A win by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Election Day could result in a U.S. economy that is $1 trillion smaller in 2021 than it would be if Democrat Hillary Clinton were elected, according to analysis by Oxford Economics, an economic...
DEMS CLAIM 3/4 MAJORITY IN CA ASSEMBLY Democrats won 60 seats in the CALIFORNIA Assembly in the 2018 election, giving them a historic three-quarters majority in the 80-seat chamber. The Assembly Democratic caucus will be the largest since the state...
After picking up over 200 state legislative seats in the 2018 midterm elections, women now hold 2,112 legislative seats nationwide, nearly 29 percent of the 7,383 total, a record high, according to data from the Center for American Women and Politics...
The Democrats who won seats in the U.S. House last week and helped their party take control of that chamber may have women voters to thank for those accomplishments. A solid majority of female voters, 59 percent, cast ballots for the Democratic...
Thirteen states, led by California, are engaged in what promises to be a protracted conflict with the Trump administration over stricter emission and fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks. Following up on his campaign promises, President...
Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger once famously complained that in the Golden State folks are even taxed for flushing the toilet. While that’s not actually true, state regulators are apparently considering a tax on something almost as...
CRITICS ASSAIL NJ DEMS REDISTRICTING PROPOSAL Government watchdog groups, civil rights organizations and redistricting experts are criticizing a Democratic proposal in NEW JERSEY that seeks to change the state constitution to entrench the party’s...
Seeking to address rising health costs, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) has proposed reinstating a law that would fine employers for not offering health care insurance to their workers. Baker’s proposal would also cap payments to some health...
CA Assembly Approves AB 949 & Endorses AB 288 The CALIFORNIA Assembly approves AB 949, which would make competitive cheerleading an official interscholastic sport. It moves to the Senate (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET). Also in CALIFORNIA , the Assembly...
John Chiang isn’t the only gubernatorial candidate trying to stand out in a crowded field. The Kansas governor’s race has drawn at least 20 people and one dog. Wait, what? Yes, as the Hutchinson News reports , Angus P. Woolley wants his shot...
Total spending across all 50 states last fiscal year exceeded $2 trillion, a new high, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers . The record spending was driven largely by a bump in income tax revenues, resulting from last year’s...
New Hampshire was the most “service-level solvent” state in fiscal year 2014, meaning it had the most “fiscal slack” to raise taxes or increase spending in an economic downturn, according to a study by the Mercatus Center at George...
ABBOTT PITCHES TIGHTER TX TEACHER SCREENING : Responding to a spike in the number of Lone Star State teachers entering into relationships with students, TEXAS Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has proposed creating a “do not hire” list for educators...
Sixteen states have introduced bills this year dealing with prohibitions against labor contracts requiring workers to pay union dues or other fees as a condition of employment, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures’ labor union...
The employment rate for Americans of prime working age - those between the ages of 25 and 54 - which fell to 4.9 percent during the recession, reached an estimated 78.2 percent in January, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Economists consider...
Between 2014 and 2015 death rates due to opioid overdose rose by over 25 percent - more than twice the national average (11 percent) - in five states and the District of Columbia. The five states with the highest opioid death rates in 2015 were West Virginia...
This week states will begin divvying up nearly $60 million in federal funds to combat the ongoing spread of the Zika virus, which can cause devastating birth defects in children born to mothers who have been infected. While not insignificant, that sum...
To stimulate America’s economy, President-elect Donald Trump wants to cut personal income and business taxes by about $6 trillion over the next decade, a little more than 10 percent of federal revenues. That plan seems to be music to the ears of...
Taking advantage of state candidacy laws that set no minimum age or residency requirements, seven minors have filed to run for governor in Kansas. They are just a portion of at least 20 people – and one dog - that have filed paperwork to run for...
Last year Louisiana became the first state to pass a law extending hate crime protections, like those granted to people of color and members of the LGBTQ community, to law enforcement officers. And four other states have enacted such “Blue Lives...
The Colorado House Finance Committee has unanimously approved legislation ( HB 1240 ) that would codify a controversial rule change announced last year by the state’s Department of Revenue establishing a destination-based sales tax system. ...
Eighteen legislative chambers in 13 states are vulnerable to a shift of party control in the November elections, according to Tim Storey of the National Conference of State Legislatures. Twelve of those chambers are currently held by Republicans, while...
To anyone who has watched the national political culture split into two poles over the last decade or so, it should be little surprise that the country is moving in opposite directions on so-called sanctuary cities, those which bar local officials from...
Twenty-one predominantly Republican-governed states have filed a federal lawsuit challenging a new Obama administration rule extending mandatory overtime pay to millions of American workers. The rule, which was finalized in May and takes effect in December...
Saying “we’ve got the firepower,” California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) told a gathering of scientists on Wednesday that his state is ready to fight back against anticipated efforts by the incoming Trump administration to impede or halt their...