What Governor Jay Inslee's New Gun Control Initiative Will Do: Heidi Groover reports that the governor's plan "doesn't do much immediately" but instead "is focused on data collection and what the governor calls a 'public health approach' to gun violence."

How the Governor's New Attack on Carbon Pollution Will Work: Yesterday, Sydney Brownstone reports, "the Department of Ecology outlined new details on a draft rule to cut carbon pollution in Washington state. Over the next two decades, the draft rule stipulates that the state's biggest polluters have to reduce their carbon emissions by five percent every three years. It's an unprecedented move."

How the Governor's Re-Election Chances Are Looking: "According to the latest non-partisan Elway Poll released Wednesday, Washington Governor Jay Inslee leads his top Republican challenger by nine points," reports KUOW. "Pollster Stuart Elway said a nine point race at this early stage seems like a tight race."

The Death of Seattle Central's Hamza Warsame Has Been Ruled an Accident: "The King County Medical Examiner announced today that 16-year-old Hamza Warsame, the Seattle Central College student whose death on December 5 sparked protests and worries that he'd been murdered, died from blunt force injuries caused by an 'unintentional fall' from a Capitol Hill building," reports Ansel Herz. "The office's automated line listed Warsame's 'manner of death' as an 'accident.'"

The EPA Blames Pesticides for Declining Honeybee Populations: "A major pesticide harms honeybees when used on cotton and citrus but not on other big crops like corn, berries and tobacco, the Environmental Protection Agency found," the AP reports. "The issue is important because honeybees are in trouble and they do more than make honey. They are crucial to our food supply."

Amazon is Now Delivering Dung: "In most urban areas in India, cow dung is not the preferred method of cooking, but in the Hindu religion it is used in fires for religious rituals such as the purification of a house or a house-warming ceremony," writes Deepak Singh at KPLU. "Since cows are considered to be holy by Hindus, their dung is also sacred.I learned that cow dung cakes can now be ordered on the Indian Amazon website. Out of curiosity, I ordered 6 pieces. It cost me 236 rupees, about $4. I called the local office of Amazon and spoke to Jaideep, who was very courteous and happy to answer my questions. He said, 'Sir, this is a new product that Amazon is selling and they are getting a lot of orders from folks in urban areas where it is not so easy to find cow dung cakes.' When I asked him what people wanted it for, he said, 'They use it for religious purposes only.'"

Big Cost for Last Year's Drought: "The state Department of Agriculture says last year’s drought will cost farmers and ranchers dearly," KPLU reports. "The initial assessment of losses to the industry due to water shortages for 2015 is $336 million."

"Get Ready for the Right-Wing Backlash Over Washington's New Transgender Bathroom Policy" Ansel Herz reports on Republicans in Olympia who, in the wake of a new state rule allowing transgender people to use bathrooms that align with their gender identities, are talking about repealing the rule.

New Guidance Coming on Kids and Screen Time: "The American Academy of Pediatrics plans to update its guidelines on media use later this year," KUOW reports. "Current recommendations are to avoid all screens for children under 2, and to allow a maximum of two hours per day of high-quality material for older children."

Where Your Highway Toll Money Goes: From a "laser curtain" to a "roadside cabinet" and then into the hands of "nerds with algorithms."

And The Stranger Is Hiring a News Editor! "The Stranger, Seattle’s only newspaper™, is looking for an experienced and energetic editor to lead its news department. Managing a team of three reporters, the news editor will be responsible for creating smart, engaging stories in a variety of media, setting the tone for news and political coverage in the fastest-growing large city in America™." More details, including how to apply, right here.