KENTUCKY Gov. Steve Beshear (D) said marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in Rowan County are legal in spite of not being signed by the clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue them to those couples. Beshear reiterated he would not call a special session to deal with issue because the Bluegrass State has “117 out of 120 clerks who were complying with the law and doing their duty” (WKYT [LEXINGTON]).
OREGON Governor Kate Brown (D) has released 5,000 emails from a private account used for state business by former Governor John Kitzhaber (D), who resigned in February amid allegations his fiancé had used her connections to him for personal gain. Kitzhaber is facing a criminal corruption investigation. Brown said her office is continuing a review of over 12,000 additional emails and will release more as it is deemed appropriate (REUTERS).
-- Compiled by RICH EHISEN
“Focus on the positive.” It’s practically a mantra these days as individuals strive—in both private and professional lives—to manage stress more effectively. But there are other familiar expressions—like “forewarned is forearmed” and “better safe than sorry”—that remind us that we can’t be so single-minded as to ignore the negative. That’s particularly true for companies when it comes to negative news. News is happening 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and in the digital world, bad news travels quickly. You need due diligence and monitoring tools you can rely on to stay abreast of negative news to mitigate financial and reputational risk.
If you aren’t aware, you can’t prepare. You need to have a clear, consistent monitoring strategy to uncover threats before they’re on your doorstep. Think about the many places beyond your four walls that your company’s reputation or financial security could end up at risk.
By following negative news, you’re able to identify trends with higher risk potential and develop mitigation strategies before an issue turns into a crisis.
According to a research study conducted by The Aberdeen Group in 2012, best-in-class organizations use comprehensive third-party data to enhance their due-diligence research. Instead of relying on the open Web and self-reported data to conduct due diligence, these organizations have access to global media from trusted news, business, legal and analytical content sources. By using alerts and monitoring tools to stay abreast of negative news, these high-performing organizations experience 33 percent fewer catastrophic failures among the third parties they rely on than other organizations. Why? Because proactive monitoring—tracking negative news and risk factors across environmental, financial, legal, political societal/reputation and technical/operational categories—helps them uncover hidden risks earlier and respond faster. And that’s a positive, any way you look at it.
3 Ways to Apply This Information Now
As surprises go, the switcheroo one plucky young man pulled off in the California Capitol last week was a doozy. As the Capitol Morning Report reveals, longtime staffer Amanda Fulkerson, communications director for Assembly Republican Leader Kristen Olsen, thought she was going to Gov. Jerry Brown’s private office to meet up with her boss, where they were supposed to talk with the governor about the state’s ongoing drought. But when she walked in, she was surprised that a) neither Olsen or Brown was there b) she and her boyfriend’s favorite song was playing in the background and c) the big high-back chair Brown usually sits in was turned around so the back was facing the door. Then it got weird. The chair slowly spun around, revealing her boyfriend, a tech CEO from Las Vegas, who dropped to one knee and presented her with a diamond ring and a marriage proposal. Fulkerson is rarely lost for words, and she wasn’t this time either – she said yes.
A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit upholds a lower-court ruling that voided a NEW JERSEY law legalizing sports gambling. The panel ruled that allowing casinos and racetracks to take bets violates federal law. State officials said they would seek to have the full court hear an appeal (NEW YORK TIMES).
The CALIFORNIA Senate approves SB 5b, a special session bill that would require electronic cigarettes to be regulated in the same manner as tobacco products. The measure would ban the use of the e-cigarette devices in the workplace, at schools and other places where cigarettes already are forbidden and require that they be sold in child-resistant packaging. It is now in the Assembly (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET, ASSOCIATED PRESS). The CALIFORNIA Senate also gives final approval to SB 358, a bill that would require women be paid the same wages as men for doing “substantially similar” work (See SNCJ Spotlight in this issue). In the case of gender pay litigation, the bill also requires employers to prove they were paying a male worker more for “legitimate” reasons, such as seniority or merit. The measure heads to Gov. Jerry Brown (D), who has already announced he will sign it into law (SACRAMENTO BEE). The CALIFORNIA Assembly also endorses AB 216, a bill that would ban stores, smoke shops and vape shops from selling any vaping or electronic cigarette device to minors. It moves to Gov. Brown (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) announced the creation of a 21-member task force last week to devise a plan to combat growing opiate abuse in the Hoosier State. The group, made up of state health leaders, law enforcement officials and lawmakers, will make recommendations for improving the state’s response to a dramatic uptick in heroin-relate deaths in rural Indiana. The Hoosier State saw only three heroin-related deaths in 2003; in 2013 it had 152.
At a news conference last Tuesday, Pence said it was time to move away from relying solely on policies that punish drug abusers.
“We simply cannot arrest our way out of this problem,” Pence said. “We have to recognize that we also have to address the root causes of addiction and focus on treatment.”
The task force will help determine how the state spends $30 million in grants allocated in the state budget to help fund mental health and addiction services run by local community corrections, probation and diversion programs. But Pence did not commit to increasing spending on those programs if the task force suggests the state do so, saying he did not want to prejudge recommendations it might come up with.
The task force is expected to have recommendations to Pence early next year. (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE)
States usually complete the process of legislative redistricting shortly after the U.S. Census Bureau updates its population numbers every 10 years. But the remapping based on the last census in 2010 is still dragging on in a few states.
In Florida and Virginia, courts have rejected maps, and lawmakers have failed to agree on replacements. In Alabama, the Legislative Black Caucus has challenged district lines drawn by the Republican majority on the grounds that they reduce the power of minority voters. In Wisconsin, Democrats are claiming the GOP-drawn map there did the same thing to their voters. And in Texas a redistricting case could alter the “one man, one vote” standard set by the 1964 U.S. Supreme Court decision of Reynolds v. Sims.
“There are more cases at this time, post-2010 redistricting, than there have been in quite some time, certainly more than there were a decade or 20 years ago,” said Jeffrey Wice, a redistricting attorney who has been involved in the remap process in a number of states.
Wice said one of the reasons for the increased amount of litigation over redistricting is that Republicans’ domination of many statehouses has emboldened them to draw maps that more aggressively favor their party. Technology is also a factor, with mapmaking software now allowing lawmakers to carve up populations more precisely than ever, and email allowing lawyers and judges to scrutinize the intent of lawmakers when drawing maps. (STATELINE.ORG)
For the last month Texas’ Public Utility Commission has been pondering the complex financial structure of Energy Future Holdings. Buried by $40 billion in debt, the company filed for Chapter 11 protection last year, one of the largest bankruptcy filings in U.S. history. Of particular concern to the Texas PUC’s three commissioners, the company owns Luminant, the state’s biggest energy generator; TXU Energy, the state’s biggest retail electricity provider; and Oncor, a monopoly utility that serves over 3 million homes and businesses in northern and western Texas.
Dallas oil and real-estate mogul Ray L. Hunt has proposed a restructuring deal that would give him and several partners control of Oncor, Energy Future’s only consistently profitable asset, and spin off the conglomerate’s electric generation business to its creditors.
“Today’s filing is a significant step forward in helping to ensure that Oncor has the resources and Texas-based management required to continue meeting the needs of its customers and its communities,” Hunt said in a statement last month.
Hunt’s plan would reorganize Oncor into a real estate investment trust - basically dividing it into two companies, one that owns the assets and the other that operates the equipment and deals with customers - to save on federal income taxes. The real estate world has relied on that financial structure for years, but it’s virtually unheard of in the energy world.
If U.S. District Judge Christopher Sontchi approves the deal, however, the PUC will have 180 days to sign off on it. So PUC staffers have been poring over previous court cases in preparation for that eventuality.
“This is a case that’s going to be taught in law classes for the next several years,” said PUC Commissioner Marty Marquez. (TEXAS TRIBUNE)
Five states have enacted laws this session aimed at narrowing the wage gender gap, according to the American Association of University Women. Equal pay measures are also awaiting gubernatorial action in two states and are still pending in one other. And although 21 states considered equal pay measures that ultimately failed, in four of those states the bills passed the first house and the AAUW expects them to be reintroduced.
Source: American Association of University Women
When President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in June 1963, lawmakers believed the measure would ensure the simplest of concepts: that female workers would be paid the same as their male colleagues for doing the same work. But while the gender pay gap has narrowed, more than five decades later female workers are still searching for full income parity with men.
In 1963, women employees were paid roughly 59 cents for every dollar men made. Today, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, that gap has closed to about 78 cents on the dollar, though the disparity varies greatly from state to state. According to research done by the American Association of University Women, as of 2013 female workers in the District of Columbia were paid 91 percent of what men were paid, while for women in New York the figure was 85 percent. On the other end of the spectrum, for women in Louisiana the rate was just 66 percent; in Wyoming, which has the next widest gap, it was 69 percent.
Experts have pointed to various reasons why such gaps exist, most notably that women often gravitate toward careers such as teaching and social work that pay less than those men have historically gone into. According to studies done by Pew Research, kids also play a significant role, as women are much more prone than men to leave the workforce for long periods of time when they become parents. Women also still bear the brunt of child rearing duties, making higher paying jobs that require long hours with inflexible schedules less of an option. One Harvard University study in fact shows that gender pay gaps are much smaller in jobs with the most schedule flexibility.
Less easily explained, however, is research that shows the pay gap often widening as workers age. Another recent study by economists at the New York Federal Reserve noted that among recent college graduates with similar degrees, women not only experienced a much lower pay gap, they often made even more money than their male counterparts. But by the time those workers get into their 30s and 40s, “males earn a more substantial premium in nearly every major.” While issues surrounding parenting might explain some of that developmental disparity, there are other factors at play as well. A 2014 Glamour magazine study of 2,000 men and women revealed that only 39 percent of women had asked for a raise when starting a new job, while 54 percent of men had. Only 43 percent of women had in fact ever asked for a raise at any time in their career, with men again doing so at a 54 percent clip.
The disparity also disproportionately impacts women of color. According to U.S. Census data, African-American women are paid only 64 percent of what white males are paid; for Hispanic women the rate drops to just 54 percent. Asian women, by contrast, fare much better, garnering 90 percent of what their male colleagues are paid.
Whatever the reasons, says Barbara O’Connor, Emeritus Director for the Institute of Politics and Media at California State University Sacramento and a member of the AARP national board of directors, “the data is overwhelming” that women are harmed by these disparities, particularly in retirement. How so? According to data from the National Women’s Law Center, based on current wage disparity figures a woman working a full-time, year-around job would lose approximately $435,000 in income over a 40-year career, a gap she would have to work 11 years longer to close. Lower lifetime earnings also mean a much lower Social Security benefit, about $5,000 on average less per year than the benefit a man in a similar career would receive, and about half the retirement savings in IRA, 401(k) or other pension accounts than men accumulate. Considering that more women than ever are also the lone breadwinner in their household, or in a two-income family where both salaries are needed to make ends meet, O’Connor says it is clear “this is an issue not only of fairness but of economic viability.”
To that end, gender pay advocates have been pushing Congress for years to pass legislation known as the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would eliminate loopholes in the Equal Pay Act and give women more power to negotiate better salaries throughout their careers, predominantly by requiring employers to prove that wage discrepancies between male and female workers are due to legitimate business qualifications and not based on gender. It would also bar companies from retaliating against employees who ask co-workers about their pay or who raise complaints or questions about perceived inequities in the workplace. While versions of the legislation have twice passed the House of Representatives since 2009, both times GOP-led filibusters in the Senate led to the bill’s demise. Current legislation (US SB 862/HB 1619) is currently floundering in committees in both houses.
Action has been far more plentiful in statehouses, where according to LexisNexis State Net at least 28 states have introduced pay equity bills this year. Five of those states – Illinois, Connecticut, North Dakota, Oregon and Delaware - have adopted measures that contain elements of the Paycheck Fairness Act, including bans on employer retaliation in Connecticut and Oregon, and using non-work related reasons to justify wage discrepancies in North Dakota. Similar bills are awaiting gubernatorial action in California (SB 358 and AB 1017) and New York (SB 1), with both expected to be signed into law. And while they were ultimately not successful, bills cleared at least one chamber in four other states.
It is virtually a sure thing in California, where Gov. Jerry Brown (D) publicly noted the week before the final vote that he intended to sign SB 358 if it got to him. It was a rare break from Brown’s usual protocol of not commenting on legislation that has not reached his desk. That was not surprising to AARP’s O’Connor, who has known Brown for over 40 years.
“It’s an issue he has a long history with,” she says. “He believes the law will help individual women, which is the kind of bill he would support.”
It also drew strong support from two factions that have not traditionally supported such measures: legislative Republicans and the California Chamber of Commerce, which worked with bill author Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D) to streamline elements regarding the conditions under which men might be paid more. The bill eventually garnered almost unanimous approval in both houses, drawing vocal support along the way from Assembly Republican Leader Kristin Olsen along the way.
“It is shocking that in 2015, we’re still having to have bills like this and press conferences like this to achieve pay equity in the workplace,” Olsen told reporters at a news conference in August.
The result is one many observers believe is the toughest in the nation because it broadens the “equal pay for equal work” standard to include work that is “substantially similar” even if it carries a different job title or is performed in a different location, as long as it is for the same employer. The law also requires employers in pay discrimination lawsuits to prove that a wage difference between male and female employees was due to factors like education, experience or additional training rather than gender. It additionally bars employers from retaliating against employees who ask about and discuss salary issues with other employees, or who testify in discrimination suits.
“That kind of transparency is huge,” says Lisa Maatz, Vice President of Government Relations for the American Association of University Women. “Workers being able to talk about their pay with each other is in fact one of the biggest ways that people find out there is a wage disparity.”
While SB 358 has received most of the media attention, it was not the only wage parity bill before California lawmakers. Last week, they also approved AB 1017, which would bar employers from asking job applicants about their salary history, something Maatz says keeps salaries for female workers artificially low.
“Discrimination can definitely follow a woman around,” she says. “If a woman’s first salary is set low, it can impact their salary for the rest of their careers.”
With Congress otherwise occupied, the action on pay equity appears likely to stay at the state level for a while. One additional measure - AB 1354, which would require state vendors to comply with a state wage nondiscrimination policy - is still pending in California, with two measures similar to SB 358 (HB 1733 and SB 983) pending in Massachusetts. And with California moving ahead in such an overwhelmingly bipartisan way, Maatz is hopeful that the standing orthodoxy that Republicans will not support them has been overcome.
“This is not now and should not ever be a partisan issue,” she says. “It’s an economic issue. And it’s good for business because when people are paid fairly they have more money to buy your product.”
Democrats are used to having their way in the California Legislature, but for the last 13 years it has been quite a different story on the softball field. Every year since 2002, the Republicans have kicked the Dems’ fannies in the annual charity softball game. But last week, Dems finally stopped playing the role of the Washington Generals, rising up to beat the Republicans 24-10. Afterward, several lawmakers revived last year’s popular ice bucket challenge by dropping buckets of ice water on their heads to raise awareness about ALS before heading over to the beer garden for some revelry with their colleagues. While disappointed with the loss, Reeps were hardly crestfallen. As GOP Assemblyman Travis Allen told the Capitol Morning Report, “They played real well, so if they win once every 14 years, we can handle that.”
ILLINOIS Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) signs SB 627, legislation that bars drivers with two or more drunk driving convictions from operating a vehicle unless it has an ignition interlock device installed (DECATUR HERALD & REVIEW).
Illinois Gov. Brue Rauner (R) scored the biggest victory of his administration last week as Democrats came up three votes short of overriding his veto of a union-backed bill (SB 1229) that would have ensured labor disputes are determined through binding arbitration. Rauner has made weakening labor unions a major part of his agenda.
The battle over the union bill had become a test of wills between Rauner and House Speaker Michael Madigan (D). The vote broke almost exclusively on party lines, with no Republicans supporting an override. Only one Democrat, Rep, Scott Drury, voted against the override, with one other voting “present.” A third, Rep. Ken Dunkin, was absent, something Madigan noted afterward.
“Had Dunkin been here, there would have been 71. He should have been here voting on labor peace,” Madigan said at a press conference after the vote.
Rauner said he vetoed the measure because it would have left the outcome of labor negotiations in the hands of an arbitrator who does not have to answer to voters. (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER [SPRINGFIELD])
House Democrats in New Mexico are saying they will initiate impeachment proceedings against Secretary of State Dianna Duran (R) unless she resigns from office over allegations that she used campaign funds for personal expenses, including gambling.
House Speaker Don Tripp (R) called the talk of impeachment premature.
I’m confident the secretary of state will take personal responsibility for any mistakes she made,” he said.
Duran’s lawyer, meanwhile, said Duran intends to fight the charges.
“Let there be no doubt that Ms. Duran will plead not guilty to the attorney general’s sensational and misleading charges and will vigorously fight this selective prosecution,” attorney Erlinda Johnson wrote in an email. Duran is the first Republican secretary of state in New Mexico in 80 years. (ALBUQUERQUE TRIBUNE)
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said last month that New Jersey owes the federal government $32.2 million for improper Medicaid reimbursement claims filed for home care services by officials in the state. An audit found that 17 claims out of a random selection of 100 filed between August 2008 and December 2011 lacked required doctor certifications, nurse assessments and personalized care plans, among other things. The proposed $32.2 million penalty is an extrapolation of that flawed claim rate to the $393 million in federal Medicaid reimbursements made to the state.
New Jersey officials have disputed several of the HHS findings, and Valerie Harr, director of the state’s Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services, also said the sample size should have been larger, “given the large number of agencies delivering personal care services and the enormous variability in error estimates over time and across agencies.” Over 18 million claims for home care services, including meal preparation and medication management, were filed by 266 agencies during the audited period.
The HHS’ findings marked the second time in recent years that federal officials have raised concerns about claims filed by New Jersey officials for home care services. A previous audit called for the state to return $145 million in federal Medicaid payments. The findings are also likely to add to the growing concern about fraud in home care services nationwide, with the rapid growth of the industry over the last decade due to policy changes that have directed more resources into trying to keep older and disabled residents in their homes. In June, 800 agencies in Texas were accused of filing $712 million in claims for non-existent Medicare treatment.
Home care experts say federal and state regulations are very clear about the need to document all care provided.
“Every person involved has the responsibility to document care directly related to the patient,” said Karen McCoy, director of professional development and support at the Home Care and Hospice Association of New Jersey. “The old adage is if you didn’t document it, you didn’t do it.” (GOVERNING, THE HILL)
CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown signs SB 725, which suspends for the class of 2015 a state requirement that all graduating students take the high school exit exam. State education officials cancelled the test earlier this year, leaving about 5,000 students unable to officially graduate. The law allows those students who’ve fulfilled all other graduation requirements to receive their diplomas (SACRAMENTO BEE). Also in CALIFORNIA, lawmakers give final approval to AB 721, which among several things requires schools to openly publish statistics on student loan debt on graduates and to provide students information concerning unused state and federal financial assistance and to inform students they may be eligible for federal student loans at participating institutions and Cal Grants and federal student aid. It moves to Gov. Brown for consideration (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
NORTH DAKOTA Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R) signs off on a new rule issued by the state Education Standards and Practices Board that allows schools to hire community experts to temporarily fill vacant teaching positions (BISMARCK TRIBUNE).
ILLINOIS Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) signs HB 152, which requires schools to install carbon monoxide detectors in each campus building. The law goes into effect on Jan. 1 (SOUTHERN [CARBONDALE]). Also in ILLINOIS, Gov, Rauner signs SB 100, which ends “zero tolerance” suspensions and expulsions and requires schools to use all other means of intervention before they suspend or expel students. The bill also bans fees and fines for misbehavior and mandates that schools inform parents about the disciplinary measures being used on their children (ISCHOOLGUIDE.COM).
Lobbyists and political action committees associated with four companies awarded contracts to manage IOWA’s $4.2 billion Medicaid program donated nearly $68,000 to top IOWA elected officials, including Gov. Terry Branstad (R). But $57,000 in contributions were also made by companies that failed to win contracts (DES MOINES REGISTER).
A group backing a proposal to limit the terms of service for appointees of hundreds of state boards in UTAH has filed suit in the state’s Supreme Court seeking authority to proceed with its petition drive. Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox (R) stopped that drive before it started with a ruling in July saying it was “patently unconstitutional” (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, LEXISNEXIS STATE NET)
- Compiled by KOREY CLARK
Population loss is nothing new to rural America. But it’s a trend that’s on the rise. Between 1994 and 2010, 759 rural counties in 42 states lost population, but since 2010 over 1,300 rural counties in 46 states have lost population, according to analysis by Stateline. And that’s a problem for some local communities.
“[Population losses] are immediately a slap to the local funding base for rural counties, because of the loss of property taxes,” said Arthur Scott of the National Association of Counties (NACo).
Consequently states with declining rural populations have been trying to stem or replace the losses. For instance, Kansas is offering income tax breaks to people who move to rural counties with population losses, and Nebraska has started accepting applications for enterprise zones to encourage business development in areas with declining populations.
Shrinking rural communities are also looking for ways to cut costs. Colorado has tried shifting schools online, and Michigan and North Dakota have reverted from paved to gravel roads to save on maintenance costs. The NACo’s Scott said counties are also “regionalizing and sharing resources in the face of this rural flight, which is the longterm impact when the younger generation just leaves after college, because there’s no job opportunities that make it fiscally viable for you to return back home.” (STATELINE.ORG)
It hasn’t been a good year for a few Missouri lawmakers. Two Show Me State legislators this year have been forced to step down after revelations of their wildly inappropriate behavior toward or with young interns working in their offices. But never fear – the powers that be are working on a fix. Given the latest news, however, one must wonder if they really grasp what that means. As the Kansas City Star reports, among the suggestions for getting their colleagues to rein in their libidos was to institute a dress code...wait for it...for the interns! Yes, the answer to keeping the adults who should know better from hitting on the mostly teenage interns is making sure the young ‘uns don’t wear something that makes the old guys act like randy teenagers themselves. The ensuing outcry forced House Speaker Todd Richardson to announce last week they will not be adopting a new dress code for anyone. (Sound of palm slapping forehead).
- By RICH EHISEN
The CALIFORNIA Assembly approves SB 185, which would require the California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Retirement System (CalSTRS), the two largest public pension funds in the nation, to divest holdings in thermal coal operations. CalPERS and CalSTRS have $292 billion and $191 billion in assets, respectively, as of August 2015. The measure moves to Gov. Jerry Brown (D) for consideration (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
This year’s race for the Republican presidential candidacy started out with many (perhaps too many) candidates vying for attention and splitting media coverage. Enter Donald Trump who quickly captured the attention of the media, voters and few late-night comics. Will it last? Time will tell, but let’s take a peek at some of the most recent trends.
In May, there was no clear frontrunner. In June, Trump announced his run for the Republican presidential nomination. The media noticed. His bold claims and outspoken remarks have continued to keep him in the spotlight. By July, Trump was the top story, and polls were showing him taking the lead.
The week of August 31st garnered Trumps fewest media mentions to date, but the level of media attention was still above his competition. If media coverage influences presidential elections and candidate viability, it is no surprise that Trump has led and is currently leading the pack.
Can he win? Article sentiment for Trump indicates that he is quite divisive. While some mentions were neutral, there were many articles taking a positive or negative stance with those who appreciate and others appalled by his willingness to speak his mind and share his often unconventional stances.
To maintain and improve Trump's reputation in the news, his team of advisors is no doubt monitoring the media, analyzing the competition, and tracking trends to ensure they are prepared for the twists and turns that will come.
Can Trump sustain his lead? Few early frontrunners are sworn in as President of the United States, and polls show Ben Carson gaining ground. This we know for sure: It is going to be an entertaining campaign, and we'll be tracking the media coverage and watching this campaign closely.
ALABAMA Gov. Robert Bentley (R) said last month that he would call lawmakers into special session on Sept. 8 to deal with the state’s $200 million budget shortfall (MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER, LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
LOUISIANA held its annual sales tax holiday on guns, ammunition and other hunting supplies on Sept. 4-6. The so-called “Second Amendment” sales tax holiday was initially put into place by the state’s Legislature in 2009 (TIMES-PICAYUNE [NEW ORLEANS]).
Just a week before the end of the legislative session, California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) is working on wide-ranging legislation that would establish a framework for regulating the state’s medical marijuana industry. Lawmakers gutted and amended several current regulation bills last week, giving Brown an entry point for a more comprehensive proposal aimed at ending decades of court battles over regulation of the state’s medical cannabis industry (SACRAMENTO BEE).
All six New England governors signed a letter last week urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to change labels for fast-release opioid drugs to ensure patients and doctors understand the risk of addiction, overdose, neonatal abstinence syndrome and death associated with the drugs. The governors said the labels were already required for extended- and long-acting opioids (WCVB-TV [BOSTON]).
The Supreme Court of the United States overturned without comment a lower court ruling that ordered former VIRGINIA Gov. Robert McDonnell (R) to return to prison while pursuing an appeal of his conviction on multiple corruption charges (USA TODAY).
VIRGINIA Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) issued Executive Order 6 last week, a directive that directs state technology officials to fully review the state’s cybersecurity risk management stance. The same day, CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) issued EO B 34-15, which orders the state to establish the California Cybersecurity Integration Center (Cal-CSIC), which will be responsible for strengthening the state's cybersecurity strategy and improving inter-agency, cross-sector coordination to reduce the likelihood and severity of cyber-attacks (GOVERNMENT TECHNOLOGY, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S OFFICE).
A court in ALASKA rejects a request by Republican lawmakers to stay the expansion of Medicaid in the Last Frontier State ordered by Gov. Bill Walker (I). Superior Court Judge Frank Pfiffner rejected the request by the Alaska Legislative Council to halt the expansion while its legal challenge moves through the court system, saying the lawmakers didn’t make the case that an injunction was needed to prevent “irreparable harm” to the Council or the state (JUNEAU ENTERPRISE).
The CALIFORNIA Assembly gives final endorsement to AB 159, so-called “right to try” legislation that would allow terminally ill patients access to medications not yet approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It moves to Gov. Jerry Brown (D) for consideration (LEXISNEXIS STATE NET).
The Supreme Court of the United States rejects a request to overturn a lower court’s ruling requiring a county clerk in KENTUCKY to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples or face fines or jail time. The SCOTUS upheld rulings by both a federal district court and the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Bluegrass State officials are now considering whether to charge the clerk with official misconduct (LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER).