News from around the nation.

Three people are dead and four injured after a horrific shooting at a food festival in Seattle; New report finds voting rights under threat in Tennessee and nationwide; Data centers in Virginia need to conserve water during drought, group says; Rural transit service proves solutions for Central Texas seniors.

Transcript

The Public News Service Monday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is calling it an unbelievable tragedy, a horrific act of violence.

That after three people were killed and four others injured in what police believe was a shootout between a pair of gunmen at a major food festival in Seattle on Sunday night.

Assistant Seattle Police Chief Tyrone Davis said one gunman surrendered after being confronted by police while another shooter was being sought after they fled Seattle Center.

Four people were injured, including a toddler.

They were taken to Harborview Medical Center, the region's top-level trauma center.

And as voting rights are under attack nationwide and in Tennessee, thousands of advocates and policymakers are gathering to confront what they call the most aggressive rollback of civil rights protections in decades.

The National Urban League's annual conference kinks off Wednesday in Nashville, where they will present the 2026 State of Black America report.

Mark H. Moriel with the League says the report reflects on the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but also on the broader threats to justice, equity, and freedom.

He emphasizes the findings show a troubling reality of rising unemployment, job losses, and widening housing disparities.

And the attack on black political empowerment could cost us literally hundreds of black legislative seats over the next few years, in addition to the congressional seats that have already been taken away.

These are damaging and difficult towns of black America.

Moriel notes the report examines whether the American dream is still within reach for black communities amid mounting political and economic pressures.

Danielle Smith reporting.

Next, consumers in the Potomac River Basin are encouraged to limit their water use.

Below average rainfall and groundwater supply has put this large watershed in a state of extreme drought to abnormally dry conditions, according to U.S. Drought Monitor.

Officials have asked for water conservation in the Washington metropolitan area.

Pat Calvert with American Rivers says data centers too need to adhere to preservation practices taking shape around the Commonwealth.

We need to preserve our water supply right now by using common sense water conservation measures at the personal level, but I also believe it's at the permitted level.

So that includes everybody.

Businesses and industries that are using water need to be also held to account.

I'm Zamone Perez.

And in rural central Texas a ride can mean more than getting from one place to another for seniors.

It can mean getting to a doctor, buying groceries, or eating lunch at a senior center.

Dana Platz is with CARTs and says the need is particularly acute in rural communities where transportation can be a major barrier to both health care and social engagement.

It works like an Uber.

You download the app, but you travel within a small zone of the city limits, but you get a ride within 15 minutes.

That's like our most popular service.

People love that.

The Capital Area Rural Transportation System is offering free carts county bus rides for adults age 60 and older.

Credit for original reporting on this story goes to Madeline DeFigueredo for the Daily Yonder.

This is Public News Service.

And the Trump administration is considering a complete or partial reversal of a 20-year federal mineral ban on new oil and gas leases that protect New Mexico's greater Chaco region.

And the time for public comment is running out.

The Department of the Interior says revoking protections on a lands that holds cultural importance for indigenous people could boost oil production by more than 20 million barrels over the next 20 years.

The New Mexico Wildlife Federation's Jesse Dubell says despite the importance of oil and gas to New Mexicans' livelihood and the state's economy, some things are priceless.

It's really important to understand that there are some places where it is absolutely inappropriate to risk destruction of sacred sites for the idea that there might be some amount of oil and gas underneath that mineral estate.

The public has until this Wednesday to comment online through the Bureau of Land Management's NEPA webpage.

I'm Roz Brown.

Nebraska's two largest cities are making it easier for homeowners to add accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, to their properties.

Often called mother-in-law suites or backyard cottages, ADUs are independent living spaces with their own entrance, bathroom, and cooking area.

The units allow older adults to live near family while maintaining their independence.

AARP Nebraska State Director Todd Steubendek says modern zoning has largely pushed these units out of existence or made them too difficult to build, so his organization began supporting solutions.

In 2024, we supported efforts in Omaha, and Lincoln has followed suit here this year to ease those zoning restrictions and make it easier for folks to build those.

The units remain limited to one bedroom and no more than 800 square feet or 40 percent of the primary home, whichever is smaller.

Under Lincoln's rules, ADUs must also share utilities with the main home and require an additional parking space.

The property owner must live on site and D restrictions may apply.

Crystal Blair reporting.

Finally, California is home to nine national parks.

Our new poll finds Americans are united on protecting wildlife in these settings.

Park advocates say the Trump administration's management strategy run counter to public opinion. conservationists say there's plenty of common ground between Americans and hunters in safeguarding public lands.

Bart Melton is with the National Parks Conservation Association, which commissioned the poll.

He says the results show broad agreement.

Across five major national park wildlife issues involving hunting, energy development, endangered species recovery, there is broad bipartisan public support for national park wildlife.

Honestly, at a time when we are told we are divided, it's great to see just how united we are.

I'm Tramiel Gomes.

This is Mike Clifford.

Thank you for starting a week with Public News Service.

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