• Unions Seek New Ways to Combat Declining Membership
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   April 15, 2013
• No longer in denial about its dwindling numbers and diminished political power, organized labor unions are exploring new, potentially risky approaches for growing their memberships.
• 6 Comments

• Denver Mayor's Plan to Phase-In Marijuana Unfair, Critics Say
• Source: Denver Post   |   Denver   |   April 15, 2013
• A state task force recommended a one-year phase-in period, but a state committee later reduced it to three months. And now Mayor Michael Hancock says the city should impose a two-year wait.

• Paid Sick Leave Gaining Momentum in Massachusetts
• Source: Boston Globe   |   Nation   |   April 15, 2013
• A nearly decade-long effort to require Massachusetts employers to offer paid sick days is gaining momentum as lawmakers pass similar proposals across the country.

• Focus on Standardized Testing Leads to 'Opt-Out' Movement
• Source: Washington Post   |   Nation   |   April 15, 2013
• A decade into the school accountability movement, pockets of resistance to standardized testing are sprouting up around the country, with parents and students opting out of the high-stakes tests used to evaluate schools and teachers.

• Louisiana Town Bans Saggy Pants
• Source: Huffington Post   |   Terrebonne Parish, La.   |   April 15, 2013
• Louisiana's Terrebonne Parish passed an ordinance to ban saggy pants in public. Offenders will be fined $50 for the first offense.

• Miami Seeks to Alter Homeless Protection Act
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Miami, Fla.   |   April 12, 2013
• Concerned that loitering homeless people are stunting downtown growth, the city will go to federal court in an attempt to undo major provisions of a 15 year-old legal agreement has protected the homeless from undue arrest and harassment by police.

• Low-Income Housing Vouchers Vanish in Wake of Sequester
• Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune   |   Nation   |   April 12, 2013
• Around the nation, housing agencies are tightening their belts and often putting a freeze on new Section 8 vouchers for low-income people in the wake of the sequestration.

• Bigger Police Presence in Schools Puts More Kids in Court
• Source: New York Times   |   Nation   |   April 12, 2013
• As school districts across the country consider placing more police officers in schools, some are raising alarm about what they have seen in the schools where officers are already stationed: a surge in criminal charges against children for misbehavior that many believe is better handled in the principal’s office.

• Storms Cause State of Emergency in Several States
• Source: USA Today   |   South   |   April 12, 2013
• The governors of two states have activated the National Guard.

• 1st Gun Manufacturer Leaves Connecticut in Wake of New Law
• Source: Hartford Courant   |   Connecticut   |   April 11, 2013
• Under the new law, the sale of most military-style rifles is banned, but firms are allowed to make and ship firearms that are banned in the state. Gun makers, though. say they may be forced to leave by a backlash from customers.
• 3 Comments

• Mayors' Gun Group Pulls Pat Toomey Ad After Compromise
• Source: Politico   |   Nation   |   April 11, 2013
• Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun violence group is pulling ads that targeted U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey after the Pennsylvania Republican agreed to support a bipartisan agreement on background checks

• Is NYC's Bike-Tour Fee Legal?
• Source: New York Times   |   New York   |   April 11, 2013
• An effort by New York City to charge a nonprofit bicycling group nearly $1 million for the cost of policing its annual citywide bike tour appeared to be in jeopardy.

• Obama's Budget Targets Wealthy, Social Security to Lower Deficit
• BY: Liz Farmer   |   Nation   |   April 10, 2013
• President Obama's fiscal plan for 2014 contains a mix of tax increases and breaks that some are concerned could mean increased costs for states and localities.
• 1 Comments

• Obama Proposes $75 Billion for Universal Preschool
• BY: Dylan Scott   |   Nation   |   April 10, 2013
• Following up on his pledge to expand early education to all American children, President Barack Obama proposed pumping $66 billion over the next 10 years into a “Preschool for All” initiative.
• 3 Comments

• Obama Proposes Energy Program Modeled on 'Race to the Top'
• BY: Dylan Scott   |   Nation   |   April 10, 2013
• As part of his plan for greater energy efficiency across the U.S., President Barack Obama proposed a competitive grant program to help states cut waste.
• 2 Comments

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Comments

• Water Fluoridation Debate Divides Portland, Oregon
  
  "Portland only advocates for rich white people things, like bike lanes...."
• Berkeley Accidentally Discloses City Employees' SSNs
  
  "Why did it take them over 2 weeks to realize the error? Why didn't BANG the group who..."
• Los Angeles Discovers $42.6 Million Lost Through Accounting Error
  
  "What an extreme assertion. No government entity at any level is doing a good job of accounting,..."
• California School Suspensions Seen as Caused by 'Defiance'
  
  "I find it interesting that if a person makes too much noise, or is disruptive in a movie..."
• L.A. City Council Votes to Accelerate Move Away from Coal Power
  
  "So glad the DWP and City Council have the time and energy to spend more ratepayer money..."