Washington's Department of Health is offering two free kits of naloxone to public high schools around the state. The overdose reversal drug, also known by the brand name Narcan, is being offered in response to the concerning threefold increase in fatal opioid overdoses among kids ages 14 to 18 from 2016 to 2022. A 2019 state law already requires school districts with 2,000 or more students to have the overdose drug on hand at their high schools, but a bill in the Legislature this session would change that law to require all public high schools to carry it. The move by the state this month will make it easier for that to happen, whether or not the law is changed. "Some kids experiment with substances, unaware that just one counterfeit pill can contain enough fentanyl to be fatal," the Department of Health's chief science officer, Dr. Tao Sheng Kwan-Gett, said in a statement. "Providing access to naloxone will not only save lives, but also send a powerful message that we care about the health of our youth." (SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL)
FINANCE IN FLUX
When school board trustees in Coeur d'Alene were originally working on the district's fiscal year 2024 budget, they projected a surplus of more than $800,000. However, last week they learned that the North Idaho school district actually has a projected deficit of $788,000. In her most recent finance report, district Finance Director Shannon Johnston attributed the projected deficit to a $550,000 decrease in state funding and $1.9 million in additional expenses. Idaho legislators could still revise the state's K-12 education budget, which could change the Coeur d'Alene district's outlook. "In case the legislation fails, the administration will propose reallocating $1 million in ESSER [emergency] funding," Johnston's report states. Trustees are expected to hear more details on the factors contributing to this budget shortfall at a Jan. 22 meeting. (COLTON RASANEN)
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
After months of weekly protest over their Oct. 9 statement affirming Israel's "right to exist and defend itself," Spokane City Council members are hoping to ease tensions with a new resolution about the Israel-Hamas conflict written with input from various Jewish, Palestinian and activist groups. Pro-Palestinain activists have argued that the original resolution, which was introduced at the last minute with little public notice, was "racist" and lacked context about the Israeli government's historic violence against Palestinians. The new resolution — which is slated for a Jan 22. vote — mainly reaffirms that antisemitism and Islamophobia aren't welcome in Spokane. Zach McGuckin, a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation who has helped organize recent pro-Palestine protests and joined the community drafting process, says the new version is an improvement over the original but still insufficient. Council member Jonathan Bingle, who wrote the original Oct. 9 resolution, says he's mostly fine with the new one but does have concerns about a line that calls on elected leaders to seek a "sustained peace in Israel and Palestine." The line "feels like a cease-fire call, which I don't support," Bingle says. In recent months, city councils in Seattle, Bellingham and Olympia have passed cease-fire resolutions. Paul Dillon is the only Spokane City Council member to publicly call for a cease-fire. (NATE SANFORD)
