• Before Health Reform Kicks In, Maryland Insurer Requests 25% Premium Hike
• Source: Washington Post   |   Maryland   |   April 25, 2013
• Maryland’s biggest health insurer proposed raising premiums for individual policies by an average of 25 percent next year, saying that President Obama’s health law would require it to accept even the sickest applicants, driving up costs.

• Why Didn't 2,400 Tons of Ammonium Nitrate at Texas Plant Raise Regulatory Concerns?
• Source: Dallas Morning News   |   Texas   |   April 25, 2013
• How a fire caused the ammonium nitrate to detonate is the focus of federal and state investigations into the explosion.
• 1 Comments

• Washington's Marijuana Law Impairs All Pot Prosecutions
• Source: AP/Seattle Times   |   Washington state   |   April 25, 2013
• Prosecutors and crime-lab scientists say a little-noticed provision in Washington’s new law legalizing recreational marijuana has jeopardized their ability to go after any pot crimes at all, and they’re calling for an immediate fix in the Legislature.

• Study: Marijuana Legalization May Not Pay for Itself in Colorado
• Source: Denver Post   |   Colorado   |   April 25, 2013
• Legal marijuana in Colorado may not bring in enough money to cover the societal costs of legalization, a new study from a Colorado State University think tank concludes.
• 2 Comments

• Gov. Jerry Brown Promises Opponents 'Battle of Their Lives' over Education Funding
• Source: Sacramento Bee   |   California   |   April 25, 2013
• Brown is seeking to give local school districts greater flexibility in how they spend state money by eliminating most of California's "categorical" funding – pots of money that can be used only for certain purposes.

• Tennessee's Annexation Ban Puts Cities in Limbo
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   April 25, 2013
• The yearlong ban, awaiting Gov. Bill Haslam’s signature, is the end result of considerable debate in the General Assembly this year.
• 1 Comments

• Pennsylvania Plan to Stop Government-Funded Abortions Wins Bipartisan Support
• Source: Philadelphia Inquirer   |   Pennsylvania   |   April 25, 2013
• The state House gave bipartisan support to a bill that would block insurance plans offered through the state’s new health insurance exchanges from covering abortions.
• 1 Comments

• Michigan Seeks to Redirect Film Tax Credits to Road Repairs
• Source: Detroit News   |   Michigan   |   April 25, 2013
• The Republican-controlled state House wants to eliminate tax incentives for making movies in Michigan so the money can be shifted to repairing roads.

• GOP Businessman Enters Minnesota Governor's Race
• Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune   |   Minnesota   |   April 25, 2013
• Businessman Scott Honour became the first high-profile Republican to challenge DFL Gov. Mark Dayton’s bid for re-election.

• Can Vocational Education Produce the Citizens We Need?
• BY: Charles Chieppo   |   April 24, 2013
• Students on the technical track need solid academics, not just job training. It's important to spend these public-education dollars wisely.

• Just How Screwed is the Highway Trust Fund?
• BY: Ryan Holeywell   |   April 24, 2013
• A new report from the Congressional Budget Office warns that Congress will have to dramatically cut transportation spending or raise the gas tax.
• 4 Comments

• States Consider Drug Testing Lawmakers
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Nation   |   April 24, 2013
• In connection to the ongoing debate about drug-testing welfare recipients, lawmakers in Minnesota, Alabama, Illinois and Texas are considering requiring it of state legislators too.
• 4 Comments

• States Press Ahead on Bills Expanding Voter Access
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   April 24, 2013
• Amid the legal battles over Voter ID laws and the Voting Rights Act, legislation to expand voter access and decrease election day lines is active in 21 states.

• L.A. City Council Votes to Accelerate Move Away from Coal Power
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Los Angeles, Calif.   |   April 24, 2013
• The Los Angeles City Council approved a plan to begin moving away from coal-fired energy, despite warnings from a Department of Water and Power watchdog that the shift could cost more than $650 million.
• 1 Comments

• Motorcycle Deaths Rise as States Rethink Helmet Laws
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   April 24, 2013
• The number of motorcyclists killed in traffic accidents jumped 9 percent in 2012 and have gone up in 14 of the last 15 years. Experts say more states should enact universal helmet laws to reverse that trend.
• 9 Comments