Austin Jenkins
Olympia CorrespondentSince January 2004, Austin Jenkins has been the Olympia-based political reporter for the Northwest News Network. In that position, Austin covers Northwest politics and public policy as well as the Washington State legislature. You can also see Austin on television as host of TVW's (the C–SPAN of Washington State) Emmy-nominated public affairs program "Inside Olympia." Prior to joining the Northwest News Network, Austin worked as a television reporter in Seattle, Portland and Boise. Austin is a graduate of Garfield High School in Seattle and Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut. Austin’s reporting has been recognized with awards from the Association of Capitol Reporters and Editors, Public Radio News Directors Incorporated and the Society of Professional Journalists.
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Gov. Jay Inslee and the state Democratic Party on Friday joined calls for Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler to resign after his office fired an employee who had complained in February about Kreidler's treatment of staff. Kreidler said he won't step down. -
A key staffer in Washington's Office of Insurance Commissioner has been fired more than four months after he formally complained about the treatment he and other staff received from Mike Kreidler, the state's elected insurance commissioner. -
Since January of this year, more than 900 drivers have failed to stop for a Washington State Patrol trooper trying to pull them over. The patrol and other police agencies around the state say they’ve never seen such blatant disregard for their lights and sirens. The change in driver behavior comes after state lawmakers passed strict new rules on when police can engage in pursuits. -
Algunos padres con hijos en crisis en Washington están tomando una decisión desgarradora. Están enviando a sus hijos a internados terapéuticos fuera del estado. Y los contribuyentes están pagando la cuenta. Aunque se trata de casos atípicos, estos ponen de manifiesto las continuas carencias de los servicios estatales, carencias que quedaron al descubierto durante la pandemia de COVID. -
Parents of kids with developmental disabilities in Washington, are struggling to navigate gaps in state services exacerbated by the COVID pandemic. Some are making the heart wrenching decision to send their children to out-of-state therapeutic boarding schools. And taxpayers are picking up the tab. -
There are more questions than answers in the case of a missing former foster child from Grays Harbor County. Five-year-old Oakley Carlson has been unaccounted for since February of last year. Police say her parents aren’t cooperating with the investigation. -
Three major opioid distributors will pay the state of Washington and local communities $476 million to end an ongoing lawsuit. The agreement announced Tuesday comes after the state attorney general rejected a previous settlement offer last summer. -
In recent years, Washington’s Legislature has grown more diverse. And majority Democrats have emphasized diversity and equity as core values. But now three members of color, out of nearly 30, are stepping down from the Legislature after serving just one full term. One of them describes the legislative work environment as toxic. -
A Sumner seafood company has been fined $56,000 for not complying with Washington's mask mandate. State investigators linked the death of an employee to a November 4, 2021 staff meeting where most of the attendees were unmasked. -
Washington’s long-time elected insurance commissioner is accused of using offensive terms in the workplace to describe people of different races and ethnicities, as well as people who are transgender. Meanwhile, other former employees are giving new accounts of what they say is Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s mistreatment of staff.
