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The average miles per gallon that passenger cars and light trucks will be required to have by 2026, under new fuel economy standards. Currently, vehicle fleets are required to get an average of just over 28 miles per gallon.
An enthusiasm gap among young voters has Democrats worried about the upcoming midterms. Plus, Andrew Cuomo wants his old job back, the South Dakota AG dodges impeachment and life imitates art in Indiana as candidate takes advantage of “the name you know.”
The national 988 service can be a big improvement over the current system. But it will need adequate call center staffing and more care providers across the country, along with a strong communications rollout.
In some states, Uber and Lyft don’t have to pay if passengers are hurt by a hit-and-run. There are moves in a number of states to increase protections for riders and drivers in the case of accidents with uninsured motorists.
Mayor Ted Wheeler suggested that the Committee on Community-Engaged Policing “take a breather” to allow the city to hire more support staff, provide more training and find facilitators. The group only has seven of 13 seats filled.
As a reprieve from high inflation and gas prices, and to hopefully spur ridership back toward pre-pandemic levels, Connecticut will use $8.1 million of ARPA funds to cover public bus fares for the next three months.
The coronavirus pandemic caused an unprecedented number of jobless aid applications, creating a deep backlog which the state says is impossible to quickly clear; a group of residents has filed a lawsuit in complaint of the delays.
As the risk of cyber attacks increases amid the Russian war on Ukraine, many companies are finding that filling open cybersecurity positions is not easy; job openings have increased 29 percent since last year.
Barbara Rothbaum, a psychologist at Emory University School of Medicine, regarding the impacts that the coronavirus pandemic will have on health-care workers. A recent study found that more than 70 percent of health-care workers across the U.S. experience symptoms of anxiety and depression, 38 percent have symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder and 15 percent have had thoughts of suicide or self-harm recently. (NPR — March 31, 2022)
The inflation increase in February as compared to a year ago, the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982. Not including volatile prices for food and energy, core inflation rose 5.4 percent in February from the year prior. Consumer spending only increased by 0.2 percent, a significant drop from the 2.7 percent spending gain in January.
After a stormy confirmation process characterized by partisan recriminations in the U.S. Senate, Ketanji Brown Jackson appears to be set to take her seat on the Supreme Court. More than three dozen others have been denied over the last 235 years.
The city of Elk Grove uses an app that pushes citizens who participate in citywide housing density discussions to craft their own solutions, not just object to what has been proposed.
West Virginia’s Department of Environmental Protection will have regulatory oversight of geothermal energy and will create a permitting system within the department and allow the DEP to issue civil penalties up to $500.
The state will direct federal funds to investments such as state and local parks, improving drinking water and water infrastructure, roads and bridges, mortgage assistance and expanding broadband access.
A report from the American Lung Association found that New Hampshire could save $3.9 billion in public health benefits and prevent 356 premature deaths by switching to EVs and clean energy by 2050.
Richard Painter, a professor at the University of Minnesota who also served as ethics counsel for the George W. Bush White House, regarding Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ failure to recuse himself from cases regarding the 2020 presidential election despite his wife’s involvements in attempting to get the results overturned. Many legal experts agree that Thomas must recuse himself from future cases regarding the 2020 election, though there is no way to force his recusal. (NPR — March 30, 2022)
The number of states that are suing the Biden administration to end the federal travel mask mandate, claiming it “harms the states” and interferes with local laws.
Many could quit their jobs because of harassment and burnout, leaving communities at great risk. The public hostility toward the workers has been referred to as “moral injury.”
Racist urban planning in the 1930s still impacts Seattle’s neighborhoods today as people of color, especially Black and Hispanic Americans, are disproportionately affected by high levels of air pollution.
Public bodies are not required to record their meetings and many did so simply out of courtesy during the pandemic. As local governments return in person, some wonder if recording public meetings should be mandatory.
The new commission, which was first proposed two years ago in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, will have subpoena power, access to crime scenes and records and will conduct a variety of investigations.
The Environmental Defense Fund found that under existing state policies, the state will reach neither its goal of reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2025 nor 50 percent reduction by 2030.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, regarding the federal legislation that will make lynching a federal hate crime in honor of Emmett Till. President Biden signed the bill into law on Tuesday. (Reuters — March 29, 2022)
The proportion of Americans who are extremely/very concerned or somewhat concerned that Russia will use nuclear weapons against the United States.
They’re criticized for failing to solve every problem that affects their constituents. But the discrimination and racism they face must be factored in, and they lack access to institutions that could strengthen their hand.
Nearly one-third of cities and counties would be unable to tell if they were under attack in cyberspace. Many lack sound IT practices, while rigid policies, politics and bureaucracy can hinder better defense practices.
The White House has taken the first step. It’s time for our governments at every level to underwrite a public-private “solidarity bridge” to host many more: up to a million refugees and wartime orphans.
The billing would happen when private ambulance services are overwhelmed and the city’s fire department has to fill the gap. Residents already receive a bill from private firms, such as AMR. Staffing shortages are behind the problem.
Applications for state jobs have fallen 52 percent over the past two years and reflect a similar problem in the private sector. The state Civil Service Commission has sought permission to boost starting pay to blunt the trend.
The governor, who became the state’s Democratic nominee last month, has received $867,000 from real estate moguls and entrepreneurs who also backed Trump, ahead of the November general election.
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