• New York May be 1st State to Raise Cigarette Age to 21
• Source: Albany Times-Union   |   New York   |   April 30, 2013
• Following New York City's lead, state lawmakers have taken up the cause to raise the minimum age for cigarette purchases from 18 to 21 statewide.

• Tennessee DCS Provides New Plan to Investigate Child Deaths
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   April 30, 2013
• DCS is under a federal court order to revise its system for investigating child deaths after DCS lawyers had acknowledged that they had miscounted just how many children had died under the watch of the agency.

• Mass Layoff Rapid Response Team Eliminated in Tennessee
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   April 30, 2013
• The elimination of the unit, which had been in operation for about a decade, comes despite the strong protest of some members of a state workforce advisory board.

• New Jersey Adds 420,000 Names to Federal Gun Database
• BY: McClatchy News   |   New Jersey   |   April 29, 2013
• The names of hundreds of thousands of current and former New Jersey residents who have been involuntarily committed to psychiatric facilities have been added to an FBI database used to bar firearms purchases by people with criminal records or a history of mental illness.

• Boston Bombings Highlight Need for Public Safety Broadband Network
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   April 29, 2013
• The wireless crashes that law enforcement experienced in the aftermath of the deadly bombing reinforced the need for a dedicated national public safety broadband network that's now in its planning stage.

• Georgia Law Concealing Child-Deaths Info Questioned
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Georgia   |   April 29, 2013
• Lawmakers passed a law in 2009 that limits public scrutiny of the child-welfare system. With an increased number of children dying while under the care of the state, many are questioning whether the law is good policy.

• Montana Abortion Bill Becomes Law Without Governor's Signature
• Source: AP/Missoulian   |   Montana   |   April 29, 2013
• Gov. Bullock and women’s health advocates said they believe the measure, which would require girls younger than 18 to obtain parental consent before getting access to abortions, violates the privacy and protection rights of young women, and they’re confident the law will be struck down in courts.

• North Carolina's Noteworthy Preschool Program Experienced Huge Enrollment Drop
• Source: Raleigh News & Observer   |   North Carolina   |   April 29, 2013
• North Carolina had one of the best pre-kindergarten programs in the country in 2011-12, but it also experienced one of the nation’s biggest drops in enrollment, according to a report released Monday.

• Gun Background Checks May be up to Voters
• Source: AP/Politico   |   Washington state   |   April 29, 2013
• After struggling to sway both state and federal lawmakers, proponents of expanding background checks for gun sales are now exploring whether they will have more success by taking the issue directly to voters.
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• The Cost of Utah's Medicaid Data Breach
• Source: Salt Lake Tribune   |   Utah   |   April 29, 2013
• Utah’s 2012 health data breach — a security slip that exposed the personal information of three-quarters of a million residents to hackers — has costt he state about $9 million on security audits, upgrades and credit monitoring for victims — and that’s just the beginning.

• Tennessee's Welfare Drug Testing Program Faces Hurdles
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   April 29, 2013
• Tennessee is plunging ahead with a plan to drug test some welfare applicants even though a Florida judge stopped a similar program over constitutional issues and Arizona authorities caught only one welfare-receiving drug abuser in three years.

• Sandy Cleanup Costs Double in NYC Compared to New Jersey
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   April 29, 2013
• New York’s high cost was driven largely by how far the city had to transport its waste — and what it took to get it to a landfill in the Finger Lakes region west of Syracuse, according to Col. John Pilot, who headed the city’s cleanup efforts.

• 4 States Seek to Lift Sunday Hunting Bans
• Source: USA Today   |   Nation   |   April 29, 2013
• Lawmakers and hunting advocates in North Carolina, Connecticut, Massachusetts and West Virginia are working to change "blue laws" that ban hunting on Sunday.

• Washington Joins Race to Secure Drone Testing
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Washington state   |   April 26, 2013
• A consortium of several organizations in the state announced that it will submit a bid to the Federal Aviation Administration to be considered for one of the six federally designated test facilities for aerial drones.

• Georgia Quietly OKs Immigration Crackdown
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Georgia   |   April 26, 2013
• As Congress considers immigration reform, Gov. Nathan Deal signed sweeping legislation that bars undocumented immigrants from obtaining state driver's licenses, grants, public housing and retirement benefits.

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• U.S. AG Holder, Gov. Brownback Spar over Kansas' New Gun Law
  
  "RE: your response to me - I understand your confusion. Our tendency to devalue historical..."
• Felons' Voting Rights Could Impact 2012 Election
  
  "well that exulated quickly......"
• Motorcycle Deaths Rise as States Rethink Helmet Laws
  
  "How many more lives would be saved if automobile riders would wear helmets. We are talking..."
• Colorado Becomes 14th State to Offer Undocumented Immigrants In-State Tuition
  
  "Finally, while I do agree with you that people who cheat the system should not be given..."
• GOP-Controlled Wisconsin Legislature Targets Milwaukee
  
  "A residency requirement may be limiting the standards and expectations of civil servants...."

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