Austin Jenkins
Since 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. In 2019, he received his Master of Communication in Digital Media from the University of Washington Communication Leadership program.
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. Austin was part of a team that won a 2018 national Edward R. Murrow award for breaking news coverage.
-
Washington state Sen. Doug Ericksen has died. His death comes after the Whatcom County Republican was hospitalized last month following a COVID-19 diagnosis while in El Salvador. -
Monday is the deadline for Washington state employees, healthcare and long-term care workers and those working in the education field to be fully vaccinated. Those who aren’t could be out of a job by day’s end. Some of the state employees who face termination got exemptions, but not a workplace accommodation so they could stay on the payroll.
-
Starting next month, if you’re 12 and older you’ll have to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to attend large events in Washington. Governor Jay Inslee announced the requirement at a news conference Thursday.
-
It was a challenging summer at Washington’s state-run homes for veterans. Two of the four homes experienced widespread COVID-19 outbreaks. Four veterans died. Now the homes are bracing for another challenge: the potential for a staffing shortage as the governor’s vaccine mandate kicks in.
-
Over the past two decades, more than 200 people have died by suicide in Washington and Oregon jails. That puts the two Northwest states above the national average for jail suicides, according to a new report.
-
Washington Governor Jay Inslee’s vaccine mandate covers more than 800-thousand workers in education, state government and healthcare. But there’s one group of hands-on caregivers it doesn’t apply to.
-
COVID-19 related deaths are trending much higher in Republican counties than in Democratic ones in Washington. That’s according to a new legislative analysis.
-
The Washington State Patrol turned 100 this year. To this day it’s still a mostly white, male organization. Over the years it’s struggled to diversify. But now one part of the hiring process is getting fresh scrutiny: the psychological review.
-
Programs for disabled and disadvantaged Washington youth imperiled after lieutenant governor cancelsIt was supposed to be former Washington Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib's legacy — a pair of programs to serve youth with disabilities and youth from marginalized or disadvantaged backgrounds. But Habib's successor cancelled a contract with the nonprofit that operates the programs after identifying what his office called "suspicious financial activity" during Habib's last year in office.
-
A woman was able to enter the secure grounds of Washington's governor's residence on Wednesday before being stopped by the Washington State Patrol. Gov. Jay Inslee and First Lady Trudi Inslee were not home at the time. The security breach follows a much larger incident on January 6 when a group of pro-Trump supporters forced open a gate and spilled onto the mansion lawn, eventually making their way to the mansion's front portico.
