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House approves texting ban
By Brian Lyman, Montgomery Advertiser
Drivers would be banned from writing, reading or sending text messages while driving under a bill passed Tuesday by the Alabama House of Representatives.
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Alabama casino developer to testify for 5th day
By Phillip Rawls, The Associated Press, Montgomery Advertiser
Country Crossing developer Ronnie Gilley is returning to the witness stand for a fifth day of testimony in the gambling corruption trial in Montgomery.
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Senate votes for bill to allow bigger cans of beer
By David White, The Birmingham News
The state Senate today voted 14-13 for a bill that would boost the maximum size of a bottle or can of beer sold by retailers in Alabama from 16 ounces to 25.4 ounces.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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ARM Board gets pessimistic investment forecast
By Pat Forgey, The Juneau Empire
Alaska shouldn't look for investment returns to bail it out of its pension liability debts, according to information presented at the Alaska Retirement Management Board meeting in Juneau last week.
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Concerns expressed about energy, PCE bills
By Pat Forgey, The Juneau Empire
Some top leaders in the House of Representatives say they want to do more for villages and others struggling with high power costs, but they're wary of increasing funds for the state's Power Cost Equalization program.
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Governor signs bill delaying online campaign filing requirement
By The Associated Press, Anchorage Daily News
Gov. Sean Parnell has signed into law a measure delaying a law requiring electronic filing of financial disclosures. HB311 delays until Feb. 16, 2013, a requirement that candidates file campaign finance information online, instead of by paper.
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Ex-Palin aide Bailey fined over email use
By Richard Mauer, Anchorage Daily News
Frank Bailey, the former Sarah Palin aide turned tell-all author, has agreed to pay an $11,900 civil fine for violating the state's ethics laws by keeping, disseminating and profiting from confidential emails he obtained while serving in Palin's administration.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Arizona committees sign off on GOP plan
By Mary Jo Pitzl, The Arizona Republic (Phoenix)
The Legislature's budget proposal got a tepid reception Tuesday, from the public as well as Gov. Jan Brewer's administration.
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GOP budget plan would scrap Arizona prison study
By The Associated Press, Arizona Daily Sun (Flagstaff)
A budget proposal by Republican legislators would scrap a longstanding requirement that the state Department of Corrections conduct a cost and quality comparison study for publicly and privately operated state prisons.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Beebe sees service sag, layoffs in GOP plan
By Michael Wickline and Sarah D. Wire, Northwest Arkansas Times
The Republican budget proposal will likely lead to at least 61 workers being laid off and services being cut, including closing a police training academy in Northwest Arkansas, keeping state parks open fewer hours and less money for rural community grants, Gov. Mike Beebe said Tuesday.
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State turns down offer to settle road builder's claim
By Alison Sider, Northwest Arkansas Times
The state Highway and Transportation Department rejected an Oklahoma construction company's offer to accept $4.9 million to settle a $6.5 million claim, despite lawmakers' encouragement that the two reach an agreement.
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Budget panel refers school takeover to subcommittee
By Staff, Arkansas News Bureau
The Joint Budget Committee today referred to a subcommittee an amendment to the state Department of Education's budget that would increase from two years to five the time the department can maintain control over a fiscally distressed school districts taken over by the state.
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Beebe -- GOP budget plan mostly 'non-starter'
By John Lyon, Arkansas News Bureau
A Republican proposal to cut $21 million from Gov. Mike Beebe's $4.7 billion proposed budget for the next fiscal year is mostly unacceptable, Beebe said today.
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Natural gas coming to your tank?
By Steve Brawner, Arkansas News Bureau
It's now at least foreseeable — not certain, but foreseeable — that many Arkansans will power their cars with natural gas that is produced in their home state.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Community colleges hit by $149-million shortfall
By Carla Rivera, Los Angeles Times
California community colleges were struggling Tuesday to absorb an unexpected $149-million budget shortfall that will mean more class cuts, layoffs, borrowing and probable elimination of summer programs affecting thousands of students.
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Proposition 8 backers seek review
By Geoffrey A. Fowler, The Wall Street Journal
California's Proposition 8 gay-marriage ban will likely take another detour through the federal-appeals-court system before reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.
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PUC, PG&E revive $3 million records settlement
By Jaxon Van Derbeken, San Francisco Chronicle
State regulators and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. have revived a $3 million settlement over the utility's failure to produce gas-pipeline safety records after the San Bruno disaster - a fine that critics of the company denounced as too lenient.
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Feds ask judge to drop Calif. postal records suit
By Corey G. Johnson, California Watch
The battle lines have been drawn in an unusual public records spat between a state agency responsible for upholding election laws and the U.S. Postal Service.
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Jerry Brown bound for Washington, will meet with Obama
By David Siders, The Sacramento Bee
Gov. Jerry Brown, who has rarely left the state since taking office last year, will travel to Washington this weekend to meet with President Barack Obama and governors at the National Governors Association's winter meeting.
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California's top labor official quits
By Jon Ortiz, The Sacramento Bee
Amid government layoffs, budget cuts and looming contract talks, the state's top labor relations official is stepping down.
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Study finds $135.7B in local pension liabilities
By Judy Lin, The Associated Press, The Sacramento Bee
Two dozen city and county governments in California face a combined $135.7 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, according to a study released Tuesday that also found the problem is growing.
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California's red light cameras in jeopardy
By Dan Walters, The Sacramento Bee
The battle over the cameras that many California cities and counties use to nab motorists who blow through red lights or – more commonly – make rolling stops for right turns has raged in the Capitol for several years without resolution.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Colleges worry that court could make diversity harder to maintain
By Tamar Lewin, The New York Times
The news that the Supreme Court is revisiting the use of race as a factor in admissions decisions, just nine years after upholding it in a University of Michigan case, has admissions officials worried about maintaining diversity and confounded that the question is being reconsidered so soon.
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Colorado Supreme Court ruling- Some attack ads legal
By Steven K. Paulson, The Boulder Daily Camera
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that some political attack ads in state races are not subject to contribution limits if they don't urge voters to elect or defeat a particular candidate.
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Colo. lawmaker scraps measure to limit teen tanning
By Kristen Wyatt, The Associated Press, The Boulder Daily Camera
Teens in Colorado won't have to worry about losing the right to hit indoor tanning beds as often as they like without collecting state-mandated permission slips after a lawmaker on Tuesday backed off her plan to require parental notification.
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State senate rejects ban on red light cameras
By Tim Hoover, The Denver Post
A Senate committee today shot down a bill to ban red light cameras despite arguments the cameras don't improve public safety and are hated by citizens.
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Welfare hurdle is costly and unfair
By Staff, The Denver Post
Drug-testing welfare applicants has become something of a legislative fad, with state lawmakers around the country playing to the stereotype that those seeking public assistance are disproportionately dopers who don't deserve support.
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Bill would imperil bonanza for Colorado
By Vincent Carroll, The Denver Post
The Colorado State Land Board is set to approve a deal with ConocoPhillips next month that would boost state coffers by $137 million — and that's just for starters.
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Colorado panel rejects baby bottle measure
By Patrick Malone, The Pueblo Chieftain
A House panel rejected a bill Tuesday that would have banned some products that contain a chemical that has raised concerns about its health effects on babies.
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Colorado House Speaker McNulty defends hike in per diem
By Tim Hoover, The Denver Post
Colorado House Speaker Frank McNulty insists there is "no intrigue" around votes last week approving a budget for the legislature that included a 22 percent increase in the daily expense allowance for lawmakers outside the metro area.
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Colorado Supreme Court upholds "magic words" test for political spending by 527s
By Sara Burnett, The Denver Post
Handing political organizations known as 527s a big victory heading into the 2012 election, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the groups should not be limited in how much money they may accept from donors if their political advertisements don't include so-called magic words such as "vote for" or "elect."
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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No Child deadline extended
By The Associated Press, Connecticut Post
The federal government is giving Connecticut and other states some breathing room as they prepare applications for waivers from parts of the No Child Left Behind education law.
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Malloy's teacher performance plan gets mixed grades
By Linda Conner Lambeck, Connecticut Post
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy took aim at teachers who "don't belong" in the classroom, saying his education reform plan would provide a fairer way to judge the performance of educators.
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Teachers unions say "no" to Malloy's tenure plan
By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas, The Connecticut Mirror
The state's teachers unions may have reached agreement on how their members should be graded weeks ago, but on Tuesday, union leaders came to the state Capitol complex to display buyer's remorse.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Official to reveal Medicaid savings
By Doug Denison, The News Journal (New Castle-Wilmington)
The head of Delaware's Department of Health and Social Services gave budget drafters a preview Tuesday of proposals to harness spiraling Medicaid costs.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Sen. Jim Norman's amendments restore much of USF funding
By Kim Wilmath and Katie Sanders, Tampa Bay Times
Sen. Jim Norman, R-Tampa, has filed three amendments to Sen. JD Alexander's budget proposal that he says will give the University of South Florida a more equitable share of cuts across the university system.
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Bill to aid Miami with Marlins stadium garage tab may be in trouble
By Toluse Olorunnipa, The Miami Herald
After a much-maligned parking garage contract with the Miami Marlins baseball team left the city of Miami on the hook for a huge property tax bill, South Florida state lawmakers came to the rescue with a proposal to save the city millions. But their attempt to tweak state law in Miami's favor has run into a massive roadblock: the Florida Constitution.
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Will political bullies decide water policy in Florida?
By Dan DeWitt, Tampa Bay Times
Maybe you thought the state's water management districts had been picked on as much as possible, that they had been left so broke and powerless they were no longer worth anyone's trouble.
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Tallahassee power grab on transport
By Staff, Tampa Bay Times
The Florida Senate will consider a bill this week that would unwind a half-century of smart transportation planning.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
|
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Ga. House panel kills sexual preference jobs bill
By Walter C. Jones, The Augusta Chronicle
A bill to open state and university jobs to applicants with any sexual preference died in a House subcommittee Tuesday after a hearing in which all but one witness testified in its favor.
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Georgia lawmakers want to outlaw assisted suicide
By The Associated Press, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
State lawmakers introduced a bill Tuesday that would outlaw assisted suicide in the wake of a recent Georgia Supreme Court ruling that destroyed a long-running criminal case against members of a suicide group.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
|
|
Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Gov. Otter signs bill ousting Occupy Boise
By Alex Morrell, The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter signed legislation Tuesday aimed at evicting Occupy Boise protesters who have been camped out on state land near the Capitol for the last four months, and protesters quickly asked a federal judge to keep them from being ousted.
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Bill calls for allowing gold, silver coins to be used as currency
By Betsy Z. Russell, Spokesman-Review (Spokane)
An Idaho House committee voted Tuesday to introduce legislation from Rep. Phil Hart to let Idahoans use gold and silver coins at face value as "legal tender" and "as an alternative to the Federal Reserve notes that currently circulate as our only currency."
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Bill to broaden merit pay pool sent to Idaho House
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
A bill headed to the Idaho House would allow teachers will less than three years of experience to compete for leadership bonuses under the state's new merit pay plan.
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UI students, alumni fight to keep term "flagship"
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Education officials may have taken the wind out of the sails of University of Idaho supporters when striking the term "flagship" from the school's mission statement.
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Measure seeks state input on federal debt limits
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
House lawmakers are considering joining a movement that would force the federal government to get permission from states before raising the nation's debt limit.
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Idaho House aims to curb eminent domain
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
The House voted to curb urban renewal agencies' eminent domain powers after a northern Idaho lawmaker argued these organizations could use the threat of seizure to coerce private property owners' cooperation.
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Otter's IGEM research initiative gets panel's OK
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter's $5 million proposal to speed commercialization of university research into commercial products that boost Idaho's economy won a House committee's blessing.
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Idaho vote to privatize liquor might be illegal
By John Miller, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Attorney General Lawrence Wasden said Tuesday a proposed voter initiative to privatize Idaho's lucrative hard liquor business might be illegal because the state constitution says such decisions are the Legislature's purview.
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Senate advances Idaho ban on texting while driving
By John Miller, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Idaho drivers would have to keep their thumbs on the steering wheel and off their cellphones after state senators on Tuesday advanced a proposal that would make it illegal for drivers to send text messages while on the road.
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Idaho lawmakers tussle over state worker raises
By The Associated Press, The Idaho Statesman (Boise)
Lawmakers in the Idaho House have set the stage for more debate on state worker pay raises days after legislative budget writers set the increases at 2 percent
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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House panel approves abortion measures
By Ryan Voyles, Daily Herald (Arlington Heights)
A House committee Tuesday approved a measure from state Rep. Tom Morrison, a Palatine Republican, that would make abortion clinics and other facilities match the same standards as surgical centers.
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Quinn would shutter 2 prisons, 12 other facilities
By The Associated Press, Daily Herald (Arlington Heights)
Gov. Pat Quinn prepared Tuesday to deliver an Illinois budget proposal stuffed with grim news including closing two prisons and 12 other state facilities, slashing Medicaid by $2.7 billion and cutting spending at most state agencies.
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Quinn to call for spending cuts, action on bills
By The Associated Press, The News-Gazette (Champaign)
Gov. Pat Quinn warned Monday that he will propose slashing government spending to its lowest level in years in a budget plan that his office says will still include a tiny increase for education and an attempt to chip away at the state's vast backlog of unpaid bills.
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Gov. Pat Quinn -- Close super-max downstate Tamms prison
By Dave McKinney and Andrew Maloney, Chicago Sun-Times
A super-maximum security prison in Downstate Tamms that human-rights groups contend is inhumane and a women's maximum-security prison in Dwight face closure under a proposed spending plan that Gov. Pat Quinn's administration described as "the toughest budget we've faced."
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Quinn wants to close Aurora facility
By Mike Riopell, Daily Herald (Arlington Heights)
Gov. Pat Quinn wants to close the Fox Valley Adult Transition Center in Aurora, a facility where female inmates in Illinois go to prepare to move from prison to daily life.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
|
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
|
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Ind. lawmaker stands by Girl Scouts criticism
By Tom LoBianco, The Associated Press, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Undaunted by a day of ridicule from the leader of his own party, an Indiana lawmaker said Tuesday he's standing by his allegations that the Girl Scouts is a radical organization that promotes abortions and homosexuality.
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Indiana lawmaker opposes honor for 'radicalized' Girl Scouts
By The Associated Press, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
A lawmaker has sent a letter to fellow Republican members of the Indiana House saying he will not support a resolution celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Girl Scouts because he believes it is a "radicalized organization" that supports abortion and promotes homosexuality.
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Entry bill on right to resist police undergoes rewrite
By Tom Davies, The Associated Press, Evansville Courier and Press
A proposal aimed at assuring Indiana residents they sometimes can resist police officers entering their homes could see a key change sought by law enforcement groups, the House sponsor said Monday.
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Indiana senators to consider 'right-to-farm' bill
By The Associated Press, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Activists say a bill requiring people who file frivolous lawsuits against Indiana livestock farms to pay the farms' legal fees would make people reluctant to take action, even when they have legitimate complaints about smells or waste.
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Ind. legislators discuss rights to resist police
By Staff, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
A legislative proposal aimed at telling Indiana residents when they can try to stop police officers from entering their homes could undergo key changes sought by law enforcement groups.
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House passes bill making college transfer easier
By Lesley Weidenbener, Evansville Courier and Press
The House voted 91-2 on Monday to send a bill to Gov. Mitch Daniels that will make it easier for Indiana's college students to take classes that will transfer to other schools.
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Indiana panel backs bill requring stage inspections
By The Associated Press, Evansville Courier and Press
All large, temporary outdoor stages like the one in last summer's deadly Indiana State Fair collapse would face new inspection standards set by the state's building safety commission under a bill endorsed Tuesday by an Indiana House committee.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Government efficiency measure considered
By Rod Boshart, Quad-City Times
A wide-ranging government efficiency bill got its first look Tuesday but is still far from its framers' goal of finding bipartisan ways to save taxpayers' money, key lawmakers said.
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Iowa House GOP make key changes education reform
By Mike Wiser, Quad-City Times
House Republicans kept the majority of Gov. Terry Branstad's education proposal intact Tuesday night, but made some key changes to online learning, high school testing and teacher discipline.
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Questions remain over funding mental health system
By The Associated Press, The Muscatine Journal
Despite weeks of quiet bargaining, legislators acknowledged Tuesday that deep divisions remain about paying for an overhaul of Iowa's mental health system.
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Senate committee passes unemployment bill
By Jason Clayworth, The Des Moines Register
Unemployed Iowans who launch their own entrepreneurships could qualify for unemployment while they're building their new business under a bill approved today by a Senate committee.
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Iowa high court justices hear arguments in work force veto
By Rod Boshart, Quad-City Times
DES MOINES — A district judge "got it right" when he ruled as invalid Gov. Terry Branstad's veto that effectively closed 36 work force centers last year and the Iowa Supreme Court should not allow the governor to succeed in reversing that order, an attorney representing a group of Democratic legislators and a labor union leader argued Tuesday night.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Brownback school-funding plan bogged down in Kansas Legislature
By Brad Cooper, Kansas City Star
As the Kansas legislative session approaches its halfway point, the future of Gov. Sam Brownback's education plan is murky. After two days of meetings, the chairman of the Senate Education Committee said Tuesday that she couldn't predict the fate of the plan, which would give school districts the unrestricted ability to raise property taxes.
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New Kansas law targets concussions as a risk to student-athletes' brains
By Andi Atwater, Wichita Eagle
Wichita student Peyton Miller was in sixth grade when he got his first concussion in phys-ed. It was so bad, he was knocked unconscious. A second one in seventh grade came much easier, and by the time he received a third concussion in eighth grade, followed by severe headaches, Peyton walked away from football.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Catholic bishops oppose casino gambling in Kentucky
By Roger Alford, The Associated Press, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Catholic bishops have issued a stern warning about the potential consequences if Kentucky lawmakers approve a proposal to legalize casinos.
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Senate panel to consider revised gambling proposal
By Gregory A. Hall, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
The sponsor of a constitutional amendment to allow casinos in Kentucky will offer a revised proposal at a committee meeting Wednesday that attempts to address the concerns of some critics who say the existing language goes too far to benefit the horse industry.
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Michelle Obama's visit to Kentucky seen as a boon
By Joseph Lord, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Western Louisville business owners are hoping to reap benefits when Michelle Obama comes to the Russell neighborhood Thursday for a political fundraiser.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Report: Uninsured La. children fall; adults rise
By Marsha Shuler, The Advocate (Baton Rouge)
The number of uninsured children in Louisiana continued to decline while the number of adults without insurance rose over the past two years, according to a new LSU report released Tuesday.
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Prosecutors wary on jury legislation
By Michelle Millhollon, The Advocate (Baton Rouge)
A proposal for consideration in the upcoming legislative session is sparking concerns among district attorneys. State Sen. Ed Murray, D-New Orleans, wants to allow jurors in criminal trials to use notebooks and pens and take notes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Maine bill removes union rights for egg workers
By The Associated Press, Bangor Daily News
Maine's House of Representatives has passed a bill that eliminates the right of workers at the former DeCoster egg farms to unionize. The bill passed 73-69 along party lines Tuesday, with Republicans in support and Democrats opposed. It still faces more votes in the House and Senate.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Maryland gay marriage bill backed by Senate panel
By John Wagner, The Washington Post
A Maryland Senate panel voted 7 to 4 on Tuesday in favor of a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage, wasting little time in advancing a measure that narrowly cleared the House of Delegates last week.
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Maryland severs ties with second-largest foster care provider
By Yvonne Wenger, The Sun (Baltimore)
State officials said Tuesday that they would not renew Contemporary Family Services' license to place foster care children, alleging that the Hyattsville-based company falsified minutes of board meetings and failed to pay its foster parents and employees on time, among other issues.
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Balto. Co. Council approves transgender discrimination ban
By Alison Knezevich, The Sun (Baltimore)
Transgender people would be protected from discrimination in Baltimore County under a measure approved by the County Council Tuesday, making the county the fourth local government in Maryland to adopt such protections.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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On Deval Patrick's watch, six-figure salaries spike
By Erin Smith and Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald
Punching the clock during the Patrick administration has been a six-figure bonanza for thousands of lucky state workers, as salary figures released yesterday show the number of public employees taking home $100,000 or more a year has skyrocketed by nearly 40 percent since 2007.
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Trial Courts' 9% pay hike sparking cry of injustice
By Chris Cassidy, Boston Herald
Pay soared by an average of 9 percent last year at the Massachusetts Trial Courts — home of the patronage-plagued Probation Department — raising objections from Beacon Hill watchdogs looking for fiscal justice.
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Deval Patrick to serve as co-chair in Barack Obama campaign
By Michael Levenson, The Boston Globe
Governor Deval Patrick, continuing to ramp up his involvement in national politics, will be named today one of 30 national co-chairs of President Obama's reelection campaign, according to aides to both men. The title, which Patrick also held in Obama's campaign in 2008, means the governor will advise the president on political strategy, host events on his behalf, and help organize Obama's supporters in Massachusetts.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Colleges worry that court could make diversity harder to maintain
By Tamar Lewin, The New York Times
The news that the Supreme Court is revisiting the use of race as a factor in admissions decisions, just nine years after upholding it in a University of Michigan case, has admissions officials worried about maintaining diversity and confounded that the question is being reconsidered so soon.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Auditor -- Child welfare system needs consistency
By The Associated Press, Brainerd Daily Dispatch
The legislative auditor says Minnesota's county-based child welfare system needs more consistency statewide when it comes to figuring out which child abuse and neglect cases to investigate.
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Minn. says easing some restraints for mentally ill
By Alexandra Tempus, The Associated Press, Brainerd Daily Dispatch
State officials say they're phasing out the use of metal handcuffs and seclusion at a secure hospital for the mentally ill in the wake of fines for maltreatment of patients.
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Dayton -- St. Croix bridge plan has March deadline
By Kevin Diaz and Kevin Giles, Minneapolis Star Tribune
With action on a new St. Croix River crossing stalled in Congress, Gov. Mark Dayton issued an urgent warning Tuesday that time is running out on federal approval for the long-sought project.
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Vikings stadium deal stays out of reach
By Mike Kaszuba and Eric Roper, Minneapolis Star Tribune
With time slipping away for legislative approval this spring, the push to finalize an agreement on a new Minnesota Vikings stadium at or near the Metrodome seemed to rest more than ever Tuesday with the Minneapolis City Council.
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New Minn. legislative maps pair 46 incumbents
By The Associated Press, Brainerd Daily Dispatch
Minnesota's new legislative district maps would put 46 legislators in districts with other incumbents and create 23 open seats, but it's unclear whether the map will change the partisan balance in the GOP-controlled Legislature.
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Rep. Steve Drazkowski aims for a hunters' tax holiday
By Baird Helgeson, Minneapolis Star Tribune
A Republican legislator wants to take state tax money collected by Internet retailers and use it to give Minnesotans a sales tax holiday on guns, ammunition and hunting gear.
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Lawmakers study new districts with mixed reactions
By Tim Pugmire, Minnesota Public Radio (St. Paul)
Reverberations from the release of new political maps are still being felt across Minnesota, and especially inside the State Capitol where lawmakers have been scrambling to figure out their new home districts.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Virtual charter schools plan cut
By Jeff Amy, The Associated Press, Hattiesburg American
The Mississippi Senate is expected today to debate a bill to expand charter schools in the state, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves said Tuesday, hours after the bill was approved in committee.
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Gov. Bryant seeks funding for his staff
By Emily Wagster Pettus, The Associated Press, Hattiesburg American
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant is requesting an additional $355,531 to cover expenses for his staff through the end of the fiscal year after his predecessor, Haley Barbour, spent more than half of the yearly budget for the governor's staff before departing.
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Lawmakers work to fix FEMA flood-coverage issue
By Geoff Pender, The Sun Herald (Biloxi)
State lawmakers are working to change a law that could cause the state to be booted out of the National Flood Insurance Program and put thousands of homeowners, and their mortgages, at risk.
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Charter schools -- A lot to add up
By Marquita Brown, The Clarion-Ledger (Jackson)
Seven of the state's 28 high performing districts have schools rated lower than successful by the state Department of Education.
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Will Miss. primary even matter?
By Staff, Hattiesburg American
As Mississippi Democrats held their precinct caucuses Saturday, state Republicans must be wondering if they will be too little, too late when they finally get to cast a ballot for a presidential nominee.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Spence traveling in RV for Missouri governor's race
By The Associated Press, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Republican gubernatorial candidate Dave Spence is traveling around Missouri in a recreational vehicle bearing a large image of his face. Spence, who stepped down recently from the plastics packaging company he ran, already has contributed about $2 million to his campaign.
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New President Tim Wolfe talks about joining UM System
By Zach Murdock, The Columbia Missourian
COLUMBIA, Mo. — More than 100 people lined the walls of Stotler Lounge in Memorial Union North late Monday afternoon to meet the new University of Missouri System president, Tim Wolfe, his wife, Molly, and their 17-year-old twins, Madison and Tyler.
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Panel backs increase in veterans funding
By The Associated Press, Jefferson City News Tribune
After several years of tightening state funds, Missouri's state-run veterans' homes could see more money under a plan endorsed Tuesday by the House Veterans Committee.
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It's time for Missouri's governor to go bold
By Staff, Kansas City Star
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon is never short on initiatives. He's got the Show-Me Heroes Initiative to put returning veterans to work. He recently rolled out MoHealthWINS to prepare community college students for health careers.
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Senators debate birth control measure
By The Associated Press, Jefferson City News Tribune
Several Democratic senators raised concerns Tuesday about a Missouri proposal that would let employers refuse to provide health insurance coverage for birth control, abortions and sterilization procedures.
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Increase in Capitol security proposed
By Bob Watson, Jefferson City News Tribune
An eastern Missouri resident upset about rising gasoline prices sent an e-mail to state Senate President Rob Mayer early Tuesday morning with a message that included: "S--t may hit the fan. Hey! How is GIFFORDS?"
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State board OKs No Child waiver
By The Associated Press, Jefferson City News Tribune
The Missouri Board of Education voted Tuesday to allow the state to request a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind education law's requirement all students be able to do math and reading at grade level by 2014.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Insurance commissioner approves New West sale
By The Associated Press, Great Falls Tribune
Montana's insurance commissioner has approved the $1.5 million buyout of a portion of New West Health Services, Montana's third-largest health insurance company.
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Share Our Strength initiative aims to end hunger among Montana's kids
By John S. Adams, Great Falls Tribune
Gov. Brian Schweitzer, joined by Department of Public Health and Human Services Director Anna Whiting Sorrell and community leaders from across the state, on Tuesday announced a new statewide initiative aimed at curbing childhood hunger in Montana.
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UM president lays out demands for Foresters' Ball
By The Associated Press, The Bozeman Daily Chronicle
University of Montana President Royce Engstrom says changes must be made to the Foresters' Ball if the nearly century-old tradition is to continue.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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State health department starts consumer survey
By The Associated Press, Lincoln Journal Star
The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services is studying the effectiveness of mental health and substance abuse services in Nebraska.
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Opponents assail voter ID bill
By Kevin O'Hanlon, Lincoln Journal Star
A broad coalition of groups is battling a measure aimed at fighting voter fraud by requiring Nebraska voters to show identification before casting ballots.
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GOP Senate candidates target big government
By Don Walton, Lincoln Journal Star
Nebraska's Republican Senate candidates on Tuesday stepped up their assault on federal regulations while pledging to work to get the government out of the way of small-business owners.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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No need to hurry
By Staff, Lincoln Journal Star
Nebraskans have no need to envy the 10 states that have been granted a waiver from the unpopular No Child Left Behind law.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Nevada closing the technology gap in healthcare
By Jim Traficant, Las Vegas Sun
You might not know it, but Nevada is on the cutting-edge of healthcare in America. Last year, a consortium of Nevada healthcare providers announced it would launch a statewide health information exchange (HIE) that will allow hospitals and physicians to share patient data in real time.
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Taking its toll
By st, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Forget being nickeled and dimed. Nevadans have been plucked by the buck, with steady hikes in their water, power and gasoline bills, not to mention ever-higher taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Birth control law repeal added to bill
By Annmarie Timmins, Concord Monitor
Women's health care advocates were caught by surprise yesterday when they discovered a repeal of the state's long-standing birth control insurance law tacked onto an unassuming housekeeping bill.
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Bill aims to modify parental notification
By Annmarie Timmins, Concord Monitor
Girls who need a judge's permission to get an abortion without a parent's permission could have to wait longer for a court hearing under a bill before law-makers.
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Senate panel backs bill to require photo ID at polls
By Garry Rayno, The Union Leader (Manchester)
A Senate committee Tuesday backed a bill requiring a photo identification card for voters to cast their ballots. The Senate Public and Municipal Affairs Committee voted 4-1 to back Senate Bill 289, which requires a registered voter to present valid photo identification at the polls.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Heralding end of 'dark times,' Christie offers budget that is bigger and cuts taxes
By Kate Zernike, The New York Times
TRENTON — After two years of enforcing austerity, Gov. Chris Christie argued on Tuesday that New Jersey could afford to have it all, presenting a budget he said would cut income taxes by 10 percent at the same time it gave money to schools, provided for the poor and met the state's pension obligations.
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Christie opens the spending spigot
By Heather Haddon, The Wall Street Journal
After two years of austere budgets, Gov. Chris Christie changed course Tuesday with a budget that restores education spending, pays down pension liabilities and cuts income taxes.
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'Second chance' drug treatment funded
By Bob Jordan, Asbury Park Press
Gov. Chris Christie promises to have details soon about his proposal to have nonviolent drug offenders sentenced to treatment centers instead of jail, but has put up $2.5 million in his budget plan to get the program rolling.
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Schools awaiting details of proposed rise in aid
By Leslie Brody, The Record of Bergen County
Governor Christie proposed boosting aid to public schools by $121 million Tuesday, and now districts are awaiting the details about how much each would receive.
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N.J. child welfare agency to get new name, others reorganized in proposed budget
By Susan K. Livio, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
The state's child welfare agency is getting a new name, and state departments will be reorganized to provide services for women and families would be offered from one state agency, under the proposed state budget Gov. Chris Christie will announce at 2 p.m., according to a memo by Children and Families Commissioner Allison Blake.
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Reversing course, judge reinstates count in N.J. gay marriage lawsuit
By MaryAnn Spoto, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
Reversing her November ruling, a Superior Court judge in Mercer County reinstated a count in a lawsuit Tuesday filed by seven same-sex couples, saying they could argue that the state's 2006 law allowing civil unions violates the U.S. Constitution.
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Gov. Chris Christie's budget address- Consistent themes, dubious claims
By Staff, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
As Gov. Chris Christie continues his "New Jersey Comeback" tour, his theme is consistent: State spending is down while revenues are up. Sixty thousand jobs have been created during his tenure. So it's time for those who shared in the sacrifice – the taxpayers – to reap some of the benefits. Namely, a 10 percent across-the-board income tax cut.
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Gov. Christie leans on hopes of revved-up economy to fuel proposed income tax cut
By Staff, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
Gov. Chris Christie is betting that his proclaimed "New Jersey Comeback" is for real. The Republican governor Tuesday unveiled a $32.1 billion spending plan that relies on a revved-up state economy to produce enough cash to cut income taxes and restore hundreds of millions in aid to public colleges and local schools.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Veto of bill could cost state $40M
By Steve Terrell, Santa Fe New Mexican
New Mexico could lose $40 million a year in tobacco settlement money if Gov. Susana Martinez doesn't sign a bill virtually identical to one she vetoed last year, a lobbyist for a major cancer charity said Tuesday.
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State unveils plans for Medicaid revamp
By Trip Jennings, Santa Fe New Mexican
On Tuesday, Gov. Susana Martinez's Human Services Department secretary, Sidonie Squier, unveiled a long-awaited blueprint of proposed changes to Medicaid, the government's low-income health-insurance program, in a series of presentations.
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Sportsmen decry replacement of game commissioner
By Staci Matlock, Santa Fe New Mexican
Southern New Mexico sportsmen are upset by the governor's recent move to replace one of their own with an Albuquerque attorney on the New Mexico State Game Commission.
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Judge proposes NM House redistricting options
By The Associated Press, Santa Fe New Mexican
A state district judge is proposing two options for revamping political districts of the state House of Representatives to comply with directives from New Mexico's highest court.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Federal court won't dismiss redistricting case
By The Associated Press, Times Union (Albany)
A federal appeals court is refusing to dismiss a challenge to redistricting in New York. State legislative leaders have argued that it's too soon to intervene in their constitutionally delegated role in drawing district lines.
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Judge upholds town's gas drilling ban
By The Associated Press, Times Union (Albany)
A state Supreme Court judge has upheld a community's ban on gas drilling, in the first ruling on whether local governments can prevent drilling through local ordinances in New York state.
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New York judge rules town can ban gas hydrofracking
By Mireya Navarro, The New York Times
In a victory for opponents of the drilling process known as hydrofracking, a New York State judge ruled on Tuesday that the upstate town of Dryden in Tompkins County can ban natural gas drilling within its boundaries.
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Online liquor license map has industry leery
By Steve Barnes, Times Union (Albany)
The State Liquor Authority has launched a new mapping program that shows every current and pending liquor license in the state — including restaurants, bars, liquor stores, beer sales and wholesalers — as well as any disciplinary actions taken by the agency against the licensee. In the past, release of disciplinary records routinely required the filing of Freedom of Information requests.
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Sales tax collections see rebound
By The Associated Press, Times Union (Albany)
In another sign of slow economic recovery in New York's communities, sales tax revenue last year matched or exceeded pre-recession levels of 2008 in most parts of the state, according to a report released Tuesday.
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Muslim tracking spurs outrage
By The Associated Press, Times Union (Albany)
The mayor faced off with the president of Yale University on Tuesday over an effort by the city's police department to monitor Muslim student groups for any signs that their members harbored terrorist sympathies.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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N.C. takes center stage in gay marriage battle
By Lynn Bonner, The Charlotte Observer
States across the country in the last three weeks started moving toward allowing same-sex couples to marry, while North Carolina is looking to catch a wave that crested eight years ago by asking voters to approve a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and civil unions.
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Special N.C. plate helps fund spaying, neutering
By The Associated Press, The News & Record (Greensboro)
The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Animal Welfare Section reimbursed counties almost $400,000 for spay/neuter procedures last year, thanks in part to purchases of "Animal Lovers" specialty license plates.
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N.C. gubernatorial hopeful Walter Dalton says he's 'battle-tested'
By Rob Christensen, The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton kicked off his drive for governor Tuesday, saying he is a "battle-tested" political veteran who is best suited to carry the Democratic message of jobs, the economy and education into the fall election against the Republicans.
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NC elections board found dry ground for filings
By The Associated Press, The Winston-Salem Journal
A broken water pipe in the North Carolina State Board of Elections offices forced employees to find dry ground for a while to accept paperwork for candidates in this year's elections.
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Law not on side of dog's owners
By Anne Blythe, The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Nancy and Herb Shera thought their little Laci, a Jack Russell terrier that bounded into their lives in the summer of 1994, was absolutely priceless.
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NC school spending falls, improves to other states
By The Associated Press, The Winston-Salem Journal
The country's largest teacher union is out with annual public school spending estimates that say North Carolina's ranking improved slightly since last year.
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Lawmakers decline pay for mini-session
By Staff, The News & Observer (Raleigh)
At least 113 of 170 state lawmakers have declined pay for all or part of the legislative mini-session last week, making the no-vote lawmaking session cheaper but not cost-free.
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Dalton begins NC gov campaign talking progress
By The Associated Press, The Winston-Salem Journal
Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton officially began his bid for North Carolina governor Tuesday, attempting to brand himself as an education pacesetter and condemning Republican political forces for taking the state in the wrong direction.
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Just the facts
By Staff, The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The concept of a special panel that would have the power to declare a convicted criminal innocent has grated on North Carolina's district attorneys since day one.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Colleges worry that court could make diversity harder to maintain
By Tamar Lewin, The New York Times
The news that the Supreme Court is revisiting the use of race as a factor in admissions decisions, just nine years after upholding it in a University of Michigan case, has admissions officials worried about maintaining diversity and confounded that the question is being reconsidered so soon.
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Officials announce plan to mitigate oil impact in western North Dakota
By Lauren Donovan, The Bismarck Tribune
Williston will get relief from thousands of semi trucks roaring through town as soon as this summer, a piece of very welcome news delivered Tuesday by state government officials who are out to prove that when oil-impacted communities talk, they listen.
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Ron Paul tours North Dakota
By Nick Smith, The Bismarck Tribune
Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul addressed a crowd of about 1,200 people in Bismarck on Monday evening with a speech on liberty and the role of government, prior to the Bismarck Republicans' district nominating conventions.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Funeral protest bill goes to governor
By Peter Wong, Statesman Journal (Salem)
Gov. John Kitzhaber's desk is the last stop for a bill increasing penalties for disorderly conduct, but not simple protest, within 200 feet of a funeral.
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PEBB OKs smokers' costlier life insurance
By Dennis Thompson Jr., Statesman Journal (Salem)
State employees who use tobacco will pay much more for optional life insurance in 2013, according to a change approved by the Public Employees' Benefit Board.
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Oregon Legislature approves 3 new no-fishing marine reserves
By Scott Learn, The Oregonian (Portland)
Gov. John Kitzhaber unveiled the notion of fishing-free marine reserves off Oregon's coast during his first stint as governor. Now, after a decade of fits and starts and tense negotiations, he'll get to sign the state's first small "network" of reserves into law.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Rally calls attention to governor's proposed cuts
By Len Barcousky, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Gov. Tom Corbett's proposed state budget would not save money for taxpayers but instead would shift more social-service costs to counties, policy analyst Sharon Ward cautioned Tuesday.
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Corbett's plan to cut Pa. pension watchdog questioned
By Joe Smydo, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Gov. Tom Corbett's budget proposal would eliminate the Public Employee Retirement Commission, the watchdog agency that last year allowed Pittsburgh to keep control of its pension fund.
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Nonprofit to study Pa. gas drilling, public health
By Kevin Begos, The Associated Press, The Times Leader (Scranton)
PITTSBURGH -- A nonprofit group has opened an office in western Pennsylvania to help the public with health concerns over Marcellus Shale gas drilling operations.
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Redistricting panel meets over Pa. assembly maps
By Mark Scolforo, The Associated Press, The Times Leader (Scranton)
The Legislative Reapportionment Commission is preparing to hold its first meeting since the Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw out the proposed General Assembly maps based on the 2010 census.
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Towns may lose ticket revenue under Corbett's budget
By Bob Bauder, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
More than 1,200 towns in Pennsylvania that rely exclusively on state police for protection would forfeit revenue from traffic ticket fines under Gov. Tom Corbett's 2012 budget proposal.
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Philly takes $42M hit in new budget
By Bob Warner, The Philadelphia Inquirer
Gov. Corbett's new budget proposal would cost the city $42 million in mostly mental health and addiction treatment funding, but city officials say the impact will be worsened by ensuing needs for emergency shelter, child welfare, and other services.
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Cabot, Williams announce new Marcellus pipeline
By The Associated Press, The Philadelphia Inquirer
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - A natural gas driller and a pipeline company are proposing to build a new pipeline to carry natural gas from Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale to the New York and New England markets.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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SC House budget-writing committee starts debate
By Seanna Adcox, The Associated Press, Spartanburg Herald-Journal
The House budget-writing committee approved Tuesday closing a teacher bonus program to new entries, creating a fund to pay for deepening the Charleston harbor, and renewing a tax-free weekend for gun buyers.
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SC House budget-writing committee to debate raises
By Seanna Adcox, The Associated Press, Spartanburg Herald-Journal
South Carolina legislators writing the state spending plan are expected to debate teacher salaries and pay raises for other public employees.
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State residents among Top 10 for housholds in financial distress
By Angelia Davis, The Greenville News
South Carolina consumers rank among the best in the nation when it comes to managing credit, a new survey says. At the same time, the state is among the Top 10 for its average number of households in financial distress.
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Teacher raises in jeopardy
By Adam Beam, The State (Columbia)
State lawmakers moved Tuesday to ban local governments from hiring lobbyists, allow cities and counties to cut the cost of some state-mandated programs, and end raises for new state National Board-certified teachers.
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Haley says school districts should be responsible for buses
By Ron Barnett, The Greenville News
School districts should take over the operation of the school buses that serve their students, Gov. Nikki Haley said Tuesday in Greenville, but she couldn't say where they would get the money to do it.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Sen. Hundstad to have triple-bypass
By The Associated Press, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
South Dakota State Sen. Jim Hundstad will undergo triple-bypass heart surgery in Sioux Falls on Wednesday and will miss the rest of this year's legislative session.
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Senate panel passes bill on DUI clusters
By John Hult, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
On Tuesday morning, a Senate panel endorsed a bill designed to provide harsher punishments for drivers arrested several times for DUI in a short period of time.
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Senate panel to discuss bill to feed poor people in South Dakota
By The Associated Press, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
A South Dakota Senate committee is looking at a bill that would end a faltering tax refund program for poor people so the money can instead be given to a nonprofit organization that provides food to low-income families across the state.
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SD Legislature passes limit on inmate appeals
By The Associated Press, Rapid City Journal
A measure aimed at preventing death-row inmates from filing repeated appeals in an effort to delay their executions won final approval Tuesday in the South Dakota Legislature.
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S. Dakotans in need might get direct help
By Jonathan Ellis, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
South Dakota lawmakers are scheduled today to debate a bill that would end a little-used food-tax rebate program for the poor and instead transfer the remaining money to a nonprofit hunger organization.
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Panel OKs tuition bonus bill for medical workers
By The Associated Press, Rapid City Journal
The measure says doctors or dentists who agree to work at a rural facility for three years would get reimbursed for double the cost of attending the University of South Dakota School of Medicine for four years.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Tennessee 'Don't say gay' bill delayed
By Andy Sher, Chattanooga Times Free Press
The so-called "Don't say gay" bill, which bans teaching about issues related to homosexuality in grades K-8, was delayed in the House Education Committee on Tuesday.
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Tennessee refinances $456 million in bonds
By The Associated Press, The Tennessean (Nashville)
The state has refinanced $456 million in general obligation bonds to save taxpayers $34 million in interest costs over some 20 years.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Perry leaning toward a run for re-election
By Jay Root, The Texas Tribune
Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday he is leaning toward running for re-election in 2014 and possibly another stab at the White House two years after that.
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Texas becomes battlefield in Keystone XL pipeline fight
By Dave Montgomery, The Sun Herald (Biloxi)
The politically volatile Keystone XL pipeline is becoming embroiled in a widening controversy in Texas as supporters tout the promise of jobs and other economic benefits while increasingly vocal opponents say the project would trample property rights and endanger water supplies in East Texas.
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U.S. Supreme Court to scrutinize UT affirmative action
By Morgan Smith, The Texas Tribune
Bill Powers, president of the University of Texas at Austin, responded to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hear the affirmative action case in a statement, saying that the university "will vigorously seek a decision affirming the Fifth Circuit's decision and reaffirming the educational benefits of diversity and our narrowly tailored holistic admissions policy."
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Mexican meth appears to replace domestic production
By Julian Aguilar, The Texas Tribune
Seizures of methamphetamine at the Laredo customs district — the nation's largest inland port — are on pace this fiscal year to surpass last year's total by about 60 percent, reaching an expected total of about 1,650 pounds.
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Perry keeping door open to another run for governor
By Jason Embry, The Austin American-Statesman
Gov. Rick Perry, who became the longest-serving governor in Texas history more than three years ago, left the door wide open Tuesday to another run for re-election in 2014.
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With presidential bid over, Perry talks Texas
By Peggy Fikac, The Houston Chronicle
Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday he'll continue traveling the country to promote the fiscal and state-sovereignty issues he highlighted in his presidential campaign, rejecting calls to reimburse Texas taxpayers for the cost of the state security detail that accompanies him.
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Perry looks to his future — in Austin, D.C. or both
By Peggy Fikac, The San Antonio Express-News
Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday that he'll continue traveling the country to promote the fiscal and state-sovereignty issues he highlighted in his presidential campaign, rejecting calls to reimburse Texas taxpayers for the cost of the state security detail that accompanies him.
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After rains, lakes see biggest rise since drought began
By Farzad Mashhood, The Austin American-Statesman
The winter rains in drought-stricken Central Texas have led to the largest increase in lake levels 3 feet at Lake Travis in five days since Tropical Storm Hermine brought about a foot of rain in September 2010.
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Chasing an illusion in college admissions
By Staff, The Austin American-Statesman
For decades, the courts have tried to settle the use of race in university admissions only to find that when they grant satisfaction in one case, dissatisfaction arises to create another.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Colleges worry that court could make diversity harder to maintain
By Tamar Lewin, The New York Times
The news that the Supreme Court is revisiting the use of race as a factor in admissions decisions, just nine years after upholding it in a University of Michigan case, has admissions officials worried about maintaining diversity and confounded that the question is being reconsidered so soon.
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Senate committee approves new GRAMA bill
By Ladd Brubaker, Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City)
Last year, an attempt to change Utah's Government Records Access and Management Act led to a raucus Capitol Hill rally, outraged editorials and citizens throughout the state up in arms.
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House passes bill that would stop citations for carrying guns
By David Montero, The Salt Lake Tribune
A measure that would strip local municipalities of the ability to cite civilians with disorderly conduct charges for simply carrying a weapon openly in public passed in the House Tuesday, despite a long floor debate that stoked fears it would hamper police from suppressing potential threats.
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Obama nearly tops Huntsman in Utah fundraising
By Thomas Burr, The Salt Lake Tribune
Utahns have donated about as much to President Barack Obama as they have to former Gov. Jon Huntsman, but Republican Mitt Romney remains the biggest winner in the Beehive State's presidential money chase.
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New Utah revenue numbers 'disappointing'
By Lisa Riley Roche, Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City)
New projections released Tuesday giving lawmakers another $14 million to spend this session fell short of some expectations.
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Bill to ban e-cigarettes, hookah smoking passes House
By Ladd Brubaker, Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City)
The Utah House approved a proposal to ban the smoking of hookah pipes and e-cigarettes in public places, after opponents held a hookah pipe smoking demonstration on the Capitol steps then held signs in the gallery urging the bill's defeat.
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Utah A.G. appeals Debra Brown's 'factual innocence'
By Roxana Orellana, The Salt Lake Tribune
The Utah Attorney General's Office submitted an appeal to the Utah Supreme Court Tuesday, arguing to reverse the exoneration of Debra Brown, who was freed last year after spending 17 years in prison for a 1993 murder in Logan.
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Utah death row inmate seeks stay of execution
By The Associated Press, The Daily Herald (Provo)
A death row inmate is asking a Utah judge for a stay of an April 5 execution by firing squad while he pursues a review of his state conviction and sentence in the federal courts.
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Tanning regulation moves to final Senate vote
By David Montero, The Salt Lake Tribune
A bill that would require minors using tanning beds to be accompanied by a parent moved a step closer to passage Tuesday despite threats from a Republican to change the measure when it has its final floor vote Wednesday.
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Utah lawmakers honor Utah-Israeli ties
By Marjorie Cortez, Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City)
The Utah Senate, in a resolution passed unanimously Tuesday, recognized Utah's cultural, economic, military and security bonds to Israel.
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Bill could mean donations to elementary schools
By Lisa Schencker, The Salt Lake Tribune
Utahns might soon be able to give money to elementary schools when they file their income tax returns, if a bill that gained initial Senate approval Tuesday becomes law.
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Senate resolution pushes ski interconnect
By Mike Gorrell, The Salt Lake Tribune
A legislative resolution calling for a system interconnecting the seven ski resorts of Salt Lake and Summit counties ran into opposition soon after its introduction Tuesday.
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Utah lawmakers taking no chances on gambling
By Staff, The Salt Lake Tribune
Utah lawmakers hedged their bets Tuesday against Internet gambling, passing a bill designed to ensure it remains illegal in Utah even if Congress allows it in other states.
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Bill to let cyclists run red lights stalls
By Staff, The Salt Lake Tribune
A bill that would allow motorcycles, mopeds and bicycles to run red lights legally in some instances crashed Tuesday, but lawmakers may allow it to get back up and try again.
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Bill to replace Utah trooper memorial crosses advances
By Staff, The Salt Lake Tribune
A plan advanced Tuesday to replace white, roadside crosses as memorials to fallen Utah Highway Patrol troopers with safety warning signs, accompanied by a placard with the officer's name.
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Utah Legislature passes school supply bill
By Lisa Schencker, The Salt Lake Tribune
Teachers may soon feel more comfortable sending home requests for school supplies, thanks to a bill the Legislature passed Tuesday.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Vermont won't make renewable energy goals
By The Associated Press, Burlington Free Press
Two key lawmakers say Vermont won't meet its goal of getting 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2017.
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Vermont gets $2.4 million to help storm victims
By The Associated Press, Burlington Free Press
Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin says the state will receive a $2.4 million grant from Federal Emergency Management Agency for recovery services for survivors of Tropical Storm Irene.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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Senate backs adoption 'conscience clause'
By Jim Nolan, Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Virginia Senate on Tuesday approved the House of Delegates' version of a bill that would allow faith-based adoption and foster-care organizations that use state funds to deny services to parents or children who do not share their religious beliefs.
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House again puts off ultrasound vote
By Olympia Meola and Wesley P. Hester, Richmond Times-Dispatch
For the second day in a row, the House of Delegates on Tuesday delayed final votes on a number of issues, including a bill to require women to undergo an ultrasound prior to an abortion.
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Virginia governor no longer fully supports ultrasounds before abortions
By Anita Kumar, The Washington Post
Gov. Robert F. McDonnell is backing off his unconditional support for a bill requiring women to have an ultrasound before an abortion, focusing new attention on one of the most controversial pieces of legislation in Virginia's General Assembly this year.
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Va. Senate Democrats try to leverage budget for more power
By Laura Vozzella, The Washington Post
As they threaten to hold up the state budget, Senate Democratic leaders are pushing for a deal to reclaim some of the power that Republicans assumed early this session in the evenly split chamber.
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Ignition interlock legislation hits snag
By Jim Nolan, Richmond Times-Dispatch
House and Senate bills that would require an ignition interlock device for first-time offenders convicted of driving under the influence — bills that recently passed their respective chambers — might be hitting some speed bumps on their road to Gov. Bob McDonnell.
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New York may ban shark fin sales, following other states
By Elisabeth Rosenthal, The New York Times
Large glass bottles of desiccated shark fins grace the upper shelves of nearly every convenience store and grocery in Chinatown, bearing price tags — from $100 to more than $500 per pound — that reflect the market value of a delicacy that has been served for centuries.
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Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
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House Dems -- Cut employee healthcare, delay K-12 funds
By Brad Shannon, The Olympian
The House Democratic budget is formally on the table: The $30.66 billion supplemental spending plan lops some $81.6 million in local government aid, delays $405 million in funding for K-12 public schools into the 20130-15 biennium, and makes roughly half the cuts to welfare programs that Gov. Chris Gregoire and House Republicans have proposed.
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WA Senate proposes lower transpo fees than House
By Jonathan Kaminsky, The Associated Press, The News Tribune (Tacoma)
State Senate transportation leaders released a proposed transportation budget Tuesday with fewer fee increases than put forward by their counterparts in the House.
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Head of Senate panel stops adoption bill
By Alexis Krell, The News Tribune (Tacoma)
A bill giving adults adopted as children greater access to their birth certificates passed unanimously out of the state House this month, but supporters don't expect it to go further this year because it's bottled up in a Senate committee.
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Local lawmakers' bills set for final public hearings
By Stevie Mathieu, The Columbian (Vancouver, Wash.)
Many bills by Southwest Washington lawmakers are on schedule for their final public hearings this week, and other measures have moved even further as the state Legislature embarks on week seven of the 2012 session.
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Democrats' budget avoids tax increase
By Brad Shannon, The Olympian
House Democrats unveiled a budget proposal Tuesday that closes a $1.1 billion budget gap and may doom the sales-tax increase once intended for the spring ballot.
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Senate's transport budget calls for raising many fees
By Jonathan Kaminsky, The Associated Press, The Olympian
State Senate transportation leaders released a proposed transportation budget Tuesday with fewer fee increases than the one put forward by their counterparts in the House.
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Governors as policy innovators
By Eric Schnurer, Politico
Four years of recession have left governors with seemingly little to cut — yet, like most governments in this country from the courthouse to the White House, they face a structural mismatch between the spending their citizens still want and the taxes they're willing to pay for it. For the past decade, I've been working with governors across the country to bridge this gap. Doing so successfully involves more than the simple choice normally posed publicly between cutting services and increasing taxes.
|
|
Tax-cut bill includes updates to jobless benefits system
By Annie Lowrey, The New York Times
Tucked into a $140 billion bill extending emergency jobless benefits and a temporary cut to payroll taxes are several provisions intended to modernize the country's outdated unemployment insurance system.
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California's top labor official quits
By Jon Ortiz, Charleston Gazette
Amid government layoffs, budget cuts and looming contract talks, the state's top labor relations official is stepping down.
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State lawmakers question proposed tobacco ban
By Lawrence Messina, The Associated Press, Charleston Gazette
West Virginia has one of the nation's worst teen smoking and spit tobacco use rates, but members of the House health committee aren't sure that targeting flavored tobacco is the answer.
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Bill to improve mine safety put on hold
By Phil Kabler, Charleston Gazette
Legislation to improve coal mine safety (HB4351) is on hold, after coal industry representatives balked at three key provisions in the bill.
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