Get your Thursday on.

🌤️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny, with a high of 72.

🎂 Happy birthday to our member Sue Bradley!

🪧 Situational awareness: Seattle's teachers union voted to authorize a strike yesterday, which could delay next Wednesday's scheduled first day of school.

• The vote doesn't guarantee a strike will happen, but gives union leaders permission to call one if a new contract deal isn't reached soon with Seattle Public Schools. Read more.

Today's newsletter is 949 words, a 3.5-minute read.

The search is on for a new Seattle police chief, with the process expected to take about four months.

Why it matters: The Seattle Police Department has lacked a permanent leader since former chief Shon Barnes resigned last month at the mayor's request, three days after the Bite of Seattle shooting.

The latest: A nationwide search for Barnes' replacement launched this week, with Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson calling it "a pivotal moment" for public safety in the city.

• Seattleites are invited to take a survey through Sept. 15 to help guide the process.

What they're saying: Wilson said in a news release this week that she is looking for a chief who will be "visible, accountable, and present in our neighborhoods."

Catch up quick: Before his resignation, Barnes faced criticism and questions over his travel schedule, which involved frequent trips to his family home in Chicago.

• Barnes said he was out of town at a conference when the July 26 Bite of Seattle shooting occurred.
• Wilson later expressed frustration with communication from the police department that night and said events surrounding the shooting played a role in her decision to ask Barnes to step down.
• Wilson appointed Andre Sayles as interim chief while the search gets underway.

How it works: The police chief job posting is already online, with a salary range of $234,294 to $374,900.

• An advisory committee will recommend up to five applicants to advance to a competitive examination, with the mayor interviewing the top candidates based on those results.
• The committee, made up of community leaders and law enforcement officials, will gather community feedback through the online survey and community forums.
• The first of those forums is scheduled for Sept. 26.

What's next: Wilson expects to announce her pick for a permanent police chief by the start of 2027, according to her office.

• Whoever she chooses will ultimately need to be confirmed by a majority of the City Council.

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The Seattle Seahawks are one step away from a change in ownership.

What's happening: The NFL unanimously approved the sale of the Seahawks yesterday to a group led by the Khosla family, setting up the end of the Allen family's 29-year run as team owners.

• The $9.6 billion deal, the largest ever for an NFL team, could close within a week or two, The Seattle Times reports.

What's next: The Seahawks and the NFL hope the sale is finalized before the Seahawks' first regular-season game on Sept. 9.

• The Hawks will kick off the season by playing the Patriots, the same team they defeated to win the Super Bowl in February.

A Seattle vigil to honor the late musician Dolly Parton will be held near the Capitol Hill light rail station 8-9pm tomorrow. (Seattle Times)

• Flags will continue to fly at half-staff through next Tuesday in Parton's memory. (KING 5)

⚖️ Meta agreed to settle with multiple states for up to $16.7 billion in a landmark deal over allegations Facebook and Instagram were designed in ways that harm children. (Axios)

• Washington will receive at least $237 million from the settlement, and up to $339 million over the next 10 years, according to the state attorney general's office.

📉 T-Mobile is laying off 63 more workers in Washington. Some of the job cuts are at the company's Bellevue headquarters, while others are tied to the closure of six locations around the state. (MyNorthwest)

Washington and 24 other states are again trying to block President Trump's sweeping Postal Service rule on mail-in voting, just days after the Supreme Court lifted a lower court's injunction against his executive order.

The big picture: The Supreme Court's decision this week essentially said the states sued too early. Now, they're hoping the timing is right to kneecap the plan ahead of the midterms.

• The ruling didn't weigh the merits of Trump's order, which critics warn would expand federal power over state-run elections.

Driving the news: The states' new complaint challenges the U.S. Postal Service's final rule that seeks to implement Trump's mail-in voting provisions.

• The final rule, which was published in the Federal Register yesterday, could "foreseeably disenfranchise voters who vote by mail," the complaint reads.

What they're saying: "The Constitution is clear: states control elections — not the president," Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said in a news release yesterday.

• "The U.S. Postal Service doesn't have the authority to deny Washingtonians the ability to vote."

Catch up quick: Trump's March 31 executive order calls for "State Citizenship List[s]" of eligible voters.

• It directs the U.S. Postal Service not to transmit mail ballots for people not on a state list.

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While trying to squeeze the last few drops out of summer, I took my kids to the spray park at Yesler Terrace one night this week.

S0on, it will be pitch dark at this hour — and weeknight picnics will be a thing of the past.

Here's hoping these summer memories linger long after the sun starts setting at 5pm.

👖 Melissa's kid has already outgrown the new jeans she bought him this month.

Clarridge is back after taking a day off.

This newsletter was edited by Geoff Ziezulewicz.