By Bill Lucia | Editor
Washington state Rep. Tarra Simmons didn’t violate state ethics laws when she aggressively urged fellow Democrat Daria Ilgen not to run against her this year, the state’s Legislative Ethics Board has concluded. Val Torrens, chair of the 23rd Legislative District Democrats in Kitsap County, filed a complaint early this year accusing Simmons of breaching ethics rules by using her legislative position to pressure Ilgen. This is separate from another ethics case Simmons is fighting.
Also in today’s edition…
A state program that helps families who have children with developmental disabilities will be cut but not ended.
And, Kalshi and other prediction markets lose a round in federal appeals court.
News tips, feedback, questions? Email us: [email protected]
By Jerry Cornfield
The ethics board decision includes copies of text messages from last year where Simmons urged Ilgen to stay out of the race.
“I would personally hope you’d challenge one of the men instead as our district deserves some diversity in gender, race, geographical location, socioeconomic status and lived experience,” she wrote. “Anyways, I do hope that is just an awful rumor because it would be disappointing considering all the other work I had planned on doing for our district instead of spending all of my time beating you.”
“If Bob Ferguson calls you will you stop doing this? Because I worked my a** off for our district,” added Simmons, who represents the 23rd District, covering Kingston, Poulsbo, Bremerton and Bainbridge Island.
Sen. Drew Hansen, D-Bainbridge, who also represents the 23rd, offered this assessment of Simmons’ conduct, according to comments included in the ethics board ruling: “I don’t see anything remotely resembling an ethics act violation in any of this.” He said Simmons’ exchanges with Ilgen did not amount to harassment, intimidation or bullying.
“That’s campaigning,” he said.
(Photo by Washington State Standard)
By Jake Goldstein-Street
Washington state officials are keeping a longstanding program seen as vital to parents of children with developmental disabilities, but reducing its funding.
The Department of Social and Health Services is trimming the Parent to Parent program by 10%, but won’t eliminate it as was feared this summer. Its budget for the next year is around $877,000. “I wish we hadn’t received a cut at all, but it certainly could have been worse,” said Tracie Hoppis, the statewide Parent to Parent manager.
Parent to Parent provides support and resources for families of children with autism and other developmental disabilities. Its name comes from pairing newer parents with more experienced ones to help guide them through the complicated system of available resources, as well as provide community in what can otherwise be an isolating experience.
(Photo by Anne-Marie Caruso/New Jersey Monitor)
By Dana Gentry
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals late last week rejected arguments from prediction markets Kalshi, Crypto.com, and Robinhood that federal law preempts state law in regulating their platforms.
This came in a Nevada case and delivered a win for the state’s regulated sports betting industry. A three-judge panel ruled that sports bets accepted by Kalshi are likely not swaps covered by the federal Commodity Exchange Act.
“This completely vindicates what we have been saying all along,” Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman Mike Dreitzer said in a statement. “This is sports betting and needs to be properly regulated by the state.”
In April, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that New Jersey could not prohibit prediction markets from taking bets in that state. The conflicting rulings raise the odds that the battle between prediction markets and states will land at the U.S. Supreme Court.
ICYMI
WA governor met with state worker protest at hospital construction ceremony | by Jerry Cornfield and Aspen Ford
Thanks for reading The Daily Standard. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.