Northwest News

Couples And Families Separated By U.S.-Canada Border Closure Find Oasis At Peace Arch Park

By Tom Banse
Crossing the border into Peace Arch State Park from Canada, at left, entails stepping across a ditch. CREDIT: Tom Banse/N3
This coming Sunday, March 21, will mark one year since the U.S. and Canada closed their shared border to nonessential crossings due to the pandemic. It's anybody's guess when the border might reopen for discretionary trips. In the meantime, every weekend rain or shine, Peace Arch State Park in Blaine, Washington, becomes a happening meetup point for couples and families Read More

4 Ways Our Understanding Of The Coronavirus Has Changed A Year Into The Pandemic

By PBS Newshour
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
This month marks one year since the coronavirus pandemic swiftly upended daily life in the United States. In 2020, March brought about emergency declarations and indefinite school closures, followed by record unemployment claims and dozens of stay-at-home orders. By the end of the month, millions of people were either told to stay inside under lockdown or continue carrying Read More

It’s Pedal To The Metal As Washington State Lawmakers Push Ahead With Pandemic-Era Agenda

By Austin Jenkins
Washington state Capitol building in Olympia, March 10, 2021. CREDIT: Austin Jenkins/N3
Washington’s 105-day legislative session has crossed the halfway point and a key deadline for policy (non-budget) bills to clear their chamber of origin has passed. Majority Democrats are moving swiftly to enact a pandemic-era agenda focused on issues like tax reform, police accountability, racial equity and global climate change. Minority Republicans, meanwhile, are Read More

States Look To Ramp Up Wolf Kills Following Previous Administration’s Move To Ease Protections

By NWPB News
The timing of the Wisconsin hunt was bumped up following a lawsuit that raised concerns President Joe Biden’s administration would intervene to restore gray wolf protections. The group behind the suit has close links to Republican political circles including influential donors the Koch brothers and notable Trump loyalists — Kris Kobach, a former U.S. Senate candidate from Read More

How Inequity Gets Built Into America’s Vaccination System

By NWPB News
People wait in line for the COVID-19 vaccine in Paterson, N.J., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. Some hospitals around the U.S. are facing complaints about favoritism and line-jumping after their board members and donors received COVID-19 vaccinations or offers for inoculations. CREDIT: Seth Wenig/AP
It’s a fact that simply being eligible for a vaccine in America doesn’t mean that you can instantly get one. Yet the ability to get to the front of the line isn’t the same for everyone. ProPublica has found that, whether intentionally or not, some vaccine programs have been designed with inherent barriers that disadvantage many people who are most at risk of dying from the Read More

Washington State Dems Push For Capital Gains In A Year When ‘Tax’ Doesn’t Seem Like A Bad Word

By Austin Jenkins
The Washington Senate chamber sits empty before the start of the legislative session on January 11, 2021. CREDIT: Austin Jenkins/N3
Even as the state of Washington’s revenue picture improves, majority Democrats in the Legislature appear committed to a course that will, one way or another, involve raising taxes this year. Not necessarily to balance a recession-era budget, but instead to reform a tax code they view as regressive and to address gaps and inequities exposed by the global pandemic.Read More
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