NWPB News, Author at Northwest Public Broadcasting

Can George Washington Buy Wooden Teeth With This Washington Town’s New Wooden Money?

By NWPB News May 8, 2020

The design for wooden money Tenino, Washington, plans to print in response to the COVID-19 crisis, modeled after a Depression-era effort.

Tenino, a small town in Thurston County, Washington, has approved a plan to print its own money on strips of wood. Again. It’s a response to the COVID-19 crisis that’s modeled after how the town responded to a prior crisis — the Great Depression.Read More

‘A Helpless Feeling’: Hundreds Of Idaho Children Unaccounted For In Switch To Distance Learning

By NWPB News May 6, 2020

Children in the Blackfoot School District pick up meals from a “Bus Bites” program that brings food to kids at home. Courtesy of Idaho Education News

Administrators in Idaho’s largest districts say they’ve lost touch with up to 5 percent of their students during the transition to remote learning. These families haven’t responded to texts, calls, emails and sometimes home visits from administrators.Read More

For Ishmael Butler, Musical Innovation Is A Family Legacy

By NWPB News May 6, 2020

Once part of Digable Planets, Ishmael Butler continues to be a hip-hop innovator with Shabazz Palaces. He stays connected to new music through his son Jazz, who records as Lil Tracy. CREDIT: Patrick O'Brien Smith/Courtesy of the artist

Once part of Digable Planets, Butler continues to be a hip-hop innovator. He stays connected to new music through his son Jazz, who records as Lil Tracy.Read More

Rural Washington Counties Seize Chance To Accelerate Reopening As Others Say ‘What About Us?’

By NWPB News May 6, 2020

Windmills at wind farm in Kittitas County

Given the opportunity to accelerate the restart of shuttered businesses and social activities, six counties in central and eastern Washington wasted no time this week in submitting the necessary paperwork to the state government. Kittitas, Garfield, Columbia, Ferry, Stevens and Pend Oreille County officials hope to hear an answer back from the Washington State Secretary of Read More

Return To Elective Procedures Means Return To More Stable Finances For Rural Washington Hospitals

By NWPB News May 1, 2020

Smaller Washington hospitals like Mid-Valley Hospital in Omak faced tight budget considerations with a pause on elective surgeries. Courtesy of Mid-Valley Hospital

Hospitals in Washington are starting to act on the permission given them by Gov. Jay Inslee to resume non-essential medical procedures. Some may begin work by or before next week.Read More

Jay Inslee Extends Coronavirus Closures Through May, Outlines Phased Plan To Reopen

By NWPB News May 1, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced an extension of the state's stay home, stay healthy measures through May, while unveiling a four-phase economic reopening and recovery plane. CREDIT: TVW

Washington's 'stay home' order will extend until at least May 31. On Friday, Gov. Jay Inslee announced the new time frame and that businesses will be able to open over four phases.Read More

COVID-19 Considerations Sprout Confusion, Uncertainty To Northwest Family Farms

By NWPB News April 30, 2020

Liepold Farms in Boring, Ore., on Friday, April 3, 2020.

Across the Northwest, small and mid-sized farms are grappling with a range of challenges brought about by coronavirus.Read More

Washington’s Stay-Home Order Will Be Extended Past May 4, Details Coming Later This Week

By NWPB News April 29, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announces the closing of all K-12 schools in three Washington counties on Thursday, March 12, 2020. The closure was extended statewide on Friday for at least six weeks. CREDIT: Rachel La Corte/AP

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Wednesday confirmed that his statewide stay-at-home order would be extended beyond its current May 4 end date. Inslee also said the state had new guidelines for health care providers to resume some non-urgent surgical procedures.Read More

16 Idaho Nursing Homes Hit By Coronavirus, State Mum On Details

By NWPB News April 28, 2020

A pedestrian wearing a mask passing under the marquee at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre

Idaho nursing homes have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with at least 150 cases reported at 16 different long-term care facilities in the state. So far, at least 26 people at such facilities have died from COVID-19.Read More

U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr Tells Prosecutors To Look For Unconstitutional Virus Rules From States

By NWPB News April 27, 2020

President Trump has congratulated Attorney General William Barr for "taking charge" of the Roger Stone case. Susan Walsh/AP

Attorney General William Barr on Monday ordered federal prosecutors across the U.S. to identify coronavirus-related restrictions from state and local governments “that could be violating the constitutional rights and civil liberties of individual citizens.”Read More

Washington Moves Toward Reopening Fishing, Hunting, Golfing, State Parks Beginning May 5

By NWPB News April 27, 2020

Palouse Falls State Park is home to Washington's official state waterfall -- and large crowds in the spring runoff season.

Fishing, hunting and golfing can resume on May 5 in Washington, at which time people can also return to state parks and other state lands for day trips, Gov. Jay Inslee announced Monday.Read More

In First Turn Of The Dial, More Washington Construction Can Resume, With Safety Measures In Place

By NWPB News April 24, 2020

File photo. Seattle's rental housing market shows more availability than other areas of Washington, like Kittitas and Yakima counties, where new construction hasn't kept up with demand. CREDIT: TED S. WARREN/AP

“We are trying to find that right balance of safety and productivity,” Gov. Jay Inslee said, during a news conference announcing the eased construction restrictions. Read More

Washington Supreme Court Denies Prisoners’ Request For Release Over Coronavirus Fears

By NWPB News April 24, 2020

Debra Stephens, Chief Justice of the Washington state Supreme Court, appears on a TV livestream of court proceedings, April 23, 2020, as the Court hears oral arguments in a case that addressed the safety of prison inmates during the coronavirus outbreak.

The justices, in a 5-4 decision, said that the prisoners who had sued failed to show that the Department of Corrections was not properly addressing the risk of COVID-19.Read More

Idaho’s Reckoning: From Business And School Closures To A Long, Slow Reopening

By NWPB News April 22, 2020

Gov. Brad Little extended his stay-at-home order April 15, while deferring to the State Board of Education, the State Department of Education and local administrators on the question of reopening schools. CREDIT: Sami Edge/Idaho EdNews

Little’s extended stay-at-home order, running through April 30, spells out a few small steps to reopen the economy. Some businesses, previously deemed “nonessential,” will be able to reopen for curbside or delivery service.Read More

From Olympia To Richland To Moscow, Protesters Demonstrate Against Coronavirus Safety Measures

By NWPB News April 20, 2020

Protesters rally against social-distancing measures at the Washington state Capitol on April 19, 2020. CREDIT: Will James / KNKX

Demonstrations from Olympia to Richland in Washington, to Sandpoint to Moscow to Boise in Idaho, have been organized by people flouting social distancing measures put in place for public health and to slow the spread of coronavirus.Read More

10 Years After BP Deepwater Horizon Spill: Oil Drilled Deeper; Rules Relaxed

By NWPB News April 20, 2020

Oil in the Gulf of Mexico as the Deepwater Horizon oil rig burns

Ten years after an oil rig explosion killed 11 workers and unleashed an environmental nightmare in the Gulf of Mexico, companies are drilling in deeper and deeper waters, where payoffs can be huge but risks are greater than ever.Read More

10 Pioneer-Era Apple Types Thought Extinct Found In The Northwest

By NWPB News April 20, 2020

Apples collected by amateur botanists David Benscoter and EJ Brandt of the Lost Apple Project near Genesee, Idaho.

A team of retirees that scours the remote ravines and windswept plains of the Pacific Northwest for long-forgotten pioneer orchards has rediscovered 10 apple varieties that were believed to be extinct — the largest number ever unearthed in a single season by the non-profit Lost Apple Project.Read More

Health Officials Recommended Canceling Events. Then 33K Attended A Seattle Sounders Game

By NWPB News April 19, 2020

Thousands of fans cheer during the Sounders opening match on March 1, 2020. CREDIT: Lindsey Wasson/Sounders FC Communications

As COVID-19 fears grew, public officials and sports execs contemplated health risks — and debated a PR message — but let 33,000 fans into a Seattle Sounders soccer match, emails show.Read More

Gov. Brad Little Extends Idaho’s Statewide Stay-Home Order Through April, Loosens Some Closures

By NWPB News April 15, 2020

File photo. Gov. Brad Little speaks March 13, 2020 at a news conference. On Wednesday, April 15, he extended a stay-at-home order to the end of April, saying it’s needed to slow the spread of the coronavirus. CREDIT: Darin Oswald/Idaho Statesman via AP

Idaho’s statewide stay-at-home order has been extended through the end of April, Gov. Brad Little announced Wednesday. Little said the extension was necessary to ensure the state continues to slow the spread of the coronavirus, prevent health care facilities from being overwhelmed and hopefully hasten the end of the pandemic.Read More

Washington-Oregon-California Governors Announce ‘Pact’ For Reopening Economies

By NWPB News April 14, 2020

File photo. Porter Hahn makes an iced coffee drink in November 2019 in a Seattle coffee shop. U.S. services companies grew at a faster pace in February 2020 than the previous month. Then the coronavirus outbreak in the region shut down much of the service industry. CREDIT: Elaine Thompson/AP

With President Donald Trump suggesting he has authority to unilaterally re-open businesses around the country, West Coast governors on Monday presented a united front, saying they’ll only lift restrictions when public health data suggests they can.Read More

Nearly 1,000 Washington Inmates Will Be Released To Make Room For More Social Distancing

By NWPB News April 13, 2020

Nightfall at the Monroe Correctional Complex on Wednesday, November 29, 2018. Two units at the prison are currently on "precautionary quarantine." CREDIT: Megan Farmer/KUOW

Gov. Jay Inslee and the Washington State Department of Corrections released their emergency plan to keep inmates safe from COVID-19 on Monday, after a back-and-forth of lawsuit responses between the state and Columbia Legal Services.Read More

‘Heartbreaking’ Guidance Calls For Hikers To Quit Pacific Crest Trail Trips During Pandemic

By NWPB News April 11, 2020

A sign for the Pacific Crest Trail is shown on September 9, 2015, near Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. CREDIT: Megan Farmer/KUOW

Dusty hikers fresh off the Pacific Crest Trail are a familiar summertime sight in Ashland and other towns along the West Coast. But this year, trail organizers are asking hikers to stay off the trail to help minimize the spread of the coronavirus.Read More

A High Statewide Rate, With Big Fluctuations: Reading Idaho’s Coronavirus Numbers

By NWPB News April 6, 2020

Idaho Gov. Brad Little, left, announces stricter guidelines for social interactions to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, and also livestreaming the discussion, at his office in Boise on March 18, 2020. CREDIT: Keith Ridler/AP

Idaho has one of the highest coronavirus rates in the nation, according to a state epidemiologist. But infection rates can vary widely from county to county. And Idaho’s daily case reports fluctuate too.Read More

Washington Extends K-12 School Closure Through June; So Does Idaho (With Big Caveats)

By NWPB News April 6, 2020

Gov. Jay Inslee announced Monday that all Washington K-12 schools would remain closed for the rest of the current school year. CREDIT: TVW/Screenshot

Gov. Jay Inslee announced Monday that all Washington K-12 schools will remain closed for the remainder of this school year and will shift to a distance learning model.Read More

Isolated But Not Alone: Nurses Help COVID-19 Patient Say Goodbye, Offer Comfort To The End

By NWPB News April 6, 2020

Carolann Christine Gann and family in photos over the years. Courtesy of Michelle Bennett. Illustration by Parker Miles Blohm/KNKX

Michelle Bennett couldn’t hold her mother’s hand in those final moments, 10 days after Carolann Christine Gann tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Bennett couldn’t even go through her mother’s belongings as she prepared to bury her. So two people in protective gear did what she couldn't.Read More

How Tea Party Budget Battles Left The National Emergency Medical Stockpile Unprepared

By NWPB News April 5, 2020

File photo. Don Wood, an official with the Strategic National Stockpile, awaits another truck load of medications in Salt Lake City, Utah during a swine flu outbreak from the H1N1 virus in 2009. The pandemic that year prompted the largest use to date of the stockpile, which was created in 1999. It has never confronted anything on the scale of the current COVID-19 pandemic. CREDIT: Francisco Kjolseth/AP

Dire shortages of vital medical equipment in the Strategic National Stockpile that are now hampering the coronavirus response trace back to the budget wars of the Obama years, when congressional Republicans elected on the Tea Party wave forced the White House to accept sweeping cuts to federal spending.Read More

Why Insurers May Not Cover Business’ Coronavirus Losses

By NWPB News April 3, 2020

Carlo Lamagna, the owner and chef of Magna Kusina in Portland, Ore., poses for a portrait inside his closed restaurant on Friday, March 27, 2020. Lamagna laid off his entire staff and closed the business following Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s order to halt dine-in eating at restaurants in response to the coronavirus outbreak. CREDIT: Bryan M. Vance/OPB

As coronavirus pandemic shutters small businesses across the Northwest, business owners are bracing for a wave of insurance denials. That’s because insurers have been telling businesses that coronavirus losses don’t count.Read More

Gov. Jay Inslee Extends Washington ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ Order Until At Least May 5

By NWPB News April 2, 2020

On Monday, March 23, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee addressed the state and issued a 'stay-at-home' order in a further attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. CREDIT: Governor's Office

Gov. Jay Inslee announced Thursday that the original 'stay-at-home' order would be extended until at least May 5. There were no additional restrictions or other measure put in place beyond what's already been implemented.Read More

Inslee Asks Washington Manufacturers To Help COVID-19 Fight; Idaho Goes Vote-By-Mail For Primary

By NWPB News April 1, 2020

Kaas Tailored employees sew masks on Monday, March 23, 2020, at the Kaas Tailored furniture factory in Mukilteo. CREDIT: Megan Farmer/KUOW

Gov. Jay Inslee is calling on businesses across Washington state to help produce critical medical supplies, such as N95 masks, face shields, and testing supplies. Also, Idaho will go ahead with a May 19 primary -- but switch to an all-vote-by-mail system, like Washington and Oregon already have.Read More

Washington National Guard Likely To Take More Active Support Role, But Not In Order Enforcement

By NWPB News March 31, 2020

Spc. Joshua Junious, second from left, poses with members of his National Guard platoon at the Yakima Training Center. CREDIT: AUSTIN JENKINS/N3

When the governor declared a state of emergency in late February, that allowed for the use of the National Guard. So far the state’s citizen soldiers have played a limited role in supporting the battle against coronavirus. But Inslee’s chief of staff David Postman said Tuesday that may soon change. He says they won’t be playing a law enforcement role or controlling traffic.Read More

Coronavirus Pivots: Idaho Outfitter Gears Up For PPE Distribution; Yakima Hospital May Reopen

By NWPB News March 31, 2020

Astria Health closed its hospital in Yakima earlier in 2020 after a bankruptcy filing. It could reopen in a lease to the state during the coronavirus pandemic. Courtesy of Astria Health

First responders in Moscow, Idaho will soon have access to more respirators, face shields and gowns. And in Washington’s Yakima Valley, a shuttered former hospital may soon be reopened by the state with the cooperation of its bankrupt owner to continue hospital service.Read More

Idaho Gov. Brad Little Signs Bill Banning Transgender Women And Girls From School Sports

By NWPB News March 30, 2020

Idaho Gov. Brad Little signs into law legislation to make the overdose reversal drug naloxone more readily available. CREDIT: Keith Riddler/AP News

Gov. Brad Little signed the bill Monday, March 30, with no explanation for his vote — governors occasionally, but do not always, post transmittal letters outlining their decision. No letter was posted. The most hotly debated education bill of the 2020 legislative session, House Bill 500 would ban transgender girls and women from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.Read More

Washington Steps-Up Messaging On ‘Stay-At-Home’ Order: Risk Ticket Or Losing Business Licence

By NWPB News March 30, 2020

A highway sign in Carmel, Ind., urges resident to stay home as the state ordered residents to remain at home except for essential activities. Similar signs are up in many states, including Washington, after governors have issued their own orders limiting business and travel. CREDIT: Michael Conroy/AP

The governor outlined a three-tier law enforcement response system for violations of the order, which could amount to a gross misdemeanor. A first offense would result in a warning. But consequences thereafter would become more serious.Read More

Idaho Gov. Brad Little Orders Statewide Budget Cuts In Face Of Widening Coronavirus Fallout

By NWPB News March 28, 2020

In the face of rising unemployment and shriveling tax revenues, Gov. Brad Little cut state spending by $40 million Friday. “We know this number is going to be necessary.” CREDIT: Sami Edge/Idaho EdNews

By the numbers, Little’s decision will cut state spending by $40 million, from a state general budget of close to $4 billion. State agencies will have to move quickly, imposing the spending cuts over the final three months of a budget year that ends June 30.Read More

Governor Says Washington ‘Stay-At-Home’ Order May Be Extended Beyond Initial 2 Weeks

By NWPB News March 27, 2020

Gov. Jay Inslee says people should prepare to stay home beyond the initial April 6 order, as officials work to flatten the COVID-19 curve.Read More

Northwest States See Unprecedented Surge In Unemployment Claims

By NWPB News March 26, 2020

Mirroring the national trend, Washington, Idaho and Oregon are experiencing an unprecedented spike in unemployment claims caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.Read More

Bellingham’s Shuksan Healthcare Nursing Home Tries To Avert Another COVID-19 Disaster

By NWPB News March 25, 2020

Sisters Seri Sedlacek, left, and Susan Simpkins look in on their father, Chuck Sedlacek, at the Life Care Center, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in Kirkland. Shuksan Healthcare Center in Bellingham is working to avoid what happened at the Kirkland facility. CREDIT: Elaine Thompson/AP

More than 30 residents and employees of a Bellingham nursing facility have tested positive for COVID-19, prompting officials to take steps to avoid a deadly scenario that played out in Kirkland, Washington's Life Care Center.Read More

Idaho Education Board Orders Closure Of All Public Schools, Among Last States To Do So

By NWPB News March 24, 2020

The Moscow School District decided earlier in March to close schools after its spring break, after Idaho Gov. Brad Little declined a statewide closure. CREDIT: Architect21c at the English Wikipedia / GFDL gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html

During what the board called a “soft closure,” schools will be closed to students. At least for now, the shutdown runs through April 20. The shutdown is designed to provide some guidance for school administrators, as a global pandemic shakes the foundation of Idaho education.Read More

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Announces Statewide ‘Stay-At-Home’ Order To Address Coronavirus

By NWPB News March 23, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced a statewide "stay at home" order Monday, March 23, with exceptions for essential travel, jobs, grocery shopping and exercise. He implored residents to maintain social distancing in the interest of public health. CREDIT: TVW

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced a stay-at-home order Monday for all Washington residents. The order builds on other "unprecedented steps" that the state has already imposed, including closing schools and public places such as bars and in-house dining services. It's all an effort to reduce in-person physical social interactions.Read More

Yakima County Gets Stay-At-Home Order As President Trump Declares Emergency For Washington

By NWPB News March 22, 2020

Jess White, a registered nurse at UW Northwest, demonstrates to another nurse how to properly remove a mask on Thursday, March 12, 2020, at UW Medicine's drive-through testing clinic in Seattle. CREDIT: Megan Farmer/KUOW

Coronavirus continues to spread in Washington and Idaho. As of Sunday, March 22, Washington had nearly 2,000 confirmed cases, with at least 95 deaths since the outbreak began. Idaho’s official number stood at 47 cases, with most in Blaine County. Read More

No Shelter-In-Place Order Imminent In Washington, But More Restrictions Likely In Future

By NWPB News March 20, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is not on the verge of issuing a statewide shelter-in-place order, as governors in California and elsewhere have done recently, a top Inslee aide said Friday.Read More

Coronavirus In Idaho: Moscow Closing Bars And Restaurants As Cases Grow Statewide

By NWPB News March 20, 2020

There may not be enough beds for coronavirus patients in Idaho, if even the most conservative estimates from state epidemiologists are accurate.Read More

Inslee Gives Washingtonians Eviction Protection; Little Asks Idahoans To Avoid Large Crowds

By NWPB News March 18, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, left, gives an elbow touch to American Sign Language interpreter Terry Dockter after a news conference about the coronavirus outbreak Monday, March 16, 2020, in Seattle. Inslee ordered all bars, restaurants, entertainment and recreation facilities to temporarily close to fight the spread of COVID-19.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced a slate of measures Wednesday to help the state’s workers, businesses and renters. In Idaho, Gov. Brad Little urged his state’s citizens to impose more discipline on themselves to keep COVID-19 from spreading. Read More

‘Hours Count.’ Governor Officially Orders Washington Businesses Close; Counties Adapt To Help

By NWPB News March 17, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee addresses a news conference about the coronavirus outbreak Monday, March 16, 2020, in Seattle. Inslee ordered all bars, restaurants, entertainment and recreation facilities to temporarily close to fight the spread of COVID-19 in the state with by far the most deaths in the U.S. from the disease. CREDIT: Elaine Thompson/AP

Gov. Jay Inslee made it official Monday: Any Washington businesses that aren’t essential retailers, such as grocery stores or pharmacies, are shutting down for at least two weeks to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.Read More

A Trip To Seattle’s Selfie Museum Poses A Boost To Self-Confidence

By NWPB News March 14, 2020

Tali Calles falls out of washing machine art installation at Seattle Selfie Museum.

Once finding it near Seattle's infamous Gum Wall, visitors will enter a small lobby leading to eccentric installations and flashy colors on every corner. After giving the front-desk your name, staff will stamp your hand and advise visitors of three important rules: have fun, take lots of pictures and don’t break anything.Read More

Schools Close, Colleges Go Online, Pullman Declares Emergency As COVID-19 Response Ramps Up

By NWPB News March 12, 2020

Gov. Jay Inslee announces a ban on large events and gatherings of more than 250 people in King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties on Wednesday, March 11, 2020. CREDIT: King County TV

Pullman and Yakima County declare emergencies. And events with more than 250 people are prohibited in Washington's King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. That's among many updates this week to the expanding COVID-19 outbreak in the Northwest.Read More

March 10 Idaho Election Much More Than Presidential Primary: 41 School District Levies Up For Vote

By NWPB News March 10, 2020

Voters wait in line as the polls open at Pierce Park Baptist Church in Boise, Idaho, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018. CREDIT: Otto Kitsinger/AP

For some districts, the stakes are particularly high. A year ago, after a failed levy, Kamiah was forced to close its middle school. In other districts, the proposals are familiar, reruns of levies voters have approved for years. But the Nampa School District is taking a second run at a levy, four months after a proposal fell a scant 11 votes short of passing.Read More

In Gun-Friendly Idaho, Dispute Over Sandpoint Festival Pits 2nd Amendment Against Property Rights

By NWPB News March 6, 2020

A "No Firearms" sign outside of the Bonner County Courthouse in Sandpoint, where the case, Bonner County v. City of Sandpoint, is being heard. CREDIT: Nick Deshais/N3

A gun ban at a popular music festival in North Idaho is splitting the community, leading to a lawsuit between Bonner County and its largest town, Sandpoint. Read More

U.S. Supreme Court To Decide Fate Of Affordable Care Act — Again

By NWPB News March 2, 2020

A view of the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.

The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to decide a lawsuit that threatens the Obama-era health care law, but the decision is not likely until after the 2020 election. The court said it would hear an appeal by 20 mainly Democratic states of a lower-court ruling that declared part of the statute unconstitutional and cast a cloud over the rest.Read More

UPDATE: At Least 6 People In Puget Sound Region Have Died From COVID-19 Coronavirus

By NWPB News March 1, 2020

EvergreenHealth Medical Center in Kirkland, Washington, where a person died of COVID-19. State health officials announced the death Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020, marking the first such reported death in the U.S. CREDIT: Elaine Thompson/AP

A patient in King County who tested positive for coronavirus has died, according to state and local public health officials. It's believed to be the first coronavirus death in the U.S. The news prompted Gov. Jay Inslee to declare a state of emergency. Read More

Recent Posts