Clark County Today News

Save Vancouver Streets gathered more than 6,500 signatures to force a public vote on lane removals, but the city took no action on the initiative, triggering a lawsuit now under appeal. Meanwhile, Vancouver's Transportation System Plan and a Week Without Driving proclamation are adding fuel to a growing debate over who the city's streets are really for. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news/is-the-cit...

Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans held a hearing Wednesday pressing opposition to transgender athletes in women's sports, with most Democrats boycotting the session. Sen. Dick Durbin, the panel's lone Democratic voice, argued the issue would not crack the top 20 voter priorities amid cost-of-living concerns. The hearing comes less than six weeks before midterm elections. https://clarkcountyto...

Washington Policy Center's Elizabeth New (Hovde) examines a new Washington state law allowing striking workers to collect UI benefits. With 174 claimants paid $604,491 so far, she warns a Boeing strike involving SPEEA's roughly 17,000-member bargaining units could expose the Unemployment Trust Fund to more than $123 million in potential payouts. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-a-boein...

After three years of planning, La Center officially broke ground on Downtown 2.0, a long-planned expansion west of Northwest Pacific Highway that includes commercial space, housing, trails, and an ADA-accessible boardwalk to the Lewis River. The city received $400,000 in state capital budget funding but still faces a $3.5 million gap to complete the infrastructure. https://clarkcountytoday.com/new...

The Foundation for Vancouver Public Schools will break ground on a new applied trades building at Skyview High School on Sept. 29, fully funded through the Endeavour Fund and Ed and Dollie Lynch Fund. The facility, projected to open in late 2027, will train students in construction trades and advanced manufacturing. https://clarkcountytoday.com/youth/foundation-for-vancouver-public-schools-will-br...

La Center resident Justine Stimmel writes in support of Peter Silliman for the Clark County Council District 5 seat, pointing to his sponsorship of four charter amendments on tax limits, housing impact analysis, budget transparency, and county audits as a record of principled, reform-minded service. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/letter-district-5-deserves-responsible-leadership/ #ClarkCount...

Chris Cargill of Mountain States Policy Center draws on the history of automobiles and smartphones to argue that federal AI oversight would concentrate power in the hands of regulators who cannot foresee what the technology will become, and would favor large tech firms over small innovators. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-the-only-thing-we-have-to-fear-is-government-ai-intervention-i...

Phase one of the Interstate Bridge Replacement Project is short $1.4 billion, yet both Oregon and Washington are pressing forward, citing the risk of losing federal money. Critics including Rep. John Ley and Portland economist Joe Cortright warn that once construction begins in July 2028, there will be no turning back on a project now priced at nearly $15 billion. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news...

A 17-year-old fled to Oregon and called 9-1-1 after her significant other allegedly strangled her, assaulted her with a knife, restrained her, and sexually assaulted her. Clark County deputies arrested 41-year-old David Young near the 1700 block of NE Minnehaha Street after a standoff involving CCSO's K-9 Ajax and drone unit. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news/deputies-arrest-registered-sex-offende...

Nancy Churchill's Dangerous Rhetoric column examines the Washington Supreme Court Position 4 race, where 62 sitting judges signed a letter calling Ian Birk's "partisan agenda" accusations against Sean O'Donnell "serious and false." O'Donnell holds unsolicited endorsements from both major parties. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-a-judge-who-wont-pick-sides/ #WashingtonSupremeCourt #Jud...

Vancouver City Council voted unanimously to ban camping within 1,500 feet of the new bridge shelter in the Vancouver Mall neighborhood, which is expected to open later this year with around 120 beds and services including drug rehabilitation and employment resources. A drive through downtown near the Share House reveals dozens of tents blocking sidewalks and bike lanes, open drug use, and garbage,...

A conservation nonprofit, the Port of Ridgefield, and the Ridgefield City Council all issued formal responses to a waterfront development proposal that drew a downtown rally and close to 100 residents to a September port commission meeting. The city's letter requests a formal master plan, traffic, economic, and environmental analyses, and 3D renderings before moving forward. https://clarkcountytod...

One year after President Trump designated Antifa a domestic terror organization, nine members of a North Texas cell have been convicted on federal charges, including attempted murder. Leader Benjamin Song received a 100-year sentence. The State Department has since designated four European Antifa groups as foreign terrorist organizations and imposed sanctions on an Italian group tied to Rose City...

The Heritage Foundation's 5th annual Education Freedom Report Card places Washington 40th overall and 48th in school choice for the second consecutive year. Neighboring Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming have expanded parental choice programs while Washington has no education savings accounts or tax-credit scholarship programs. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-which-state-leads-the-way-for-ed...

Clark County Council District 1 candidate Bryan Shull explains why he declined a League of Women Voters forum invitation, citing a one-minute sound-bite format, overheard violent rhetoric, and what he calls the organization's openly left-leaning advocacy beneath its nonpartisan branding. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-beneath-the-leagues-nonpartisan-branding-lies-a-membership-and-org...

City Observatory's Joe Cortright dissects two claims Oregon transportation officials are making to deflect blame for massive highway cost overruns. The IBR and Rose Quarter projects rank among the three most expensive highway projects per mile in the nation, yet ODOT continues to point fingers at legislators and local communities. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-two-lies-and-a-truth-a...

CNN, MS Now, and Politico filed a federal lawsuit Monday after the White House deactivated their reporters' press credentials without notice. The suit argues the ban violates the First Amendment and due process clause. Judge Timothy J. Kelly scheduled a videoconference hearing for Wednesday on a temporary restraining order. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news/cnn-ms-now-politico-sue-trump-over-white...

The Heritage Foundation's 2026 Election Integrity Scorecard ranks Washington 46th out of 50 states and D.C., citing weak proof-of-citizenship requirements and voter-roll maintenance. State Rep. Jim Walsh says a checked box is not proof of citizenship. The Secretary of State disputes the report's criteria as unlawful or legally contested. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news/election-integrity-scoreca...

Transportation architect Kevin Peterson, with planning experience across more than 50 cities on four continents, argues that light rail transit would need to serve 20% of Columbia River cross-river trips, requiring $25 to $45 billion or more over roughly five decades, while LRT's full buildout could take five decades and $25 to $45 billion or more. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-i-5-...

Ryan Frost of the Washington Policy Center argues that the Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling striking down Initiative 2066 under the single-subject clause creates a direct legal challenge to ESSB 6346, Washington's new income tax, which bundled income tax changes with B&O tax adjustments, sales tax changes, and Working Families Tax Credit expansion into a single vote. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion...

The League of Women Voters of Clark County has scheduled four candidate forums at libraries in Vancouver, Camas, and Ridgefield between Sept. 23 and Oct. 14. Races covered include state House seats, County Council districts, Clark County Auditor, Assessor, Clerk, and Public Utility Commissioner. Forums are open to the public and stream on CVTV. https://clarkcountytoday.com/community_news/league-of...

Lars Larson draws on 50 years in journalism to argue that the First Amendment protects the right to publish, not the right to enter the White House. He points to Biden's removal of 400-plus press credentials and Obama's treatment of Fox News as context for today's debate. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-a-1st-amendment-temper-tantrum/ #Opinion #FirstAmendment #LarsLarson #PressAccess...

Clark County Auditor candidate Eileen Quiring O'Brien's campaign published a detailed account of The Columbian's July candidate forum, alleging partisan bias and financial conflicts of interest in the paper's endorsement of Mitchell Kelly. The campaign reaffirmed its pledge to launch a 3rd-party independent audit on Day 1 in office. https://clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-eileen-quiring-obrie...

Six Washington Supreme Court justices threw out Initiative 2066, erasing nearly two million votes and reopening the door to gas bans that BIAW estimates could cost Clark County homeowners $20,000 to $40,000 in forced conversions. Leslie Lewallen, director of Clark County Future 42, argues five Supreme Court seats on the November ballot give voters a direct path to restore constitutional deference...

Theodore Seaman, 44, was arrested for Drive-By Shooting after Battle Ground Police tracked a silver Nissan to Battle Ground Lake State Park on Sept. 19. A second suspect fled on foot and has not been located. Shell casings were found at the scene; no injuries were reported. https://clarkcountytoday.com/news/battle-ground-shooting-suspect-arrested-second-suspect-still-outstanding/ #BattleGround #Cl...