CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs ABx2-15, which makes the Golden State the fifth to allow doctors to prescribe terminally ill patients drugs to help them end their own life. For more on this see SNCJ Spotlight in this issue (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET...
MI House Approves HB 4926, HB 4927, and HB 4928 The MICHIGAN House approves a trio of bills (HBs 4926 , 4927 and 4928 ) that collectively would legalize online gambling, including sports wagering, in the Wolverine State. The measures move to the Senate...
PA Governor Signs SB 234 PENNSYLVANIA Gov. Tom Wolf (D) signs SB 234 , which allows municipal governments to set up energy improvement districts where private lenders can loan money to commercial or agricultural property owners who want to finance...
Saying he is frustrated with federal inaction, Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) issued an executive order last week that will create a state office tasked with helping immigrants find jobs, health care and education. Ohio was built by immigrants and to...
FL Governor Issues Executive Order FLORIDA Gov. Rick Scott (R) issues Executive Order 18-202 , which urges Sunshine State counties to protect public beach access and directs the Department of Environmental Protection to support the efforts. It also...
HI Governor signs HB 2507 HAWAII Gov. David Ige (D) signs HB 2507 , which removes pre-schools from the superintendent’s scope of authority and clarifies that the director of the Executive Office on Early learning may authorize preschool personnel...
Citing the shooting death last year of a state trooper by a man with a long criminal history, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) last week proposed making access to bail more difficult for defendants charged with certain serious crimes. Abbott’s proposal...
Making good on a campaign promise, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) has proposed a graduated income tax that he says would generate $3.4 billion in revenue for the state while lowering taxes for 97 percent of its residents. “It’s wrong...
Health In CA CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) vetoes AB 159, so-called “right-to-try” legislation that would have allowed drug companies to make available to terminally ill patients drugs that have not yet been approved by the U.S. Food...
The GEORGIA Senate approves SB 72, a bill that would impose fines and jail time on anyone who harms or kills a police dog, horse or other animals used in the line of duty by Peach State law enforcement. Under the measure, perpetrators could face fines...
California Approves AB 1668 The CALIFORNIA Legislature approves AB 1668 , so-called “right-to-try” legislation that would allow terminally ill patients to access medications not yet approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The...
MS Law Bans Abortion Saying it “unequivocally” infringes on the due-process rights of women, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves strikes down a MISSISSIPPI law that bans abortions after the 15 th week of pregnancy. The state is expected...
Congressional Republicans – and millions of other Americans – aren’t the only ones confused by the often conflicting messages emanating from the White House these days. As the Washington Post reports , North Korea is also occasionally...
Kentucky Republicans are forming a 527 organization called “Kentucky Strong” to recruit and train prospective female political candidates. “Women are leaders in their homes, businesses, communities and increasingly at all levels...
To eat the boxed lunch or not to eat the boxed lunch, that is the question for Washington state lawmakers these days. New rules regulating how many free meals they can accept from lobbyists has left Evergreen State pols angry and confused: annoyed because...
Nine of Pennsylvania’s 13 casinos applied for iGaming licenses from the state’s Gaming Control Board this month. Those licenses, authorized by the gaming law passed by the state last year, will allow casinos to offer three interactive gaming...
Vermont lawmakers re-elected incumbent Gov. Pete Shumlin (D) last week. Shumlin defeated Republican challenger Scott Milne and Libertarian Dan Feliciano, garnering 110 votes to Milne's 69. Feliciano did not receive a vote. The decision fell to lawmakers...
A CALIFORNIA judge rules that Medicaid applicants in the Golden State who have been waiting for more than 45 days can receive temporary health benefits while officials determine their eligibility for the joint state-federal insurance program (SACRAMENTO...
And then there is this: former Texas Gov. Rick “Oops” Perry will be one of the contestants on the upcoming season of “Dancing with the Stars.” Yes, the man who once famously forgot which federal agencies he was planning to get...
Nearly a decade ago, a stalled construction industry was one of the main byproducts of the Great Recession. Now that industry is helping drive the economies of many states. Adjusted for inflation, the construction industry’s contribution to...
Social Policy In VA The VIRGINIA House endorses HB 773, a bill that would block state agencies from punishing discrimination against people who are in same-sex marriages, transgender or have sex outside marriage. It moves to the Senate (WASHINGTON...
CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs AB 96, a bill that removes an exemption in a state law barring the sale of elephant ivory or rhinoceros horn. The sale and possession of these products have been banned for years but those imported prior to Jan. 1...
Minnesota lawmakers may opt to complete all the work planned for the 2015-16 legislative session this year and take next year off, when renovations will shut down much of the Capitol. Senate Minority Leader David Hann (R) said the Legislature used to...
CA Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals Rules The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in CALIFORNIA rules that the Trump administration endangered public health by keeping a widely used pesticide on the market despite extensive scientific evidence that...
For New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the bald eagle feather he brought home was a fantastic memento of a great canoe trip he took with his youngest daughter. He liked it so much he placed that feather on the mantle above his fireplace. But as ABC News reports...