California Signs AB 1178 CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs AB 1178 , which will require colleges to send students personalized reports detailing their cumulative loan amounts and the percentage of federal borrowing limits they have reached (LOS...
Texas Approves HB 62 The TEXAS House approves HB 62 , which would ban Lone Star State motorists from texting while behind the wheel. It needs one more affirmative vote in the House before it can move to the Senate (AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN). ...
AR Approves SB 600 The ARKANSAS House approves SB 600, which would create a two-year pilot program to drug test welfare recipients. It returns to the Senate (ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE [LITTLE ROCK]). MT Rejects HB 477 The MONTANA Senate Judiciary...
We all get them. We all hate them - the dreaded mass response to an email. Instead of replying only to the sender, some goof always hits “reply all,” sharing their thoughts with every person on the email and thus beginning a chain of messages...
Vulnerable incumbents in the U.S. House are bolstering their campaign accounts in anticipation of an impending Supreme Court decision that could force state legislatures to redraw congressional districts in 13 states or more, possibly before elections...
IN Vetoes HB 1270 Gov. Mike Pence (R) vetoes HB 1270, a bill that would have allowed state residents to use advance deposit wagering to bet on horse races. Advance deposit wagering allows bettors to deposit funds into an account and then place pari...
CA Gov Wants Plan for Climate Change CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) sent an open letter last week to the 17 Republican presidential aspirants asking them to lay out a detailed plan for combatting climate change. “Longer fire seasons, extreme...
SC House Approves HB 3529 The SOUTH CAROLINA House approves HB 3529 , a bill that would bar local municipalities from enacting bans on the use of plastic bags. It moves to the Senate [POST & COURIER [CHARLESTON]).
Age limits are forcing three current members of the Florida Supreme Court to retire in January, but the choice of who will fill their seats will belong to the next governor, not current Gov. Rick Scott (R). In what is widely viewed as a rebuke to Scott...
GA GOV PROPOSES HURRICANE RELIEF MEASURES: GEORGIA Gov. Nathan Deal (R) proposed $200 million in income tax credits last week for landowners in the southwestern part of the state who replant trees destroyed by Hurricane Michael last month. The incentive...
CA Assembly Approves AB 1097 The CALIFORNIA Assembly approves AB 1097 , which would ban smoking at all of the state’s public parks and beaches. It moves to the Senate (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET). CA Assembly Approves AB 319 The CALIFORNIA ,...
MD Senate Approves SB 2 and HB 1 The MARYLAND Senate approves SB 2 , a bill that would eliminate parental rights of rapists over children conceived through rape. The House approves its own version ( HB 1 ) a day later. The two chambers must now approve...
NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signs SB 4327, which allows Empire State restaurant goers to have their dogs with them at outdoor dining locations, provided the eatery allows it and that the animal does not have to walk through the building to get to the...
Bentley Weighing Medicaid Expansion ALABAMA Gov. Robert Bentley (R) said his administration is pondering expanding Medicaid eligibility. Bentley, who is a doctor, said he was concerned about the health care access for the state’s working poor...
Environment In CA CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs a plethora of environmental bills, including: SB 185, which requires the state’s two massive public employee pension funds – the California Public Employee Retirement System and the...
Last Tuesday, Michigan voters rejected Proposition 1, the transportation funding measure put before them by Gov. Rick Snyder (R) and state legislative leaders. Voters made it very clear how they felt about the complicated plan, which included higher vehicle...
Every state works hard to get tourists to come their way. A common tool these days is a cool video that shows folks just how awesome their state is. So it was with much glee that Rhode Island officials released such a video online last week. Alas, as...
NY AG SEEKS AUTHORITY TO PROSECUTE PRESIDENTIAL PARDONEES: NEW YORK Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is seeking to change the state’s double jeopardy law to exempt cases involving presidential pardons. The change, if approved by the state’s...
And speaking of Gov. Justice, let’s just say he knows how to make an impression. When lawmakers sent the gov a budget he didn’t like, he decided it was the perfect time to go big or go home. As the McClatchy News Service reports , Justice...
COST OF FIGHTING WILDFIRES SETS ANOTHER RECORD IN OR Fighting wildfires has cost OREGON a record $514.6 million in 2018. The state’s previous record of $447 million was set just last year. (ASSOCIATED PRESS) VA CLIMATE CHANGE PLAN STILL...
On June 21 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in South Dakota v. Wayfair Inc. that online retailers can be required to collect sales taxes in states where they don’t have a physical presence. The 5-4 decision reversed the court’s 1992 ruling in...
Democrats claimed three of the four House seats contested in a special election in Kentucky last Tuesday, likely assuring the chamber will remain the last under Democratic control in the South at least until the November elections. The Democrats...
Malloy Cancels State Worker Pay Raises CONNECTICUT Gov. Dannel Malloy (D) is cancelling previously-scheduled pay raises for nearly 2,000 non-union state government workers in management positions because of the state’s ongoing budget woes. Malloy’s...
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) blocked $1.5 million in state funding for courts, crime victim services and other programs in Austin, the state’s most liberal city, after the city’s sheriff, Sally Hernandez, a Democrat, announced that jails there...
Flanked by House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello (D) and Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed (D), Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) unveiled a $1.1 billion plan to rebuild or repair hundreds of Ocean State decaying bridges. Under the proposal, the state would...