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In The News

Orca Month Proclaimed by Governor Inslee

Jun 21, 2016 In The News
Journal of the San Juan Islands

Learn about Orcas at Orca Network Workshop June 18.

This June, Orca Network and our partner organizations with the Orca Salmon Alliance are celebrating the 10th annual Orca Awareness Month, with a proclamation from Governor Jay Inslee (see proclamation at www.OrcaMonth.com).

Governor Inslee recently sent this statement about Orca Month:

Issues:
Energy and Environment, Local Issues

Congress boosts pot industry in spending bills

Jun 20, 2016 In The News
by Ben Weyl and Matt Nussbaum
Politico Pro

Don't break out the bong just yet, but Congress is moving to loosen several federal marijuana restrictions this year.

Issues:
Congressional Issues

Indian Trust Asset Reform Act sent to President Obama for final approval

Jun 17, 2016 In The News
by Justus Caudell
Tribal Tribune

WASHINGTON D.C.—Colville tribal member and Washington D.C. based lawyer Brian Gunn has called federal bill H.R. 812, the Indian Trust Asset Reform Act, “the first major Indian policy bill to go to the President this Congress.”

A press release from the U.S. Senate states the act will “restore tribal sovereignty and give tribes control of their trust asset management plans.”

Issues:
Congressional Issues, Local Issues

Double jeopardy on the Salish Sea; endangered orcas and endangered salmon

Jun 17, 2016 In The News
Free Speech Radio News

A long time ago there were thousands of orcas, as legend has it, with salmon and herring spawning by the millions. Today southern resident whales who migrate through the Salish Sea and up and down the west coast foraging for salmon, number just 83. A recent baby boom offer some hope but diminishing runs of salmon and a toxic stew of pollution and noise points to a different outcome.

Issues:
Energy and Environment, Local Issues

Dennis Mahar, advocate for elderly, dies of cancer at age 63

Jun 10, 2016 In The News
by Ben Muir
The Olympian
Dennis Mahar, longtime director of the Area Agency on Aging for Thurston, Mason and Lewis counties and a devoted community volunteer, died of cancer late Tuesday at Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia. He was 63. “I don’t think any of us imagined a world without Dennis Mahar. To say he was a true giant in advocating for seniors is still too small of a characterization,” said U.S. Rep. Denny Heck, D-Washington, said in a statement.
Issues:
Seniors Issues

Tacoma storm water treatment facility opens

Jun 2, 2016 In The News
by Jenna Hanchard
KING 5
A $2.4 million stormwater treatment facility is up and running in Tacoma. The water from the storm water treatment facility ends up in Puget Sound. It's supposed to be clean water that keeps heavy pollution from destroying the water. "The dirtiest of the storm water comes in through this facility,” said Jessica Knickerbocker, an engineer with the City of Tacoma.
Issues:
Energy and Environment, Local Issues

Heck, Kilmer cut ribbon on new storm water treatment plant

Jun 2, 2016 In The News
by Derek Shuck
Tacoma Weekly
For years residents of Tacoma have fought to establish the city as a green-friendly environment. Moving away from the identifier of the “Tacoma aroma” is a priority for Tacomans, and part of this includes cleaning up the city’s primary natural wonder, the Puget Sound. One of the steps to do this is the establishment of a state of the art storm water treatment facility at Point Defiance Park. On Tuesday, May 31, Congressmen Denny Heck and Derek Kilmer visited the facility to cut the ribbon and announce recently introduced legislation that would help protect the sound from dangerous toxic runoff.
Issues:
Energy and Environment, Local Issues

Congressman awards wounded Iraq War Vet Bronze Star 9 years later

May 31, 2016 In The News
By Staff Sgt. Bryan Dominique
DVIDS
Nine years after the fact, and one day after Memorial Day, Col. Daniel Dudek of Wilmington, North Carolina was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for his end of tour in Iraq during the summer of 2007, by Congressman Denny Heck of Washington State's 10th District, May 31, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord's Memorial Park.
Issues:
Local Issues, National Security, Veterans Issues

Service members honored during Puyallup memorial ceremony

May 29, 2016 In The News
by Kenny Ocker
The News Tribune
Someone tucked a small flag into the left hand of the statue atop the Puyallup Veterans Memorial. The kneeling soldier in Pioneer Park, gun slung over his left shoulder, helmet by his side, reaches out with his right hand toward the 18 wreaths placed below him Sunday, left behind by people and groups remembering America’s war dead.

Answering Anxiety With Opportunity

May 24, 2016 In The News
by Rep. Scott Peters
Huffington Post
Economic anxiety is dominating our presidential politics. Candidates are blaming their own boogeymen - Wall Street or immigrants - for the struggles of hard-working Americans. The fear themes in these campaigns reflect the anxiety felt at dinner tables every night. Americans who have worked in the same place for decades don’t feel like they are getting ahead and are confronted with tough choices. College graduates with tens of thousands of dollars in student debt are unable to find the high-quality jobs that they expected after graduation. And couples are emerging only slowly from student debt, having put off large purchases like buying a home or a car, without a penny saved for retirement.