Elections
Covering topics such as governors, legislatures, local government, redistricting and voting.
A proposed bill would clarify when conversations outside public meetings violate the state’s open government law.
A 2017 study found that 61 percent of workers commute into Muscatine County, Iowa, daily because they were unable to afford closer housing. Using reinforced concrete and large-scale 3-D printing may be a solution.
Polls recently showed DeSantis with big leads over Donald Trump in a potential GOP presidential match up as his ultra-conservative moves garner attention. But many think a pivot back to his more moderate ways would be hard to do.
Prosecutors will no longer be able to use rap lyrics as evidence; it will not be a crime to loiter for the purpose of sex work; courts will be barred from disclosing someone’s immigration status; and inmates will be allowed to make free phone calls.
A handful of new state labor laws will go into effect on Jan. 1. With the new laws, employers will be required to include salary and wage ranges on job postings, minimum wage will rise and millions will receive greater paid family leave.
If pay simply kept pace with inflation since the most recent raise in 1988, state senators would now make more than $30,000. Experts say that increasing pay could help diversify the Legislature, making it more like the people they represent.
Despite making pledges not to support election-denying lawmakers, some tech and telecom firms have restarted their donations, according to a report by Bloomberg News.
Lawmakers passed nearly 120 bills this past legislative session and some of the highest-profile bills have already gone into effect. But 20 new laws, from workers’ compensation to victim restitution, start on Jan. 1.
Jan. 6 deposition transcripts have offered new perspectives on the role several state Republicans played in efforts to overturn the 2020 election, including an effort by Doug Mastriano to access voting machines.
After taking a tour of the MBTA’s Repair Facility in Everett, Mass., Maura Healey reinforced the need for future investment, including in vocational schools and programs to create a talent pipeline.
The Board of State Canvassers found no evidence of election fraud and endorsed two ballot proposals’ victories, one to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution and another to provide nine days of early voting.
Oregon has had an ambivalent relationship with the death penalty for decades. Meanwhile, tackling issues with blanket policies versus case-by-case, a Pennsylvania House dispute continues and odds and ends to close out the year.
South Dakota voters adopted the program last month, bypassing the state’s conservative Legislature. But only two more states have the ability to vote on Medicaid expansion, while the remaining 11 states will need to win over GOP lawmakers.
The state is one of nine with a female governor and has elected its first female U.S. Senator. But women will make up only 17 percent of the Legislature next year. Alabama ranked 47th in female state legislators in 2022.
Connecticut’s Communities Challenge Grant program will award eight grants to communities across the state to help fund revitalization projects in an effort to spur job growth. Half of the funds will go to “distressed” communities.
Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily blocked a lower court ruling that would have required the Biden administration to let the public health order expire on Dec. 21 after GOP states filed emergency appeals for intervention.
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