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Seattle's most hated spring bugs

With spring temperatures warming, it can feel like insects are suddenly everywhere all at once.

News

Even in the nature-loving Pacific Northwest, some bugs are public enemy No. 1.Why it matters: As spring temperatures climb past about 55 degrees, cold-blooded insects emerge from winter hiding spots seemingly all at once, which is why it can suddenly feel like they&#x27;re everywhere.

Mapped: How Seattle power costs stack up

Utilities across Western Washington are hiking rates, adding strain in an already pricey region.

Seattle-area households paid about $125 a month for <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="electricity last year" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/04/10/electric-bills-map" data-vars-content-id="d64d8a2a-4af2-4bbf-95c7-cb8cefc29441" data-vars-headline="Mapped: How Seattle power costs stack up" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/04/10/electric-bills-map" target="_self">electricity last year</a> — slightly below the national average of $158 a month — but rising rates are eroding that advantage.Why it matters: Even slightly lower power bills offer some relief in a high-cost region.

Washington "millionaires" tax hit with lawsuit

The suit argues the state's 9.9% tax on high earners violates long-standing constitutional limits.

A lawsuit filed Thursday challenges Washington state&#x27;s new <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="income tax" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/03/11/washington-income-tax-millionaires-clears-house" data-vars-content-id="46858ba3-ff53-42f0-946b-2e2c37f0bda4" data-vars-headline="Washington &quot;millionaires&quot; tax hit with lawsuit" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/03/11/washington-income-tax-millionaires-clears-house" target="_self">income tax</a> on high earners as unconstitutional.Why it matters: The legal challenge, which had been <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="widely anticipated" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/03/12/washington-income-tax-clears-legislature-faces-challenges" data-vars-content-id="46858ba3-ff53-42f0-946b-2e2c37f0bda4" data-vars-headline="Washington &quot;millionaires&quot; tax hit with lawsuit" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/03/12/washington-income-tax-clears-legislature-faces-challenges" target="_self">widely anticipated</a>, could stop the tax from taking effect.

Strong El Niño could worsen Washington fire season

A strong El Niño could bring warmer, drier weather to the already drought-strained Northwest.

A potentially powerful &quot;super&quot; El Niño may be taking shape, raising the chances for a longer and drier <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="wildfire season" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/el-nino-weather-years-world-climate-impacts" data-vars-content-id="d9fc6a8d-4eba-4170-9530-c0e7fbdbb5dd" data-vars-headline="Strong El Niño could worsen Washington fire season" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/el-nino-weather-years-world-climate-impacts" target="_self">wildfire season</a> in the Pacific Northwest this year.Why it matters: El Niños — driven by unusually warm Pacific Ocean temperatures — can reshape global weather patterns, push temperatures to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="record highs" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/08/el-nino-declared-noaa-extremes" data-vars-content-id="d9fc6a8d-4eba-4170-9530-c0e7fbdbb5dd" data-vars-headline="Strong El Niño could worsen Washington fire season" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/06/08/el-nino-declared-noaa-extremes" target="_self">record highs</a>, and create conditions for the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="devastating wildfires" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/portland/2025/07/21/cram-fire-oregon-wildfires" data-vars-content-id="d9fc6a8d-4eba-4170-9530-c0e7fbdbb5dd" data-vars-headline="Strong El Niño could worsen Washington fire season" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/portland/2025/07/21/cram-fire-oregon-wildfires" target="_self">devastating wildfires</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="smoke" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2025/09/29/washington-health-risks-wildfire-smoke-climate-study" data-vars-content-id="d9fc6a8d-4eba-4170-9530-c0e7fbdbb5dd" data-vars-headline="Strong El Niño could worsen Washington fire season" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2025/09/29/washington-health-risks-wildfire-smoke-climate-study" target="_self">smoke</a> that have increasingly come to define West Coast summers.

Remote work in Seattle remains above U.S. average

About a quarter of people in the Seattle metro area said they worked mostly from home last year.

Business

The percentage of Seattle-area residents working from home is down from its pandemic-era peak, but it&#x27;s still higher than in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="most metro areas" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/16/work-from-home-offices-remote-work-census" data-vars-content-id="31fe9bc9-aacf-4d11-a5b0-4185ad9b383d" data-vars-headline="Remote work in Seattle remains above U.S. average" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/16/work-from-home-offices-remote-work-census" target="_self">most metro areas</a>, according to new census data.Driving the news: A little over 25% of people in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area worked mostly from home last year, per American Community Survey data released last week.

COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide

The uptick comes amid signs of a late summer wave sweeping the country.

COVID

COVID-19 hospitalization rates across Washington state have ticked upward since June, amid signs of a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="late summer wave" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/17/covid-19-cases-2023-uptick-where-why" data-vars-content-id="4ad6cf11-f607-469d-9242-b6e4c03b6ee4" data-vars-headline="COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/17/covid-19-cases-2023-uptick-where-why" target="_self">late summer wave</a> sweeping the country.Why it matters: With the rise in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="at-home testing" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/08/home-rapid-covid-test-report-positive-america" data-vars-content-id="4ad6cf11-f607-469d-9242-b6e4c03b6ee4" data-vars-headline="COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/08/home-rapid-covid-test-report-positive-america" target="_self">at-home testing</a> making official COVID-19 case numbers less reliable, hospitalization rates are an important metric for gauging viral spread.

So long, phone COVID-19 exposure notifications

"Your phone will no longer notify you if you were near someone who tested positive for COVID-19."

If you got an alert saying you&#x27;ll no longer get COVID-19 exposure notifications on your phone, don&#x27;t bother checking your settings. It&#x27;s not your device — it&#x27;s the government.Driving the news: The end of the federal <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="public health emergency" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/08/end-covid-public-health-emergency" data-vars-content-id="682b9385-270e-4e42-bd31-2c1c0b8e4358" data-vars-headline="So long, phone COVID-19 exposure notifications" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/08/end-covid-public-health-emergency" target="_self">public health emergency</a> last Thursday also meant the end of federal funding for some state programs, Lacy Fehrenbach, chief of prevention for the Washington state Department of Health, said at a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="news conference" data-vars-click-url="https://tvw.org/video/washington-state-department-of-health-media-briefing-2023051082/?eventID=2023051082" data-vars-content-id="682b9385-270e-4e42-bd31-2c1c0b8e4358" data-vars-headline="So long, phone COVID-19 exposure notifications" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://tvw.org/video/washington-state-department-of-health-media-briefing-2023051082/?eventID=2023051082" target="_blank">news conference</a> last week.

Washington had sixth-lowest COVID death rate in U.S., analysis finds

The state's adjusted COVID-19 death rate was about 23% lower than the rate nationwide.

Washington state had one of the country&#x27;s lowest adjusted rates of COVID-19 deaths during the pandemic, according to a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="recent analysis" data-vars-click-url="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)00461-0/fulltext#seccestitle70" data-vars-content-id="1bbf6e91-f5f2-48ab-989d-158bde6d6f40" data-vars-headline="Washington had sixth-lowest COVID death rate in U.S., analysis finds" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)00461-0/fulltext#seccestitle70" target="_blank">recent analysis</a> published in The Lancet.What they found: Washington&#x27;s COVID-19 death rate was 286 deaths per 100,000 people, when adjusting to account for age and comorbidities.

Washington state marks three years of COVID

COVID-19 is not gone, but we are learning to live with it.

It&#x27;s been three years since the first known case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was reported in Washington state. State health officials and local scientists say that while we&#x27;re in a far better place than we were, COVID isn&#x27;t going away. Driving the news: The new Omicron variant, XBB.1.5 — nicknamed &quot;Kraken&quot; —could become the dominant strain in the state this month, according to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="UW Medicine" data-vars-click-url="https://newsroom.uw.edu/resource/xbb15-likely-become-next-dominant-covid-variant" data-vars-content-id="b067e1fc-af4c-40c4-ad62-dc778e7fd3c3" data-vars-headline="Washington state marks three years of COVID" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://newsroom.uw.edu/resource/xbb15-likely-become-next-dominant-covid-variant" target="_blank">UW Medicine</a>.

Threat of "tripledemic" looms with RSV, COVID and flu

As of Oct. 26, the UW Medicine Virology Lab reported nearly 90 cases of RSV in samples from throughout the Puget Sound region.

<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Respiratory illnesses" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2022/10/20/childrens-hospital-nears-capacity-respiratory-illness" data-vars-content-id="eb66afdf-8968-4a53-8613-c1fffbc3564e" data-vars-headline="Threat of &quot;tripledemic&quot; looms with RSV, COVID and flu" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2022/10/20/childrens-hospital-nears-capacity-respiratory-illness" target="_self">Respiratory illnesses</a> in children are on the rise, with physicians reporting more cases of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="respiratory syncytial virus" data-vars-click-url="https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/index.html" data-vars-content-id="eb66afdf-8968-4a53-8613-c1fffbc3564e" data-vars-headline="Threat of &quot;tripledemic&quot; looms with RSV, COVID and flu" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/index.html" target="_blank">respiratory syncytial virus</a>, or RSV, in recent weeks.Why it matters: Officials across the country are worried about the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="impact of a possible &quot;tripledemic" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/23/health/flu-covid-risk.html" data-vars-content-id="eb66afdf-8968-4a53-8613-c1fffbc3564e" data-vars-headline="Threat of &quot;tripledemic&quot; looms with RSV, COVID and flu" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/23/health/flu-covid-risk.html" target="_blank">impact of a possible &quot;tripledemic</a>,&quot; in which a rise of seasonal influenza, RSV and COVID-19 may collide this fall and winter.

Washington state COVID-19 hospital stays drop by 50%

As cases go under-reported amid a rise in home testing, hospitalization rates are a more reliable way to gauge the severity of the pandemic.

COVID-19 hospitalizations locally and statewide have fallen by about 50% since the peak of the most recent Omicron wave in July, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="public health data" data-vars-click-url="https://doh.wa.gov/emergencies/covid-19/data-dashboard#CurrentStatus" data-vars-content-id="add33d52-a151-43f4-9139-2d9ff01c8e0e" data-vars-headline="Washington state COVID-19 hospital stays drop by 50%" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://doh.wa.gov/emergencies/covid-19/data-dashboard#CurrentStatus" target="_blank">public health data</a> shows.Why it matters: Fewer hospitalizations mean fewer people are getting seriously ill from the virus.

Omicron booster rates have "major gaps"

As of Monday, 6.8% of eligible King County residents had received a bivalent booster.

Demand for <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Omicron boosters" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/09/01/cdc-panel-recommends-updated-covid-19-boosters" data-vars-content-id="7fc5dc39-4ebb-498b-ba2c-456aa9a17b75" data-vars-headline="Omicron booster rates have &quot;major gaps&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/09/01/cdc-panel-recommends-updated-covid-19-boosters" target="_self">Omicron boosters</a> is off to a slow start in the Seattle area. Driving the news: As of Monday, 6.8% of eligible King County residents had received a bivalent booster aimed at fighting the latest strains of COVID-19.

Delayed immigrant relief fund now accepting applications

Undocumented immigrants over age 18 can apply to receive a check of $1,000 or more.

Applications are open for a new fund that will provide financial aid to undocumented immigrants in Washington state.Why it matters: During the height of the COVID pandemic, undocumented immigrants weren&#x27;t eligible for unemployment assistance or federal stimulus checks. State officials wanted to provide them with an alternate means of assistance.

Seattle's softer approach to in-office work

Businesses say they remain focused on giving their employees flexibility.

As companies like Apple enact <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="stricter return-to-office policies" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/08/23/apple-return-to-office-work-from-home" data-vars-content-id="75177cd5-c9be-4768-9692-40731f21391b" data-vars-headline="Seattle&#x27;s softer approach to in-office work" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/08/23/apple-return-to-office-work-from-home" target="_self">stricter return-to-office policies</a>, many large employers in the Seattle area are reluctant to take such a hard line.Driving the news: Several businesses contacted by Axios in the past two weeks said they remain focused on giving their employees flexibility — which, in many cases, means letting them work from home most of the time.

COVID 🦠

Remote work in Seattle remains above U.S. average

COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide

So long, phone COVID-19 exposure notifications

Washington had sixth-lowest COVID death rate in U.S., analysis finds

Washington state marks three years of COVID