If you’re going to have a state amphibian, it might as well be one with as ridiculous a nickname as possible. I’m presuming that was what Pennsylvania lawmakers were thinking recently when they voted to name the Eastern hellbender salamander...
NY City Bans Alcohol Advertising on City Property Citing health risks associated with consuming excessive amounts of alcohol, NEW YORK CITY bans alcohol advertising on city property. The ban takes effect immediately, but ads already in place will be...
KS Supreme Court Rules The KANSAS Supreme Court rules that women in the Sunflower State have a constitutional right to obtain an abortion. Justices ruled that both the state and U.S. constitutions support that right. Opponents vowed to seek to amend...
WA House Gives Final Approval to HB 1638 The WASHINGTON House gives final approval to HB 1638 , which would remove a parents’ ability to seek a personal or philosophical exemption from their children being vaccinated for measles. The measure...
NY Governor Signs AB 2572 NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signs AB 2572 , legislation that bans offshore drilling in Empire State coastal waters. The measure bars the state from granting permits for drilling and exploration in offshore areas controlled...
TX Senate Approves SB 11 The TEXAS Senate approves SB 11 , a broad school safety measure that would, among several things, require that classrooms be equipped with phones and establish threat assessment teams to help identify potentially dangerous...
NY Assembly Endorses SB 501 The NEW YORK Assembly endorses SB 501 , a bill that would require toy manufacturers to tell state regulators when children’s products contain hazardous chemicals like cadmium, with toys containing materials like toxic...
BULLOCK SIGNS MT REINSURANCE BILL MONTANA Gov. Steve Bullock (D), signed legislation last week that will create a reinsurance program to help reimburse insurers for high-cost claims so those costs aren't included in determining individual marketplace...
Responding to a drastic increase in foreclosures since 2009, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) signed a package of bills aimed at helping cash-strapped Garden State residents stay in their homes and overwhelmed cities deal with a rash of vacant foreclosed...
After passing the House in March, a bill championed by Gov. Laura Kelly (D) to expand Medicaid in the Sunflower State appears to have died in the GOP-controlled Senate. Senate Democratic Leader Anthony Hensley forced a procedural vote to move HB...
In spite of his personal opposition, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) said he would allow a measure legalizing sports betting to become law in the Volunteer State without his signature. “The governor has said he does not believe that the expansion...
FEDERAL APPEALS PANEL ORDERS NEW DISTRICTS, SENATE ELECTIONS IN MI A three-judge federal panel has ordered MICHIGAN’s Republican-controlled Legislature to redraw at least 34 political districts before the 2020 election - and ordered the state...
The Wisconsin Supreme court ordered the reinstatement of 15 appointees of former Gov. Scott Walker who were removed from their posts in connection with an ongoing power struggle between the state’s Republican controlled Legislature and new Democratic...
In 1998 Washington voters approved a ballot measure, Initiative 200 , barring the state’s government from giving preferential treatment to anyone based on race, gender or national origin. Just before ending its regular session last month, the state’s...
COST OF SCALED BACK HIGH-SPEED RAIL IN CA GOING UP The cost to build a 119-mile segment of CALIFORNIA’s high-speed rail system in the state’s Central Valley could be $1.8 billion higher than the $10.6 billion previously projected, according...
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) and his fellow Democrats who control the state’s General Assembly have come up with a plan to reduce the state’s public school teacher pension costs: get local governments to cover some of them. Under the proposal...
In his budget address in late February, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) called for a tax increase on sodas and other sugary drinks. Soda tax legislation has also been introduced this year in California, Massachusetts New York, Rhode Island and Vermont...
As of May 1, at least 129 bills referring specifically to rent control were pending in 10 states, according to LexisNexis State Net’s legislative tracking system. The majority of those measures were introduced in New York’s Legislature. Several...
Saying it would “provide immediate relief to Oregonians struggling to keep up with rising rents and a tight rental market,” Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) signed legislation in February making her state the first to adopt a statewide rent control...
In March, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued revised guidance for the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act’s (FCPA) Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) concerning the adoption of rules and regulations around the use of ephemeral messaging platforms...
In our daily lives, few things drive discourse and conversation more than the press. The coverage, investigation and reporting of news is the fuel that carries small conversation, political discourse and general around-the-water-cooler chatter. In our...
Many people cringe when they hear the word ‘audit’ because it is almost inextricably linked with ‘tax’—another cringe-worthy topic. Admittedly, audits can be uncomfortable; very few people enjoy time spent under a microscope...
The Arizona House isn’t the only legislative body with its collective head up...in the clouds. As Cleveland.com reports , a pair of lawmakers in the Ohio House have introduced legislation to adopt an official Buckeye State cookie. The measure has...
Some days it feels like this old world is about to just burn itself down. Literally, given how fast climate change is progressing. But there’s no shortage of other problems, from an epidemic of school shootings to an equally insane epidemic of measles...
Whatever the subject these days, whenever it comes to doing what’s best for our kids, we can generally count on the adults in the room to behave worse than the children. Case in point comes this week from Rhode Island, where the Providence Journal...