Boeing news:

►  In today's Seattle Times -- Job cuts will follow jet-assembly slowdown -- Boeing finally concedes it will slash production at its Everett widebody jet-assembly plant, which will result in job cuts in the middle of next year, and probably mean layoffs at Boeing suppliers this year.

►  In today's Everett Herald -- Boeing delivery cuts to hit Everett factory -- The company expects that will reduce employment levels beyond the 4,500 cuts it's already announced in its commercial airplane division for this year. It declined to say how many jobs would be lost.

►  In today's Seattle Times -- Gregoire: Future aerospace work depends on state's competitiveness -- In a surprise twist, IAM National President Tom Buffenbarger says he discussed a second 787 line last fall in the negotiations that ended the Machinists strike. He said that in exchange for agreeing to a four-year contract instead of the usual three, he got at least a tacit personal commitment from Boeing's senior leadership that a second 787 line would be in Everett. "This union took a leap of faith extending a long-term agreement to Boeing to ensure that a second 787 line would be located in the Puget Sound region," he said. "If Boeing is attempting now to renegotiate on a public bargaining table with the Legislature and the community of Washington, that's not very honorable." Boeing disputes Buffenbarger's account.

►  From AP -- Gregoire outlines Boeing plans -- She wants a task force (that includes IAM 751 and SPEEA reps) to keep Washington in the hunt for future Boeing jobs, but she isn't yet calling for additional tax breaks that industry consultants say are key to landing more aerospace work.

►  At TheNewsTribune.com --Welcome to the State Department of Boeing -- I'm just calling it what everyone eventually will call the "aerospace subcabinet" post that Gov. Chris Gregoire will be creating in her administration. 

►  In today's Everett Herald -- Gregoire seeks new incentives for Boeing to stay -- Democratic Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon says the Legislature needs to act this session to reform unemployment insurance and workers compensation laws. "It's admirable the state wants to continue the work started in 2003 (when benefits to unemployed and injured workers were dramatically cut). But the state has lost ground since 2003 (as some of those cuts have been restored). The momentum established in 2003 should have been continued the last six years and it hasn't," Reardon says.

►  At HorsesAss -- Governor of Boeing state responds to Boeing study paid for by Boeing state -- It’s pretty clear that, taken as a whole, the Democratic Party is a captive of corporate interests, which to anyone who has been paying attention the last 20 years is no surprise. The legislators in power are products of the Clinton era and honed their survival skills on triangulation and seeking the approval of traditional media. The corporate lobbyists threaten to take away jobs, the traditional media issues harrumphs, and most of the Democrats fall in line. Rinse, repeat. 

Legislative news:

►  In today's Seattle Times -- Lawmakers likely to ask for sales-tax increase -- Chopp says there's better than a "50-50" chance lawmakers will ask voters to increase taxes to help backfill proposed cuts to state health programs. Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown has been talking about a ballot measure increasing the state sales tax by 0.3% to help offset cuts.

►  In today's Seattle Times -- Chopp says he won't block vote on tunnel replacement for viaduct -- House Speaker Frank Chopp has widely been viewed as the biggest political obstacle to the $4.3 billion project in Seattle, having pushed his own different plan for an elevated freeway there. Says Chopp: "I do not support the deep-bore tunnel... but ... will let it go to the floor."

►  Yesterday at Publicola.com -- Morning Fizz (scroll down to Item #2) -- Yesterday, we reported on the Blue/Green coalition of Democratic legislators flexing their muscles in Olympia. House Speaker Frank Chopp reportedly stopped one of the Blue/Green yin yang button wearers and asked if he could have one. “You have to sign the pledge,” the legislator told Chopp. The pledge included backing Rep. Ormsby’s water clean up bill and Rep. Sells’ workers’ privacy bill. Chopp is said to have demurred on the workers’ privacy bill. (Also see a subsequent Publicola posting, Governor and Speaker were for worker privacy before they etc. etc. etc.)

 
Local news:

►  In today's Bellingham Herald -- Intalco tells BPA it could shut down in weeks without rate cut -- Alcoa says the smelter west of Ferndale is losing money because the price of power is too high and the price of aluminum is too low. Without the promise of a price break under a new BPA rate that takes effect Oct. 1, the plant has little chance to survive, they say. Meanwhile, the nearly 500 people who make their livelihood at Intalco can only wait and worry.

►  In the Walla Walla U-B -- Prison union OKs deal -- The union that represents state prison employees announces that members have approved a new contract with the state. The new agreement "brings job security and language improvements, but no new wage increases," says Teamsters Local 117. Members approved the agreement by a vote of 1,670 to 158.

►  In today's Kitsap Sun -- City negotiates more cuts with Bremerton employees -- Members of the Teamsters Local 589 voted by a large margin to have represented employees choose one of five options to cut costs. Choices include taking eight unpaid days off by the end of the year, reducing the workweek to 36 or 32 hours or dropping medical coverage for dependents.

►  In today's Everett Herald -- Snohomish County workers start reducing their hours -- Each employee (AFSCME members) loses a little more than 4% of his or her salary. That wipes out most of the 5% to 6% cost-of-living increases they received last year.