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A report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found that the city had 28 issues, including insufficient oversight, conflicts of interest and inaccurate documentation, in its administration of federal grants.
Millions in Washington state still do not have reliable access to high-speed Internet, making online life nearly inaccessible. Local and tribal governments will soon be able to apply for federal grants to expand broadband services.
The state’s Corrections Department says it has stopped placing women in solitary confinement and now caps all stays at a maximum of 30 days. Advocates are excited by the news, but uncertain if the policy is true.
Leading California cannabis companies, in a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom, announcing that the state’s legal industry is on the verge of collapse. A spokesperson for the governor has said that Newsom is open to working with the state Legislature to create reform. (Associated Press — Dec. 17. 2021)
The number of charges – five felony and three misdemeanor – against Oklahoma House Speaker Pro Tempore Terry O’Donnell for allegedly misusing his power to change state law to allow his wife to become a tag agent. O’Donnell and his wife, Teresa, who also faces three felony and one misdemeanor charges, were indicted by a grand jury last week. The most severe offense against the couple is conspiracy against the state.
The job of a legislator is for most a time-consuming one with little chance to shape policy, and the pay isn't great. So why do so many of them run for re-election over and over?
Once numbering over 2 million in the U.S., an estimated 100,000 remain. But they are getting hard to find. Especially ones that work.
Historian H. W. Brands’ new book draws out the complexities of the country’s original great struggle and what it can tell us about where we are today.
Armed with three years of grocery shopping data, researchers found that total sugar sales are down by almost 20 percent, driven largely by falling soda purchases.
The Valencia lab, a public-private venture between the state and PerkinElmer, processed only 1 to 8 percent of all Californians’ COVID tests in the first 10 months of the contract. And the lab was riddled with dozens of problems, according to an inspection report.
The city’s Department of Public Health will use more than $1 million to develop its own sequencing lab to more quickly determine the infecting variant of COVID, but it won’t open until June.
The Transportation Commission hopes the new rules will encourage the state to not only get more EVs on the roads but also to improve other transportation options. The plan goes into effect on Feb. 14.
The state’s jail population increased 60 percent from 2000 to 2019, more than five times the state’s overall population growth, resulting in overcrowding and understaffing. The fallout can be deadly.
The plan would utilize the city’s waterways to help reduce truck traffic and pollution caused by idling vehicles. The DOT estimated that between January 2020 and September 2021 truck traffic across the East River increased by 50 percent.
Kentucky Emergency Management Director Michael Dossett, regarding the removal of debris after dozens of tornadoes tore across the South and Midwest. Some estimate that debris removal could take years in some parts that were especially damaged, such as Mayfield, Ky. (Associated Press — Dec. 17, 2021)
The amount that Cary, N.C., paid to purchase and equip two Tesla Model Ys as police patrol vehicles as well as a charging station for the cars. The town paid about $10,000 more per vehicle than the Ford Explorers in the department’s current fleet, but officials are hopeful that the investment will end up saving them approximately $4,000 per vehicle by the end of their expected life span of five years.
Bureaucratic, compliance-driven contracting systems do little to create sustainable and equitable communities. Done better, procurement could be a creative tool for problem-solving.
The Michigan Civil Rights Department has argued that the redistricting commissions’ proposed congressional maps eliminate majority-minority districts, but not all experts agree with the analysis.
The increase in the Texas metroplex is more than double the average rise for U.S. cities. At 15.3 cents per kilowatt hour, it’s the highest average since the Great Recession. Experts predict prices will continue to increase.
In 2019, 12 percent fewer Black residents owned homes than white residents and the average Black household income was $30,000 less than for white households. The city’s racial gap has worsened over the last 30 years.
San Francisco, Calif., Supervisor Myrna Melgar, regarding the city’s new legislation that requires domestic workers to be given paid sick leave, the first measure of its kind nationwide. (Associated Press — Dec. 15, 2021)
The number of executions that were carried out by states and the federal government this year, the fewest since 1988.
Partisan rancor has seeped into the once quiet, technical field of transportation policy. Conservatives increasingly oppose policies that support transit, while liberals push back against highway construction.
When it comes to major life events, agency boundaries never line up with the challenges people face. There’s a federal push to get at the problem, and state and local governments should be part of the solution.
Some of their concerns, such as housing costs and homelessness, track with those of their constituents. But elected leaders should pay more attention to crime, inflation and other issues increasingly on the minds of residents.
Illinois and seven other states want the federal government to reinstate a pause on interest rates for loans used to pay unemployment benefits in the beginning of the pandemic. If left unpaid for a year, Illinois could owe $100 million in interest.
Greenland will determine whether to ban the use of vote counting machines in future elections to restore “integrity,” despite no evidence of fraud. Other towns in N.H., also are interested in getting rid of the machines.
Regulators are exploring what kinds of regulations are needed for electric vehicle charging stations ahead of the nationwide expansion of electric vehicle infrastructure. Currently, only California has charging station standards.
A new study found that population loss due to domestic migration out of California has more than doubled since the beginning of COVID-19. Entrances to the state have dropped 38 percent since March 2020.
New York City Mayor-Elect Eric Adams in naming Keechant Sewell as the city’s next police commissioner. Sewell will be the first woman to lead the police force and the third Black person to serve as NYPD commissioner. (Associated Press — December 15, 2021)
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