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The proposed bill would charge electric vehicle owners $290 a year to supplement decreased revenue lost from the state’s gas tax. It is estimated the fee would generate as much as $20 million annually for the state.
Proposed legislation that has garnered support from a public employees union would provide greater protection to state workers who file complaints of bullying, which is mostly not illegal in the state.
The new unit will be composed mostly of civilian employees. It will publish an annual accountability report that evaluates the department on its policies and training, compared to best practices nationwide.
Effingham County, Ill., has seen a decrease in the number of inmates and a reduction in caseloads just three months after the state ended cash bail. However, the long-term impacts of the end of cash bail remains to be seen.
Peter Park, after passing the California Bar exam at the age of 17, making him possibly the youngest person to do so. (Associated Press — Dec. 8, 2023)
Legislative veteran John Whitmire should be able to improve Houston's relations with the state, while pledging to crack down on crime and deficit spending.
States and localities may have hidden treasure in their data that can be profitably unearthed by commercial interests. Governments need to be able to realize the value of their data while still protecting the public.
Its sprawling size is one reason. But there are other factors at work, including discouraged Democrats and Republicans’ success at courting Hispanic voters.
The federal government promised $23 million to assist with recovery efforts after Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc on 49 schools and nine colleges and universities across the state. Many are still waiting for those funds.
The Program for International Student Assessment found that about 54 percent of students got distracted by others using digital devices. Those who were distracted scored 15 points lower in math.
A group of state lawmakers, advocates and parents are working to change a Medicaid rule that limits psychiatric hospital stays to 15 days a month, but the change would need $7.2 million annually and federal approval.
The California governor and his administration are moving forward with a plan to build a 45-mile water tunnel between the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, even as the project has received heavy pushback from environmental groups.
How much 46 percent of teens said they used the Internet last year, nearly double the share a decade ago. Nearly all teens said they have access to a smartphone regardless of gender, age, race, ethnicity or economic background. (The Hill — Dec. 11, 2023)
The company controls millions of square feet of offices, so its struggles will surely cause more headaches for landlords. But the model it pioneered remains attractive.
The primary is often the only real contest in choosing those who will represent us. Closed party primaries are unrepresentative and undemocratic, and they disenfranchise more than half of the voting public: independents.
Fifty million Americans are living in poverty or near it. A new grant program will help nonprofits address inequities and promote upward mobility.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators this year made budget cuts and deferred spending as a way to address the $31.5 billion spending gap. But, as tax revenues were delayed by winter storms, the gap has grown to $68 billion.
The state’s new maps added more majority-Black districts but added them to areas that already had Black representation and whitewashed or combined other districts, leading to maps that offer little chance of partisan competition.
In what seems to be a coordinated effort between the governor, attorney general and secretary of state, six lawsuits challenging voter-approved property tax cuts and increases to teachers’ pensions have been blocked.
Irene Mulvey, president of the American Association of University Professors, regarding the University of Nebraska’s proposal to spend $450 million on a renovation of its football stadium in Lincoln, while also looking to cut millions of dollars from the university’s academic system. The renovation to Memorial Stadium was given preliminary approval this fall, while the four-campus University of Nebraska system faces a $58 million budget shortfall that threatens to cut staff and academic programs. (Associated Press — Dec. 8, 2023)
Decades ago, highway projects destroyed neighborhoods, uprooting families and businesses. Today’s leaders must seek to rebuild public trust through thoughtful, equitable transportation and land-use decisions.
Localities have always been creatures of state government. But their freedom to act independently is up against ever more stringent limits.
The nation grew at a 5.2 percent annual rate in the third quarter of this year, but several factors indicate that a number of states are not seeing the same trends. The preliminary unemployment rate rose in 38 states.
The county council unanimously approved a 10-year contract between Cuyahoga Green Energy, the county-run utility, and Compass Energy Platform to develop district microgrids, which will serve as small-scale local electricity systems.
The congestion pricing fee would be for drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th street, but a New Jersey lawsuit threatens to delay its implementation. The fee is forecast to earn $1 billion for the MTA’s capital budget.
Carlos Eduardo Espina, a law student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who received an active shooter alert after having just finished one of his last final exams of the semester. More than 630 mass shootings have occurred across the U.S. this year and one in six Americans say that they have personally witnessed a shooting. For Espina, being involved in a mass shooting was just a matter of when, not if, it would occur. Wednesday’s shooting at UNLV killed three people and left another critically injured. (NPR — Dec. 7, 2023)
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