Today's headlines:
- Washington’s Secretary of State is offering guidance to local elections officials worried about federal authorities showing up on their doorsteps.
- U.S. Rep. Michael Baumgartner (R-WA) offers thoughts on elections and management of federal lands in the Northwest.
- A legal victory for Idaho conservation groups challenging a housing development near Priest Lake.
- Today is First Friday in Spokane, which means artists are showing their latest work. Lisa Leinberger introduces us to one who is making her first First Friday foray.
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Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs says it may be a confusing fall for employees in county offices who administer elections.
He says local election workers want guidance in case federal officials show up looking for information. Hobbs’ office and the attorney general have issued a guide that gives election workers options if the feds arrive.
STEVE HOBBS: It can be overwhelming if someone from the federal government comes in and asks you a bunch of things and you may not know what the right questions to ask or what to look for. So I figured we'd put this out for them. It's unfortunate that we have to, but it is the environment that we're in right now.
The guide explains which federal officials are most likely to visit and what local elections workers should do if that happens. What do they do if their federal visitors ask to interview them? How should they respond to subpoenas?
The guide directs employees to call the Secretary of State or the Attorney General’s office if they’re unclear about how they should respond.
Speaking of Steve Hobbs, the general election is two months away. But he’s already urging voters to avoid mailing their ballots in November.
He says there’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Postal Service and federal executive orders related to mail-in ballots. Courts may soon decide the issue. But for now, Hobbs says voters should assume they’ll need to deliver their ballots to designated drop boxes or their local elections offices.
HOBBS: The great thing is Washingtonians been doing that more and more. In fact, 75% of them have been putting in a drop box. That's why we're been working with counties to see if they maybe need more drop boxes.
Oregon’s Secretary of State this week asked the legislature to provide funding for at least 20 more drop boxes.
Hobbs says he and Attorney General Nick Brown are confident that the U.S. Supreme Court will issue an injunction to nullify the mail-in ballot orders for this election.
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Washington Congressman Michael Baumgartner is dismissing concerns that changes to mail-in voting rules will disenfranchise voters ahead of the November election.
MICHAEL BAUMGARTNER: No, I’m not worried about voters that are legally able to vote being able to vote in this election.
At a press event yesterday, Baumgartner urged voters to vote early and to take advantage of ballot drop boxes. That way, he said, they would not have to rely on the U.S. Postal Service.
Baumgartner’s comments came a day after a report released by Washington U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell and Secretary of State Steve Hobbs. The report suggests a record number of mail-in ballots went uncounted in Washington this August. They believe that was related to the Postal Service not immediately postmarking ballot envelopes.
On another issue, Baumgartner says he supports increasing the timber harvest on federal forests in the Inland Northwest. Baumgartner was asked about funding for federal land in Pend Oreille County. It’s one of the poorest counties in the state and has a high rate of untaxable federal land.
Baumgartner said he wants the government to take a two-pronged approach.
MICHAEL BAUMGARTNER: You know, yes, I do want the federal government to support those folks in counties where they have a lot of forest lands. But I also want those forest federal lands to be more productive and be able to put in use.
Baumgartner said upping those lands’ productivity could involve increasing timber harvests or gaining access to minerals.
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Rain and cooler temperatures have helped to lower the fire danger. As a result, Idaho state, federal and tribal agencies have removed all fire restrictions. That means campers, hunters and others can start campfires, though there may still be local restrictions. Check with your local fire agency. Fireworks are still illegal on public land in Idaho. Outdoor burning permits are required through October 20.
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Idaho’s Supreme Court handed down a victory this week to conservation groups working to protect a rare wetland near Priest Lake. SPR’s Audrey Nelson has more.
The court ruled unanimously that a proposed housing development in the Coolin Wetlands must return to district court for a full judicial review. The decision affirms a previous ruling the court made in July.
A Coeur d’Alene-based company called Tricore Investments is behind the development project. In 2021, Tricore used workarounds to avoid public zoning hearings required by state law. The county approved Tricore’s proposed subdivisions of the 65-acre property the same year. Legal challenges followed.
Brian Runberg is on the board of the organization Preserve Priest Lake. He grew up visiting the wetland.
BRIAN RUNBERG: It’s very essential for the preservation of Priest Lake, for the wildlife habitat, for the flow of waters and protection of waters. So disturbing that obviously just has irreversible impacts.
The district court now has to determine whether Tricore violated zoning law. Runberg hopes that lower courts and officials take note of the Supreme Court ruling when reconsidering the development project.
RUNBERG: You know, there’s a 5-0 decision from the Supreme Court. That makes a rather profound statement.
Tricore Investments did not respond to a request for comment.
I'm Audrey Nelson, reporting.
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It’s First Friday in downtown Spokane. It’s a chance for artists, musicians and others to show off their wares in local spaces. Some have participated for years. For another Spokane artist, it’s her first show. SPR’s Lisa Leinberger has more.
At Terrain on Monroe Street, the gallery is featuring a show from first-time solo artist Elizabeth Lancaster. She calls it “Found in Translation.”
Lancaster is an art teacher at Cataldo Catholic School by day. She’s been creating watercolor paintings to honor her late father, Eloy Estudillo, who passed away about a year ago.
ELIZABETH LANCASTER: He lived with us for about 10 years prior to that and maybe a little more. He was pretty sick most of the time, but in taking care of him, it really brought me closer to him.
Lancaster says he came to the U.S. from Mexico when he was five years old. Her paintings reflect his story, and that story is relevant in today’s political climate.
LANCASTER: “And so, it all just kind of like came together as like, how can I process this and give people that are being dehumanized a face and humanization?
One of her paintings is of two little boys—her father and his brother. It was inspired by an old photograph.
Her grandfather emigrated to the U.S. as part of the Bracero Program. That was a temporary labor initiative in the mid-twentieth century that brought Mexicans to this country to work in either agriculture or the railroad.
Another of her paintings features a man and a woman in traditional Mexican dress, just before they kiss.
LANCASTER: So that’s called Grandparents Imagined, and to me it’s like this kind of dreamy idea of my grandparents that I imagined they would have been like, which is probably nothing like reality. But as a child, you know, that’s kind of like what I had. Like Mexico was kind of like a Disneyland Mexico.
She loves painting with a lot of bright colors. Until a couple of years ago, she worked mostly with acrylics. But she began to dabble with watercolors a couple of years ago.
Found in Translation will feature around 40 watercolor pieces that she’s created over the past year.
Lancaster’s show will run through September 26. Learn more at terrainspokane.com.
You can find more listings of showings throughout downtown Spokane at firstfridayspokane.org.
I’m Lisa Leinberger, reporting.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Audrey Nelson, Lisa Leinberger and Doug Nadvornick, today’s host and producer.
Web support is provided by Anna Gyure Havlek and Audrey Nelson.
Thank you for listening. This is SPR News.
