Today's headlines:
- Democrats' so-called "millionaires' tax" narrowly passes the Washington Senate.
- Washington's budget outlook is a bit brighter with a new revenue forecast.
- Transgender Idahoans could see even more restrictions on bathroom access under a bill passed by the state House.
- The Northwest is seeing an influx of visitors—especially young, rich adventurers.
- Spokane Transit Authority brings back its double decker buses weeks after one went off route and crashed into an overpass.
And Spokane United We Stand put on its fifth Lunar New Year celebration this past weekend. It was its biggest event yet. SPR's Eliza Billingham looks at how the holiday came to Spokane, and how all kinds of residents are embracing it.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting contributed by Sarah Mizes-Tan, Owen Henderson, James Dawson, Eliza Billingham and Kyrsten Weber.
SPR News Today is hosted and produced by Owen Henderson with digital support from Eliza Billingham.
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TRANSCRIPT
[THEME MUSIC]
OWEN HENDERSON: From Spokane Public Radio, it’s SPR News Today.
I’m Owen Henderson. It’s Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
On today’s show, Washington’s Senate has narrowly approved a 9.9% tax on income over a million dollars.
Idaho’s House of Representatives has also approved controversial legislation. The measure in question would require businesses and governments to ban transgender people from using restrooms that align with their gender identities.
And happy Lunar New Year! SPR’s Eliza Billingham has a postcard from the region’s biggest celebration of the holiday from this weekend in downtown Spokane.
Those stories and more, coming up on SPR News Today.
[FADE OUT THEME]
The Washington state Senate Monday approved a proposal to tax personal income over a million dollars.
Democrats say the estimated billions in revenue will pay for state services like healthcare and schools.
Bellevue Democratic Senator Vandana [VAHN-duh-nuh] Slatter says she’s even heard from wealthy constituents saying it’s necessary.
VANDANA SLATTER: “There’s the gap between those who are thriving and those who are struggling and it’s growing wider every day, and I see it in my district between the haves and the have-nots.”
OH: Republicans say the 9.9% tax will cause those wealthy residents to leave. And they don’t believe it’ll help middle income residents either.
Senator Drew MacEwen represents rural Mason County.
DREW MacEWAN: “How many emails do any one of our offices get talking about property taxes, my parents or grandparents are on the verge of losing their home, or somebody else can’t even afford to buy a home, because of that tax burden. There’s no relief in here for that.”
OH: Most of the revenue would go to the state’s general fund.
The income tax proposal now moves to the House.
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Washington’s financial future might not be as bad as legislators had feared.
The state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council yesterday put out a report predicting a roughly 830-million-dollar increase in revenue collection for the current two-year budget.
That bump reflects the early proceeds from new and increased taxes lawmakers approved last year.
This is the last update legislators will get as they put together bills to supplement last year’s 78-billion-dollar budget.
Chief Democratic budget writer Senator June Robinson told the Washington State Standard the new forecast is “absolutely good news.”
She says her caucus will release its spending proposals Sunday.
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A bill allowing people to sue private businesses and government entities in Idaho over transgender bathroom access is heading to the state Senate.
James Dawson reports.
JAMES DAWSON: The measure requires businesses and governments to ban transgender people from restrooms that align with their gender identity. If they don’t take “reasonable steps” to do so, they could face uncapped damages in civil lawsuits.
Republican Rep. Clint Hostetler says this bill takes a philosophical stand in the right direction.
CLINT HOSTETLER: “We’re not out to target businesses. We’re out to set a message that Idaho will do what it takes to protect our children and our ladies.”
JD: House Democratic Leader Ilana Rubel says the proposal could have the opposite effect.
Her gym has group showers that transgender men would have to use.
ILANA RUBEL: “I, as a female, can assure you that I would not feel more comfortable showering with a person with a beard and male genitalia in the shower with me. That is what you are mandating under this bill.”
JD: Four Republicans joined Democrats in voting against it. State senators will take up the issue next.
James Dawson, Boise State Public Radio News.
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OH: More people are traveling through Spokane International Airport than ever before—and the ones flying in are younger and richer than the average Northwest resident.
SPR’s Eliza Billingham has more.
ELIZA BILLINGHAM: The Spokane Airport saw well over a quarter million people on departing flights last July.
That’s a 13% increase from the summer before. It is the biggest jump the airport has seen in the last five years.
But when Spokane city and county officials gathered last week to hear from the airport board, Development Manager Joe Nevill told them it’s the people flying into the region who are capturing special attention.
JOE NEVILL: “People migrating into this area are a lot younger, 34. And then if you look at, you know, Sandpoint, 32.”
EB: He says those compare to the average resident ages of 38 in Spokane, 40 in Coeur d’Alene, and 48 in Sandpoint.
Even though the average visitor is younger, they’re likely to have higher annual income than Northwest residents.
Nevill says this suggests tourism is bringing a substantial economic boost to the region, and national attention on the Inland Northwest’s recreation scene is growing.
I’m Eliza Billingham, reporting.
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OH: Spokane Transit Authority begins testing out new safety protocols for its double-decker buses today [TUES].
The buses will be on the road but won’t yet be taking passengers.
Last month, one of the double decker buses hit a railroad viaduct when the driver deviated from their route.
STA has paused its use of the double-decker fleet while it investigates and implements additional safety measures. That investigation is ongoing.
Safety measures include a second round of training for drivers, disabling navigation software, and a safety stop before going under viaducts.
Drivers will also give verbal confirmation with dispatch when they leave the STA Plaza or enter downtown Spokane.
The agency says the double-decker fleet will be back in service by the end of the month.
[SHORT MUSIC BED]
Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. It’s the biggest holiday of the year for lots of people in East and Southeast Asia.
More residents in the Inland Northwest are starting to celebrate it, too.
SPR’s Eliza Billingham reports from one of Spokane’s largest gatherings.
[TAIKO AMBI]
EB: The last time I was in this exhibit room, I was picking up my race packet for Bloomsday.
Today, the hall feels just as crowded, but with sumo wrestlers, Chinese lion dancers, and hyper creative vendors selling hand painted masks or nail art.
Two guys walking around in inflatable pony costumes seem out of place, until I realize, ‘Oh, yeah, it’s the Year of the Horse.’
This is Lunar New Year in Spokane. It’s the fifth year Spokane’s United We Stand has put on a Saturday celebration for the entire city.
The event quickly outgrew the Pavilion and other smaller venues, so now it’s at the top of Spokane’s Convention Center.
Vina Cathcart, one of the main organizers, says the idea came in the middle of the pandemic.
VINA CATHCART: “There was a lot of Asian hate rhetoric going around. And we honestly felt like we didn't have a space at that time. And so in the midst of that, we wanted to create something that brought everyone together. No matter if you're Asian, Black, white, Native American, Pacific Islander, Hawaiian, we wanted a space that everyone can celebrate.”
EB: Lunar New Year follows the lunisolar calendar, always falling sometime between the end of January and beginning of February. In Asia, it’s a multi-day event.
VC: “So for Vietnamese culture, I'm Vietnamese, my family celebrates for three days in a row…For Chinese culture, it's 15 days.”
She says people often go back to their hometowns or ancestral homes in the countryside for lots of food and games. The focus is on family reunion and communal celebration.
VC: “We eat, we drink, we party. Let's do it for the entire Spokane, right?”
EB: This isn’t the first time the city has marked this major holiday.
VC: “Spokane actually celebrated the Lunar New Year back in the 1800s. We had people who immigrated to Chinese and Japanese workers that immigrated here, that worked on the railroad here. And we had a great, vibrant kind of international district. So there's Trent Alley, there was the Chinese railroad workers, there was this whole international district that celebrated Lunar New Year. That kind of went away for about 80 years until we brought it back in about 2021.”
EB: This celebration also gives local performers a chance to showcase their unique talents. Jiu-Jitsu athletes give demonstrations on the main stage, then Japanese Taiko drummers perform highly coordinated routines.
Dancers in traditional Chinese dress and make up mingle with attendees, and students dressed as money gods and princesses offer to take photos.
There’s even a live petting zoo, with a miniature Jerusalem donkey and a small pony.
They are a little less energetic than the horse of the Chinese Zodiac, which is known for independence, confidence and ambition.
Each lunar year is associated with one of twelve Zodiac animals and one of five elements. That means 2026 isn’t just the year of the Horse, but also the year of fire. That suggests the year will be especially fast-paced, intense and full of opportunity.
In that same vein, Cathcart is hoping Spokane’s lunar new year celebration will keep growing as rapidly as it has so far.
VC: “You know how we have Hoopfest weekend, we have Bloomsday weekend—I want to see us grow into something like that, where we can fill multiple days, have enough appetite for a parade or a block party.”
EB: She admits that a Northwest winter makes an outside festival in Spokane a little more difficult than in southeast Asia.
In the fun of it all, I completely forget to pick up a red envelope—a traditional gift filled with money to promote good luck and prosperity. I’m distracted by the Spam musubi, a traditional Hawaiian snack, in one corner, and the basketball competition in the other.
VC: “It's good chaos. Like you see, you know, thousands of people and you're like, ‘Holy crap, there's thousands of people here.’ But as soon as you walk through those doors, you're like family, which is what the New Year sentiment is…As soon as you walk through the doors, you're our friends and our family.”
EB: I’m Eliza Billingham, reporting.
[SHORT MUSIC BED]
OH: SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Sarah Mizes-Tan, James Dawson, Eliza Billingham, Kyrsten Weber and me, Owen Henderson.
I’m also your host and producer. Eliza Billingham provides digital support.
Thanks for listening.
It’s SPR.
