In a stark reversal of policy from his predecessor, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) announced last Thursday that State Police will now routinely check with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency about the status of suspects...
Welfare Cuts Coming in RI A special legislative committee in RHODE ISLAND tasked with recommending budget cuts is reportedly focusing on public assistance programs like Medicaid and food stamps. The Joint Committee on Government Accountability Transparency...
Monthly premiums in Alaska’s individual insurance market averaged $863 this year, compared to just $396 nationally. And those premiums increased roughly 31 percent this year and 26 percent in 2015, compared to 10 percent and 2 percent, respectively...
New York Signs AB 10264 NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signs AB 10264 , a measure to establish a state ocean acidification task force, which will be tasked with identifying root causes contributing to acidification in the Empire State’s ocean...
And from the sublime to the ridiculous, there’s this. As the Associated Press reports , Missouri Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal led a filibuster of a tax bill she opposed last week by reading for almost an hour from a self-help book co-written by rapper...
Crime & Punishment in MD The MARYLAND General Assembly overrides a veto by Gov. Larry Hogan (R) of a bill that restores voting rights to felons before they finish parole or probation (WASHINGTON POST). Crime & Punishment in KS The KANSAS...
IL TAX HIKE WILL IMPACT WI The tax increase that finally allowed ILLINOIS to pass a state budget this month will cost neighboring WISCONSIN , which is facing its own budget impasse, $51 million, according to the state’s nonpartisan Legislative...
BYOD, or Bring Your Own Devices, is a tidal wave, and like any tidal wave, corporations and government agencies are way past the stage of stopping it. We are well into the stage of embracing it, minimizing risks, and making it work to our advantage. Where...
NY PASSES BUDGET EXTENSION NEW YORK lawmakers approved a budget extension that will keep the state government operating through the next fiscal year as well as provide nearly $1.8 billion for economic development projects favored by Gov. Andrew Cuomo...
MI Legislature Approves HB 4205 The MICHIGAN Legislature approves HB 4205 , which would bar state agencies from adopting non-emergency rules more stringent than the applicable federal standard unless specifically authorized by state law or unless the...
The Obama administration has taken several steps over the last month to help increasingly desperate governors battle rising rates of opioid addiction in their states. Those efforts include proposing new regulations for drugs intended to fight addiction...
Social Policy In AL The ALABAMA Senate approves SB 143, legislation that would do away with marriage licenses, instead requiring couples to file a form recording their union. The bill, which is intended to nullify the controversy over same-sex nuptials...
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s dancing days are over. Yes, as the Houston Press reports, Perry last week became the second dancer this season to be voted off the ABC reality dancing show “Dancing With The Stars.” Alas, his demise came...
TX Senate Approves SB 2065 The TEXAS Senate approves SB 2065, which would clarify that Lone Star State pastors can legally refuse to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples. It moves to the House (TEXAS TRIBUNE). WI Assembly Approves AB...
This month, a herd of goats was placed in a fenced area of a roundabout in Olympia, Washington. The goats, rented from Rent-A-Ruminant of Vashon Island, are part of a pilot project being undertaken by Washington’s Department of Transportation to...
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s (R) proposed budget calls for reductions of science staff at the state’s Department of Natural Resources. But administrators at the agency are considering doing away with the agency’s Bureau of Science Services...
NJ Governor Signs AB 493 NEW JERSEY Gov. Chris Christie (R) signs AB 493 , which bans chewing tobacco at Garden State K-12 schools. Students that violate the ban could lose parking and sports participation privileges, while adults face fines up to...
Speaking of Gov. Christie, we hear the time is right to make a good buy on your very own commemorative Chris Christie bobblehead. Yep, as NBC New York reports , the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame had a major clearance sale on the gov’s figurine...
Just hours into his new job, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) issued Executive Order No. 1 , which bars state agencies from asking job applicants about their previous salary history. The directive is seen as an effort to bridge the gender pay gap, which...
SCOTUS AGREES TO HEAR SECOND REDISTRICTING CASE: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a redistricting case from MARYLAND involving Republican voters’ claim that the congressional districts drawn by the state’s Democrat-controlled General...
Still simmering from a failed ballot measure in November backed by the Humane Society and aimed at banning the use of bait, dogs and traps for hunting bears in the state, Maine lawmakers are seeking to block another such attempt by amending the Constitution...
Speaking of the Lone Star State, nobody can accuse them of not having a sense of humor down there. Electing Rick “Oops” Perry four times proved that. But I digress. To the matter at hand, the Associated Press reports that the Texas House recently...
A Texas rebate program for electric vehicles is ending on June 26 – only about a year after it began. Not because state leaders think green rebates are a waste of money or threaten the free market. In fact, a House committee unanimously passed a...
Business In MA The MASSACHUSETTS Senate approves SB 2033, legislation that would expand the scope of workplace disfigurement injuries covered under workers' compensation policies to include injuries anywhere on a person's body. The measure...
Social Policy in OH A federal judge temporarily blocks OHIO Attorney General Mike DeWine (R) from going to court to change how Planned Parenthood disposes of fetal remains following abortion procedures. U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. issued...