Lobbying disclosure limited in AZ Over 86 percent of the roughly $333,000 spent lobbying ARIZONA lawmakers in the first half of 2015 failed to identify who the money went to, continuing a trend dating back years. Loopholes in the state’s disclosure...
Hedging against a possible overturn of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced he will seek to codify abortion rights into the Empire State constitution. “We will not allow the progress of...
Lawmakers in New Mexico are scrapping a plan to create an ethics commission to oversee elected officials’ conduct. The proposal died this week in a Senate committee after amendments were proposed to water down the commission’s authority...
Saying that for too long a competitive two-party system has been “nearly impossible” in the Old Line State, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) last Tuesday proposed having a nonpartisan panel draw legislative and Congressional districts. Such a...
Hard as it might be to fathom in the year 2016, adultery is still illegal in over a dozen states. This includes Virginia, where the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that lawmakers last week killed legislation to decriminalize infidelity. The bill’s...
Business in CA The CALIFORNIA Air Resources Board rejects a proposal from Volkswagen AG for how it plans to fix over 480,000 diesel-engine cars the company is accused of engineering to skirt U.S. air pollution control laws. Regulators deemed the proposed...
In 2005, public outcry over a pay raise Pennsylvania lawmakers voted themselves helped erase it just four months after it took effect and fueled a major purge of both chambers in the next two election cycles. Government reform advocates have marked the...
CONGRESSWOMAN JOINS CROWD SEEKING TN GOVERNORSHIP U.S. Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.), announced this week she will run for governor of TENNESSEE . Black has served as chairwoman of the House Budget Committee, where she has been a strong advocate for cutting...
A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking a Seattle law - the first of its kind in the nation - allowing Uber, Lyft and taxi drivers to unionize and collectively bargain for pay, benefits and working conditions. The law...
The NEW JERSEY Senate approves SB 2617, legislation that would allow environmental and research groups to establish oyster colonies in polluted waters as long as the colonies are invisible to and not easily accessible by the public. It moves to Gov. Chris...
Atlantic City was once the nation’s second-largest gambling market. But that industry and the city’s financial health have crumbled in recent years as newer casinos in New York and Pennsylvania have lured daytrip gamblers away. In 2011...
For years recycling programs have allowed cities, counties and states to improve the environment while saving money on landfill fees and even making money from the sale of recycled materials to processors. But that was made possible by sky high world...
After two years of back and forth negotiations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has given Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) the approval to implement a Medicaid expansion plan that uses federal dollars to buy private health insurance for as...
Gridlock and partisan bickering have come to be expected of Congress, after years of little else, but those characteristics are a bit more surprising to see in a state legislature with a single, nonpartisan chamber and a pragmatic approach to lawmaking...
WY energy revenues well below forecast WYOMING Gov. Matt Mead (R) announced at a news conference last week that the state will likely face a budget shortfall of $100 million to $200 million in the current fiscal year because energy revenues are lagging...
After apparently claiming 15 GOP-held seats in the Virginia House of Delegates in this month’s legislative elections, Democrats only need one more seat to take control of the chamber. The outcome in three districts, however, awaits recounts. And...
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said he will seek to overhaul the Empire State’s bail system that requires defendants accused of nonviolent crimes to post bail in cash or stay locked up in jail. Reform advocates say the system disproportionately...
WY GETS REVENUE BOOST FROM AIRBNB DEAL: WYOMING took in about $1.25 million more in lodging taxes between August and December of last year than it did the year before. A sizeable portion of that increase was due to the tax collection agreement the...
A trio of GOP governors have issued plans to combat ongoing opioid abuse epidemics in their states. Last week, the West Virginia Senate Health Committee reviewed but did not take action on SB 273 , legislation sponsored by Gov. Jim Justice (R) that...
GA GOV EXTENDS VOTER REGISTRATION IN FOUR COUNTIES HIT BY HURRICANE MICHAEL GEORGIA Gov. Nathan Deal (R) issued an executive order last week extending the state’s Oct. 9 voter registration deadline for four counties where Hurricane Michael forced...
The CALIFORNIA Senate approves SB 539, which would prohibit the naming of schools, roads and other public properties after Confederate officials or military leaders. It moves to Gov. Jerry Brown (D) for consideration (SACRAMENTO BEE). Still in CALIFORNIA...
This month, Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) signed legislation requiring the state to implement an online voter registration system by October 2017. The decision was somewhat of a surprise because the bill, SB 228, was sponsored by a Democrat, Sen. Jeff Clemens...
While Chris Christie might have succumbed to the dark side, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has not. No fan of Mr. Trump, Haley has endorsed the presidential candidacy of Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. She has also called on Trump to release his tax returns...
Engulfed in a scandal that has some observers calling for his resignation, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) appointed a 17-person committee comprised of government officials, health and other experts to implement a long-term plan for fixing Flint’s...
Alaska Gov. Bill Walker (I) has cut the oil revenue dividend checks the state’s residents have received every year since 1982 - and that reached a record $2,072 per resident last year - to $1,000. That action was one of $1.3 billion in vetoes the...