• NTSB Advocates Stricter Standards for Drunk Driving
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Nation   |   May 15, 2013
• The National Transportation Safety Board recommended Tuesday that states lower their threshold for drunken driving from 0.08 percent to 0.05 percent or less.
• 1 Comments

• Majority of States Show Positive Performance on Cutting Carbon Emissions
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   May 15, 2013
• Over the past decade, 32 states have successfully cut their carbon emissions, while 18 states have seen increases.
• 1 Comments

• Minnesota Becomes 12th State to Allow Same-Sex Marriage
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Minnesota   |   May 15, 2013
• Minnesota becomes the 12th state to allow same-sex marriage with Gov. Mark Dayton's signature, which was celebrated with a large festival.

• Christie's Affordable-Housing Battle Heads to Court
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   May 15, 2013
• A three-judge panel said it will hear arguments on New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s decision to grab up to $162 million in affordable-housing funds for his proposed $32.9 billion budget

• Feds Block Utah Public-Lands Law
• Source: Salt Lake Tribune   |   Utah   |   May 15, 2013
• A federal judge signed an order blocking implementation of a Utah law prohibiting some Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service employees from enforcing state laws anywhere in Utah after the U.S. Department of Justice argued the law was unconstitutional.

• DUI Bill Advances in Washington State Amid NTSB Calls for Crackdown
• Source: Seattle Times   |   Washington state   |   May 15, 2013
• A bipartisan bill to stiffen Washington state’s DUI penalties cleared its first legislative hurdle, while a safety board in the other Washington sought to kick off a national conversation about changing the very definition of drunken driving.

• Controversial Arizona Laws Rack Up Huge Legal Fees
• Source: Arizona Republic   |   Arizona   |   May 15, 2013
• Lawsuits defending some of the state’s most controversial laws have cost millions of dollars and thousands of hours of state employee time, diverting them from other important work.
• 4 Comments

• Child Welfare Bills Signed by Colorado Gov. Hickenlooper
• Source: Denver Post   |   Colorado   |   May 15, 2013
• The bills address a number of issues within the child welfare system, including expanding the number of case-specific child fatality reviews and creating a statewide hotline for reporting suspected child abuse or neglect.

• Florida Legislators Pay Peanuts for Health Insurance
• Source: Miami Herald   |   Florida   |   May 15, 2013
• Florida House Republicans, who last month loudly and proudly rejected billions of dollars in federal money that would have provided health insurance to 1 million low-income people, pay less than the $25 a month they wanted to charge poor Floridians for basic coverage.
• 2 Comments

• Gov. Jerry Brown Unveils Cautious Budget for Deficit-Free California
• Source: Los Angeles Times   |   California   |   May 15, 2013
• Brown put lawmakers on notice that he had no desire to ratchet up spending despite a multibillion-dollar windfall of tax receipts in recent months.

• Florida Lawmakers Have Low Insurance Premiums Denied Medicaid Expansion
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Florida   |   May 14, 2013
• Florida House Republicans last month rejected billions of dollars in federal money that would have provided health insurance to 1 million poor Floridians while keeping their own health insurance premiums staggeringly low.

• Legislation Aims to Save State Mineral Revenues From Sequestration
• BY: Stateline   |   Nation   |   May 14, 2013
• Wyoming Republicans Sen. Mike Enzi and Rep. Cynthia Lummis plan to introduce bills next week allowing states to collect royalties directly from companies that develop oil, gas and coal on federal lands.

• Vermont Passes Aid-in-Dying Bill
• Source: New England Cable News   |   Vermont   |   May 14, 2013
• The Vermont House voted Monday evening to make the state the first in the U.S. to legislate allowing physicians to provide lethal medication to terminally ill patients who request it.

• GOP States Struggle With Use of Budget Surpluses
• Source: AP/Yahoo   |   Nation   |   May 14, 2013
• Republicans who won control over state legislatures on principles of small government are facing pressure to spend budget surpluses on roads, schools and buildings that were cut or neglected during the recession.
• 2 Comments

• Kansas Legislature Seeks Changes to Judicial Nomination Process
• Source: AP/The Republic   |   Kansas   |   May 14, 2013
• Legislators who believe the Kansas Senate should have the power to confirm appellate court judges, including Supreme Court justices, have a new plan that they hope will get approved before lawmakers adjourn this year, an influential senator involved in drafting the measure said Monday.

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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..."
• Texas Enacts Unemployment Drug-Testing Law
  
  "How about testing for alcohol too?
  How about testing for smoking too? People on unemployment..."
• Report: U.S. Teacher Training System is Broken
  
  "The education establishment is an industry unto itself. Between insular teacher "training&quot..."
• 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..."

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