Austin Jenkins
Olympia Correspondent, Northwest News Network
About
Since January 2004, Austin has been the Olympia-based state government reporter for the Northwest News Network, a consortium of public radio stations in Washington and Oregon that includes KUOW. Austin's areas of coverage include Northwest politics and public policy, as well as the Washington Legislature.
Prior to joining the Northwest News Network, Austin worked as a television reporter in Seattle, Portland and Boise. Austin is a graduate of Garfield High School in Seattle and Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut. In 2019, Austin received his Master of Communication in Digital Media from the University of Washington Communication Leadership program.
Location: Olympia
Languages Spoken: English
Pronouns: he/him
Stories
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See ya! Washington police say drivers aren’t stopping for them; cite pursuit restrictions
Since January of this year, more than 900 drivers have failed to stop for a Washington State Patrol trooper trying to pull them over. The patrol and other police agencies around the state say they’ve never seen such blatant disregard for their lights and sirens. The change in driver behavior comes after state lawmakers passed strict new rules on when police can engage in pursuits.
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Washington saca del estado a jóvenes en crisis, los contribuyentes son quienes pagan la cuenta
Algunos padres con hijos en crisis en Washington están tomando una decisión desgarradora. Están enviando a sus hijos a internados terapéuticos fuera del estado. Y los contribuyentes están pagando la cuenta. Aunque se trata de casos atípicos, estos ponen de manifiesto las continuas carencias de los servicios estatales, carencias que quedaron al descubierto durante la pandemia de COVID. Antes de que la pandemia de COVID golpeara a principios de 2020, Brennan, el hijo de Robin Marie, asistía a una escuela para jóvenes autistas en Issaquah. Sus necesidades eran tan grandes que contaba con el apoyo de dos personas solo para atenderlo a él.
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KUOW Newsroom
Washington's governor and lieutenant governor catch Covid
Washington Governor Jay Inslee and Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck have tested positive for Covid-19. Heck says that the two have not been in close contact and the cases are unrelated.
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KUOW Newsroom
Washington is sending youth in crisis to out-of-state boarding schools; taxpayers pick up the tab
Some parents with kids in crisis in Washington are making a heart wrenching decision. They’re sending their children to out-of-state therapeutic boarding schools. And taxpayers are picking up the tab. While these are outlier cases, they highlight ongoing gaps in in-state services — gaps that were laid bare during the COVID pandemic.
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KUOW Newsroom
Case of missing Washington 5-year-old highlights secrecy around CPS cases
There are more questions than answers in the case of a missing former foster child from Grays Harbor County. Five-year-old Oakley Carlson has been unaccounted for since February of last year. Police say her parents aren’t cooperating with the investigation. Oakley’s former foster mom questions why Oakley was sent back to live with her parents after more than two years in foster care. The governor's office and the Department of Children Youth and Families won't answer questions about the case citing privacy laws and the ongoing law enforcement investigation.
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Washington attorney general announces $476M settlement with opioid distributors
Three major opioid distributors will pay the state of Washington and local communities $476 million to end an ongoing lawsuit. The agreement announced Tuesday comes after the state attorney general rejected a previous settlement offer last summer.
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Washington seafood company fined following COVID death
A Sumner, Washington seafood company has been fined $56,000 for not complying with Washington's mask mandate. State investigators linked the death of an employee to a November 4, 2021 staff meeting where most of the attendees were unmasked.
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Washington lawmakers of color announce departures, one calls the work environment ‘toxic’
In recent years, Washington’s Legislature has grown more diverse. And majority Democrats have emphasized diversity and equity as core values. But now three members of color, out of nearly 30, are stepping down from the Legislature after serving just one full term. One of them describes the legislative work environment as toxic.
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KUOW Newsroom
Employees say state insurance chief used racist slurs, mistreated staff
Washington’s long-time elected insurance commissioner has used offensive terms in the workplace to describe people of different races and ethnicities, as well as people who are transgender. That’s according to former agency insiders who’ve come forward in recent weeks. Meanwhile, other former employees are giving new accounts of what they say is Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s mistreatment of staff.
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KUOW Newsroom
After 5 months stuck in hospital, autistic Washington teen sent to facility 2,700 miles from home
The state of Washington is putting tens of millions of dollars into shoring up a fractured children’s mental health safety net. But it may come too late for a 14-year-old nonverbal autistic teen who spent five months stuck in the hospital.