Washington in Focus

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Seattle, King County move to backfill $40M gap in homeless funds after HUD rule change Nov 19, 2025

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(The Center Square) – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s funding notice of last week is expected to create a $40 million shortfall for the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, leaving Seattle and King County scrambling to cover the gap as they continue budget deliberations.

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Weekend Edition | Records reveal further details of WSBA investigation into AG Brown Nov 15, 2025

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(The Center Square) – Newly obtained records reveal further details of the Washington State Bar Association investigation into Attorney General Nick Brown that ended hours after The Center Square reached out for comment. WSBA rules dictate that bar complaint investigations into private attorneys are to be kept confidential, but The Center Square obtained records of the investigation through a public records request to the AGO. The office acted as defense counsel for Brown and AGO employees and resources were used to prepare the response. Among the new details revealed is that Solicitor General Noah Purcell sought and obtained two separate extensions of deadlines set by the WSBA, albeit the first one was after two deadlines had not been met. The Center Square has previously inquired with the WSBA whether extensions were granted but did not receive any response. The AGO has also never responded to The Center Square's requests to confirm the information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Records reveal further details of WSBA investigation into AG Brown Nov 13, 2025

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Whistleblower: Tacoma Urban League being investigated; CEO placed on leave Nov 12, 2025

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(The Center Square) – Concerns about the use of Washington state's Community Reinvestment Program (CRP) funds have now moved on to the Tacoma Urban League, including the organization's director being put on leave, interviews show. CRP was created to support homeownership for minorities by providing grants and funding to programs that assist low-income households, and to support minority owned business development.

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Weekend Edition | Father of Housing First points to success; We Heart Seattle highlights failures Nov 08, 2025

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(The Center Square) – On an overcast mid-October day, just inside the Third Avenue offices of We Heart Seattle, Executive Director Andrea Suarez and two of her staff members sat next to a table covered with gallon-sized Ziploc bags filled with used drug foil collected in recent weeks from parks and streets in Seattle. On an adjacent table, a “harm reduction” kit provided to drug addicts by Public Health – Seattle & King County displayed clean drug needles, wound care wipes, Narcan to reverse drug overdoses, foil, note cards suggesting addicts use drugs together to help prevent overdoses, and many other items that Suarez says are worsening the city’s drug crisis. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

‘They actually have audiences’: AG Brown directed video mocking ‘mean tweets’ Nov 06, 2025

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(The Center Square) – Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown proposed and directly oversaw the production of a video made by his office featuring him mocking the social media posts of his critics during an active State Bar Association investigation into him. It was an investigation where Brown twice failed to respond to bar investigators by the deadlines but was dismissed last week after The Center Square requested the status of the probe.

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Father of Housing First points to success; We Heart Seattle highlights failures Nov 05, 2025

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Overcrowding looms amid King County's $3.96B annual affordable housing funding gap Nov 04, 2025

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(The Center Square) – King County council members are grappling with housing challenges that put larger households at risk of overcrowding. On Monday, the King County Council discussed a recent housing report highlighting a $3.96 billion annual funding gap needed to meet the county’s affordable housing goals.

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Weekend Edition | Whistleblower: WA’s Community Reinvestment Program riddled with self-dealing Nov 01, 2025

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(The Center Square) – A whistleblower has raised serious allegations against Washington state’s Community Reinvestment Program, which, among other things, aims to support homeownership for minorities by providing grants and funding to programs that assist low-income households. Independent journalist and “unDivided” podcast host Brandi Kruse on Monday published an article based on a months-long investigation into information obtained by real estate agent Corey Orvold, which points to the program becoming a fund for personal enrichment of those charged with distributing the funds. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

WA lawmaker renews push for spending transparency bills in wake of CRP allegations Oct 30, 2025

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(The Center Square) – A Washington lawmaker is calling for the state Legislature to give several spending transparency bills he’s sponsored a second look in the wake of allegations made against the state’s Community Reinvestment Program.

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