![](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1a470bf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1872x2496+936+0/resize/150x200!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fsites%2Fkplu%2Ffiles%2F201503%2FtomBanse_300x200cropped.jpg)
Tom Banse
Regional CorrespondentCorrespondent Tom Banse is an Olympia-based reporter with more than three decades of experience covering Washington and Oregon state government, public policy, business and breaking news stories. Most of his career was spent with public radio's Northwest News Network, but now in semi-retirement his work is appearing on other outlets.
-
Deliveries will begin in 2028 if all goes well. Delays and escalating costs have bedeviled the procurement process up until now.
-
While life has returned to normal for almost everyone else, the rebound is still tenuous for Point Roberts, a unique enclave in Washington.
-
Completion of a Canadian pipeline expansion means more crude-carrying vessels passing through the Salish Sea en route to the Pacific, raising spill fears.
-
Northwest history and aviation enthusiasts contend an almost forgotten aerial feat that started and finished in Seattle also belongs up there in the pantheon of early aviation milestones.
-
Some islanders dependent on ferries get a life ring, but November statewide vote on cap-and-trade repeal could poke new leaks in budget.
-
Increased state aid for Guemes Island ferry replacement and a new Kitsap hydrofoil ferry comes with a catch: voters must reject climate act repeal initiative.
-
The closed aluminum smelter will be sold to a Canadian energy company that wants to redevelop the complex to produce “green” hydrogen. The renewable energy project still faces hurdles.
-
State lawmakers in Washington and Oregon are looking to toughen standards to ensure public buildings can offer shelter after major earthquakes.
-
Supporters say the dream of a speedy train between Portland and Vancouver, BC, is not derailed. Meanwhile, other rail fans want to see more money directed to existing Amtrak lines in the region.
-
Oregon and Washington scored big Friday in a fiercely contested national competition to grab a share of $7 billion to kickstart the production and use of “green” hydrogen, viewed as an important fuel source for cutting pollution from heavy industry.