Legislative news:  ▪  Sure and certain relief  (yesterday's WSLC Legislative Update)
▪  Today from AP -- Bill would leash lenders -- "We are only asking the Legislature to extend the protections for military families to all working families," says Karen Deal of UFCW Local 21.
▪  In the Everett Herald -- Arena for Sonics, NHL looks worthy of support (editorial) -- Allowing current King County taxes to continue is a smart investment with a potentially big return for the region.
▪  In today's Seattle Times -- Olympia sees emergencies (editorial) -- Bills to allow unions to spend nonmembers' dues, to require signature gatherers to disclose their home addresses, to subsidize a Sonics stadium and to subsidize a NASCAR track may have virtues, but surely they are not "necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety."
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- Gregoire: No bias against Alaskan Way Viaduct tunnel
▪  In today's Seattle Times -- Political campaign heats up over viaduct -- Campaigns for the March 13 vote are off and sprinting with just eight days to go before ballots in the all-mail election are sent.
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- Alaskan Way Viaduct: Absurd skirmishes (editorial) -- It seems that both sides of this fight are putting political posturing and careers before the public's best interest.

Health Care news:
▪  In today's Olympian -- Gregoire's health plan gains supporters -- SEIU leader Andrew Stern offers his support a week after agreeing to partner with Wal-Mart to seek health-care changes.
▪  In today's NY Times -- States, U.S. at odds over uninsured -- In the absence of federal action, governors and state legislators around the country are transforming the nation’s health care system. But the states appear to be on a collision course with the Bush administration, whose latest budget proposals create a huge potential obstacle to their efforts to expand coverage.
▪  In today's Yakima H-R -- Local official pushes health care for kids -- Under one proposal, some 10,000 children in Yakima County could receive health-care coverage over the next three years.
▪  In today's Spokesman-Review -- Do the right thing (editorial) -- Gregoire's proposal may not be the answer, but its goal is one that everybody has a stake in economically and morally. This time critics have a duty to engage the debate, not end it.

Boeing news:
▪  In today's Seattle P-I -- Boeing's in race for $40 billion Air Force tanker contract -- It would ensure continued operation of the 767 line in Everett for years. Boeing officials said the program would support thousands of jobs but would not speculate whether new jobs would be created there.
▪  Today from AP -- Boeing will use 767 for tanker -- A newly designed KC-767 is its proposed aircraft for a $40 billion Air Force contract competition to replace 179 refueling planes.
▪  In Monday's Everett Herald -- Backlog doesn't bug Boeing -- The company is steadily adding employees but won't boost production rates radically.

Local news:
▪  In today's Bellingham Herald -- City approves ban on big-box stores -- In a 4-2 vote Monday night, Bellingham's City Council banned stores larger than 90,000 square feet from the city.
▪  In Adam Wilson's blog -- Union bargaining notes: private or public interest? -- The EFF makes a public records request for “a copy of all bargaining notes made by negotiators and bargaining team members regarding the 2007-2009 collective bargaining agreements.” State employee unions file a complaint in court to stop the release, arguing the documents are of “no legitimate concern to the public” and releasing them will undermine the collective bargaining process.
▪  In today's Everett Herald -- Hospital growth challenge rejected -- The state turns down a request to reconsider its approval of a $500 million expansion project at Providence Everett Medical Center.
▪  In today's Seattle Times -- Bellevue crane probe puts blame on steel base, source says
▪  In Sunday's Bellingham Herald -- Educators' salaries a good deal for all (editorial) -- Our teachers are making a good living and are working very hard to earn it. That’s good news for taxpayers. 
▪  In Saturday's Everett Herald -- Hope for a sick child -- A team of doctors in Seattle found a bone marrow donor for Turner Patterson. "At that point everything changed," says his dad, Travis, a representative with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 191 in Everett.

National news:
▪  Today from AP -- Trade deficit rises to record $763.6 billion -- Top Democrats send Bush a letter urging him to work with them to craft a new trade strategy to deal with the exploding deficits.
▪  Today from AP -- House panel approves $1.3B in tax breaks -- The Chamber backs a House plan to "sweeten" the minimum wage increase with a package of tax breaks that is a fraction of the size of the one passed by the Senate. At issue is how to make up for that lost revenue.
▪  In the Seattle Times -- Why begrudge workers a little "pin money?" (Harrop column) -- One thing about this minimum-wage debate truly fries me. It's the idea that the minimum does not have to be raised because the people who get it don't need the money.