Inaugural Day in Washington will see big turnover in state officials
Come January 15, a new governor and three other statewide elected officials will be sworn in.
Attorney General Bob Ferguson will take over as governor and former U.S. attorney Nick Brown will move into Ferguson’s former role as the state’s top lawyer.
Brown feels he’s prepared to take the job. In a conversation with SPR News, Brown said he worked regularly with the attorney general’s office in his jobs with the federal government and the governor’s office.
“My job is to set a strategic vision for the office, to let them know what my priorities and expectations are, to hire a good leadership team and then to let the staff lawyers do their job,” Brown said.
Even so, Brown said he’s awed by the number of people he’ll be managing.
“There are over 800 lawyers on staff here, almost 1,900 total staff members with 13 offices across the state,” he said.
The other new officers who will be sworn in January 15 include State Senator Patty Kuderer as insurance commissioner and King County Councilman Dave Upthegrove as Lands Commissioner.
Legacy light show at Grand Coulee Dam switched on for first time in 24 years
The blue, green, red and amber of an historic light show illuminated Grand Coulee Dam for New Year’s Eve, decades after a fire ruined its control panel.
The show was built with $200,000 in 1957 and was commissioned by the Secretary of the Interior in 1958.
But a substation fire in 2000 damaged the supply cable that powered the light board, killing the display for 24 years – until now.
"It is very much an excitement for the local community to bring back the colors of lights," said Cliff Foster, assistant power manager at Grand Coulee Dam.
Foster said most of the control repair and internal work was done over the summer. That work cost about $15,000. Everything was restored by the end of October.
“The light show is 742 lights that, in various combinations and arrangements, shines different colors onto the face of the dam," Foster said.
Reclamation intends to continue the summer laser light that debuted in 1989, and display the historic light show during the winter months.
The light show will continue to illuminate Grand Coulee Dam daily from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. until March 6. The Bureau of Reclamation Visitor Center has a parking area for viewing.
Changing tastes, flattening demand influence smaller hops production in ‘24
American growers produced fewer hops in 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Hops producers harvested 87.1 million pounds last year, down 13% compared to 2023’s final figures. The amount of land harvested shrank (down 18%), but each acre harvested produced more hops. The value of all hops grown in the U.S. also declined, down 21% to $446 million.
The declines are attributed to a few major factors: a hops surplus, a flattening demand for beer and changing palates, according to reporting by agriculture-focused outlet Capital Press.
Most of the hops grown in the United States come from the Pacific Northwest. Washington is the top hops state in the nation. Its production was down compared to 2023, but still far ahead of that of Idaho and Oregon. The value of Washington-grown hops in 2024 was pegged at more than $320 million. While that’s significantly more than its neighboring states, that value was down $85 million from the previous year.
Washington hops farmers reported growing more varieties of hops than their counterparts in Oregon and Idaho. More than 30 varieties were listed on the USDA’s annual report.
New law broadens workplace regulations for WA strippers
A law that took effect in Washington Wednesday gives strippers a new range of workplace protections.
The so-called “Strippers Bill of Rights” requires clubs to hire full-time security guards, install panic buttons, and provide employees with sexual harassment prevention training.
It also caps fees that clubs charge dancers to rent stage time. High fees were a way for clubs to make more money, since alcohol sales weren’t previously allowed in Washington strip clubs.
Washington was the only state in America that banned alcohol in strip clubs. But even that’s changing under the new law. Clubs will now be able to obtain liquor licenses. State regulators say that some have already begun to do so.
Advocates for dancers say they hope these changes will make the job better for workers moving forward.
- - -
Reporting was contributed by Doug Nadvornick, Monica Carrillo-Casas, Brandon Hollingsworth and Cat Smith.