Spokane has seen an average of 6.4 overdose calls per day this year — a 30% increase over last year and almost double the rate in 2022. In response to the crisis, the Spokane City Council is preparing to pass a resolution asking Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to declare a state of emergency for the opioid and fentanyl crisis. The resolution was drafted by Council member Paul Dillon. The state of emergency could open up additional resources and increase funding for peer support programs, overdose-prevention drugs, education, intervention and treatment, the draft resolution says. The resolution also seeks to address concerns about a lack of reliable overdose data in Spokane County. It asks the Regional Health District to make overdoses a "notifiable condition," which would require faster reporting when overdoses happen. It also asks local homeless shelters to provide monthly reports on the number of demonstrated uses of opioids in their facilities and of overdoses there. The resolution will likely come to a vote before the end of the month. (NATE SANFORD)
NO MORE CHILD BRIDES
Gov. Jay Inslee signed into law last week a ban on child marriage in Washington state. The passage of House Bill 1455 into law means that no one under 18 will be married in the state. Previously, those who were 17 could get married with parental permission, and kids even younger could marry with permission from a court. In March 2019, the Inlander wrote a cover story pointing out that while the U.S. considers child marriage a "human rights abuse" in other countries, all but two states at the time allowed kids under 18 to get married, generally with parental consent or approval from a judge. That same year, Washington lawmakers didn't even give a bill to ban child marriage a hearing. Since then, nine more states, now including Washington, have banned it. But that means the practice remains legal in 39 states. (Ahem, here's looking at you, Idaho, Oregon, California, Montana, etc.) (SAMANTHA WOHLFEIL)
HOME FOR ALL
In December, we reported on the revival of SAN, formerly Spokane Aids Network, which was receiving state funding for the first time in almost a decade. At the time, SAN was still searching for a new home. Meanwhile, Spokane Pride, the organization behind the Spokane Pride Parade, was also seeking a new headquarters. That laid the groundwork for collaboration between the two, leading to the creation of a new LGBTQ+ community center in downtown Spokane — the SAN Pride Center. The two organizations opened their location at the end of February, at 715 E. Sprague Ave. The center is still in its infancy, but interested folks can call 509-760-4676 with questions about office hours or SAN and Spokane Pride's community offerings. (COLTON RASANEN)♦
