Local News

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. WASHINGTON — Sen. Patty Murray on Thursday reintroduced a Democratic bill that would require employers to provide up to seven days of paid sick time annually. Murray cosponsored the “Healthy Families Act” with U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, a leading liberal in Congress who has introduced the bill six times since 2004. Estimated 43 million…

Updated at 9:47 a.m. to add Harry Reid as co-sponsor: WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray are taking another stab to make sales-tax deductions a permanent part of the tax code. The two Washington Democrats, along with six seven colleagues, on Thursday evening introduced a bill seeking to end the frequent expirations — and subsequent renewals…

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. WASHINGTON — The $1.1 trillion spending bill filed by House appropriators late Tuesday likely will avert a federal government shutdown after Thursday. But lawmakers (or, more accurately, their staff) were combing through the omnibus legislation Wednesday morning to tally how much money will flow to their states. Sean Coit, spokesman for Sen….

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. WASHINGTON — Sen. Patty Murray and her fellow Democratic leaders on Monday urged President Obama to stick to his resolve to act unilaterally on immigration reform, which has incensed conservatives and triggered threats of another government shutdown. In a letter to Obama, the lawmakers say immigrant communities have waited long…

WASHINGTON — U. S. Sen. Patty Murray on Thursday urged President Obama to further flex his executive authority to ease detention and deportation of immigrants here illegally if Republicans remain unwilling to agree on comprehensive immigration reforms. The Washington Democrat spoke on the Senate floor a day after Speaker John Boehner said Republicans will seek…

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Wednesday  reauthorized the nation’s main jobs-training bill, updating the Clinton-era legislation to help Americans — particularly disadvantaged youth and laid-off workers — prepare for an increasingly-skilled labor market. The six-year reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) passed by a 95-3 vote. The legislation expired in 2003 and Congress has been…

UPDATED AT 11:41 a.m. with Cantwell’s statement: WASHINGTON — Eric Shinseki’s resignation as secretary of Veterans Affairs Friday was greeted with grim welcome by members of Congress from Washington state, several of whom had recently called for Shinseki’s departure. The lawmakers made clear the resignation by itself does not address the systemic problems within the veterans agency that…

Salvador Mendoza, Jr. WASHINGTON — Salvador Mendoza, Jr., who could become the first Latino federal judge in Eastern Washington, got his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday. Mendoza’s appearance came just two months after he was nominated by President Obama to U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Washington and four months after Senate Democrats…

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash. WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell and 17 other Senate Democrats on Tuesday weighed in on a Supreme Court case that pits a new federal insurance mandate for contraceptive coverage against a private corporation’s refusal on grounds it violates the owners’ religious beliefs. The lawmakers filed an amicus brief…

Washington state’s congressional delegation on Monday submitted a strong entry into this year’s political Super Bowl betting sweepstakes, announcing a mass wager with Colorado’s delegation. That means all members of Congress representing Washington and Colorado — 17 in all; 10 from Washington and seven from Colorado — are offering to give something to the other side…