CA Assembly Endorses AB 5 The CALIFORNIA Assembly endorses AB 5 , a bill that could require employers to officially recognize hundreds of thousands of so-called “gig” workers as employees. Under the bill, employers seeking to avoid having...
Cooper Signs NC Pay Leave Order Saying that “parenting is often more than a full-time job,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) issued Executive Order 95 last week, which grants up to eight weeks of paid parental leave to many of the estimated...
Saying it would guarantee “a better auto insurance system for everyone,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) signed SB 1 , a sweeping overhaul of the Wolverine State’s auto insurance laws. One of the most significant changes contained...
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) wasted no time last week addressing the final batch of bills lawmakers sent to him this session, vetoing eight and letting another 10 become law without his signature. Most of the measures Hogan vetoed would have imposed...
BILL BLOCKING BIRTH DATES FROM VOTER LISTS ADVANCES IN RI A bill ( HB 5925 ) approved by RHODE ISLAND’s House Judiciary Committee would enshrine into law Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea’s (D) current policy of excluding full birth dates...
The U.S. Supreme Court has suspended two lower court rulings requiring new congressional district maps to be drawn in Michigan and Ohio, pending a decision by the justices on the constitutionality of partisan gerrymandering. Lower courts had ruled...
Last month it looked like Connecticut might become the second state, after Washington, to enact a public health insurance option, with Gov. Ned Lamont and Democratic legislative leaders announcing their support for a bill ( HB 7267 ) that would create...
SOME CT TOWNS BLOCKING AFFORDABLE HOUSING Dozens of wealthy towns in CONNECTICUT have blocked the construction of low-income housing within their borders for the past two decades. The percentage of low-income housing has actually declined somewhat...
Since 2017 over 55,000 people from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras have come to the United States seeking asylum. That flood of new immigrants is stretching the resources of city and state governments - particularly those in California, Florida, Maryland...
This month Oklahoma and West Virginia became the first two states to reach legal settlements with drug companies over their role in the opioid crisis. Together the states will receive almost $300 million as a result of those agreements. With hundreds...
As of the start of this year, at least 25 states had passed laws requiring businesses that handle personal data to implement security procedures to protect that information from unauthorized access, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures...
In the battle to mold and amend California’s sweeping data privacy law before it goes into effect next year, efforts to carve out numerous exceptions are easily winning out over those that would make the law even tougher. The ramifications...
Last year, HSBC announced plans to hire 1,000 data scientists to work on AI and big data projects which it hopes will improve its customer experience and risk management. Josh Bottomley, Global Head of Digital Data and Development at HSBC, explains to...
Uber-patriotic national holidays are a golden opportunity for minor league baseball teams in deep red locales to fill the stadium. Such was the case in May when the Pacific Coast League’s Fresno Grizzlies marked the Memorial Day holiday with a video...
Filibustering and other such political gabfesting as a means of blocking legislation has been practiced by every party since Plato walked the earth. The latest incarnation comes from the Oregon Legislature, where outmanned Republicans have managed to...
After much tussling back and forth, California regulators have decided once and for all that coffee does not pose a major risk of causing cancer. This is very good news to coffee giants like Starbucks, which contended that the benefits of drinking a cup...
School cafeterias are generally not in danger of earning a Michelin star. But this being the era of ubiquitous smartphones and app-based food delivery services, modern students are no longer slaves to the school lunch menu. Enterprising kids are now as...
Beverly Hills City Council Approves an Ordinance The BEVERLY HILLS City Council approves an ordinance making it the fist city in America to fully ban the sale of all tobacco products. The measure, which takes effect in 2021, allows cigar lounges to...
OR Senate Approves HB 3216 The OREGON Senate approves HB 3216 , which would allow victims of unjustified calls to the police to sue the caller for $250. It returns to the House (PORTLAND OREGONIAN). ME Legislature Gives Final Approval to HB 948...
TX Legislature Gives Approval to HB 2041 The TEXAS Legislature gives final approval to HB 2041 , which would require freestanding emergency rooms to clearly disclose the in-network health plans they accept and the fees patients may be charged. It moves...
ME Senate Approves HB 1115 The MAINE Senate approves to HB 1115 , which would ban retailers from offering single-use plastic bags. Each chamber must endorse the bill again for it to go to Gov. Janet Mills (D) for consideration (BANGOR DAILY NEWS).
WV Senate Approves SB 1039 The WEST VIRGINIA Senate approves SB 1039 , which would, among other things, legalize charter schools, raise public school worker pay, increase public school funding, ban county superintendents from closing schools in anticipation...
CT Senate Approves HB 7200 The CONNECTICUT Senate approves HB 7200 , which would raise the Constitution State smoking age to 21. The measure moves to Gov. Ned Lamont (D), who has pledged to sign it into law (CONNECTICUT MIRROR [HARTFORD]). CT house...
NV GOV WILL SIGN WAGE, PAID LEAVE BILLS In a statement issued last week, NEVADA Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) said he would sign legislation ( AB 456 ) on his desk that will incrementally raise the Silver State minimum wage to $12 per hour by July, 2024....
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed measures last week that address human trafficking, the state’s enormous backlog of rape kits, and providing increased resources for survivors of sexual assault. Abbott lauded the trafficking bills –...