After Donald Trump clinched last year’s presidential race while losing the national popular vote to Hillary Clinton by nearly 2.9 million votes , there was a clamor, mainly from Democrats, to do away with the Electoral College . But Republican lawmakers...
Crime & Punishment in NM The NEW MEXICO House approves HB 56, a bill that would add the crimes of voluntary or involuntary manslaughter, first-degree child abuse and aggravated burglary to those which would qualify offenders for a mandatory life...
The GEORGIA Senate approves SB 6, legislation that states children brought to the U.S. as children who have been permitted to stay under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, could only receive drivers’ licenses...
Business In CA The CALIFORNIA Senate gives final approval to SB 7b, which would raise the legal smoking age in the Golden State to 21. It moves to Gov. Jerry Brown (D) for consideration (SACRAMENTO BEE). Also in CALIFORNIA , the Senate endorses SB...
Internet Tax Bill Advances in OK The OKLAHOMA Senate passed an amended version of HB 2531 last month that will require out-of-state companies to provide Oklahoma customers a statement at the end of the year indicating the amount of their purchases...
Lawyers generally have a long list of dos and don’ts in the course of their work. One that would seem to be obvious in any such a compilation would be to not have sex with the clients they represent. Obvious everywhere, that is, except California...
The White House said last week that Louisiana has qualified for 90-percent federal funding of its recovery efforts related to the severe flooding in the state last month. Officials said the state was bumped up from the 75-percent funding level as soon...
Calling it “a solution in search of a problem,” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) vetoed a bill that would have required Pelican State colleges and universities to do more to foster the appearance of controversial speakers and opinions on...
Nine more states last week joined the newly-created U.S. Climate Alliance, a coalition to uphold the tenets of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, an international coalition aimed at combatting the impacts of global climate change. The coalition was formed...
UT LAWMAKERS CONSIDER LIMITING LOBBYING BY PUBLIC EMPLOYEES: A UTAH House committee voted this month to advance a bill ( HB 391 ) restricting lobbying of the Legislature by state employees and prohibiting some state entities from taking a public position...
TEXAS Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said last week he did not plan to call a special session to consider legislation to bar county clerks from issuing same-sex marriage licenses despite calls for that action. A ruling is expected soon from the U.S. Supreme Court...
Internet Sales Tax Re-Introduced In Senate The Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA), which would allow states to levy sales taxes on Internet transactions, has been re-introduced in the U.S. Senate. The MFA was approved by the previous, Democrat-controlled...
NY Endorses SB 5965 University Sex Assault Bill The NEW YORK Assembly and Senate each endorse SB 5965, which would create a statewide definition of what constitutes consensual sexual activity at Empire State public and private colleges and universities...
MO Lawmakers Override Gov’s Veto of Photo ID Bill MISSOURI’s Republican-controlled General Assembly voted last week to override Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of HB 1631 , a bill requiring voters to show a government-issued photo...
Social Policy in Arizona The ARIZONA Court of Appeals rules that the same-sex spouse of a gay woman who has given birth is entitled to the same parental presumptions and rights as if she were a man. Justices rejected the arguments by the biological...
Virginia Approves HB 1468 The VIRGINIA House approves HB 1468 , which would prohibit Old Dominion law enforcement from releasing an incarcerated undocumented immigrant until the individual has been received by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement...
MD AG Given Power to Sue Without Gov’s Approval Democratic state lawmakers in MARYLAND gave Old Line State attorney general Brian E. Frosh broad authority to bypass Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to sue the federal government, an unprecedented expansion...
Virginia Approves SB 1298 The VIRGINIA Senate approves SB 1298 , which would add cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, nail-patella syndrome, cachexia or wasting...
When times get tough, everyone has to just suck it up, tighten their belt and make due with less. Or so numerous state agencies in Oklahoma were told during this year’s epic effort to close a $611 million budget gap. But when Gov. Mary Fallin recently...
Crime In Montana The MONTANA Supreme Court rules that citizens have a right to trial by jury before the state can take private property in civil forfeiture cases. The ruling brings the Treasure State in line with the majority of other states that have...
Lottery sales have slumped in many states in recent years , but last fiscal year the Maine Lottery hit the jackpot, setting records for ticket sales, winner payouts, retailer commissions and contributions to the state’s General Fund. A $1.6 billion...
Some ideas are so clearly bad ones that it would seem to just be common sense not to go through with them. But as Voltaire noted, common sense isn’t so common. Case in point comes from Chicago, where the Chicago Tribune reports that Illinois Gov...
No, we’re not done with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie just yet. How could we be, given Christie has obviously decided he might as well embrace being his own worst enemy. Another case in point came last week when Christie sat in for notorious sports...
The odds are good that Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner and former president Barack Obama don’t have a lot in common politically. But that didn’t prevent Rauner from recently signing legislation making Obama’s birthday (Aug 4) a commemorative...
Gov. Mead Says No Medicaid Expansion in WY Citing the uncertainty of America’s health care system under the new administration, WYOMING Gov. Matt Mead (R) said he will not push Equality State lawmakers to expand Medicaid coverage this session...