KUOW Blog
News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.
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Stories
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Campaign kicks off to save Washington's capital gains tax
It's been just over two years since Washington's capital gains tax went into effect, and already there's a ballot initiative to repeal it. But a new campaign is pushing back, fighting to preserve the tax.
Opponents of Initiative 2109 gathered in Burien and other cities across the state on Wednesday to officially begin campaigning against the measure. I-2109 will appear on the November ballot and will ask voters if the capital gains tax should stay or be repealed.
RELATED: Capital gains tax receipts in Washington state tumble
Democratic state Rep. Tana Senn (D–Mercer Island) would like to save it. She said revenue from the tax funds school construction and child-care programs. She argues that just a few Washingtonians are subject to the capital gains tax.
"What we need to really emphasize is that less than 4,000 people in our state pay this tax and maybe a handful in Eastern Washington," Senn said. "These dollars go across our state."
Diana Llanes runs a bilingual childcare center in Burien. At the kick-off event Wednesday morning, she said that repealing the tax could hit the state's child-care industry hard.
"Not only the parents need the child care, but if the funding ends, it will affect the families, and will affect my own business, my small business," Llanes said. "And I won't be able to provide work for my staff."
Under Washington state's capital gains tax, individual profits from the sale of long-term stocks or bonds above $262,000 are taxed at 7%. Real estate sales are not subject to the tax.
Voters will decide on the November 2024 ballot whether to overturn the tax, alongside other conservative-backed initiatives, including one that could dismantle the state's carbon credit market and another that aims to make participation in WA Cares, the state's long-term health care program, optional.
RELATED: Campaign to defend Washington state's climate law raises $11 million, far outpacing opposition
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‘It was David and Goliath.’ Eyewitness describes shooting in murder trial of Auburn police officer
On the fourth day of the murder trial of Auburn Police Officer Jeffrey Nelson, a witness described the moments that led to Nelson fatally shooting Jesse Sarey, 26.
Steven Woodard watched as Nelson shot Sarey twice, and the struggle beforehand, after he and his family pulled into the parking lot of the Sunshine Grocery convenience store in Auburn in 2019. Nelson was charged with second-degree murder and first-degree assault in 2020.
On Wednesday, Prosecutor Angelo Calfo had Woodard describe what happened that day nearly five years ago.
Kristen Murray, Nelson’s attorney, shared several video clips showing interviews Woodard gave police the day of the shooting, seemingly in an attempt to point out inconsistencies.
During his testimony to the jury, Woodard compared the two to “David and Goliath,” because Nelson’s stature was three times larger than that of Sarey’s.
The altercation “all happened so quickly,” Woodard said, his neck tattoos peeking out from the neckline of his black T-shirt. It was his favorite shirt, and reduced his anxiety, the prosecution explained to the judge. It was also the shirt he wore the day Sarey was killed.
Sarey asked Woodard for change, “in a soft, polite voice,” Woodard said, but he didn’t have any change to give him.
Sarey sat on the concrete outside the convenience store, and was digging through a cardboard box of trash looking for something to drink, when Nelson approached him, Woodard said.
Nelson commanded Sarey to put his hands behind his back and a fight ensued. Woodard said Nelson and Sarey grappled.
“They were going around in circles like the Tasmanian Devil in the old Bugs Bunny cartoons,” he said.
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How much are safer streets worth? Seattle leaders, voters to decide
Making roads (and sidewalks and trails) safer for everyone can be an expensive proposition.
The Seattle City Council is considering how much to ask taxpayers to cough up for the November 2024 transportation levy.
Mayor Bruce Harrell has proposed a $1.45 billion levy for the fall ballot. The city council gets to say what goes in the package before it goes to voters.
Harrell’s proposal would double funding for the city's Vision Zero program aimed at eliminating traffic deaths, build 250 blocks of sidewalks in four years and add barriers to a third of the city’s bike lanes.
RELATED: $1B for sidewalks, bike lanes, and road repairs: Seattle transportation levy ahead
Advocates for pedestrians and bicyclists say the proposed levy is too small to address the toll of deaths and injuries on Seattle’s roadways. Traffic crashes killed 27 people and seriously injured more than 250 in Seattle in 2023, according to the Seattle Department of Transportation.
“This is really important to me,” Councilmember Tammy Morales said Tuesday at a public meeting on the levy.
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Capital gains tax receipts in Washington state tumble
Washington state officials report $433 million in payments in April, down from $786 million in 2023. Lawmakers may need to address the decline.
Capital gains tax collections in Washington have plummeted in their second year, creating potential challenges for the next governor and legislative budget writers in 2025.
Washington took in $433 million as of May 15, 2024. That's down from $786 million netted in 2023, the first year the tax was paid. The number of those filing remained steady, according to state Department of Revenue data.
RELATED: SCOTUS won't hear case challenging the WA capital gains tax
And again, a handful of filers accounted for a significant share of the dough. The top 10 payments accounted for $142 million this year compared to $394 million last year. Overall, there were around 3,000 payments in each of the last two years. There are nearly 8 million people in Washington state.
State lawmakers knew the capital gains tax would be an unpredictable revenue source, prone to up and down swings. Now they have a better sense of what that volatility looks like.
“It’s such a new tax. We’ll see what happens,” said Sen. June Robinson, D-Everett, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. “It looks like revenue for the budget will be less. As a budget writer, you don’t like to see that but I’m really not that surprised.”
How much less isn’t clear yet.
Each fiscal year, up to $500 million from the tax is deposited into a state account for schools, early learning, and child care programs. Any tax collections beyond that amount go to an account that helps pay for school construction and renovations.
The tax has generated slightly more than $1.2 billion for the current two-year budget cycle, which runs through June 30, 2025. But lawmakers counted $1.5 billion for the state’s operating and capital budgets, and $1.7 billion in the next biennium.
That means steps may be needed to cover any gap. Next month, the state’s chief economist will release a new revenue forecast with estimates of how much this tax will bring in for the next couple years.
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Federal Way's rhododendron garden has noticed how NW summer is affecting certain rhodys
What does Washington state have in common with Nepal, West Virginia, the Jiangxi province in China, and the Indian state of Sikkim?
All these places have chosen rhododendrons as their region's symbol. It's the provincial flower of Jiangxi and the national flower of Nepal. And it's the state tree of Sikkim. In Washington, the Pacific Rhododendron, aka Coast Rhododendron or Rhododendron macrophyllum, has been the state flower since the late 1800s (officially, since the 1950s).
But here's the thing: All the above mentioned rhododendrons are actually very different plants.
RELATED: What Ciscoe Morris says you should know about Seattle gardening in 2024
"Most people think of, 'My grandma had this in her driveway. It's big, it's pink and red,'" said Atsuko Gibson, nursery manager and assistant curator at Federal Way's Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden. "But rhododendrons are such a diverse group of plants. Some rhodys can be grown like ground cover ... and some rhodys can be grown like a tree ... and everything in between."
Listen to Seattle Now's full conversation with Atsuko Gibson here.
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UW student protesters vow to keep speaking out for Palestinians
The University of Washington Quad was quiet Monday afternoon. There were a couple dozen people lingering. Some were packing up. Some were folding blankets. Others were stuffing plastic bags with their belongings or leftover supplies.
RELATED: What comes next for the pro-Palestine protesters at UW?
The pro-Palestinian encampment first appeared April 29 and started ending quietly last week after the university administration and protesters reached an agreement.
One protester, who would only identify himself as Kashf, said they’re not claiming victory. But he said he hopes the deal will create an opportunity for 20 displaced students from Gaza to study at UW.
“They’re going to be able to get an education,” he said. “[And] create a quality of life for themselves, and maybe, god willing, go back to Gaza and fight for a better future.”
Nearby, Jess Jones, a former student, was packing up a tent. She said it was remarkable how the protest was largely uneventful despite the times when tension nearly erupted, including when conservative commentator Charlie Kirk held an event at the Husky Union Building.
“It was meaningful that things remained peaceful, despite a lot of factors that could’ve expanded it into more difficulty,” she said.
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Bumbershoot 2024 lineup announced: Pavement, Cypress Hill, Kim Gordon, more coming to Seattle
The music scene is crazy. Bands start up each and every day. I saw another one just the other day. A special new band, but not all are special enough to headline Seattle's Bumbershoot, which just announced its 2024 lineup. Seattle's Labor Day Weekend festival this year boasts Pavement, Kim Gordon, Cyprus Hill, James Blake, Kurt Vile, Courtney Barnett, and many, many more.
Bumbershoot 2024's culinary program is bringing in 29 local restaurants, and 26 wineries and breweries, many of which are James Beard Award finalists or have been featured on The New York Times list of Seattle’s best restaurants.
RELATED: Bumbershoot's new look attracted large crowds in 2023
The festival is also bringing back its Fashion District and Animation District as part of its visual arts offerings. As part of the Animation District, Bumbershoot will hold a new international competition: Bigfoot deepfakes. Folks are invited to submit their best deepfakes of Bigfoot. The festival says it is meant to be a "comedic and harrowing portrait of current deepfake technology."
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Bremerton treats Kitsap Lake to tackle toxic algae
Ever heard of lanthanum? The metallic element is a fairly obscure one, number 54 on the periodic table of the elements, soft enough to cut with a knife.
Some kidney patients take chewable tablets of lanthanum to lower levels of phosphate in their blood.
The city of Bremerton plans to use a powdered form of lanthanum on Monday and Tuesday to lower levels of phosphorus in the city’s only lake, Kitsap Lake.
RELATED: EPA sides with tribes on petition to regulate toxic tire chemical that kills salmon
The plan is for contractors on a barge to stir lake water and a lanthanum-clay mixture in a vat, then spray the liquid both onto the lake surface and below it. The lanthanum bonds with phosphorus in the lake and turns it into a mineral, making the phosphorus unavailable for toxic algae to use as a nutrient.
“Algae grows very well in a nutrient-rich environment,” said Chance Berthiaume with Bremerton Public Works and Utilities.
Harmful algae blooms have become a problem in lakes and saltwater bodies around the country.
A 2023 study of 2,800 lakes in the United States in the journal Nature Water found that a warming climate is boosting the production of algae toxins, with the highest levels in water temperatures between 68 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit.
RELATED: Snake River toxic algal bloom warnings now lifted
Decades of polluted runoff containing phosphorus and nitrogen essentially fertilized Kitsap Lake and fueled its boom in toxic algae. The City of Bremerton found that a buildup of phosphorus in the 248-acre lake’s sediment was the main driver of Kitsap Lake’s toxic cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae, as well as aggressive vegetation growth.
Between algae blooms and E. coli bacteria outbreaks, the lake had to be closed to public use about 80% of each summer, Berthiaume said.
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Samish Indian Nation debuts first village in 125 years to 'bring the elders back home'
The Samish Indian Nation on Friday debuted a new affordable housing project spanning 2 acres of tribal land in Anacortes. The project, called Xwch'ángteng, contains 14 two-bedroom cottages that are ADA-ready, along with a new community center and playground.
Samish tribal members who are seniors, disabled, and low-income will get priority for the new cottages, which are each roughly 1,000 square feet.
Tom Wooten, tribal chairman of the Samish Indian Nation, said there hasn’t been a Samish village in over 125 years.
“We’ve always had people living here, residing at our traditional territories as individuals, but this is the first time we’ve located [Samish elders] in one place,” Wooten said at a ribbon cutting ceremony for Xwch'ángteng on Friday.
“This is me trying to bring back our families,” he added.
RELATED: Kelp has protected Samish people for millennia. Now it needs their help
“I think the idea is to bring the elders back home, and for them to have a critical part in generational teachings,” said Sharon Paskewitz, senior director of essential services for the Samish Indian Nation.
“You can have the elder generation teach — what does it mean to pray when you have lunch, what does it mean to be a Samish citizen, what is the history behind that?” she said.
Marilyn Howard, a grandmother of five, will be among the first residents of the village. She currently lives in Bellingham.
“Can you imagine? I don’t think we realize when we stepped in…we’re more than blessed,” Howard said. “Blessed be all — that’s a great honor.”
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Dungeons & Dragons is headed to a Washington state library near you
It's perhaps no surprise that copies of Dungeons & Dragons are rolling out to libraries across Washington state. The Washington State Library falls under the purview of Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, a frequent dungeon master.
Though, as a D&D player, Hobbs is known as "Happy Tracker Meow Meow," a bard for the Tabaxi college of lore. Also these days, he's playing a human evocation wizard, 17th level.
RELATED: The (economic) force is strong with Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle
“I have been a fan of tabletop games for most of my life, so I’m overjoyed to bring this opportunity to library patrons throughout Washington,” Secretary Hobbs said in a statement. “Dungeons & Dragons, and other role-playing games, provide players with fun and compelling ways, including therapeutic usages, to strategize and build relationships.”
Earlier this year, Wizards of the Coast (the producer of Dungeons & Dragons) donated 75 game kits to the Secretary of State's Office. Now, 50 libraries across the state will get at least one copy of the game, including public, tribal, and community college libraries.
“Libraries are valuable spaces for learning and gathering,” State Librarian Sara Jones said in a statement. “The expansion of tabletop role-playing game services will allow communities to explore topics in new, meaningful ways.”
The state has already started delivering the games. Richard E. Ostrander West Valley Community Library in Yakima was the first to get one.
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Microsoft uses AI to improve battery tech
Microsoft is using its artificial intelligence models to help develop the next generation of batteries.
Experts consider batteries an important tool for utilities trying to give up fossil fuels. That's because batteries can be paired with solar or wind to provide reliable power even when there’s no wind or sun.
Microsoft VP Jason Zander said his company used AI to scan 32.6 million potential molecular combinations and discovered 18 candidates for brand new battery designs.
RELATED: Microsoft’s carbon emissions surge despite goal of becoming ‘carbon negative’ by 2030
"We actually created a new battery substance that's novel. It's never existed before, but uses about 70% less lithium," Zander said. "This was something that would normally take years. We're able to find it in just 80 hours." That’s because AI can do scientific calculations quickly.
Microsoft is under scrutiny this week following its report revealing that new data centers associated with AI have pushed the company’s electricity use up almost 30 percent since 2020.
RELATED: Northwest companies charge toward battery tech revolution
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Pro-Palestine protesters to disband UW encampment in Seattle after university makes concessions
Protest organizers at the University of Washington in Seattle have agreed to voluntarily disband their encampment by 3 p.m. on Monday, according to reporting by the UW Daily.
Organizers of the Popular University for Gaza encampment say they have reached an agreement with UW.
Protesters secured promises from the University of Washington, according to Sofia Schwarzwalder, news editor of the UW Daily.
- UW will open a Center for Scholarship of Palestine.
- UW will convene a military industrial and labor task force.
- They will have representation on a divestment committee.
In addition: A statement from the group says UW leadership has agreed to waive tuition for 20 displaced students from Gaza, and review study-abroad programs that exclude Palestinian or other Arab students.
Schwarzwalder said a community meeting is scheduled for later on Friday.
Representatives of the group said they are under no illusions that this is a win, as their hope is for Palestinian liberation.
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