All fact-checks
Every fact-check we've published, newest first.
Seattle Times on I-638: 28 of 29 false or slanted statements favored No.
Claim
“The Seattle Times' I-638 coverage repeatedly departed from the facts, and nearly every departure favored the No side”
I-638: what it does, and what each side claims
Initiative 638 would limit girls-only school competition in Washington to students the measure defines as biologically female, verified by each girl's health care provider. This briefing lays out what the measure does, every checkable claim each campaign made in the voters' pamphlet, and FactHub's fact checks of them.
Opponents say the exam claim moves voters; I-638 requires no exam.
Claim
“The No campaign's lead argument against I-638 is that it requires genital exams, and an allied group says its polling shows that argument turns voters against the measure”
California spending and results: homelessness, schools, health care and rail, checked
What FactHub has checked about how fast California's spending grew compared with Texas, Florida, New York and the U.S., what results followed in homelessness, schools, Medi-Cal and high-speed rail, and what auditors and prosecutors found. Each rating comes from a linked fact check.
Washington's fastest girl miler ever would finish near last in boys' finals.
Claim
“Washington's fastest high-school girl ever in the mile would finish at or near the back of a boys' state final”
Washington jobs stalled in 2026 as prices outran incomes
Claim
“Washington's job growth has stalled in 2026, and prices are rising faster than incomes”
No Washington session raised more tax dollars than 2025's.
Claim
“Washington's 2025 tax package was the largest tax increase in state history”
School spending per student in Washington beat inflation since 2019.
Claim
“We have less money today adjusted for inflation per kid than we did six years ago”
Washington's paid leave tax triples to 1.2%, and still falls short
Claim
“Washington's paid leave payroll tax will be 1.2% of wages in 2027, triple the 2019 rate, and even that is not projected to keep the program solvent”
Washington's climate spending mostly paid far above the carbon price
Claim
“Most of Washington's Climate Commitment Act spending on cutting emissions pays far more per ton than the state's carbon price”
Washington is well off the path to its 2030 climate limit.
Claim
“Washington's emissions are 13.4 percent higher than they should have been to meet the 2030 target”
Seattle's LEAD clients were rearrested about a quarter less, not 58%
Claim
“People in LEAD were 58% less likely than people in the control group to be arrested”
Washington's overdose death rate grew fastest of any state.
Claim
“Washington had the fastest growth in per-capita drug overdose deaths of any state from 2014 to 2024, rising from 29th to 4th”
Seattle school spending nearly doubled while enrollment held flat
Claim
“Seattle Public Schools' budget went up 96%, from $611 million in 2014 to $1.2 billion in 2025, while enrollment stayed at about 48,500 students”
Households leaving Washington have out-earned arrivals since 2021.
Claim
“Since 2021, households leaving Washington have earned more on average than households moving in”
Courts read Washington's constitution to bar graduated income taxes.
Claim
“Washington's constitution, as the state Supreme Court has read it since 1933, bars a graduated or high-rate income tax”
Election Day gas is a record in dollars, not after inflation.
Claim
“Gas prices are set to be the highest for any Election Day in U.S. history”