jay inslee

At the start of every hurricane season, which runs June 1st to the end of November, the President receives a briefing of what to expect and what precautions should be taken. "And when I received that briefing this year I asked for a second briefing that does the same thing, but now we're doing it about wildfire season ...

During the 2021 legislative session, Washington lawmakers passed a new capital gains tax; a tax that will be challenged in court. Pam Lewison with the Washington Policy Center said with no exemptions for farm lands, the tax will have severe impacts on producers statewide. ...

On Wednesday, Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed into law a bill that established overtime for the Ag community. The new law will step the hours per week need to trigger overtime until it hits 40 hours in early 2024. Colfax Republican Joe Schmick said for him, that Ag overtime legislation was the biggest win for the farming community during the virtual session ...

Eastern Washington’s Cathy McMorris Rodgers is urging both Governor Jay Inslee and the Department of Ecology to protect Chinook stocks located in the Puget Sound. The Spokane area Republican said the state has proposed a new general pollution permit allowing 58 sewage treatment plants to discharge into Puget Sound. "A ...

By a unanimous vote last week, the Washington House approved legislation extending the life of the state’s Invasive Species Council. Senate Bill 5063, put forward by state Senator Jim Honeyford, also extends the Council’s mission to protect the state’s environment and economy from harmful non-native plants, inspects and animal. The Sunnyside ...

Washington Governor Jay Inslee has proclaimed February 22nd through February 28th as Invasive Species Awareness Week. "Invasive species threaten our economy, environment, recreation opportunities and can even harm our health,” Inslee said. “I’m ...

During the Washington legislative session, the farm community will watch a variety of issues very closely. But for state Senator Mark Schoesler, one of the top issues is Unemployment Insurance taxes, with some farmers already reporting an increase of 500% or greater on their April bill ...

On Friday, Governor Jay Inslee sent a letter to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to initiate a new rulemaking process when it comes to wolf management. Last week’s letter comes following an appeal from the Center for Biological Diversity challenging WDFW’s current wolf management rules. CBD claim ...

While the Washington economy continues to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, many in the farming sector feel they were unfairly targeted by Governor Jay Inslee. Late last week, the governor’s office issued rules that many say essentially shut down the agritourism industry. And ...

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on agriculture has varied commodity to commodity. For the wheat industry, COVID-19’s impact has been more subtle and in some cases delayed. Michelle Hennings, Executive Director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers said she's heard of wheat growers receiving spot checks from Labor and Industries to ensure the operation is following state mandate