MA Denied Federal Money For Storm Recovery The Obama administration denied a request from MASSACHUSETTS Gov. Charlie Baker (R) for additional federal money to help the Bay State cover the estimated $350 million incurred clearing snow, repairing damaged facilities and taking emergency protective measures...

Markell Announces DE Technology Effort Saying “Our aim has always been, under corporate law, to harness the benefits of new technologies while limiting the risk for businesses,” DELAWARE Gov. Jack Markell (D) announced a state initiative last week to support the technology that is the...

NY Gov. Cuomo Cuts Off Groups Boycotting Israel Saying “If you boycott against Israel, New York will boycott you,” NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) directed state agencies under his control to divest themselves of companies and organizations aligned with a Palestinian-backed boycott movement...

Scott Creates First VT Ethics Commission VERMONT Gov. Phil Scott (R) signed legislation last week that will create a five-member commission to review cases of unethical behavior and potentially forward appropriate cases to the attorney general’s office. It is the Green Mountain State’s...

Decrying a lack of federal action, several Northeastern governors have formed a multi-state partnership to address gun violence. The “States for Gun Safety” coalition is the brainchild of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who was joined by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Connecticut Gov. Dannel...

BAKER OUTLINES $300 MILLION CLIMATE CHANGE PLAN : On the heels of several massive winter storms, MASSACHUSETTS Gov. Charlie Baker (R) outlined a plan to borrow $300 million to put toward efforts to combat climate change in communities all along the Bay State seaboard. The bill would require all coastal...

BROWN REACHES DEAL ON CA NATIONAL GUARD USE...OR DOES HE? After a week of jousting with the Trump administration, it is still unclear if CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) will order the deployment of the California National Guard to the state’s border with Mexico to assist in battling “transnational...

The ongoing controversy over family separations at the U.S. border with Mexico has spurred a bipartisan group of governors to pull back or reject outright President Trump’s request to send National Guard troops to the U.S. border with Mexico. Democrats Andrew Cuomo of New York, Gina Raimondo of...

DESANTIS WANTS MAJOR CHANGE TO FL MEDICAL WEED LAW Saying he wants to see people “be able to have their suffering relieved,” FLORIDA Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) urged Sunshine State lawmakers to allow medical marijuana patients to smoke their weed if they so choose. If lawmakers do not go along...

Saying it was “inevitable” that her state would soon be surrounded by states that have legalized recreational cannabis use, Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) joined a growing number of her Democratic colleagues in proposing to follow suit. Raimondo was hardly enthusiastic about the...

Countering a growing trend among retailers toward accepting only credit cards or other forms of electronic payment, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) signed legislation last week requiring brick-and-mortar retail operations to accept cash and imposing potentially big fines on those that don’t go...

TRIBES REJECT OK GOV’S CALL FOR NEW GAMING DEALS Questioning “his sincerity to work with us in a cooperative manner,” the leaders of five major OKLAHOMA -based tribes rejected Gov. Kevin Stitt’s (R) call to renegotiate their gaming compacts. In a letter to Stitt, the heads...

VA GOV VOWS END TO LAWSUITS AGAINST PATIENTS VIRGINIA Gov. Ralph Northam (D) said he would work with University of Virginia James Ryan to end the widespread practice of aggressively pursuing former patients for unpaid medical bills. A recent investigation by Kaiser Health News revealed that that UVA...

WA GOV ORDERS VAPING BAN Citing a rising number of illnesses and deaths linked to e-tobacco use, WASHINGTON Gov. Jay Inslee (D) said he will ask the state board of health to adopt emergency rules enacting a statewide ban on flavored vaping products. At least four other states – MICHIGAN, NEW...

Cuomo Threatens NYC Utility NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) threatened to revoke the license of a utility that provides gas to New York City and Long Island unless it begins providing natural gas to new customers on Long Island. Cuomo also vowed to take legal action against the utility National Grid...