• Police Dogs Not Sniffing for Marijuana Anymore Where It's Legal
• Source: AP/Seattle Times   |   Washington state   |   June 4, 2013
• The newest drug-sniffing dog on a police force in Washington state is one of a few that are not trained to point out pot during searches. Other police departments are considering or in the midst of re-training their dogs to ignore pot as well, part of the new reality in a state where voters last fall legalized marijuana use.

• Education Reforms Become Iowa Law
• Source: Des Moines Register   |   Iowa   |   June 4, 2013
• Gov. Terry Branstad called the education reform bill he signed into law Monday “a turning point in Iowa history,” but it lacks many of the provisions included in the administration’s initial pitch for improved schools.

• Public Will be Excluded from Some Meetings if California Gov. Brown Signs Bill
• Source: Los Angeles Times   |   California   |   June 4, 2013
• The measure was created in reaction to a legal opinion by a county prosecutor who said a private 2011 meeting between Jerry Brown and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors violated the public's right to see government business being conducted.

• U.S. Supreme Court: Police Can Take Post-Arrest DNA Samples
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Nation   |   June 3, 2013
• More than half of the states now require a DNA mouth swab when people are charged with a serious crime, and many of the others were awaiting a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of the practice.

• Marijuana Regulation Bill Fails in California Legislature
• BY: McClatchy News   |   California   |   June 3, 2013
• The California Assembly quashed a bill that would have created a state agency to tax and regulate the state's overgrown medical marijuana landscape.

• Court Rules Against California's Execution Method
• BY: McClatchy News   |   California   |   June 3, 2013
• Death penalty supporters want Gov. Brown to challenge a court decision that lethal-injection protocol was not properly reviewed, but other technical hurdles remain.
• 1 Comments

• Bankrupt Insurance Companies Cost Florida Taxpayers
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Florida   |   June 3, 2013
• Despite Florida having no major hurricanes in the last seven years, one-third of the insurance companies that have taken over policies previously held by Citizens Property Insurance Corp. have gone belly up -- and cost taxpayers $400 million.

• Illinois Lawmakers Fail to Pass Pension Reform, Gay Marriage Bills
• Source: Chicago Tribune   |   Illinois   |   June 3, 2013
• But lawmakers did pass measures to expand Medicaid, make Illinois the last state to allow concealed carry, and legalize medical marijuana.

• States' Mental Health Overhaul Concern Advocates
• Source: Politico   |   Nation   |   June 3, 2013
• There’s not much controversy among advocates when it comes to restoring funding that states had slashed during the economic lean years. But changing policies on involuntary commitment, or requiring therapists to report potentially dangerous patients, are stirring fears that well-intentioned policies could increase stigma and deter the very people who most need treatment from getting it.

• Major Democratic Donors Flock to Gov. Christie
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   June 3, 2013
• The checks are flying into the Republican governor’s war chest from all sorts of unlikely places.

• Teacher Evaluations Extending to Art, Gym Teachers in New York
• Source: New York Times   |   New York   |   June 3, 2013
• A new system for evaluating educators, announced by the state on Saturday, will reshape how teachers are hired and fired in the city. It will also have a profound effect on students, who will take part in a series of new exams designed to help administrators grade teachers in specialized subjects.

• Tennessee Schools Not Taking Advantage of New Law Allowing Armed Teachers
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   June 3, 2013
• Education officials from all over the state are saying they don’t anticipate using the law, and many are adamant that the proposal won’t come up in their community.
• 1 Comments

• Being Communist no Longer Legal Ground for Firing People in Nevada
• Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal   |   Nevada   |   June 3, 2013
• Gov. Brian Sandoval on Wednesday signed Senate Bill 506, which removes archaic language from a 1950s law passed during the Cold War era that allowed Nevada employees to fire anyone they expected might be a communist.

• Illinois Treasurer Rutherford Joins Governor's Race
• Source: Chicago Tribune   |   Illinois   |   June 3, 2013
• State Treasurer Dan Rutherford kicked off a campaign for the 2014 Republican governor nomination Sunday, touting himself as the only statewide officeholder among the GOP field.

• More Law Enforcement Agencies Using Bikes in Iowa
• Source: Des Moines Register   |   Iowa   |   June 3, 2013
• Patrol cars are fast and convenient, but in some cases pedal power is more discreet and economical, Iowa law enforcement officials say.

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Comments

• Supreme Court to Reexamine Church-State Separation at Government Meetings
  
  "There is everything in the constituation that says laws may not be written such that your..."
• Maine Gov. LePage Vetoes Medicaid Expansion Bill
  
  "It's frustrating when politicians (and demagogues)avoid explaining their rationale. So,..."
• Bill to Keep Dead, Imprisoned People Off Welfare Becomes Michigan Law
  
  "Snyder should also make sure to sign a law restricting dead people from getting driver's..."
• Study: Medicaid Improves Mental But Not Physical Health
  
  "Dennis,
  
  Please elaborate, as I am not sure what you are saying in your post. Are you..."
• FEMA Rejects Texas' Request for More Aid After Plant Blast
  
  "With 5 schools within the blast radius, do you think it's a problem the plant was only..."

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