Fourteen states have introduced over 40 bills dealing with sports betting this year, according to LexisNexis State Net’s legislative tracking system . Four states - Illinois, Kansas, Missouri and West Virginia - account for more than half of the...
Sports betting and remote sales taxes have been getting a lot of attention in statehouses recently. The main reason for the surge of interest in the two issues is a pair of cases currently before the U.S. Supreme Court that could allow states to collect...
Environmental and social issues driving change in the construction industry Guest Post by Colleen Theron, Director Ardea Since Russia and Qatar won their bids to host the FIFA World Cups in 2018 and 2022 respectively, the construction industry has...
By Chris Scully, Senior Media Intelligence Analyst, LexisNexis Implementing a media measurement program can be an intimidating task for many PR professionals . After all, many people in our industry undertook PR as a career due to a love of storytelling...
Going On In MI The MICHIGAN Department of Environmental Quality closes the final four bottled water distribution centers in the city of FLINT . State officials said testing showed Flint's water quality had remained below federal action levels for...
AZ House Approves SB 1394 The ARIZONA House approves SB 1394 , a bill that would require Grand Canyon State hospitals and clinics to ask patients the reason they are seeking an abortion. The measure returns to the Senate (ARIZONA CAPITOL TIMES [PHOENIX...
AZ Supreme Court Rules The ARIZONA Supreme Court rules that public colleges and universities are not legally able to offer in-state tuition rates to immigrants covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The ruling upholds...
AK House Approves HB 25 The ALASKA House approves HB 25 , which would require insurance companies and Medicaid to provide coverage for prescription contraceptives and medical services needed for any devices. It moves to the Senate (KTVA [ANCHORAGE...
VA Governor Vetoes HB 1270 VIRGINIA Gov. Ralph Northam (D) vetoes HB 1270 , a bill that requires legislative approval before the Old Dominion can participate in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a cap-and-trade program among Northeastern and...
LA Senate Approves SB 178 The LOUISIANA Senate approves SB 178 , which would allow Pelican State students to wear bulletproof backpacks on school grounds. It is now in the House (FOX8LIVE.COM [NEW ORLEANS]). IL Governor Signs SB 863 ILLINOIS...
TN House Rejects SB 1086 The TENNESSEE House rejects SB 1086 , a Senate-endorsed bill that would strip local municipalities of the ability to ban short term rentals like Airbnb and VRBO. The measure is expected to go to a joint conference committee...
Alcohol vending machines might sound like the fever dream of a hungover frat boy, but rest assured this is no hazy day-after fantasy. As the Connecticut Post reports , the House there has approved a bill that would allow bars to install self-dispensing...
Standing out in a crowded primary field can be a major challenge. But as the Hartford Courant reports , getting attention is not Connecticut gubernatorial candidate Lee Whitnum’s problem. Whitnum showed up at a Democratic candidate debate in Brookfield...
In normal times, when the vice president comes to town the governor is sure to be there for a good old fashioned grip-and-grin for the news photographers. And if he is from your own party? Done deal, right? Wrong! Or so it was last week for Massachusetts...
As noted in this space before, there is a reckoning afoot for politicos spewing hateful nonsense on social media. The latest comes from Maine, where a local mayor is facing recall after cracking on a school shooting survivor. As the Bangor Daily News...
College basketball in the United States is watched by millions and has become lucrative for the universities who compete and the companies who sponsor the teams. But college sport can also carry reputational, legal, and financial risks. We have seen the...
MD APPROVES BIG INTENTIVE PACKAGE TO LURE AMAZON: MARYLAND lawmakers approved the largest incentive package in the state’s history, as much as $8.5 billion, in an effort to convince Amazon to build its second headquarters in Montgomery County...
The federal tax overhaul pushed through Congress by the Republican majority in December doubled the exemption threshold for the estate tax levied on property and other assets transferred from deceased individuals to their heirs - earning it the epithet...
Not long ago Minnesota’s health insurance exchange, MNsure, was in critical condition. Premiums were skyrocketing and health insurance companies were fleeing the market. But last year the state’s Legislature approved $542 million in funding...
SC GOP PROPOSES CLOSING STATE’S PRIMARIES: The Republican Party of SOUTH CAROLINA announced last week that it will conduct an advisory referendum in the state’s June primaries asking voters if they want the option of affiliating with a...
As teachers were preparing for a walkout in Arizona last week, thousands remained out of the classroom in Oklahoma in protest of limited school funding and a protest continued in Kentucky over the restructuring of teacher pensions. The unrest suggests...
Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) signed controversial legislation last Monday that makes dramatic changes to the state’s ailing public pension system. Among SB 151 ’s many tenets are provisions that move teachers hired after Jan. 1 2019 into...
The release of a report revealing the details of blackmail accusations levied against Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) have sparked calls from his fellow Republicans for him to resign or face impeachment. Greitens is already facing a criminal trial...
BROWN AGREES TO SEND CA TROOPS TO BORDER In a somewhat surprising move, CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) agreed last week to President Donald Trump’s request to send National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. But in a letter to Sect. of...
There are numerous prognostications about the number of jobs that will eventually disappear from the human experience, to be taken over by the robots of the burgeoning artificial intelligence revolution. Which percentage you accept depends on your...