Today's headlines
- No data centers will be built in Spokane for the next year under city Council's new moratorium.
- SPS and Spokane announce a child care partnership.
- A new analysis shows more than a third of WA families struggle to afford the essentials.
- Revenue from WA's gas tax is only down slightly this year despite much higher fuel prices.
- USPS officials were a no-show for a meeting with a WA House panel.
- As crews make progress on the Colville Reservation's Kartar Fire, the Garred Road Fire grows to 3,400 acres near Coulee City.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting was contributed by Eliza Billingham, Doug Nadvornick, Anna Marie Yanny, Steve Jackson and Owen Henderson.
Owen Henderson hosts and produces the show.
TRANSCRIPT
[THEME MUSIC]
OWEN HENDERSON: From Spokane Public Radio, it’s SPR News Today.
I’m Owen Henderson. It’s Tuesday, June 23, 2026.
On today’s show, Spokane City Council has passed a yearlong pause on the building of data centers within city limits. But some argue the moratorium could unintentionally hurt the city’s growing aerospace tech hub.
And Spokane Public Schools is partnering with the city to launch new child care centers.
Plus, new analysis shows more than a third of Washington families have a hard time affording the basic necessities.
Those stories and more, coming up on SPR News Today.
[FADE OUT THEME]
There’s now a yearlong, citywide pause on data center development in Spokane.
The moratorium passed six to one last night, with councilmember Michael Cathcart as the only dissenting vote.
He says he’s worried how the current policy will affect Spokane’s burgeoning aerospace tech hub.
MICHAEL CATHCART: “I am ready to support a moratorium if we carve out the tech hub. And unfortunately, that's not what we chose to do today. And so for that reason, I'm not able to support this particular moratorium.”
OH: The Council did adopt an amendment yesterday afternoon to clarify the difference between data centers and things like manufacturing plants that house some computers.
But Cathcart says he doesn’t think the policy was clear enough.
Councilmember Zack Zappone introduced the amendment and voted for the moratorium.
ZACK ZAPPONE: “I'm a teacher. A lot of our students are looking for what types of jobs they’re wanting to do after graduating. And Spokane doesn't have a ton of high skilled manufacturing jobs. I want to build an economy for folks so that they can grow up here, have living wage jobs, support their family.”
OH: The pause goes into effect immediately but only affects land within city limits.
Councilmember Kate Telis reminded the many attendees at last night’s meeting that the city isn’t the only jurisdiction involved.
KATE TELIS: “This level of advocacy needs to be shown everywhere. It needs to be shown at the state level. It needs to be shown at your county commissioners. It is a statewide nationwide worldwide issue, frankly, and you cannot just stop here.”
OH: The emergency ordinance also sets a public hearing on the issue for July 22.
Council can take the next month to introduce amendments to the moratorium after doing more research to understand how it will affect other projects.
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The city of Spokane and its public schools say they’re launching a child care partnership.
The two institutions yesterday announced they’ll open three new child care centers in existing public schools, perhaps as early as this fall.
Mayor Lisa Brown says they’re starting out with a pilot project to ensure they understand what kinds of licenses, permits and equipment are needed for the centers.
LISA BROWN: “And then if all goes well, Spokane Public Schools has already said there will be other spaces available so we could scale up.”
OH: The initial child care facilities will be located in Whitman Elementary School and the Garland Center in the northeast and at Balboa Elementary in the northwest.
City officials say they’ll announce more details soon, including which providers will operate the programs and how families can register their kids.
Of Spokane County kids under 12 whose families make 60% or less of the area median income, Washington state estimates less than 20% are enrolled in childcare or early learning programs.
— — —
A recent analysis from the United Way found about a third of Washington households are struggling to afford the basic costs of living.
KNKX’s Anna Marie Yanny has more.
ANNA MARIE YANNY: Stephanie Hoopes is the national director of the United Way research project. She says the Federal Poverty Level doesn't reflect the true cost of living in the state.
STEPHANIE HOOPES: “For a family of four, it's just over $30,000 and obviously it's far more than that in most places, in every place in Washington state.”
The United Way research team estimated a household of four in our state needs almost *triple* that amount to afford basic necessities.
The researchers used federal and state data from 2024 to estimate costs of things like housing, food, health insurance and car maintenance.
SH: “So in total 37% of households across the state are struggling to afford just that basic survival budget.”
The report painted a similar picture across the country. The national state average shows 41% of households are struggling to pay for those basic needs.
In Washington, housing is the lead cost in the affordability burden.
I’m Anna Marie Yanny, reporting.
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OH: Washington officials say drivers haven’t let higher fuel prices keep them off the roads—softening the hit to the state’s revenue.
Chief state economist Dave Reich told the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council yesterday that gas consumption is down only slightly.
He says that has had a small effect on the economy.
DAVE REICH: “U.S. and Washington economic forecast is a little weaker than we had back in February, but I’d say given all we’ve seen in the world, it’s holding up OK. Slightly lower GDP, slightly higher inflation in the near term, that should be short lived, and the Washington employment growth continues to show uncertainty.”
OH: Reich says Washington has collected about $36 million fewer dollars from gas taxes so far this year, compared to 2025.
Fuel taxes make up about 40% of the state’s transportation budget.
State officials are already preparing to make major cuts across transportation, operating and capital budgets next year as forecasts project revenues won’t bring in enough to maintain current spending levels.
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U.S. Postal Service officials were set to appear before Washington state lawmakers yesterday—but they never showed.
The officials canceled on the state House panel just hours before they were set to meet, saying they’d “improperly confirmed” their participation.
The agency this month proposed requiring state election officials to share a list of mail-in voters with the feds as part of the Trump administration’s long-running fight against voting by mail in states like Washington.
Washington’s top election official, Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, called the proposal a federal overreach that could <quote> “undermine the rights of eligible voters.”
Supporters of the changes say they’ll help increase election integrity.
There’s no evidence of widespread voter fraud in Washington.
— — —
Crews and aircraft are mobilizing in Washington state to fight a fire near Grant County’s Coulee City as it threatens homes, fields and the Sun Lake campground.
The National Interagency Fire Center estimates the Garred Road Fire has burned about 3,400 acres since it sparked Sunday afternoon.
Level 3 evacuation orders are in place for the campground, and State Routes 2 and 17 are closed in the area.
There’s an evacuation zone set up at Soap Lake High School.
All Kartar Valley evacuation orders were lifted last night as crews continue to contain the blaze on the Colville Reservation.
NIFC says the 12,000-acre fire is now 60% contained.
Tribal officials say Omak Lake Road and Kartar Road remain closed, and Omak Lake is still closed to boats.
[SHORT MUSIC BED]
OH: SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Eliza Billingham, Doug Nadvornick, Anna Marie Yanny, Steve Jackson and me, Owen Henderson.
I’m also your host and producer.
Thanks for listening.
It’s SPR.
