Geez, don’t make California Assemblymember Melissa Melendez angry. Or at least make sure the sharp objects are out of her reach. As CalMatters reports , fellow Republican Chad Mayes once gave Melendez a basketball signed by members of her favorite...
NV GOV WILL SIGN WAGE, PAID LEAVE BILLS In a statement issued last week, NEVADA Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) said he would sign legislation ( AB 456 ) on his desk that will incrementally raise the Silver State minimum wage to $12 per hour by July, 2024....
As a native of South Lake Tahoe, California I know firsthand that it is one of the loveliest places in the world. But as the Sacramento Bee reports , the community is feeling under siege these days from an influx of two entirely different kinds of visitors...
Amidst widespread speculation that a GOP plan in the U.S. Senate to repeal the Affordable Care Act depends on his support, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval (R) reiterated last week his staunch opposition to the proposal. U.S. Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nevada) has...
Last week Standard & Poor’s lowered the bond rating for Hartford, Connecticut from B- to CCC, a four-grade drop. That news was bad enough, particularly coming after another four-grade drop in the city’s rating, from BB to B-, less than...
A proposed constitutional amendment that would permanently limit state spending in Iowa was unanimously approved by a Senate subcommittee last week. The bill - SJR 9 , which would limit spending to “the lesser of 99 percent of the adjusted revenue...
CO Governor Signs SB 9 COLORADO Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) signs SB 9 , which allows Centennial State residents to store energy gleaned from renewable sources like solar power without discrimination in rates or excessive barriers in connecting to the...
San Francisco Board of Supervisors Unanimously Approves The SAN FRANCISCO Board of Supervisors unanimously approves an ordinance that requires brick and mortar retail establishments to accept cash as payment, becoming the second major city in America...
State and local tax collections increased by 9.4 percent and 8.9 percent, respectively, in the final quarter of 2017, roughly three times the average quarterly growth rate for the last year, according to a report by the Rockefeller Institute of Government...
TN no longer covers OxyContin In an effort to combat the ongoing opioid abuse epidemic, health insurer BlueCross BlueShield announces it will stop covering OxyContin prescriptions in TENNESSEE . BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee reps say the company...
NY Governor Signs AB 6823 NEW YORK Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signs AB 6823 , which relieves Empire State prosecutors from having to prove force, fraud or coercion was used to involve a minor in prostitution. (NEW YORK POST)
NJ Governor Signs AB 1414 NEW JERSEY Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver (D) signs AB 1414 , a bill that mandates the state Board of Education include financial literacy instruction in the curriculum for sixth- through eighth-grade students in public schools across...
The NEW MEXICO House approves HB 29, which would allow local communities to impose curfews on teenagers under age 16. The measure moves to the Senate (KRQE.COM [ALBUQUERQUE]). -- Compiled by RICH EHISEN
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency publishes new rules that allow international students earning degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields in the United States to be eligible to stay in America for three years...
Editor: Rich Ehisen Associate Editor: Korey Clark Contributing Editor: Mary Peck, David Giusti Editorial Advisor: Lou Cannon Correspondents: Richard Cox (CA), Lauren Davis (MA), Steve Karas (CA) and Ben Livingood (PA), Cathy Santsche (CA), Dena Blodgett...
OH Governor signs HB 101 OHIO Gov. John Kasich (R) signs HB 101 , which authorizes Buckeye State pharmacists to substitute cheaper but equivalent alternatives to the brand-name product EpiPen, which is used to counter severe allergic reactions to bee...
With wildfires burning the state down amidst the usual end-of-session jamming through bills that really ought to have had a lot more deliberation, California lawmakers can point to at least one epic accomplishment: surfing is now the official state sport...
TX City Council Unanimously Approves The SAN ANTONIO City Council unanimously approves a six-month pilot program regulating electric scooters. Riders will be required to use sidewalks or roads, but will be barred from roadways where the speed limit...
Going On In LA The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds a LOUISIANA law that requires doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a local hospital (REUTERS). CA Governor Signs AB 2989 CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D)...
NJ Governor Signs AB 261 NEW JERSEY Gov. Chris Christie (R) signs AB 261 , which bars the installation and sale of wheel weights containing lead or mercury and prohibits the sale of new motor vehicles equipped with wheel weights containing lead or...
In May the Board of Supervisors for the City and County of San Francisco approved an ordinance banning the use of facial recognition technology by all city departments. It’s the only major U.S. city to have taken such action against the emerging...
California Signs SB 1139 CALIFORNIA Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signs SB 1139 , which bars the denial of applicants to Golden State medical schools based solely on their immigration status. The law also ensures that all medical students are eligible to apply...
Although motor vehicle subscription services - similar to auto leases but with no long-term commitment, the ability to change vehicles periodically and insurance and maintenance bundled in - have only been around for a few years, they’ve been embraced...
Being in politics means learning to roll with the punches, but former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently had to take that lesson a step further. As the Washington Post reports , Schwarzenegger was signing autographs at his annual Arnold Classic...
According to Census Bureau data, there were about 7.5 million full-time equivalent state and local government employees, not including those who work in education, nationwide last year. That’s 3 percent fewer than there were before the Great Recession...