Bill to establish statewide oversight of jails in Washington dies in Legislature
Washington is one of 12 states without enforceable state standards or oversight — that won’t change in 2026
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For August we have a piece by Executive Director Robert McClure about getting, and not getting, government records into the public eye:
State and federal freedom-of-information laws give investigative journalists a look behind the curtain at the internal workings of government. An essential tool, they allow us to help the public better understand what government is doing and saying on its behalf.
The people can better govern their governors, in other words.
So we were recently taken aback by how many documents the City of Seattle and King County withheld in one of our latest rounds of Freedom Of Information requests. The sheer volume of records withheld suggests an epic legal battle brewing over the Duwamish River cleanup.
To read the rest...

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— Jacob H. Fries, executive director
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