Latest Washington Headlines

All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Excavator Bucket That Crushed Worker Leads to $170K Fine for Washington Contractor

Dec 9 2025 // A contractor was fined $170,000 for workplace violations that resulted in a 3,000-pound excavator bucket falling on an employee in southwest Washington.The Rotschy Inc. construction company was hit with $170,000 in fines...

Nine Insurers OK’d to Sell Group Health to Washington Employers

Dec 4 2025 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer approved nine health insurers to sell group health plans to small employers in 2026. The insurers are: Asuris Northwest Health, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of the...

Report Asks Washington Lawmakers to Require Insurers to Better Track Wildfire Risk

Dec 3 2025 // A working group on wildfires in Washington wants the state Legislature to consider requiring insurers to internally track instances in which wildfire risk materially contributes to a policy nonrenewal, cancellation or...

Washington Workers’ Comp Average Premium Going up 4.9% in 2026

Dec 1 2025 // The average cost of workers’ compensation insurance in Washington is set to rise 4.9% for 2026.The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries announced that employers and workers will pay on average $1.37...

Washington Commissioner Tells Thin Blue Line to Stop Selling Unlicensed Coverage

Nov 26 2025 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer ordered Thin Blue Line Benefits to stop selling insurance in Washington after investigators found the company had been operating without the required state license,. The OIC...

Washington Labor Inspectors Catch 41 Unregistered Contractors

Nov 25 2025 // The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries cited 41 people for unregistered contracting, or for unlicensed plumbing and electrical work during inspections at nearly 350 construction sites over the course of...

Tesla Sued Over Fatal Crash in Washington in Growing Scrutiny of Doors

Nov 24 2025 // Tesla Inc. was sued over a fiery crash in Washington state that left one person dead and another seriously injured after rescuers allegedly struggled to open the vehicle’s doors, the latest in a growing body of...

Washington Woman’s Fraud Conviction Saves System $1.3M in Lifetime Payments

Nov 7 2025 // An Auburn, Washington woman was convicted for fraud after receiving a lifetime pension following her reported injury while working at a supply company.Lemapu Dorothy Seinafo, 56, pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree...

Washington Commissioner Issued $828K in Fines for Insurance Violations

Oct 31 2025 // Washington insurance regulator fines for violations amounted to $828,500 in July, August, September, and early October of 2025, according to the office of Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer.That tally included...

Washington Supreme Court Restores $185M Monsanto Chemical Leak Verdict

Oct 30 2025 // A U.S. court reinstated a $185 million verdict against Bayer’s Monsanto unit over chemical contamination at a Washington state school on Thursday.The Washington state Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling that...

Washington Dairy Worker Pleads Guilty in $122K Workers’ Comp Scam

Oct 9 2025 // A dairy worker in Skagit County, Washington who said he was too injured to work pleaded guilty to illegally taking workers’ compensation payments.Efrain Alatorre Camarena, 58, pleaded guilty to three counts of...

Connecticut Family Is First to Sue Over Washington Plane Crash That Killed 67

Oct 1 2025 // The Connecticut family of one of the 67 people killed when an airliner collided with an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., sued the government and the airlines involved last week, saying they didn’t recognize the...

Washington’s Minimum Wage Heading to $17.13 in 2026

Oct 1 2025 // Washington’s minimum wage will rise 2.8% next year to $17.13 per hour.The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries announced the increase, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2026. State law requires L&I to...

Root Insurance Expands Driving Behavior Product to Washington

Sep 23 2025 // Root Insurance has brought its driving behavior insuring pricing model to Washington in an expansion of its West Coast footprint.Root now offers its product to drivers in Washington, Oregon and California. Root’s...

Washington Excavator Fined $140K for Workplace Safety Violations

Sep 19 2025 // A Clark County, Washington excavating company was fined $140,500 for knowingly putting workers in danger after a Washington Labor & Industries inspector witnessed employees pulling co-workers out of a 12-foot-deep...

Workers’ Comp Rate Increase Proposed in Washington

Sep 17 2025 // The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries is proposing a 4.9% increase in the average hourly rate employers and workers pay for workers’ compensation insurance in 2026.L&I says the increase would...

California, Oregon And Washington Form Health Alliance Amid Federal Vaccine Tensions

Sep 4 2025 // U.S. states of California, Oregon and Washington said on Wednesday they have launched a new health alliance to provide unified vaccine recommendations amid growing tensions over federal immunization policies and public...

Grange Insurance Association Seeks to Form Mutual Holding Company in Washington

Aug 27 2025 // Grange Insurance Association has submitted an application to the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner to convert to a mutual holding company structure.The plan calls for two new parent entities to be...

Trump Threatens Trucking Safety Funds for California, New Mexico and Washington

Aug 26 2025 // California, New Mexico and Washington are at risk of losing a cumulative $46 million a year in federal trucking safety funds after the Trump administration accused the states of flouting English-language rules for...

Washington Staffing Company Paying $217K in Religious Discrimination Suit

Aug 26 2025 // A Washington-based staffing and recruiting agency is paying $217,500 after failing to hire a Muslim job applicant after he asked about a religious accommodation to attend Friday prayer.The company, Logic Staffing, also...