Opinion
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 265
Small farms declining
Farm numbers across the U.S. are dwindling and the mountain states are no exception. Our country lost 7% of farms from 2017-2022, and all of the mountain states were above the national average. As a farmer in the region, I understa... — Updated 3/28/2024
Polluters should pay for carbon
“Polluters pay. People get a carbon cashback” sums up the impact that the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act would have. The EICDA was re-introduced in the House of Representatives last September and is currently lan... — Updated 3/28/2024
Why no Easter lily tours?
Easter is when potted Easter Lily plants start showing up in nurseries and supermarkets like poinsettias during the Christmas season. They adorn the altars and pulpits of most... — Updated 3/28/2024
Lawmakers miss salmon opportunity
The legislative session is over, and it had the potential to be very positive for salmon recovery. There was bipartisan support for habitat restoration. Legislators also had a huge... — Updated 3/22/2024
Mixed results as session ends
The 2024 legislative session is now in the history books. After 60 days, in which 201 House bills and 180 Senate bills passed the Legislature, we can report a mix of great... — Updated 3/22/2024
Letters to the Editor
Congresswoman can influence Speaker Johnson Among Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers’s negative legacies she leaves, her most impactful may be on immigration. However, she still has time to improve that. Donald Trump cares n... — Updated 3/22/2024
Letters to the Editor
Congresswoman can try to influence Speaker Johnson Among Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers’s negative legacies she leaves, her most impactful may be on immigration. However, she still has time to improve that. Donald Trump c... — Updated 3/13/2024
Tree farms reduce greenhouse gases
As climate change concerns grow, researchers are turning to family tree farmers for assistance. They have been helping for a century, but their efforts go unrecognized. The... — Updated 3/13/2024
Keep public records open to the public
Public records must remain open and accessible A special report urges the mobilization of civic leaders, organizations, businesses and all residents to work together to save the state’s Public Records Act. The report is available o... — Updated 2/29/2024
Dam compact words matter
Let’s take a few words that should be on the minds of all Eastern Washingtonians concerned over efforts to breach Snake River dams — agreement, restoration and sovereign, to nam... — Updated 2/29/2024
House Bill 2114, rent control, appears to have died in the Washington State Senate
House Bill 2114, otherwise known as rent control, that passed the Washington State House of Representatives February 13 on a party line vote, appears to have died in the Senate and... — Updated 2/29/2024
Let Washingtonians be heard
It is with a mix of encouragement and disappointment that the Senate majority leader says four of the six citizen initiatives to the Legislature “might” have public hearings scheduled before the end of the 2024 session. But don... — Updated 2/29/2024
Cleansing sewage essential to water
In Washington, this year we hope to again escape the historic droughts plaguing other parts of the world. The Columbia River water system flowed at normal levels in recent years... — Updated 2/22/2024
Facing the facts about the damage caused by one-party control
It was my honor this year to deliver the opposing party's response to the "state of the state" address from the governor. In his final such speech to the Senate and House of... — Updated 2/14/2024
State needs more law officers
There was a time many years ago when our state was generally safe and did not have a serious crime problem. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, that was then and this is now. Washington is among the nation’s leaders in several c... — Updated 2/14/2024
California too costly for our economy
Several days ago, the Wall Street Journal issued a report about California’s “soaring electricity rates.” Average residential rates for investor-owned utility customers have surged by 72% to 127% over the past 10 years. About... — Updated 2/14/2024
Charting a Sustainable Energy Future
As Washington stands at a pivotal moment in shaping its energy future, it becomes increasingly clear that adopting sensible, forward-thinking solutions is crucial for a reliable,... — Updated 2/14/2024
Take 'Gotcha!' out of records requests
When state voters adopted the state's Public Records Act in 1972, they wanted to make sure state, county and city governments operate openly and are transparent to the people. They... — Updated 2/14/2024
Recycling EV batteries a huge effort
Each year Americans throw away more than three billion batteries constituting 180,000 tons of hazardous material. The situation is likely to get worse as the world shifts to lithium... — Updated 2/8/2024
State parks failing at Palouse Falls, Lyons
Two years ago, Washington State Parks bureaucrats in Tumwater hatched a plan to address so-called "overcrowding" at Palouse Falls. The plan was to close and relocate the campground... — Updated 1/31/2024
Watch your language on climate change
As climate disruption becomes more evident, more people are empowered to advocate for climate mitigation. This advocacy is positive, but climate advocates must choose their words carefully for their message to be most effective.... — Updated 1/31/2024
Expose dam plan to reality
The $33 billion secret Snake River Dam plan that President Biden and friends cooked up in the White House basement needs to be exposed to the light of day and thoroughly aired by... — Updated 1/17/2024
Breaching dams isn't the answer
Monumental Dam has a concrete fish ladder. Its lock works for barge. Rather than breach the dam – or others on the Lower Snake River – how about using a tunnel-boring machine to notch an on the side an additional zig-zag fish lad... — Updated 1/12/2024