Measures to clean up the primary gateway into Spokane are positive first steps to making our city more welcoming to those who enter it and to getting our more vulnerable population the help it needs. 

A trio of new interstate compacts that enable greater mobility for some professionals are essential steps in giving employers the needed flexibility to fill positions in a persistently challenging labor market. 

Unemployment insurance is intended to replace wages for workers who have lost their jobs, not those who have decided not to work for whatever reason. Proposed state legislation that would provide jobless benefits to striking workers goes against the intent of the program and should be struck down by the state's elected leaders. 

As Ignite Northwest's 25 + 5 event approaches, we're reminded of how the Inland Northwest's entrepreneurial ecosystem has matured and diversified in such a way that it has performed well, overall, through a tumultuous few years. 

Washington state legislators would be wise to revisit some of its policies. If not, Washington residents will have an opportunity to do the job themselves.