On November 3, 2015, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the hiring of Hui Chen as a full-time compliance expert for its Fraud Section. Chen previously served as the Global Head for Anti-Bribery and Corruption at Standard Chartered Bank, implementing...
While the United States and other world powers have lifted oil and financial sanctions on Iran, several states continue to adhere to their own bans on investing or doing business with companies with ties to the country. Although international inspectors...
Amidst a chorus of boos from protestors, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) unveiled his $54.9 billion FY 2017 budget proposal to lawmakers, a plan that includes $195 million to address the ongoing water contamination crisis in Flint. That funding would be...
Wolf Calls PA Finances ‘Ticking Time Bomb’ PENNSYLVANIA Gov. Tom Wolf (D) warned lawmakers last week that the Keystone State’s finances are a ticking “time bomb” leading the state toward “a fiscal catastrophe the...
Days after sending lawmakers a State of the State letter in which he repeatedly railed against “socialist politicians,” Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) said he would forgo the state’s official nomination process for selecting a new education...
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Justice Fernande Duffly revealed last week she would soon step down, becoming the third justice in the last week to announce their retirement. Duffly, 66, said she would leave the bench in July, four years before reaching...
IN Lt. Gov. Steps Down INDIANA Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann (R) announced last week she will not join Gov. Mike Pence (R) in his bid for re-election, and will instead resign her office this month in preparation for becoming president of the Hoosier State’s...
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) issued a set of rules last week aimed at ending the use of so-called “gay conversion” therapy in the Empire State. The controversial practice is used by some therapists in an effort to change the sexual orientation...
In baseball terms, folks looking to recall Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) have started out in a deep slump. Last week, the Michigan Board of State Canvassers unanimously approved for circulation a petition seeking to recall Snyder for his 2015 decision...
Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) said he wants to scale back a plan build a statewide high-speed broadband network to instead focus just on Eastern Kentucky. Bevin said the plan, which began under former Gov. Steve Beshear (D), was originally intended to...
Broadband isn’t the only signature program of his predecessor’s that Gov. Bevin is looking to dismantle. He has also made clear his intention to scale back the state’s Medicaid expansion, though he has revised his original call to completely...
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D) proposed offering six weeks of paid leave for new parents in state employ, the first move in what is expected to be an effort by DFL lawmakers to pass legislation providing the same benefit to all Gopher State workers. Under...
Markell Issues Slavery Apology DELAWARE Gov. Jack Markell (D) signed House Joint Resolution 10, which apologizes for the First State’s role in the slave trade in America and for other wrongs committed against African Americans during the Jim...
The WEST VIRGINIA Senate approves HB 4005, which would eliminate the Mountain State’s prevailing wage law, which allows the state to determine hourly pay for all job categories on all large projects paid for entirely with taxpayer dollars. It moves...
Crime & Punishment in MD The MARYLAND General Assembly overrides a veto by Gov. Larry Hogan (R) of a bill that restores voting rights to felons before they finish parole or probation (WASHINGTON POST). Crime & Punishment in KS The KANSAS...
The Supreme Court of the United States issues a temporary injunction blocking a plan by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to lower carbon emissions from power plants. The plan has been challenged by over two dozen states that predominantly rely...
Health & Science - U.S. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announces new rules designed to mitigate opioid abuse. Those measures include having an expert panel review new opioids, strengthening post-release study requirements for those drugs...
Social Policy in WV The WEST VIRGINIA Senate approves SB 6, which would allow for the drug testing of welfare recipients if “reasonable suspicion” exists they could be using illegal drugs. The bill moves to the House (WILLIAMSON DAILY NEWS...
The WEST VIRGINIA House approves HB 4145, which would allow adults to carry concealed handguns without obtaining a permit. It moves to the Senate (CHARLESTON GAZETTE). WISCONSIN Gov. Scott Walker (R) signs AB 142, a bill that eliminates the Badger State’s...
Well, not really. But it could easily have turned out much worse for North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory than it did when the car he and his security folks were traveling in got rear ended as he was leaving the Super Bowl. As the Charlotte Observer reports...
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder may be having the worst month of anyone in politics. As the situation in Flint continues to unfold, Snyder has been working overtime to counter accusations that his administration was at best incompetent and at worst negligent...
When it comes to curtailing jaywalking, Massachusetts Senate Majority Leader Harriette Chandler says it’s time to talk softly and start wielding a big stick. Prompted by recent pedestrian deaths, Chandler wants to raise the Bay State penalty for...
Speaking of Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker enjoyed his recent brief foray into presidential politics, when he went to New Hampshire to observe the primaries up close and personal. He was in fact so enthralled, reports State House News , he “may...
Football fan or not, last weekend’s Super Bowl probably captured your attention. Was it the rivalry between a young upstart quarterback and a seasoned veteran? Maybe the half-time entertainment is more your thing. Or perhaps, you were one of the...
Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia have laws on the books prohibiting at least some state pension or retirement funds from investing in companies that do a certain amount of business in Iran. Ten of those states also have laws on the books...