’s Seattle Times — Boeing planning $1 billion expansion in South Carolina by 2020 — Boeing is expanding in South Carolina and will invest another $1 billion, creating 2,000 new jobs during the next eight years, the aerospace giant announced Tuesday.

► In today’s (Everett) Herald — Airbus breaks ground in Alabama for A320 line — The Boeing Co.’s biggest rival took a big step Monday toward building airplanes in the United States, breaking ground on a manufacturing facility in Alabama.

 


LOCAL

 

minimum-wage-big► In today’s Spokesman-Review — Washington’s minimum wage falls short, report finds — A single, unmarried worker in Washington state needs a wage of $16.13 an hour to make ends meet, according to an organization that studies the so-called living wage level around the country.

► In today’s Seattle Times — Study: Seattle’s gender pay gap worst in U.S. — The analysis, conducted by workplace-rights group National Partnership for Women & Families, found that full-time employed women in Seattle make just 73 cents for every dollar earned by men.  That amounts to a yearly salary discrepancy of $16,346.

► In today’s (Everett) Herald — Three in race to lead teachers’ union — Competing for the two-year term to guide the 82,000-member Washington Education Association are Everett Education Association president Kim Mead and Oak Harbor Education Association president Peter Szalai, and WEA Vice President Mike Ragan.

► In today’s News Tribune — Pierce Transit board votes no on switching salary system — Pierce Transit’s board Monday shot down a proposal to switch more than 100 nonunion employees to a market-driven salary system with annual raises awarded by merit only, not by cost-of-living or automatic step increases.

 


NATIONAL

 

dont-cut-social-security► At AFL-CIO Now — Better idea: Increase Social Security, Medicare benefits — As word spreads that President Obama’s budget proposal will call for Social Security and Medicare benefit cuts, other voices are calling for increasing the successful programs instead as the medicine struggling families and a weak economy need.

ALSO at The Stand — Sign petition to Obama opposing Social Security, Medicare cuts

► At Politico — Poll: Obama loses ground on guns, immigration, deficit — A new CNN poll found President Obama’s overall approval rating has ticked up to 51% but ratings have fallen on his handling of the key issues on his agenda: immigration, guns, and the deficit.

► In today’s NY Times — Senate talks on farmworker program inch forward — After hitting a snag last week, negotiations in the Senate for an agricultural workers program — the last piece of a broad overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws — appeared to be coming back from the brink on Monday.

► In today’s NY Times — When ICE ran amok (editorial) — Immigration and Customs Enforcement is putting new policies into place after a series of botched raids on innocent immigrants.

► At AFL-CIO Now — Long Beach Hyatt workers vote to join UNITE HERE — Workers at Hyatt Regency Long Beach and Hyatt The Pike Long Beach in California voted last week to be represented by UNITE HERE.

► At AFL-CIO Now — UNITE HERE hunger strike in support of Hilton workers targeted for organizing in San Diego — UNITE HERE launched a five-day hunger strike on Friday in support of nine immigrant hotel workers who are being laid off from the Hilton Mission Valley in San Diego. The hunger strike goes through 12 p.m. on Tuesday.

 


The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.

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