In The News
Dash Air sets new date for Port Angeles flights
PORT ANGELES — Dash Air aims to hit the skies for charter flights later in July with commercial passenger flights beginning in August, barring more delays. The airline start-up has had a series of starts and stops in its goal to bring commercial air travel back between Port Angeles and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Dash Air President Clint Ostler said that the company is in the home stretch of finalizing the certification of its aircraft with the Federal Aviation Administration … Continue Reading
June 29, 2023
Your city could get millions to create jobs under a new Biden plan to put Americans back to work
The Biden administration wants to help inject life back into parts of the US that are struggling to attract enough jobs. Starting today, communities can apply for $200 million in funding, the first tranche of $1 billion that will roll out over the next five years. It's called the Recompete Pilot Program, and it's meant to pump funds into economically distressed areas. Those are regions that, according to the Economic Development Administration, have gaping prime age employment gaps … Continue Reading
June 29, 2023
Grays Harbor Transit awarded funding through Federal Transit Administration programs
Funding is coming to Grays Harbor Transit to improve their fleet. U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06) announced that the Washington State Department of Transportation will receive funding from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to purchase transit vehicles and a bus washing system for Grays Harbor Transit Authority to replace aging buses. The funding for Grays Harbor Transit Authority is part of a $3.3 million allocation to the Washington State Department of … Continue Reading
June 28, 2023
Visitors flocking to reopened Ridge
PORT ANGELES — The Rich family from Grapevine, Texas, had no idea the Hurricane Ridge Day Lodge had burned to the ground when they drove up to the entrance to Olympic National Park at the Heart O’ the Hills Entrance Station on Tuesday. Or, that their visit coincided with the reopening of the road leading to the structure, which had been completely destroyed on May 7. “That was a surprise,” said Clay Rich, who, along with his wife Jessica and their sons Max, 12, Miles, … Continue Reading
June 27, 2023
An $800,000 EPA grant will clean up contaminated sites near Port Orchard waterfront
PORT ORCHARD — With significant plans for Bay Street already in the works, a visit from a federal delegation this week signaled more opportunity looming for property near Port Orchard's city hall. A waterfront property that formerly housed a gas station with underground storage tanks and a sheet metal fabrication business was purchased by the Port of Bremerton in 2021. The Port identified that there were slight traces of benzene, petroleum, diesel and gasoline in the soils. To conduct … Continue Reading
June 26, 2023
Shuttle running Tuesday to Ridge
PORT ANGELES — Clallam Transit shuttle service to Hurricane Ridge resumes Tuesday from Port Angeles with seven daily trips and two added stops to one of the most popular visitor destinations in Olympic National Park. Tuesday is the first day the Ridge will reopen to the public since the day lodge burned May 7. U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer plans to visit Hurricane Ridge at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Kilmer represents the 6th Congressional District, which includes the North Olympic Peninsula. Kevin … Continue Reading
June 23, 2023
BI gets $1.7 million to plan STO to Agate bridge
Bainbridge Island has received $1.7 million grant to plan the Sound to Olympics Trail from Winslow to the Agate Pass Bridge. The award is part of a $16.13 million federal grant to plan Puget Sound to Pacific, 100 miles of trails from BI to LaPush. “This is a landmark moment for trails planning on Bainbridge Island,” said Mary Meier, BI Parks & Trails Foundation executive director. “The STO will bring so much to our community – a trail greenway from Winslow to the … Continue Reading
June 22, 2023
$9.4 million for PO breakwater improvements
The Port of Bremerton has been awarded a $9.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, providing funding to replace the worn-down breakwater at the Port Orchard Marina. “Today’s news is a big win—for taxpayers, for community resiliency, and for jobs,” U.S. House Rep. Derek Kilmer says in a news release June 22. The 48-year-old breakwater provides mooring for a number of public uses and serves as protection to the only saltwater fueling station within … Continue Reading
June 21, 2023
A new bipartisan bill looks to thwart financial conflicts of interest for top government officials
Anew bipartisan bill aims to beef up prevention of financial conflicts of interest between senior federal government officials and the industries their agencies regulate. Reps. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., and Derek Kilmer, D-Wash., have co-sponsored the Halting Ownership of Non-Ethical Securities and Trusts (HONEST) Act, which comes after a Wall Street Journal investigation published last fall found that thousands of federal government officials reported … Continue Reading
June 19, 2023
Hugh McMillan gave a damn, and so should you
If we live long enough, some of us will have the chance to reinvent ourselves, and live several lives before we die. Hugh McMillan was one of those people. Most of those who attended his memorial service on June 18 knew him as the energetic old guy with a camera, who loved to talkand push people to do things. But he lived a whole different life before he ever arrived in the Key Peninsula community of Home in 1978, the year he retired from the CIA. He would have been delighted by the number … Continue Reading
June 16, 2023
Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial gets donation, grant to boost $4M addition
After the end of World War II, when Japanese Americans returned from U.S. concentration camps to their home on Bainbridge Island, some insurance companies refused to serve them. The stated reason was that the companies were scared that white juries would be prejudiced and rule against the Japanese Americans in liability lawsuits, but they may have simply wanted an excuse not to serve the Japanese Americans. A Bainbridge Island insurance agent, Kenneth Myers, thought that the policy was wrong, … Continue Reading
June 15, 2023
Kilmer on mental health task force for military
Protecting the mental health of armed services members and reducing their suicides at Bremerton’s Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and military facilities across the country are the focus of a new effort taken by U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer of Kitsap County’s 6th Congressional District. The congressman has been appointed to co-chair a bipartisan Military Mental Health Task Force in the House. “The goal of this task force is to work with the Department of Defense and mental health … Continue Reading
June 14, 2023
PUD to get $13.8 million for high-speed internet in county
Federal officials announced $13.8 million in funding Monday to bring high-speed internet to rural customers of Jefferson County Public Utility Service No. 1. The federal money includes a $9.2 million grant and $4.6 million loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture ReConnect Loan and Grant Program. “We know that access to the internet isn’t just about whether you can stream ‘The Mandalorian’ on Disney Plus,” U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Washington) said in a … Continue Reading
June 08, 2023
On Appropriations, Kilmer brings home the bacon
Many believe the goings-on within the marbled halls of the U.S. Congress have little impact in Kitsap County. Plenty are convinced that nothing gets done due to partisan gridlock. The reality is some actions on Capitol Hill benefit numerous cities and organizations across Kitsap. A significant amount of federal funding has been directed to Kitsap, in part, by the efforts of U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer of Kitsap County’s 6th Congressional District. The revenue has provided funds to numerous … Continue Reading
June 04, 2023
National Park Service awards Japanese American Confinement Sites grants
WASHINGTON, D.C., June 4, 2023—U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), and U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (D, W-06) on June 2 announced that four Japanese American Confinement Sites grants have been awarded to organizations in the State of Washington, including one that will fund completion of the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial Visitor Center. The Japanese American Confinement Sites grants are awarded by the National Park … Continue Reading
June 02, 2023
How about evidence-based policy making not just for you, but for Congress?
A bipartisan resolution aims to bring more evidence-based policy making to Congress. It would establish a commission to, in the words of the sponsors, “facilitate the integration of robust data in the legislative process.” For more about what that would do, Federal Drive with Tom Temin talks with one of the main backers of the resolution, Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.) Interview Transcript: Tom Temin And tell us exactly what you envisioned for a commission to … Continue Reading
May 26, 2023
Grays Harbor included among $4.5 million in awards to address contaminated brownfields sites
$1 million will be coming to Grays Harbor from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announcement of $4,568,689 as part of the Investing in America Agenda to expedite the assessment and cleanup of brownfield sites in Washington while advancing environmental justice. Washington’s communities will receive EPA funds through the Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Grant programs, as well as the Technical Assistance to Brownfields Communities … Continue Reading
May 26, 2023
Bill Aims to Help Homeless Vets With Housing, Services
Homeless veterans would be provided with transitional homes, under provisions of a measure now pending before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. The HAVENS (Housing America’s Veterans and Ensuring They Have Needed Services) Act, which has yet to be assigned an H.R. number, would address the needs of the estimated more than 37,000 veterans who have no permanent residences. Reps. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash. and Nancy Mace, R-S.C. are co-sponsors. If passed, the bill would establish a … Continue Reading
May 26, 2023
Does Congress need a chief data officer?
A bipartisan group of lawmakers thinks Congress needs to get more serious about incorporating evidence and data into legislation and about developing professional capacity to support the move. The Congressional Evidence-Based Policymaking Resolution from Reps. Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.), William Timmons (R-S.C.), Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) and Dean Philips (D-Minn.) would establish a bipartisan commission that includes former members and current staffers as well as representation from the … Continue Reading
May 25, 2023
Rep. Derek Kilmer strives for constructive change in Congress
After visiting Capitol Hill, the Russian-born character actor Boris Marshalov remarked, “Congress is so strange. A man gets up to speak and says nothing. Nobody listens. Then everybody disagrees.” That was more than 75 years ago, during the era when President Harry Truman coined the phrase “do-nothing Congress.” Even so, there was a time when this great deliberative body of ours was productive and its members felt honored to serve. Thankfully, one Washingtonian is … Continue Reading