• Will Ex-Montana Gov. Schweitzer Replace Baucus?
• Source: Politico   |   Montana   |   April 24, 2013
• Now that veteran Sen. Max Baucus (D), the two-term governor who left office in January is the prospect national Democrats are hanging their hopes on in the now-open Montana Senate race.

• NRA Takes Political Aim at 2 States Gun Laws
• Source: Baltimore Sun   |   Nation   |   April 24, 2013
• National Rifle Association President David Keene said the organization will pursue lawsuits in New York and Maryland where Democratic governors are believed to have presidential aspirations
• 3 Comments

• Amazon Fights Old Ally eBay over Online Sales Tax
• Source: Politico   |   Nation   |   April 24, 2013
• Amazon is now fighting eBay in an all-out civil war in the U.S. Senate, where a bill to set national sales tax standards for online retailers is up for debate.

• Kansas' Kobach: Immigration Bill Would Ease Terrorists' Path
• Source: The Wichita Eagle   |   Kansas   |   April 24, 2013
• Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach told a Senate panel in Washington that a pending immigration reform bill could make life easier for terrorists like the alleged bombers of the Boston Marathon.

• Watered-Down Homeless Bill of Rights Advances in California
• Source: Sacramento Bee   |   California   |   April 24, 2013
• Citing the need to ensure equal treatment for indigent Californians, lawmakers advanced a homeless rights bill that they said has been narrowed to assuage the concerns of businesses and city governments.

• Critics Call for Ban on New Micro-Apartments in Seattle
• Source: Seattle Times   |   Seattle   |   April 24, 2013
• The new, tiny unites aren’t required to provide any parking and avoid design and environmental review as well as notice to neighbors that usually is required for big, multifamily projects.

• Berkeley Accidentally Discloses City Employees' SSNs
• Source: Berkeleyside   |   Berkeley, Calif.   |   April 24, 2013
• A Berkeley municipal staff member mistakenly disclosed the social security numbers of everyone who works for the city while responding to a public records request, and the city recently sent a letter to staff informing them of the error.
• 2 Comments

• No Fracking in Sight, Florida Aims to Regulate an Industry That's Not There
• Source: Miami Herald   |   Florida   |   April 24, 2013
• No one knows if Florida is going to be the next frontier for the new generation of oil and gas drilling known as fracking, but state legislators say — just in case — it’s time to write rules to require disclosure of the controversial technology.

• Leadership and the Power of Killer Bees
• BY: Otis White   |   April 24, 2013
• Attacking a problem with a single masterstroke is appealing. But sometimes the best approach is swarming it from all directions.

• Christie's Plan to Restrict Video Games Would Likely be Overturned
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   April 24, 2013
• The U.S. Supreme Court says video games are a form of speech protected by the First Amendment, and experts say the governor’s proposal would likely be zapped in court.

• Ariz. May be 2nd State to OK Gold, Silver Currency
• BY: Liz Farmer   |   April 24, 2013
• Ditching dollars for gold has become a popular notion among some conservative leaders and pundits (perhaps most notably Glenn Beck) in recent years.
• 5 Comments

• A Powerful Measure of Urban Health: Strollers
• BY: Mark Funkhouser   |   April 24, 2013
• Cities compete for residents and tax base. Nothing defines urban livability more than a city that's kid-friendly.
• 3 Comments

• Are States Deepening the Nation's Red-Blue Divide?
• BY: Louis Jacobson   |   April 24, 2013
• Some Democratic and Republican states are pushing more ideological policies, but not all.
• 3 Comments

• Conservatives Target Illinois for Job Poaching
• BY: Dylan Scott   |   April 23, 2013
• Red states are trying to convince businesses to leave Illinois as the state struggles economically and fiscally.
• 10 Comments

• Senate Could Pass Online Sales Tax Bill This Week
• BY: Ryan Holeywell   |   April 23, 2013
• The legislation, which would allow states to collect sales taxes from Internet retailers, now has the White House's backing.
• 3 Comments