By Bill Lucia | Editor
State lawmakers approved nearly $20 million earlier this year to pay for long-term care insurance for noncitizens on track to lose that coverage due to changes in federal law. The thinking was that this was a step toward covering benefits for about 1,200 lawfully present immigrants. But it turns out the money won’t go nearly as far as expected, with the initial $20 million only being enough for 173 people.
Also in today’s edition…
The legal fight over federal permitting for wind power projects.
And, two minor political parties lose standing to appear on Oregon ballots.
News tips, feedback, questions? Email us: [email protected]
By Jake Goldstein-Street
Lawmakers assumed the $20 million for long-term care would cover about 300 people in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2027, before ramping up to the full, nearly 1,200, with closer to $100 million per year in the next two-year budget starting in July 2027, explained Rep. Nicole Macri, D-Seattle. But reaching that original goal would cost tens of millions of dollars more each year than anticipated.
The “big, beautiful bill” congressional Republicans passed last year cuts Medicaid coverage for refugees and asylees and other lawfully present immigrants, including people who fled the war in Ukraine, for example. State officials project nearly 14,000 in Washington will lose coverage starting Oct. 1. This includes about 1,500 noncitizens receiving long-term care services. Those who qualify for the funding typically have disabilities and need assistance with basic tasks, like taking medication and bathing.
Part of the reason for the discrepancy with state funding has to do with the timing of when the federal government will knock people off the program. Department of Social and Health Services Secretary Angela Ramirez said her agency would “continue to look under every rock to see what we can do.”
(Photo by Janelle Stecklein/Oklahoma Voice)
By Alex Brown
A federal judge last week ordered the Department of Defense to resume a permitting process for wind projects that has ground to a halt during President Donald Trump’s second term. The Pentagon had stopped conducting the national security reviews that are required for wind turbines over 200 feet tall. Renewable energy companies and Democratic attorneys general, including Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, sued the Trump administration, saying the refusal to conduct the once-routine reviews has stalled more than 155 wind projects. “(The Department of Defense) cannot pick and choose which parts of this legal regime to follow,” wrote Judge Karin Immergut.
Election update
Vote counting is still underway in Washington’s primary elections. We had some highlights in our weekend newsletter edition of where races stood on Friday, and will continue tracking the results this week. The deadline for the secretary of state to certify primary election results is Aug. 21.
By Julia Shumway
Two minor Oregon political parties no longer have enough members to qualify as parties that can nominate candidates, the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office said Friday. The right-leaning Constitution Party of Oregon and the We The People Party, created to ensure Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could appear on ballots in 2024, both fell short of minimum requirements to maintain party status. That means neither party can nominate candidates for the November election.
ICYMI
WA judge rejects bid to ditch description of income tax initiative’s budget effects | by Jerry Cornfield
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