Policy Today podcast: Boeing 777X progress
Today we explore the status of Boeing's 777X plane project. New cutting-edge equipment for the plane's composite wings is moving into place and orders are being placed. Listen to past podcasts here.
August 28 , 2015 - Mary Strow
777X plane project is cooking
On Wednesday night, State Route 526 was temporarily closed to traffic to transport a very special, very large oven to Boeing’s Composite Wing Center in Everett. The high-pressure oven, known as an autoclave, is there to “bake,” as the Seattle Times reports, the new 777X jet’s carbon fiber composite wings “to hardness.” The Boeing Company provides more […]
August 27 , 2015 - Emily Makings
Wildfires and taxes
Earlier this month I wrote about the importance of apples to our state economy and the impacts that the weather can have. Wildfires are a risk too. The Wenatchee World reports that the Chelan Complex fire has “destroyed an estimated $30 million in Chelan County property.” That includes the loss of a Chelan Fruit warehouse, […]
August 27 , 2015 - Emily Makings
The private liquor market makes room for local products
When voters approved I-1183 in 2011 and privatized liquor sales in Washington, one concern raised by opponents was that Washington’s breweries, distilleries, and wineries would have a harder time getting shelf space. Grocery stores have more demands on their space than the old state-run liquor stores, so they would be less likely to stock alcohol […]
August 20 , 2015 - Emily Makings
New report: Regulatory Reform: A Win-Win-Win for Agencies, Businesses, and Taxpayers
We have a new special report looking at a series of regulatory reform audits from the State Auditor’s Office. Briefly: Since 2011, the state auditor’s office (SAO) has been looking at regulatory reform. In 2015, it found that Washington does not take a strategic approach to multi-agency coordination. In 2013, the SAO found that for […]
August 19 , 2015 - Kriss Sjoblom
July employment report shows the state added 5,900 jobs from June to July
The state Employment Security Department issued its employment report for July this morning. The preliminary estimate is that seasonally adjusted employment in Washington increased by 5,900 from May to June. The estimate of May to June job growth was revised up to a gain of 7,700 jobs from the gain of 3,900 jobs previously announced. […]
August 19 , 2015 - Mary Strow
Improving education, strengthening the economy
Opportunity Washington recently pointed out fascinating research (summarized here) which indicates: “that national average student performance at age 15 on an internationally standardized mathematics test is predictive of that nation’s future economic growth.” It’s yet more proof that a good education is not only empowering and life-changing for individual students, but for entire nations as well. It raises […]
August 11 , 2015 - Emily Makings
Weather, apples, and the state economy
I wrote yesterday about how technology is making farming more productive. But despite these advances, farmers are still very exposed to the vagaries of the weather. According to the Yakima Herald-Republic (YHR), “Heat stress, water shortages and other factors likely will combine to make the 2015 apple crop smaller than last year’s record-setter.” More apple […]
August 10 , 2015 - Mary Strow
August 10 , 2015 - Emily Makings
New market problems
A couple of recent stories illustrate some of the difficulties businesses and industries can have in getting up and running. Washington’s new recreational marijuana market has faced many problems related to the fact that marijuana is still illegal under federal law. Banking is an example. A Crosscut article from earlier this month points to another […]