Latest Washington Headlines
All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Pressure Mounts for Wash. House Leaders Considering “Wal-Mart bill”
Feb 15 2006 // Pressure is mounting for majority House Democrats in Washington state to vote on a bill that would force minimum health care spending by large employers, while some lawmakers suggested the issue could be left to the voters...
Pair Arrested in Wash. Arson Case
Feb 15 2006 // Special agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Edmonds, Washington police officers have arrested two men for the Dec. 17, 2004, arson of the Gregory Building in Edmonds, and more...
Washington Employer Sentenced for Failing to Pay Workers’ Comp Premiums
Feb 14 2006 // Failing to have a workers’ compensation account and pay premiums has landed an Oak Harbor, Wash., employer in jail. Mark Dahl, sole owner of Catalina Marine Services Inc., pleaded guilty to a Class C Felony in...
Washington L&I Offers Workers’ Comp Cards to Employers
Feb 13 2006 // To help ensure that employers are promptly notified of a workplace-injury claim, Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) has created wallet cards that employers can fill out and give to their...
Washington Senate Passes Emergency Readiness Bill
Feb 13 2006 // A measure to improve Washington’s emergency readiness passed the state Senate, after a lawmaker agreed to bend to insurance industry insistence that the $5.7 million needed come from the state and not a surcharge on...
Willis Group to Enter Washington
Feb 10 2006 // New York-based Willis Group Holdings Ltd. has announced plans to open a brokerage office in Washington to service the Inland Northwest. The office will be managed by Curtis Taylor. The company said it hopes to fill a...
Broker Investigation Finds No Problems in Washington
Feb 8 2006 // An investigation of Washington insurance brokers and brokerages spawned by a national scandal in the insurance industry has not uncovered criminal or unethical behavior in the state, according to a report released by...
California State-East Bay Employees May Have Had Data Breached
Feb 3 2006 // More than 2,000 current and former employees of California State University, East Bay, may have had their Social Security numbers and other personal information breached during a suspected break-in of a computer server on...
Wash. Reports 79 Workers Died on the Job in 2005
Jan 30 2006 // Seventy-nine workers died on the job in Washington in 2005, the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) said. That’s down from 93 the year before. The most common cause of death was motor vehicle accidents,...
Wash. anti-fraud auto insurance bill wins committee approval
Jan 23 2006 // In Olympia, Wash., a legislative committee amended and passed legislation that is designed to assist consumers injured in intentional “road rage” collisions — and protect insurers against auto insurance...
Wash. Commissioner Kreidler wants fraud unitto investigate staged accidents
Jan 22 2006 // Washington State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler wants to create a new fraud unit to investigate staged traffic accidents. Those can involve a network of lawyers, doctors, chiropractors and physical...
Wash. Commissioner Offers Testimony for Dedicated Unit to Combat Fraud
Jan 18 2006 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler offered testimony this week on commissioner-request legislation that would establish an anti-fraud unit within the Office of the Insurance Commissioner. Washington is one of...
Wash. Anti-Fraud Auto Insurance Bill Wins Committee Approval
Jan 16 2006 // A key legislative committee this week amended and passed legislation in Washington that is designed to assist consumers injured in intentional “road rage” collisions – and protect insurers against auto...
Wash. Commissioner Testifies on Auto Legislation Involving Ethel Adams
Jan 11 2006 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler was to testify on commissioner request legislation this week designed to prevent what happened to Ethel Adams last March from happening to any other Washington insurance...
Wash. Gears Up for All Industry Day
Jan 9 2006 // On Feb. 1, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Washington, Surplus Line Association of Washington, Insurance Agents and Brokers of the West (IBA West), WA Council of National Association of Insurance Women,...
Seattle Firm Chosen to Evaluate Hanford Injured-Worker Claims
Jan 4 2006 // The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) has selected Seattle audit and consulting firm Miller & Miller to review the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) administration of workers’ compensation...
Rainier Pacific Bank Finalizes Purchase of Wash. Insurance Agencies
Jan 3 2006 // Rainier Pacific Financial Group Inc. reported that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rainier Pacific Bank, has completed its acquisition of the property and casualty insurance businesses of Christopherson-Boze Insurance...
Insurance Commissioner Kreidler Backs Sale of Wash. Health Insurer
Jan 3 2006 // The acquisition of a Washington-based health care service contractor as part of a national merger involving 10 states was approved recently by Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s office. The acquisition of...
Washington Minimum Wage Increasing 28 Cents
Dec 29 2005 // Washington’s minimum wage will increase 28 cents to $7.63 an hour beginning Jan. 1, 2006. The Department of Labor and Industries recalculates the state’s minimum wage each year in September, as required by...
Wash. Commissioner Wants to Investigate Staged Accidents
Dec 28 2005 // Washington State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler wants to create a new fraud unit to investigate staged traffic accidents. These can involve a network of lawyers, doctors, chiropractors and physical...
