Folks who hate paying their taxes are rarely shy about letting everyone and anyone within earshot hear all about it. But one Montana man may have found a way around his annual tax bill: putting something obnoxious on his check! Yes, as the Billings Gazette...
CA Senate Approves SB 3 The CALIFORNIA Senate approves SB 3, which would raise the Golden State minimum wage to $11 in $2016 and $13 in 2017. The measure, which would also hike the wage annually based on inflation, moves to the Assembly (LEXISNEXIS...
A bill appears to be on the way in Georgia that the Atlanta Journal-Constitution described as that state’s “first piece of Trump-era legislation.” According to the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), which advocates for immigration...
CA AB 908 Signed by Gov CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs AB 908 , which will expand the Golden State’s paid family leave wage replacement levels from 55 percent of income to either 60 percent or 70 percent depending on the worker’s...
California Approves SB 562 The CALIFORNIA Senate approves SB 562 , which would implement a single-payer health care system in the Golden State. It moves to the Assembly (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET). California Approves AB 402 The CALIFORNIA Senate...
New Hampshire Signs HB 640 NEW HAMPSHIRE Gov. Chris Sununu (R) signs HB 640 , legislation that eliminates criminal penalties for possession of three quarters of an ounce or less of marijuana (NEW HAMPSHIRE UNION LEADER [MANCHESTER]).
Louisiana Approves HB 79 The LOUISIANA House unanimously approves HB 79 , which would ban the paddling of disabled students at Pelican State public schools. The bill moves to the Senate (ADVOCATE [BATON ROUGE]). Arizona Signs SB 1042 ARIZONA...
High Court Rejects VA Districts Over Race: On a 7-1 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a lower court to re-review 11 legislative districts drawn by VIRGINIA Republicans after the 2010 Census. The districts are among a dozen that Democrats argued...
OR Senate Approves SB 664 The OREGON Senate approves SB 664 , a measure requiring schools to teach students about the Holocaust and other acts of genocide. It moves to the House (ASSOCIATED PRESS, LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
AR House Approves HB 1626 The ARKANSAS House approves HB 1626 , which would require schools to offer classes on the Bible if enough students request such courses. It moves to the Senate (ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE [LITTLE ROCK]).
HB 1947 Approved in PA The PENNSYLVANIA House approves HB 1947 , which would eliminate criminal statutes of limitation on child sex crimes and extend the window for victims of child sexual abuse to take civil actions to age 50. It moves to the Senate...
Virginia Approves HB 2201 The VIRGINIA Senate approves HB 2201 , which would impose a $250 fine on Old Dominion drivers who drive in the left lane when not passing another vehicle. The measure moves to Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) for consideration (RICHMOND...
NEWSOM TO PARTNER WITH CA CITIES ON HOUSING CALIFORNIA Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced his administration would partner with a handful of Golden State cities to help develop affordable housing on state-owned properties. The announcement came after...
ID House Endorses Legislation The IDAHO House endorses legislation that would make the state Wolf Depredation Control Board a permanent government agency. It is now with Gov. Brad Little (R) for consideration (POST-REGISTER [IDAHO FALLS]).
Utah Rep. Jim Dunnigan (R), who runs an insurance agency when he’s not working part-time as a legislator, sponsored four bills this year concerning the insurance industry, one of which, HB 395 , was criticized by a doctor during a hearing for giving...
State spending on higher education nationwide is down nearly $10 billion - an average of $1,598, or 18 percent, per student - from where it was before the Great Recession began in 2008, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Per-student...
Hickenlooper Offers CA Pot Advice Saying his state “made an awful lot of mistakes,” COLORADO Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) shared some insights into regulating legal marijuana with a CALIFORNIA legislative committee last week, telling lawmakers...
The Affordable Care Act, often called Obamacare, has had more narrow escapes than the legendary Harry Houdini. But although a law created solely by Democrats has amazingly survived in a Republican political landscape, its long-term survival is not yet...
Calling capital punishment “ineffective, irreversible and immoral,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed an executive order on Tuesday all but abolishing the death penalty in the Golden State for the foreseeable future. Newsom joins...
IA Supreme Court Upholds The IOWA Supreme Court upholds a lower court’s ruling that the Hawkeye State cannot deny Medicaid coverage for sex reassignment surgery. The court ruled that doing so would violate the state’s 2007 Civil Rights...
ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY TAX CREDIT EXTENDED IN NY A provision extending NEW YORK’s film and television credit for two years was quietly inserted into the state budget shortly before it was approved last month. The credit, which cost the state...
If a hair stylist learns their craft and is licensed in Las Vegas and then moves across the state line to Arizona, does what they learned in Vegas stay in Vegas? Probably not. But their ability to work might. Or at least it used to. Presumably,...
VA Voter Registration System Slowed to Crawl by ‘Unprecedented Activity’ VIRGINIA’s online voter registration system slowed down last Monday - the last day to register to vote in time for the Nov. 8 election - to the point of being...
AZ, OH, OK Delay Executions Pharmaceutical manufacturer Pfizer announces it will enact protocols to ensure states are no longer able to use drugs it provides as part of carrying out a lethal injection execution. At least 20 other U.S. and European...
NY City Commission on Human Rights Bars Discrimination The NEW YORK CITY Commission on Human Rights bars discrimination against individuals on the basis of the way they wear their hair, specifically defending “natural hair, treated or untreated...