Investment returns for large public pension plans in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2015 were significantly lower than the plans’ assumed rates of return, according to money management news source Pensions & Investments . The one-year return...
In the four years since Wyoming became the first and only state to tax wind power, it has taken in a little under $15 million from that revenue source. That’s not nearly enough to offset the hit the state’s budget has taken from the simultaneous...
Louisiana lawmakers passed a budget in June that is expected to keep the state in the black for the rest of the current fiscal year, which began July 1, as well as next year. But because that spending plan relies heavily on temporary tax increases, including...
In an effort to persuade the remaining 19 states that haven’t expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act to do so, President Obama has proposed granting those mostly Republican-led states full federal funding of that expansion for three years...
Medical Marijuana Could Give Big Budget Boost to OH Annual medical marijuana sales in OHIO , legalized by Gov. John Kasich’s (R) signing of HB 523 in June, could reach $400 million in two or three years, making the state one of the nation’s...
More than 100 prominent Republicans have signed an open letter to Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, urging him to divert all the money currently going to presidential candidate Donald Trump to vulnerable GOP Congressional...
As the Cap J reported in its last issue , a federal judge approved a plan this month that will allow Texans without government-issued IDs to vote in the November election if they sign a declaration of citizenship and present proof of residence, such as...
Federal Govt Offers to Help States Guard Against Election Tampering In response to recent allegations from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that the American voting system is open to fraud, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson...
California’s efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions will undoubtedly continue for the foreseeable future. But whether the Golden State’s cap-and-trade program survives past 2020 is far more in question. Last Monday, Brown quietly proposed...
In the wake of the fatal shooting of a police officer, New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez (R) said she will push lawmakers to resurrect the death penalty for those who kill police or children during the next legislative session. Martinez pushed to bring...
Christie Denies Role in Trump Tax Deal NEW JERSEY Gov. Chris Christie (R) denied any involvement in a 2011 tax settlement deal between Garden State officials and GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump that allowed his Atlantic City casino to pay only...
New Jersey Signs SB 1923 NEW JERSEY Gov. Chris Christie (R) signs SB 1923 , legislation that bars the state’s public worker pension fund from investing in companies that refuse to do business with Israel. The Garden State becomes the third state...
California Approves SB 443 The CALIFORNIA Assembly approves SB 443 , which would shield people arrested for but not convicted of crimes from having police seize less than $40,000 of their cash assets. The bill returns to the Senate (SACRAMENTO BEE...
California Approves SB 1257 The CALIFORNIA Senate gives final approval to SB 1257 , which would require Golden State law students to perform a minimum of 50 hours of pro bono legal work before being allowed to take the bar exam. The measure moves to...
Health & Science In The US The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9 th Circuit rules that the U.S. Department of Justice cannot prosecute those who grow, supply or use marijuana for medical purposes in states that have legalized such use. The court...
Social Policy In Florida U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle makes permanent an injunction blocking a FLORIDA law that would have barred all state funding to clinics like Planned Parenthood and required the inspection of as many as 35,000 women’s...
California Approves SB 1062 The CALIFORNIA Senate gives final approval to SB 1062 , which would ban the use of bull hooks, baseball bats and other instruments meant to cause pain in the training of elephants. Violators face fines up to $10,000. The...
If you are looking for the most unnecessary piece of legislation going, we have a nominee for you. As the Los Angeles Times reports , the California Senate last week approved AB 1687 , a bill that would bar employment sites for actors from disclosing...
California state Sen. Bob Hertzberg is fond of dropping Yiddish words and phrases into his public discourse. Recent examples include referring to the “shpilkes” – or restlessness – that local officials have felt since the state...
It sounded like a good plan at the time. California Republicans, irritated at the failure of majority Democrats to come up with a plan to address the Golden State’s perpetually clogged roadways, developed a campaign to foster public support for...
Earlier this year, Pew Research announced, “Millennials, who already have surpassed Baby Boomers as the United States’ largest living generation, now have caught up to the Boomers when it comes to their share of the American electorate.”...
There are always lessons to be taken from which people, places and events are getting the most media coverage. A major sporting event such as the Olympic Games provides a great chance to focus in on the athletes, countries and companies involved. The...
“Americans are embracing philanthropy at a higher level than ever before,” said Giving USA Foundation Chair W. Keith Curtis in a statement accompanying the release of the Giving USA 2016: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2015...
Do you have a fact-checking obsession? In today’s hyperbolic media landscape, it seems, fact-checking is de rigueur. That’s good news, according to the Poynter Institute —an organization dedicated to “the elevation of journalism...
The Rio 2016 Olympic Games came to a close with a spectacular ceremony last weekend, and the Paralympics will begin next month. The historic achievements of Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps have grabbed most of the headlines over the last month. But alongside...