Pennsylvania Democrats celebrated when the state Supreme Court struck down the state’s 2011 congressional district map, drawn by the Republicans who controlled both chambers of the General Assembly as well as the governor’s office at the time...
After a string of recent Democratic special election upsets , including in deep red states, Republicans fended off a Democratic challenge in a congressional race in Arizona last month. Former state senator Debbie Lesko’s victory over emergency room...
REDISTRICTING REFORM BOUND FOR OH BALLOT OHIO voters will consider a single statewide question on their May 8 ballots, asking their approval to establish rules for congressional redistricting. No such rules exist currently, making the process inherently...
With America’s deadly opioid epidemic continuing to spread , state lawmakers are trying out a new strategy to combat it: taxing the manufacturers and distributors of the drugs, which include frequently prescribed painkillers like Vicodin and OxyContin...
In the two decades from 1991 to 2010, over 100 new stadiums opened across the country. Most of them were financed at least in part with public money. The boom was fueled by demand from sports teams and their fans for a more elevated spectator experience...
NJ SUPREME COURT BLOCKS STATE FUNDING FOR CHURCHES The NEW JERSEY Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the state Constitution expressly prohibits the use of public money for the benefit of churches, invalidating Morris County’s practice of giving...
CA Supreme Court The CALIFORNIA Supreme Court rules that businesses seeking to declare a worker an independent contractor must be able to prove that the worker is independent of control and direction from the employer, performs work that is outside...
MA Supreme Judicial Court The MASSACHUSETTS Supreme Judicial Court upholds a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Bay State’s charter school cap. The suit argued that caps on charters were arbitrary and denied...
US Environmental Protection Agency Declares The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency declares portions of seven UTAH counties to be in violation of national standards for ozone, an airborne pollutant that is particularly harmful to children. The EPA...
DE Governor Signs HB 302 DELAWARE Gov. John Carney (D) signs Substitute 1 for HB 302 , a bill that allows police to temporarily seize firearms from someone whom a mental health professional deems a danger to themselves or others. The measure takes...
TN Senate Approves HB 2315 The TENNESSEE House and Senate approve HB 2315 , which would bar local municipalities from declaring themselves to be so-called “sanctuary cities,” which discourage or prevent authorities from cooperating with...
IN Circuit Court of Appeals The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a district court ruling striking down an INDIANA law that barred abortions performed because the fetus was determined to have a developmental or physical disability. Judge William...
CA Board Announces Plan LOCAL FRONT : The LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA County Board of Supervisors announces a plan to install showers and bathrooms for the homeless to use in or near some of the city’s 93 metro train stations. A final plan is expected...
Since its introduction of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in 1977, the United States has led the world in efforts to counter bribery and corruption in corporate business that traverses national borders. Now it has gone a full step further with...
One of the most common roadblocks to reaching your financial goals is misalignment with the current priorities in your community or in the world. How can you remove misalignment to ensure you’re shaping your campaigns and your requests in ways that...
Thirteen states have made progress in battling the deadly opioid epidemic while eight states have notably failed to deal with the crisis, according to a report issued this month by the National Safety Council (NSC). It comes on the heels of a report earlier...
Only 13 states are currently taking five or all six of the key actions needed to end the opioid crisis, according to a report from the National Safety Council, a nonprofit organization that seeks to eliminate preventable deaths. The six actions are: educating...
In our polarized and often fact-challenged world, few political utterances surprise us any longer. And then there was this : Kentucky Gov. Mat Bevin railing against teachers protesting a shady pension overhaul he signed into law a few weeks ago by claiming...
Fake news on the Internet or social media is one thing, but tacked directly to your door? As the Vancouver Columbian reports , that’s exactly what happened recently in Vancouver, Washington, where some residents woke up to find a letter tacked to...
If you happen to live in the tiny Wisconsin town of Winneconne, you are probably used to sedate, uneventful elections. Alas, that might not be the case this November. As the AP reports , an as-yet-unnamed resident has asked for permission to bring three...
The history books say America’s Civil War ended in 1865. But for some folks on the losing side of that conflict, the end of the shooting war only begat the start of our nation’s internal Cold War. Those hostilities have played out in any number...
In spite of “serious concerns,” Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) signed into law sweeping changes to the Bay State’s criminal justice system. Provisions of the new law include rolling back mandatory minimum sentences for some...
In spite of calls to resign from legislative leaders in both chambers, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) insisted last week he will not step down over the growing number of scandals surrounding his administration. Greitens is facing a felony trial...
BROWN REACHES DEAL ON CA NATIONAL GUARD USE...OR DOES HE? After a week of jousting with the Trump administration, it is still unclear if CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) will order the deployment of the California National Guard to the state’s...
Earlier this month, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was grilled by members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary and Commerce Committees about his company’s data sharing policies after revelations that the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica improperly...