Trump send military to Portland: Oregon sues, Missing Bellingham man’s car found abandoned in Olympia, MIPA issued for woman out of Skagit County, Boundary Bay asks for help locating missing sign, New budget unveiled today, Work starts again on 12th Street, WCC awarded $1.9 million grant to aid low-income STEM students, AI reviews of Medicare eligibility to begin next year, Two men taken into custody in southern Oregon in connection with death of Bellingham man, WA co-leads 16-state lawsuit in fighting federal cuts to sexual health education, WA co-leads 16-state lawsuit in fighting federal cuts to sexual health education, Thieves steal $1M in whiskey from Skagit distillery, Wildfire smoke linked to thousands of deaths, WA and states sue to maintain emergency services funds, Two men taken into custody in southern Oregon in connection with death of Bellingham man, Veterans claim housing and suicide among their greatest issues in meeting with Rep. Larsen, Free or Cheap (kill 10/3), Election Town Halls slated for October (kill 10/4)
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KMRE brings you local news for Monday, September 29th. Good afternoon, I’m ______.
STORY: Trump send military to Portland: Oregon sues
Both Oregon and the city of Portland have sued the Trump administration to block the deployment of National Guard troops to the city.
Besides President Trump, the lawsuit also names Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (GNOME). The lawsuit refers to the deployment as unlawful, and a violation of the 10th Amendment. On their end, the administration says the move is lawful, and that it aims to protect federal personnel and ICE facilities amid what it calls “violent riots.”
Democratic leaders, including Governor Tina Kotek (COE-tek), argue there is no threat to public safety that warrants military intervention, and note that Portland’s crime rates are largely unchanged from last year. Kotek also criticized the federal takeover of the National Guard, saying the state has no information on deployment timelines, troop numbers, or whether they will be armed.
Legal experts point to a recent federal ruling in California that found the administration’s National Guard deployment there violated the Posse Comitatus (POS-ee kom-i-TAH-tuhs) Act, which limits military use in domestic law enforcement. The Portland lawsuit frames the deployment as a broader clash over state versus federal authority, amid Trump’s threats to send troops to multiple Democratic-led cities, including Chicago, Baltimore, and New Orleans.
STORY: Missing Bellingham man’s car found abandoned in Olympia
The search is on for a missing Bellingham man whose abandoned car was found in Olympia.
According to The Bellingham Herald, 22-year-old Charlie Burns was last heard from on September 18th. Two days later, his car was discovered at the Capital Mall’s parking lot, but he has not been seen or heard from since.
Burns is 6-foot-2, about 150 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes. He’s a nursing student and plays with the Bellingham Symphony Orchestra. His family says he has no history of disappearing or cutting off contact, calling the situation deeply out of character.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Olympia Police.
STORY: MIPA issued for woman out of Skagit County
In related news, an urgent search is underway for a missing Indigenous woman from Skagit County.
The Washington State Patrol has issued a Missing Indigenous Person Alert for Nicole Day, a 45-year-old woman who has not been in contact with her family for about a year. She was last seen in Skagit County, and described as 5 feet 2 inches tall, around 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information is urged to call 9-1-1 immediately.
STORY: Boundary Bay asks for help locating missing sign
Boundary Bay Brewery has asked for the community’s help after someone stole its blue “Bellingham’s Backyard” sign last Saturday night.
The theft happened just days before the beloved Bellingham brewery pours its final pints tomorrow, marking the end of a 30-year run. Owners Ed Bennett and Janet Lightner will retire as the building’s lease expires. Anyone with information about the missing sign is urged to help return it — no questions asked.
STORY: New budget unveiled today
Bellingham Mayor Kim Lund will unveil the proposed 2026 city budget at today’s City Council Committee of the Whole meeting.
The City says the financial plan tackles a projected $10 million gap in the General Fund with a local sales tax increase and spending cuts. Council members will begin work sessions next Monday, with public hearings set for that day and November 3rd.
STORY: Work starts again on 12th Street
Work resumes today on safety upgrades along the 12th Street and Finnegan Way corridor in Fairhaven.
Crews will install a new traffic signal at 12th, Mill, and Finnegan streets, with construction expected to last through mid-October. This final phase of the project improves visibility and safety at this busy intersection.
Drivers should expect delays and consider alternate routes.
STORY: WCC awarded $1.9 million grant to aid low-income STEM students
Whatcom Community College has been awarded a grant to help low-income students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics programs.
The $1.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation will be used for scholarships of up to $15,000 for 96 STEM students over a six-year period. The grant also provides funding for mentoring, advising and research opportunities.
Whatcom’s Learning Center director Jason Babcock calls the grant a major breakthrough. He says many talented local students have the potential for well-paying STEM careers or to launch tech startups, but financial barriers have held them back. The grant aims to remove those obstacles and builds on a previous $650,000 grant that helped 51 students.
According to WCC, students who were helped by the previous grant now work for multinational companies such as Marathon Oil, General Dynamics, and PACCAR (PACK-car) Inc. They are also employed by dozens of smaller local employers, including Herrera Environmental Consultants and Team Corporation.
STORY: AI reviews of Medicare eligibility to begin next year
Medicare in Washington will soon use AI to decide if certain medical procedures are necessary.
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, starting in January, a new federal pilot program will have artificial intelligence review claims for procedures — such as spinal surgeries and cardiac interventions — before approving coverage. The AI analyzes patient data against clinical guidelines, flagging questionable cases for a human medical review.
Officials say the new system is designed to cut down on unnecessary procedures and speed up approvals, which could save money for both Medicare and patients. However, some healthcare providers worry about depending on AI, raising questions about its accuracy and transparency. Patients and doctors will still be able to appeal if a claim is denied.
This pilot program represents one of the first significant uses of AI in Medicare coverage decisions in Washington. If successful, it could pave the way for broader adoption of AI-driven reviews in the future.
WX: French onion soup time
And now for the weather:
Today should bring us a week of classic PNW autumn weather – warm-ish temperatures and plenty of rain. Be prepared for blustery drizzles throughout the day, with gusts over 30 miles per hour, highs in the mid-60s, and precipitation expected to land somewhere between a quarter to a half-inch. The vast majority of rain will fall by this evening, and leave us with a primarily overcast night. Temperatures should remain relatively consistent at lows in the mid-50s.
We’ll see consistent cool drizzles tomorrow as well, with total precipitation not even expected to crack a tenth of an inch.
OUTRO:
Today’s newscast was produced by volunteers Carlos Braga (BRA-guh), Connor O’Boyle, Kyler Cantrell, Theron (THARE-un) Danielson, Cody Mills, Aidan Larson, Glen Hirshberg (HERSH-berg), Kathi O’Shea (o-SHAY), Bella Mae, and Kai Blais-Schmolke (KAI BLAZE-SHMOLE-kee). Tune in to local news on KMRE weekdays at 3, 4 and 5 p.m. For news tips and feedback, send us an email at news@kmre.org or call 360-398-6150. KMRE is a nonprofit community radio station, powered by your donations. Check out our Patreon page or visit kmre.org and click on the banner. I’m _________, and thank you for listening!
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STORY: Two men taken into custody in southern Oregon in connection with death of Bellingham man
Two men are behind bars in Southern Oregon, accused of the murder of a Bellingham man.
Oregon State Police SWAT raided a rural property in Klamath (KLAM-ath) County last Thursday morning and arrested 38-year-old Russell Carroway and 31-year-old Devin Pellerin (PEL-luh-rin). Both are charged in the death of 47-year-old Robert T. Hein (HINE) of Bellingham.
According to the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office, Klein was murdered, and his body was found in a wooded area in Oregon. The Klamath County Major Crime Team, led by Oregon State Police, is still investigating.
No further details have been released.
STORY: WA co-leads 16-state lawsuit in fighting federal cuts to sexual health education
Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown will co-lead a new, multi-state lawsuit to save teen sex ed programs.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has threatened to pull funding from the Personal Responsibility Education Program grant. Washington receives $2.6 million annually to support instruction about pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
In a statement released last Friday, Brown says that the threat from HHS stems from the state’s refusal to remove state-mandated gender- and sexual identity-inclusive language from program materials. He called the proposed action cruel, arbitrary, and illegal, and said it is being done for quote “purely political reasons,” according to Brown.
16 other states and the District of Columbia have joined Washington in the lawsuit. According to the release, the goal of the lawsuit is to block HHS action before funds get cancelled.
STORY: Thieves steal $1M in whiskey from Skagit distillery
A million dollars’ worth of whiskey from Skagit County is gone without a trace.
Thieves pulled off one of the rarest liquor heists in U.S. history this summer, vanishing with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey from Westland Distillery in Burlington.
The Associated Press reports the suspects arrived at the distillery warehouse on July 31st in a freight truck—carrying what appeared to be legitimate paperwork to pick up a shipment headed for New Jersey.
But the whiskey never made it. And among the stolen cases: nearly half the entire global supply of Westland’s 10-year Garryana single malt, a special anniversary release that took over a decade to create.
Westland’s managing director Jason Moore called the incident a “sophisticated, fraudulent carrier scheme,” and says the stolen Garryana bottles are irreplaceable.
Now, the Skagit Valley Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and collectors are left wondering if—and where—those rare bottles might surface.
STORY: Wildfire smoke linked to thousands of deaths
A new study warns that wildfire smoke could cause tens of thousands of extra deaths each year.
Wildfire Smoke Exposure and Incident Dementia published in the JAMA Neurology Network, is a study of more than 1.2 million Kaiser Permanente Southern California members. It shows that if climate change continues unchecked more than 70,000 extra deaths can be expected in the U.S. by 2050. This includes up to 1,400 deaths annually in Washington.
Researchers say the findings underscore the urgent need for forest management, clean air protections, and climate pollution reduction to prevent the worst health impacts.
STORY: WA and states sue to maintain emergency services funds
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from withholding billions in emergency services funding to force states to assist with federal immigration enforcement.
The ruling comes after Washington Attorney General Nick Brown and 20 other attorneys general sued FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security, arguing the agencies’ actions violated the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act. The court agreed, saying the funding conditions were illegal and nearly impossible for states to comply with.
“These funds keep Washingtonians safe,” Brown said. “Using them as a bargaining chip is shameful politics.”
Washington relies on these federal dollars for disaster response, cybersecurity, and local emergency preparedness, including wildfire and earthquake planning, maritime policing, and rebuilding after fires.
The lawsuit was co-led by the attorneys general of California, Illinois, New Jersey, and Rhode Island and joined by 17 other states and D.C.
STORY: Veterans claim housing and suicide among their greatest issues in meeting with Rep. Larsen
STORY: Free or Cheap (kill 10/3)
A free household paint recycling event is coming to Bellingham — now at a new location. Due to a scheduling conflict, the one-day drop-off on Saturday, October 4 will be held at Barkley Village, 2211 Rimland Drive, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Residents can safely dispose of unwanted paints, varnishes, primers, and similar products in their original containers, five gallons or smaller. Usable paint will be recycled into new latex paint. Attendees should stay in their vehicles while staff unload materials. Pre-registration is encouraged.
STORY: WA 3rd best for teachers
According to Wallet Hub, Washington State is the third best state for Teachers in 2025. Over the past decade, Washington has seen an increase in teacher pay of more than 75% Other factors include teacher friendly policies and the state’s fourth lowest time span before tenure goes into effect.
STORY: Election Town Halls slated for October (kill 10/4)
This year’s election is all about local power — from city councils to school boards — and Cascadia Daily News wants voters to hear directly from the candidates.
You’re invited to two free town halls in October at the Sehome High School Theater in Bellingham. The first, focused on County Council races, is Saturday, October 4. The second, covering Bellingham City Council candidates, is Saturday, October 11. Both run from 6 to 8 p.m.
It’s your chance to ask questions, raise concerns, and hear where candidates stand before ballots drop.
Admission is free, but an RSVP is required. Reserve your seat for county races at CascadiaDaily.co/WhatcomTownHall, and for city races at CascadiaDaily.co/BhamTownHall.
