Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
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If you want a glimpse of parched river bottoms behind “would be breached” lower Snake River dams, look at recent photos of European rivers and lakes. On parts of picturesque Rhine River there is often more dry land than flowing water. Europe is in the clutches of another drought—the second since 2018. It is so severe that countries across the continent are imposing water restrictions. There are massive fish kills and desiccated croplands. Shipping is endangered on the Rhine...
There’s a big mystery unfolding in Olympia, but it’s one as predictable as the sunrise. Right now, behind closed doors, the governor and powerful state employee unions are secretly negotiating a pay and compensation budget for the 2023-25 budget. We don’t know what is being discussed. We don’t know what each side is demanding. But whatever they decide, we’ll have to pay for it. And there’s a chance new taxes could be demanded to cover the cost. This process is secret. It...
A report released last week by the Washington State Hospital Association indicates that virtually every hospital in the state is in financial trouble. (here) A recent survey revealed that hospital revenues were up five percent from 2021 to 2022, yet expenses rose 11 percent over the same time period. This is unsustainable. Several, if not many, hospitals are at risk of closing if these losses continue for another year. This includes both rural and urban facilities. Executives...
Surprisingly, recent U.S. Presidents and congressional Democrats and Republicans agree America’s economic and national security hinge upon tiny, yet powerful semiconductors. Semiconductor computer chips are the brains of modern electronics that operate our laptop computers, vehicles, and smartphones. They permeate every sector of our lives from farming and manufacturing to health care and public safety. They are embedded in our most advanced military equipment and weapons. S...
Did you know the governor’s office is currently negotiating pay and compensation with state employee unions for the state’s 2023-25 budget? What is on the table? Will the outcome of these secret talks be no tax cuts for Washingtonians but big inflation pay raises for government employees? That answer is currently a mystery since these government pay raise talks happen in secrecy without disclosure of the financial details until the deal is reached. Why is this secret pro...
For the people living in the Lewis-Clark Valley on the Snake River, Gov. Jay Inslee’s report on destroying four dams tries to offer some solace. After a “thorough review of relevant economic reports and conversations with experts,” the report’s authors have some ideas about how to offset the serious harm that would be done to the community. Reading the vague assurances from the report reminded me of another community hit by the harmful economic impacts of environ...
This past Monday was the annual celebration of freedom from the tyranny of an absentee monarchy. In 2021, the White House tweeted that a Fourth of July cookout would cost Americans $0.16 less than in 2020 and touted it as a victory. Will there be a similar tweet for 2022? As the United States finds itself in the grip of rising food and fuel costs, it is hard to imagine given the numbers. The American Farm Bureau Federation reports the average Fourth of July cookout will cost...
Governor Inslee has repeatedly made it clear that he believes his spending priorities exceed any need to provide tax relief to help families deal with the impact of record inflation. On the same day Inslee declined President Biden’s call for states to provide some type of tax relief, the Democratic Governor of Minnesota was instead begging his legislature to act. As reported by the Minnesota Reformer: “Gov. Tim Walz called on Republicans to return to the Capitol to sign off...
Regenerating millions of western forested acres scorched by large wildfires is a herculean task costing hundreds of billions. However, healthy growing woodlands are essential to reducing atmospheric CO2 and providing abundant clean air and fresh water for people, crops, fish, and wildlife. According to the National Interagency Fire Center nearly 3 million acres have already burned this year in the U.S. mostly in Arizona, New Mexico and Alaska. By year’s end, that total may e...
When you request forage quality analysis from a laboratory, do all methods of analysis provide the same results? Feed/forage analysis is an important part of developing feeding strategies for beef cattle. Knowing the composition of feeds helps us be confident that we are meeting cattle nutrient requirements. Meeting or not meeting those requirements has long-term implications as to how cows perform through the annual production cycle. Depending on the quality of the feed,...
Gov. Jay Inslee and Sen. Patty Murray, both Democrats, issued a draft report which estimates that breaching the four lower Snake River dams and replacing their electricity and other benefits would cost between $10 and $27 billion. Meanwhile, the lone Idaho Republican, Congressman Mike Simpson, supporting dam removal---impoundments located in a neighboring state--is willing to pony up $33 billion tax dollars. That’s a lot of taxpayer money even today when President Biden and C...
The message from voters was crystal clear, but elected officials apparently don’t want to hear it. In 2019, nearly 80% of voters in the city of Spokane approved an amendment to the city charter – in essence, a local constitutional amendment – requiring collective bargaining talks between the city government and city unions be open and transparent. It’s a simple concept – since the salaries of government workers make up such a large portion of the city’s budget, taxpayers h...
In 2016, Lincoln County Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution to require transparency for all the county’s collective bargaining talks. According to the resolution: “From this day forward, Lincoln County shall conduct all collective bargaining contract negotiations in a manner that is open to the public; AND Lincoln County shall provide public notice of all collective bargaining negotiations in accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act (RCW 42.30.060 - 42....
Thinning public woodlands to remove millions of dead trees is a way to generate much needed cash to reduce wildfire risks, improve forest health, and protect rural homeowners and farms. It is money the U.S. Forest Service and Washington’s Dept. of Natural Resources don’t have because the bulk of their funds are tied up fighting fires. Our state’s wildfire severity has worsened in recent years. The 2020 fire season was particularly destructive. Over 1,250 square miles burne...
Wood buildings are making a comeback in the Pacific Northwest thanks to new laminated timber products. Even very large buildings are now constructed with laminated beams and are successfully competing with steel and concrete building materials. For example, the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, is home to one of the world’s tallest “cross laminated timber” buildings. Brock Commons, a student residence, is 174 feet high. The 18-story dorm houses more than 400 students....
Seattle’s 1962 World’s Fair was awe-inspiring. It previewed developments that would improve our daily lives in the next millennium. While “Century 21” memories have faded, three of its landmarks remain as reminders of the innovations it inspired: The Seattle Center, the Space Needle, and the monorail. One thing many remember is “The Bubble-ator,” a glass ball-shaped elevator in the coliseum (now Climate Pledge Arena) which gradually climbed to the middle of a contoured map of...
Most politicians could only dream of a scenario in which a flood of extra tax revenues suddenly lets them cut taxes in an election year. But clearly Washington state leaders think differently. While other states move to cut taxes in these tough times, hardliners in the Washington state Legislature have decided to keep the extra money for their own spending priorities and offer no general relief. It’s not that they don’t have the cash. The state expects to take in more tha...
Sunflowers are to Ukraine what tulips are to western Washington. During the blooming season, both are spectacular and represent the best in the people who cultivate and visit those fields. In late 1945, Princess Juliana of the Netherlands presented the Canadian government with 100,000 tulip bulbs as a gift for providing Holland's royal family exile during World War II. Since then, the tulip became known as a “Peace Flower” in North America. Her pilgrimage inspired Dutch tulip...
As expected, the I-1929 (capital gains tax repeal) campaign officially filed a legal challenge to the attorney general’s ballot title and summary for the proposed ballot measure. The AG’s proposed language referred to the capital gains tax as an “excise tax” despite a court ruling unequivocally agreeing with the IRS and the rest of the country that a tax on capital gains is an income tax. From the I-1929 ballot title challenge complaint: “The Attorney General’s proposed ‘B...
The Northeast Washington Wildlife Group is very concerned about the whitetail deer in District 1 of Region 1 in Northeast Washington. The harvest numbers for the area in 2019 and 2020 set record lows and the blue tongue outbreak in 2020 was worse than the very bad outbreak of 2015. The city of Colville removed over 160 carcasses from within city limits last year, in 2015 they removed 80. When asked if the state Department of Fish and Wildlife had any plans to help deer numbers rebound, the department replied: “Indeed, d...
With COVID-19 vaccines widely dispensed and masking requirements mostly lifted, will “work from home” end? Will workers return to downtown offices at pre-pandemic levels? Probably Not! One big reason it is expensive to drive and the waste of time and fuel idling in traffic jams. Another is safety. Gas prices continue to skyrocket. Last year, the average cost at the pump was $2.62 per gallon. By the end of March, Seattle’s gasoline increased to $4.88 per gallon, accor...
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but Year 3 of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue without meaningful legislative oversight. The House officially killed Senate Bill 5909 before adjourning. Although that bill as passed by the Senate was essentially fake reform, several amendments were introduced for the House floor debate to bring the policy back in line with what exists in the rest of the country by requiring affirmative legislative approval...
The cult of social justice is perpetuating racism in the Clover Park School District with a new student discipline policy requiring staff to consider a student’s race and background before determining their punishment. Instead of disciplining students consistently based on conduct, as justice would require, it is mandating discrimination based on race. In other words, skin color determines whether one receives easy or harsh punishment for the same offense. Isn’t this the textbook definition of racism? This is happening in sch...
There is an old saying: Don’t let the “perfect” be the “enemy” of the good! That is important to remember as we work our way out of the energy crisis exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While the Russians are razing the country and killing thousands of innocent people, many world leaders are slapping Moscow with heavy economic sanctions. Embargoing Russian oil and natural gas are examples. With the prohibition of Russian oil imports, there is a crude shortage in...
About six weeks ago, I had a “cardiac episode.” As I laid in the emergency room, thinking about my to-do list and wondering what I could do for the people who were contacting me regularly asking for help with policies in Olympia that threatened their farms or ranches, the irony of my “heart problem” was entirely lost on me. I have not worked in public policy for very long, but I have been a farmer my entire life. Even when I’ve held other jobs or lived elsewhere, when I came h...
