State & Regional News | The Daily Chronicle

A sandy beach on the Columbia River runs to Warrior Point on the northern tip of Sauvie Island. Two Oregon lawmakers have revived a proposal to potentially construct a highway bypass through the area as an alternative to Interstate 5.

A proposed bill could reignite the long-running battle over new Oregon-Washington highway bypass

Two lawmakers have revived an old proposal to potentially construct a highway bypass between Oregon and Washington as an alternative to Interstate 5, which they say would ease congestion in the … more

Carlos Fuentes / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/29/25

Employees of the U.S. Forest Service and members of the North Country Volcano Rescue Team hike through the Spirit Lake drainage tunnel in March 2016. The Forest Service is reviewing ways to update or replace the aging tunnel.

U.S. Forest Service eyes updating or even replacing Spirit Lake tunnel 45 years after eruption of Mount St. Helens

The U.S. Forest Service is reviewing ways to prevent Spirit Lake from overflowing by updating or replacing an aging tunnel built to drain the lake after the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption . The … more

Henry Brannan / Murrow News | 3/29/25

Rep. Dan Griffey, R-Allyn, speaking to his bill to amend Hope Card program for those granted protection orders.

Bill would improve Washington state’s domestic violence Hope Card Program by making them free

A Washington state lawmaker is backing a bill to tweak a program he helped establish that offers wallet-sized cards with information about a protection order. The Hope Card Program , enacted in … more

By Carleen Johnson / The Center Square | 3/29/25

Idaho Gov. Brad Little gives a press conference after delivering his annual State of the State address on Jan. 6, 2025, in the Lincoln Auditorium in the Idaho Capitol. (Photo by Pat Sutphin/ Idaho Capital Sun)

Idaho governor signs bill criminalizing public breast exposure and ‘truck nuts’

Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed into law a bill that criminalizes the public exposure of breasts. House Bill 270 updates Idaho’s indecent exposure law , which already bans public exposure of … more

By Kyle Pfannenstiel / Idaho Capital Sun | 3/28/25

Sate Rep. Matt Marshall, R-Eatonville, spoke at a Yelm town hall event on Thursday, March 20, at Yelm Community Center.

Washington state Dems’ proposal to close schools for developmentally disabled draws GOP ire

As the debate heats up in Olympia over competing budget proposals, one of the cost-cutting ideas offered by majority party Democrats in the state Legislature is getting some Republican pushback. … more

By Carleen Johnson / The Center Square | 3/28/25

President Donald Trump signs an executive order to keep trans women out of women's sports in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025.

Title IX, trans athletes and $31M: Washington state school board files civil rights complaint

As several states go to war with President Donald Trump, filing lawsuits against his directives — some prohibiting transgender athletes from competing against girls — one rural school … more

Tim Clouser / The Center Square | 3/28/25

Veterans Memorial Museum Executive Director Chip Duncan talks with Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez outside of the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System American Lake Mobile Medical Unit in Chehalis on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023.

U.S. Rep Marie Gluesenkamp Perez urges VA to reopen clinic in Lewis County

This week, U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, sent a letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins urging the agency to reopen a Veterans Affairs (VA) clinic in Lewis County after … more

By The Chronicle staff | 3/28/25

From left, state Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, and state Reps. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, and Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama.

‘This is a priorities crisis, not a budget crisis’: 20th District lawmakers discuss state budget deficit and more at town hall

State Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia, Rep. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, and Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama, hosted an hour-long virtual community town hall Tuesday, March 25, over Zoom. 20th Legislative … more

By Jacob Moore / jacob@chronline.com | 3/28/25

Members of the Washington State House of Representatives stood and applauded Special Olympics athletes and officials in the gallery at the Washington state Capitol.

‘A beacon of hope, opportunity and inclusion’: Abbarno authors resolution celebrating 50 years of Special Olympics

The Washington state House of Representatives passed House Resolution 4631 on Tuesday, March 25, honoring the 50th anniversary of Special Olympics Washington. State Rep. Peter Abbarno, … more

By Jacob Moore / jacob@chronline.com | 3/28/25

The Johns River Unit is managed for estuary restoration, primarily for waterfowl habitat, and some dryland agriculture for elk and waterfowl. Hunting occurs for deer, waterfowl, elk, bear, band-tailed pigeon, and forest grouse.

WDFW seeks public input on recreation at Olympic, Johns River, and Chehalis wildlife areas

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is asking for public input to inform a 15-year management plan for the Olympic-Willapa Hills Wildlife Area Complex, which consists of the … more

By The Daily World | 3/28/25

New Trump tariffs on auto imports could hit hard at Washington state ports

President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on foreign cars and car parts could be another economic blow for Washington, which has recently emerged as one of the top automotive import hubs in the … more

Paul Roberts / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/28/25

Report: Washington one of four states where the opioid crisis is worsening

Washington is one of four states that reported year-over-year increases in opioid-related death rates, according to an analysis of federal data by Addiction-Rep, a Sarasota, Fla.-based business … more

Brett Davis / The Center Square | 3/28/25

The Kennewick School Board, with 19,000 students enrolled this school year, filed a complaint against the state, Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal, his office and the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association over “open and egregious Title IX violations.”

Washington state school district files federal complaint over state policy on trans athletes

An eastern Washington school board is pleading for urgent federal intervention to force the state to comply with the Trump administration’s policy on transgender athletes. In a complaint filed … more

Jake Goldstein-Street / Washington State Standard | 3/28/25

Sixteen sick with tuberculosis in Washington state

Sixteen people in Yakima County have active cases of tuberculosis, according to Yakima Health District officials. Seven cases are being monitored by the Yakima Health District and nine are being … more

Questen Inghram / Yakima Herald-Republic (TNS) | 3/28/25

‘Risking our lives for the fun of it’: Washington state bill targeting excessive speeding advances

Washington state lawmakers have advanced a bill that would expand the definition of reckless driving to include speeders going more than 30 miles per hour over the limit. Senate Bill 5238, … more

Simone Carter / The News Tribune (TNS) | 3/28/25

Washington judge says he would let man 'die in jail' for child sex crimes if he could

The crimes of a former Hanford patrolman divided a packed Tri-Cities courtroom, but a Benton County judge doubted the man would have had any supporters if they knew the full extent of the … more

Cameron Probert / Tri-City Herald (TNS) | 3/28/25

'Pill mill' doctor, linked to 16 deaths, again suspended in Washington state

A doctor the state suspended from practicing medicine for nearly a decade has again had his license pulled for not complying with requirements after his license was reinstated last year. State … more

Lauren Girgis / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/28/25

New Trump tariffs on auto imports could hit hard at Washington state ports

President Donald Trump's new tariffs on foreign cars and car parts could be another economic blow for Washington, which has recently emerged as one of the top automotive import hubs in the nation. … more

Paul Roberts / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/28/25

Detained population at Washington ICE center nearing capacity as immigration arrests increase

The population of people held in the privately-run immigration detention center in Tacoma has continued to grow since President Donald Trump began his second term in January, and an activist group … more

Peter Talbot / The News Tribune (TNS) | 3/28/25

FILE PHOTO — A salmon launches itself out of the water at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery's adult collection facility on Sunday, Sept. 29 in Salkum.

Washington scientists discover 'potential breakthrough' in protecting salmon from urban killer

For decades, toxic tire dust has choked coho salmon before they can spawn in their natal streams. Now, King County scientists say they have made a "potential breakthrough" in how to save them. … more

Amanda Zhou / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/28/25