State & Regional News | The Daily Chronicle

Washington man dies in tree well on Oregon ski mountain

A 34-year-old man from Seattle died Monday on Mount Bachelor in Oregon after he was found buried headfirst in a tree well. Deschutes County 911 received an emergency text message at 3:04 p.m. … more

Kai Uyehara / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/18/25

Three high voltage transmission towers, located just south of Sauvie Island, span the Willamette River. The tower at left is owned by PGE, the other two by the Bonneville Power Administration.

Lawmakers keep pressure on Trump administration to rehire BPA workers

Oregon lawmakers are continuing to keep the pressure on the Trump administration over workforce reductions at the Bonneville Power Administration, saying the U.S. Department of Energy’s recent … more

Gosia Wozniacka / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/18/25

Woman drowns in Oregon amid heavy rain, weekend floods, authorities say

A woman drowned in a flooded creek this weekend as heavy rains pelted streets in parts of southern Oregon. Jackson County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call for a missing woman in the … more

Zaeem Shaikh / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/18/25

The North American Bigfoot Center opened in 2019 in Boring, Oregon.

‘Celebrate all things Sasquatch’: New three-day Bigfoot festival coming to Mount Hood

Clackamas County will “celebrate all things Sasquatch ” during the inaugural Mt. Hood Sasquatch Festival coming to Welches this spring. Mt. Hood Oregon Resort will host the event … more

Samantha Swindler / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/18/25

The Indian Health Service received $8.2 billion in funding this fiscal year, despite asking for nearly $60 billion. Tribal officials say that any loss of facilities or employees, through firings or buyouts, will make a bad situation even worse.

Clinic closures, firings, buyouts: Pacific Northwest tribes sound alarm about cuts to health care, education and other key services

A cascade of actions from the Trump administration represents a “grave threat” to health care, social, educational and other critical services in Indian Country, including for Native … more

By Melanie Henshaw / InvestigateWest | 3/18/25

Washington state Attorney General Nick Brown speaks at a press conference on Feb. 7, 2025 where he announced a lawsuit against President Trump’s executive order that seeks to curtail federal support for health care services provided to transgender youth. (Photo by Jake Goldstein-Street/Washington State Standard)

Trump not held in contempt in Washington state gender-affirming care case

A judge has denied the Washington attorney general’s attempt to hold the Trump administration in contempt over allegations it flouted a court order in a case involving hospital grant funding … more

By Jake Goldstein-Street / The Washington State Standard | 3/17/25

protester holds up a signs and chant during a rally opposing state budget cuts on the steps of the Washington State Capitol Building in Olymipa on Monday, March 17.

State workers blast Gov. Bob Ferguson’s furlough plan, calling it a betrayal

Attorney General Bob Ferguson pledged to labor leaders in July 2023 that if elected governor, he’d have their back as he set about to change the culture of state government. … more

By Jerry Cornfield / The Washington State Standard | 3/17/25

The Washington Capitol building is lit up against the night sky in Olympia on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023.

Gender expansive students to be protected class under bill advancing in Washington state

A bill that would add several protected classes to nondiscrimination provisions that apply to public schools in Washington state, received a public hearing Monday in the House Education … more

By Carleen Johnson / The Center Square | 3/17/25

Washington state Senate passes bill to speed up carbon emission data updates

The Washington Senate unanimously passed a bill earlier this month that would require the state Department of Ecology to release a report on statewide carbon emissions every year, rather than two … more

By TJ Martinell / The Center Square | 3/17/25

British Columbia introduces toll measure to counter tariffs

The government of British Columbia filed legislation Thursday that would permit the province to levy tolls on vehicles between the Lower 48 and Alaska. The bill, known formally as the Economic … more

By James Brooks / Alaska Beacon | 3/17/25

Washington state law firm drew Democrats' cash, and Trump's wrath

Seattle-based Perkins Coie isn't typically the underdog in a court fight. For more than a century, the Seattle law firm has zealously defended the biggest names in Seattle business, from Boeing … more

Paul Roberts / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/17/25

The outside of Green Hill School is pictured in Chehalis on Tuesday, Oct. 15.

State lawmakers aim to relieve strained Green Hill School and juvenile legal system

With overcrowding at one of Washington's two youth prisons hitting a crisis point, state lawmakers this legislative session have homed in on juvenile crime and incarceration, hoping to provide relief … more

Lauren Girgis / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/17/25

Measles outbreaks in Texas and New Mexico have led to nearly 300 cases and two deaths, raising public health concerns. Isolated cases have also been reported in a number of states, including Washington. (Dreamstime/TNS)

Washington state schools see declines statewide in measles vaccination rates

SEATTLE — Measles outbreaks in Texas and New Mexico have led to nearly 300 cases and two deaths, raising public health concerns. Isolated cases have also been reported in a number of states, … more

Gene Balk / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/17/25

Cat food sold in Washington recalled over bird flu threat

Savage Pet, a California-based company that markets raw and “prey-based cat food,” is recalling boxes of chicken that could contain bird flu, it announced Saturday through the U.S. Food … more

Sami Edge / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/17/25

Terminated federal workers in PNW in the ‘dark’ about whether they’ll be reinstated following court orders

Terminated federal probationary workers in Oregon say they are in the dark about what will happen following rulings by two federal judges who ordered the Trump administration last week to reinstate … more

Yesenia Amaro / oregonlive.com (TNS) | 3/17/25

Washington State Capitol (Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard)

Barring a referendum, Washington state elected leaders will receive hefty pay hikes in July

Only one thing could delay, and possibly derail, pay raises for state elected officials this year: a referendum. A citizen commission approved a new salary schedule for members of the … more

By Jerry Cornfield / The Washington State Standard | 3/17/25

Woman airlifted to area hospital after Saturday evening crash in Mason County, WSP says

A 52-year-old Elma woman wound up at a Tacoma hospital Saturday evening after she rolled her pick-up truck in south Mason County, according to the Washington State Patrol. Troopers say she was … more

Rolf Boone / The Olympian (TNS) | 3/16/25

Tan sediment is seen running out of the mouth of the Cowlitz River into the Columbia in 2014.

Four decades after Mount St. Helens blast, sediment continues to cause problems downstream

Nearly 45 years after Mount St. Helens’ eruption sent almost 90 billion cubic feet of debris into the upper Toutle Valley, millions of tons of sediment still pour down into the Cowlitz River … more

Henry Brannan / Murrow News | 3/16/25

Amid mass NOAA firings, U.S. Sen. Murray delivers grim forecast: ‘Dark clouds coming’

Mark Baltzell had seen the writing on the wall, but that didn’t make losing his dream job easy. Baltzell knew that he might get swept up in the flurry of federal firings executed by the … more

Simone Carter / The News Tribune (TNS) | 3/15/25

After crash kills Washington state middle school student, parents seek answers

Arsema Barekew was never afraid to speak up. If one of the 12-year-old's classmates was upset or crying, Arsema was usually first to rush forward and offer comfort. And if one of her Washington … more

Catalina Gaitán / The Seattle Times (TNS) | 3/15/25