LACEY — The state Liquor Control Board has voted to raise the markup on alcohol by about a third.
At Wednesday’s meeting in Lacey the board approved a 32 percent increase in the amount the state charges over costs.
Spokesman Brian E. Smith says final prices will be affected by suppliers and taxes. For an example, Monarch vodka, the most popular product in state liquor stores, will go from about $9.95 to $10.75 a bottle.
The increase will take effect Aug. 1 and raise about $80 million in the next two-year budget cycle. The action will offset $79 million the Legislature removed from a liquor fund.
Olympia: Beer and wine approved for boutiques
Jittery brides-to-be will soon be able to have a free glass of wine while perusing pricey gowns.
Gov. Chris Gregoire on Wednesday signed into law a bill that allows wedding boutiques and art galleries to serve free beer and wine. The law goes into effect July 26.
Under the bill, boutiques and galleries can offer one free glass of wine or beer to customers who are at least 21. The drink must be consumed on the premises, and boutiques and galleries can’t advertise the complimentary wine or beer.
New law requires state to buy recycled paper
Washington state agencies and college campuses must buy 100 percent recycled paper and cut back on printing under a measure Gov. Chris Gregoire signed into law Wednesday.
State officials say the move will save the state about $1 million a year.
The law requires the agencies and colleges to buy 100 percent recycled paper by the end of this year. By next year, they must cut back on printing and paper use by at least 30 percent.
Law lessens criminal supervision rules
The state will save about $50 million by trimming back its supervision of criminals who are not behind bars.
Gov. Chris Gregoire signed two bills into law Wednesday, changing the state’s criminal supervision policy.
Under the new laws, some lower-risk convicts won’t have to be monitored once they’re out of prison. The state also won’t have to watch as many misdemeanor offenders on probation.
All sex offenders and serious violent offenders will still be supervised. But the maximum length of supervision for the worst crimes would be shortened.
Mount Vernon: Zamora competent to stand trial
A Skagit County Superior Court judge has ruled multiple-murder defendant Isaac Zamora is mentally competent to stand trial.
The Skagit Valley Herald reports that the ruling came Wednesday at a hearing. Zamora then entered not guilty pleas to 20 felony counts, including six aggravated murder charges.
The 28-year-old is charged with killing six people and wounding four others Sept. 2 in a shooting rampage that began in Alger.
Prosecutors have until Oct. 6 to decide if they will pursue the death penalty.
Seattle: Think tank rates elementary schools
Parents in Washington state now have another way to analyze their neighborhood elementary schools.
A conservative think tank on Wednesday introduced its own school report card based on statewide testing data.
There’s one main difference between the Evergreen Freedom Foundation’s Web site and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s online report card. The Evergreen Freedom Foundation site ranks schools on a 10-point scale according to how well their students are doing on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning. The OSPI site does not rank schools.
Former Metro driver guilty of drug charges
A former King County Metro bus driver accused of dealing drugs on his bus route has pleaded guilty to three counts of delivery of cocaine.
Ricky Beavers entered the plea Wednesday in King County Superior Court. The 54-year-old Seattle man faces between a year and 20 months in prison when he is sentenced May 22. But The Seattle Times reports that prosecutors agreed to recommend he serve the low end of the range in exchange for his plea.
State will not fine airline for dumping fuel
The Washington Ecology Department says it won’t fine Asiana Airlines for dumping about 5,000 gallons of fuel over Puget Sound before an emergency landing at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Ecology spills program manager Dale Jensen said Wednesday that the fuel dump was to help safely land the plane and save lives. He says the pilot had to act quickly during the April 29 emergency, including lightening the plane for emergency landing.
Spokane: Major I-90 repairs start Monday
People driving east through Spokane on I-90 should expect some traffic disruption soon. A major pavement resurfacing job will begin May 18 and run to Labor Day.
The $8 million job will run from the Division Street exit downtown to the Custer Street pedestrian overpass near the eastern city limits. The project will smooth out the rutted highway surface, and replace the original concrete laid down in 1957 when the road opened.
Vancouver, Wash.: Crewman jumps ship
An antsy crewman from a freighter anchored at Vancouver jumped in the Columbia River and was picked up by fishermen who saw him struggling.
The Vancouver Columbian reports he was turned over to a Customs agent Saturday, treated at a Portland hospital and put a plane Tuesday home to the Philippines.
A ship agent with Ocean Marine Agencies in Portland, Randy Click, says the man wasn’t trying to enter the country illegally. Click says, “Sometimes, people who get on ships don’t deal with isolation well.”
Associated Press
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