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By Christine Vestal, Stateline Staff Writer
AUGUSTA, Maine — The Medicaid program in Maine is short of money, and conservative Governor Paul LePage has a blunt proposal for solving the problem — drop people from the rolls.
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By Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press, Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Women would be required to undergo an ultrasound before receiving an abortion under legislation proposed in the Alaska Senate on Wednesday.
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AR: Home, state care backers push for cash
By Evie Blad, Northwest Arkansas Times
Arkansans seeking waivers to place their developmentally disabled family members in home- and community-based programs told lawmakers Tuesday that placing less emphasis on institutional care would free up funding and lessen the years-long stints many spend on waiting lists.
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AZ: Abortion opponents lack follow-up
By E.J. Montini, The Arizona Republic (Phoenix)
I got a call from a reader Wednesday who remembered seeing me at the state Capitol in 1988 on the day the Arizona House voted on a bill to ban abortion.
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AZ: Arizona loses out on $1.9 billion
By Mar Jo Pitzl, The Arizona Republic (Phoenix)
Arizona has lost an estimated $1.9 billion over the last decade because it doesn't tax online sales, a study commissioned by the Arizona Retailers Association said.
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AZ: GOP senators meet behind closed doors
By The Associated Press, The Arizona Republic (Phoenix)
Republican state senators got a closed-door briefing on Gov. Jan Brewer's proposal to change the state government's personnel system.
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AZ: Bill would impose new abortion restrictions in Arizona
By Paul Davenport, The Associated Press, Arizona Capitol Times (Phoenix)
A sweeping anti-abortion bill would generally ban abortions starting at 20 weeks of pregnancy and impose an array of new disclosure requirements, including having the state post online depictions of fetuses at two-week intervals.
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CA: Proposition 8 ruling was just but wobbly
By Staff, The Washington Post
Is it unconstitutional to forbid same-sex couples from calling their unions a "marriage" if — as is the case in California — they enjoy the same legal rights and responsibilities as opposite-sex partners in the state?
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CA: Gay marriage fight may hinge on Supreme Court's Anthony Kennedy
By David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times
The Supreme Court has nine justices, but if the constitutional fight over same-sex marriage reaches them this year, the decision will probably come down to just one: a California Republican and Reagan-era conservative who has nonetheless written the court's two leading gay rights opinions.
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CA: Gay marriage foes weigh their next move
By Howard Mintz, Contra Costa Times
Same-sex marriage foes now have a simple choice in the legal battle over California's Proposition 8 -- ask a federal appeals court to reconsider its ruling invalidating the voter-approved ban on gay nuptials, with low odds of success. Or move swiftly to the more conservative U.S. Supreme Court, thrusting the same-sex marriage debate to the high court's docket in the midst of presidential election campaigning.
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CA: Counties ready to handle state's juvenile offenders, study says
By Michael Montgomery, California Watch
County governments have invested nearly a half-billion dollars over the past 15 years to modernize juvenile lockups and now have the capacity to absorb offenders currently housed in the state's youth prisons, if those facilities are closed, a new study contends.
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CA: No closure in sight for Golden State
By Geoffrey A. Fowler, The Wall Street Journal
Opponents and backers of gay marriage in California are caught in a waiting game. As the battle over California's Proposition 8 gay-marriage ban continues to make its way through the courts, the state may not have a final verdict until 2013.
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CA: A ruling for equal rights
By Staff, The New York Times
This nation still has a long way to go to overcome one of the great remaining barriers to full equality and fairness, but a federal appeals court panel brought it a big step closer with a well-grounded ruling on Tuesday striking down a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage in California.
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CA: Divided court rejects Proposition 8
By Maura Dolan and Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times
SAN FRANCISCO and LOS ANGELES -- A federal appeals court has declared California's 2008 voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, concluding that the prohibition served no purpose other than to "lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians."
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CO: Court made right call on medical pot for criminals
By Staff, The Denver Post
Can a criminal on probation be barred from smoking pot — even if he has a state certificate granting him the right to medical marijuana? The state Court of Appeals says the answer is yes, and we think it made the right call.
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CO: Colorado crime bill stirs abortion debate
By Lynn Bartles, The Denver Post
Two of the legislature's most conservative lawmakers are sponsoring a bill that critics say would criminalize abortion and establish "personhood" status for a fetus.
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CT: Malloy to add funds to private human service providers, nursing home "right-sizing"
By Arielle Levin Becker, The Connecticut Mirror
The health and human services portions of Malloy's proposed budget adjustments include money to support an effort to move people out of nursing homes, fund nursing homes that consider providing long-term care to people leaving prisons and state institutions, add three childhood vaccines to the state's program and offer the first funding boost in five years to private human services providers.
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CT: Malloy proposes $50 million increase in ECS funding
By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas, The Connecticut Mirror
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy asked state legislators today to send an additional $50 million to local school districts, a move that school advocates say will cover a small portion of what the state actually owes them.
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CT: State of the State -- A governor striving to be a reformer
By Mark Pazniokas, The Connecticut Mirror
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy used a televised State of the State address Wednesday to jump into the thicket of teacher tenure reform, a popular issue with voters, yet fraught with potential pitfalls for a Democrat narrowly elected with the support of organized labor.
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CT: Malloy likely to keep plenty of state jobs vacant
By Keith M. Phaneuf, The Connecticut Mirror
Whatever new initiatives Gov. Dannel P. Malloy unveils Wednesday in his revised budget for the next fiscal year, he likely won't be asking for much extra staffing to carry them out.
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CT: To open new session, Malloy on message -- as usual
By Mark Pazniokas, The Connecticut Mirror
On the eve of his second State of the State address, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy refused to go off-message, even if the topic was a favorable poll from a surprising source: a conservative think tank that often criticizes the Democratic governor.
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CT: Malloy wants to eliminate 25 boards, commissions
By Bernie Davidow, The Hartford Courant
In the legislative session that begins Wednesday, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will ask lawmakers to eliminate 25 boards and commissions to shrink the size of government, his office announced this morning.
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FL: Bills to revamp high school sports spark debate
By Kathleen McGrory, The Miami Herald
What if some high school, let's say a charter school, could openly recruit the next LeBron James out of middle school, pair him with a hyper-talented Dwyane Wade wannabe, snap up a Chris Bosh-like sharpshooter and assemble a super team like the Heat did in free agency last year?
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FL: Legislators reject attempt to clarify state's regulation of slot machines
By Mary Ellen Klas, The Miami Herald
State gambling regulators are in a bind. They have indirectly authorized the expansion of gambling in the past six months as lawyers for parimutuels found holes in state laws and opened the door to slot machines at parimutuels across the state and table-game look-alikes at existing racinos.
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IA: Sled bill gets Iowa House subcommittee OK
By William Petroski, The Des Moines Register
A bill that would exempt Iowa cities from lawsuits resulting from sled accidents was approved Wednesday by an Iowa House subcommittee on a 2-1 vote.
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IA: Bill would add gun rights to Iowa Constitution
By The Associated Press, Sioux City Journal
A proposed constitutional amendment making it harder for government officials to limit who can get a gun and where they can carry firearms could come up in a House committee as early as this week.
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IA: Iowa costs of teaching non-English speakers rising
By The Associated Press, The Muscatine Journal
The cost of teaching non-English-speaking students is skyrocketing in some Iowa schools, and while state funding has increased, local property taxes are paying a bigger share.
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IA: Bill would add gun rights to Iowa Constitution
By The Associated Press, The Muscatine Journal
A proposed constitutional amendment that would make it harder for officials to limit who can buy and carry a gun is expected to come before Iowa lawmakers soon, and a key legislator said he's optimistic about its chances despite claims that it could turn the state into a wild west with few restraints on firearms.
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IA: Iowa College Democrats lobby against voter ID bill
By William Petroski, The Des Moines Register
College Democrats and Young Democrats lobbied at the Iowa Capitol Tuesday against a voter identification bill proposed by Secretary of State Matt Schultz, contending the requirements would make it more difficult for students to vote.
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IL: Illinois lawmakers introduce gay marriage bill
By Christopher Wills, The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
A year after gay couples gained the option of civil unions in Illinois, some lawmakers are beginning a push to authorize same-sex marriages.
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IL: Ill. House backs more rights for crime victims
By The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
Illinois lawmakers are considering a change to the state constitution that would guarantee crime victims a bigger voice in what happens to offenders.
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IL: Legislators want to extend lottery game helping AIDS fight
By Andrew Maloney, Chicago Sun-Times
Although dollars and cents have driven most of the conversation in Springfield this spring, two Illinois lawmakers say their push to extend an AIDs awareness lottery is a moral issue that is critical to funding the "front line" in the fight against the disease.
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IL: Plan to close IL facilities gets cool reception
By The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
Gov. Pat Quinn's push to overhaul care for people with mental illnesses and disabilities collided Tuesday with safety concerns, money worries and maybe a bit of wounded pride as lawmakers reviewed plans to close two state institutions.
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IN: Indiana stage builder cited in state fair collapse
By The Associated Press, Evansville Courier and Press
State fair officials, the stagehands union and a company that built the roof and lights rigging for a massive concert platform all share blame for last summer's deadly stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair, according to a government investigation.
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IN: Illinois House committee OKs audio recording bill
By Shannon McFarland, The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
Legislation letting people record police activities without risking felony charges was approved Wednesday by an Illinois House committee, despite some lawmakers' concerns that the measure creates new complications.
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IN: Right-to-work fines put on hold by Ind. high court
By The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
The state Supreme Court placed on hold Wednesday all legislative fines against Democrats who boycotted the Indiana House during the right-to-work battle until it rules on whether it's legal for those fines to be deducted from their paychecks.
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IN: Ind. House panel leader leery of creationism bill
By The Associated Press, Northwest Indiana Times (Munster)
The leader of the Indiana House Education Committee says a proposal specifically allowing public schools to teach creationism in science classes could be unworkable.
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KS: Bill would alert nursing home residents to sex offenders living with them
By Brent D. Wistrom, Wichita Eagle
Even violent and sexual offenders need help when they get old. But since they occasionally strike again, even years after serving time for past crimes, some advocates for the elderly say nursing homes should notify residents or their families when a registered offender is living in the same building.
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KS: State to crack down on 'gray' gambling machines
By Fred Mann, Wichita Eagle
You don't have to visit the Kansas Star Casino to play video machines with colorful spinning reels. You can find machines that look and act very much like slot machines all over Wichita – at restaurants, convenience stores and smoke shops.
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KS: Gun investigation bill dies in House committee
By Staff, The Lawrence Journal-World
The so-called "Bloomberg Bill," aimed at keeping some gun investigations conducted by other states out of Kansas, failed to make it out of the Kansas House Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee on Tuesday.
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KY: Head of Kentucky family services agency quits
By Deborah Yetter, The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Janie Miller, secretary of the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services, resigned Tuesday after a controversial tenure directing the agency that oversees the state's Medicaid, child welfare, social services, public health, programs for the elderly and other human services.
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LA: Bill would abolish pardons by governor
By Ed Anderson, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
Gubernatorial pardons would be abolished if lawmakers approve and voters adopt a proposed change in the state Constitution filed Tuesday by a Louisiana House member from New Orleans.
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MA: Mass. expected to join foreclosure abuse settlement
By Jenifer B. McKim, The Boston Globe
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley is expected to sign on to a settlement brokered by attorneys general nationwide with five major US lenders over the banks' role in the country's foreclosure crisis, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions who wasn't authorized to discuss the deal publicly.
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MA: Hacker group -- BPD will pay for Occupy eviction
By O'Ryan Johnson, Boston Herald
The Internet vigilante group Anonymous refuses to give up on its stranglehold of the Boston police website and is likely to strike again in revenge for cops evicting Occupy campers from Dewey Square, a man who claims to be the unofficial spokesman for the hacker collective told the Herald yesterday.
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MA: No say for some who would be casinos' neighbors
By Mark Arsenault, The Boston Globe
WALPOLE, Mass. - Mike McCarthy lives close enough to a Gillette Stadium parking lot to smell the hibachi grills on game day. He does not mind Sunday tailgaters a few hundred feet from his house, but he draws the line at a billion-dollar casino. Though he lives closer than almost anyone to the proposed site of a Wynn Resorts casino, he will not be allowed to participate in a local referendum if the project makes it to a vote.
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MD: Maryland joins nationwide mortgage settlement
By Hanah Cho, The Sun (Baltimore)
Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler has agreed to join other states in a multibillion-dollar settlement with the nation's five largest mortgage servicers — a landmark agreement that would aid homeowners who were victims of shoddy and illegal foreclosure paperwork practices.
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MD: O'Malley knocks Christie on same-sex marriage
By John Wagner, The Washington Post
Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) criticized New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) on national television Tuesday for advocating that voters of his state should decide whether to legalize same-sex marriage.
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MD: O'Brien says Archdiocese of Baltimore won't offer birth control coverage
By Andrea K. Walker, The Sun (Baltimore)
Cardinal-designate Edwin F. O'Brien said in a strongly worded letter that the Archdiocese of Baltimore will not comply with federal law requiring churches to offer birth control coverage even it means dropping health insurance for its 3,500 employees. "We cannot – we will not – comply with this unjust law," O'Brien wrote in the letter, which was read during last Sunday's Mass at the area's 153 Roman Catholic parishes.
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ME: DHHS budget now a political showdown between governor, Legislature
By Eric Russell, Bangor Daily News
After working for weeks to fashion a compromise proposal that would address a shortfall in the Department of Health and Human Service budget, a deal remains elusive as a divide appears to be growing among lawmakers, especially House Republicans.
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MO: Discrimination to one is discrimination to all
By David Rosman, The Columbia Missourian
Picture the point of a pin. Now cut that into a billion-billion pieces and you have something so small that it is pure energy. Inside is a vibrating "string," also of pure energy. It is this little entity, a billion-billionth the size of the pinpoint that holds the entire universe together.
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MS: No fight over hospital tax
By Staff, Hattiesburg American
Looks like Gov. Phil Bryant will be spared the all-out war that greeted former Gov. Haley Barbour when it came to imposing a state hospital tax to help fund Medicaid.
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NC: State unemployment system under review
By David Ranii, The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The $2.7 billion debt that North Carolina has incurred to pay unemployment benefits in the wake of the recession has led the N.C. Chamber of Commerce to commission a comprehensive study of the state's unemployment system.
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ND: Continue to look forward, plan
By Staff, The Bismarck Tribune
North Dakotans should pay attention to Vision 2020, a statewide planning process about to get under way. The past teaches us that the policies and legislation resulting from the plan will affect the state well beyond the 20-year objective. Those speaking now will help shape the state's future.
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ND: Nickname supporters deliver petitions to secretary of state's office
By Chuck Haga, The Forum (Fargo)
After a last, celebratory campaign for signatures at a Bismarck Century-Bismarck High hockey game and from an RV parked outside the Capitol, Fighting Sioux nickname supporters delivered petitions to the secretary of state's office Tuesday night to force a statewide vote on the long-running and controversial issue.
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NE: Legislature passes jail contraband bill
By The Associated Press, Lincoln Journal Star
People convicted of smuggling cigarettes, money or cellphones to Nebraska inmates would find themselves behind bars for up to a year, under a bill approved by the Legislature.
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NJ: Money issues in gay marriage fight
By Heather Haddon, The Wall Street Journal
Advocates heading into an 11th-hour push to legalize gay marriage in New Jersey are facing a vastly altered fund-raising landscape since their original unsuccessful effort in 2009.
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NJ: Prop 8 decision in California has weight in N.J.
By Staff, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
While the court decision striking down California's ban on gay marriage was narrowly framed, it's still pertinent to the underlying issue in states such as New Jersey. It speaks to the reasons that civil unions are not adequate.
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NJ: Gender gap in N.J. women's pay deserves attention
By Staff, The Star-Ledger (Newark)
It's no secret that women are paid less than men for doing similar work. And any college grad who thought her higher degrees shielded her from the inequities in the salary structure, think again. The more education you have — and the older you are — the wider the pay gap with male counterparts.
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NV: Anti-abortion group refiles Nevada personhood initiative
By The Associated Press, Las Vegas Review-Journal
An anti-abortion group has refiled for a third time a Nevada prenatal personhood initiative that seeks to ban birth control, embryonic stem cell research or other procedures that intentionally kill a fetus.
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NY: Change urged at care agency
By Rick Karlin, Times Union (Albany)
A federal study has criticized reporting procedures at the state Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities.
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NY: Tier VI plan tests labor
By Jimmy Vielkind, Times Union (Albany)
Labor groups immediately attacked Gov. Andrew Cuomo's plan for a new pension tier for future workers when he proposed it last month, and starting Wednesday the state's largest labor coalition will begin airing advertisements making its case.
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OH: Kasich wants 'war' on slave trade
By Alan Johnson, The Columbus Dispatch
With Gov. John Kasich declaring "war on the slave-trade business" in Ohio, the state is enlisting over-the-road truck drivers, training more law-enforcement officers and creating "the Hub" to respond to human-trafficking crimes.
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OH: Even talk of Statehouse bipartisanship stirs dispute
By Jim Siegel and Joe Vardon, The Columbus Dispatch
For the second straight year, Republican Gov. John Kasich used his State of the State speech to call for a future of bipartisan cooperation with minority Democrats in the Statehouse.
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OH: Kasich on Ohio -- 'We're alive again'
By Joe Vardon, The Columbus Dispatch
STEUBENVILLE, Ohio — A $10 million program to boost the state's broadband speeds tenfold and establish a $2.3 million broadband testing center at Ohio State University was the pre-eminent policy announcement Gov. John Kasich made in his State of the State address yesterday — historic for its circumstance but ripped by Democrats for being short on specifics.
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OR: Sen. Floyd Prozanski declares gun-related bills dead
By Janie Har, The Oregonian (Portland)
The Oregon House will vote again on a bill to make private the names of people who have applied for, or currently hold, concealed handgun licenses – and again, it won't go anywhere in the Senate.
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OR: Bills may prevent some foreclosures
By Queenie Wong, Statesman Journal (Salem)
Homeowners faced with foreclosure while seeking a loan modification expressed frustration to lawmakers Monday about a process they called a "spin cycle."
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PA: Corbett calls fiscal plan 'lean and demanding'
By Laura Olson and Karen Langly, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Facing a budget deficit that is a half-billion dollars and growing, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett on Tuesday proposed an austere spending plan for next year that would slash millions from state universities and revamp how counties receive aid for human-services programs.
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RI: R.I. Senate votes to disqualify murderers, other violent criminals, from early release
By Katherine Gregg, The Providence Journal
For the second year in a row, the state Senate has responded to the public uproar over the potential release, 12 years early, of convicted child killer Michael Woodmansee by approving legislation to disqualify murderers, rapists, child molesters and other violent criminals from early-release from prison for "good behavior."
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RI: Cranston West prayer banner is covered with wood
By The Associated Press, The Providence Journal
Lawyers on both sides of a legal battle over a prayer banner at Cranston High School West have agreed on conditions for the display while city officials decide whether to appeal an order requiring its removal.
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SC: S.C. sues to save Voter ID
By Meg Kinnard, The Associated Press, The Post and Courier (Charleston)
The U.S. Justice Department was wrong to block South Carolina from requiring voters to show government-issued photo identification to vote, the state's top prosecutor argued in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.
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SD: SD House panel approves abortion-law modifications
By The Associated Press, Rapid City Journal
With South Dakota's year-old abortion law facing legal challenges, a House committee endorsed a bill Wednesday that would change some of the counseling requirements for women seeking abortions.
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SD: Breastfeeding list skips S.D.
By Jon Walker, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
South Dakota hospitals are shut out of a national list saluting health centers that are friendly to mothers who nurse their newborn babies.
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SD: Legislators want to make it tougher to take property
By Cody Winchester, Argus Leader (Sioux Falls)
South Dakota landowners would gain some leverage in eminent domain disputes with railroads and pipeline companies if a proposal under consideration in the state House of Representatives is approved.
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TN: Birth-control rule riles TN religious leaders, GOP
By Elizabeth Bewley, The Tennessean (Nashville)
Angry Republican lawmakers and religious leaders in Tennessee say they'll fight a controversial federal requirement that church-affiliated employers offer benefits covering birth control.
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TN: Residents can call and apply for TennCare spend down program
By Tom Wilemon, The Tennessean (Nashville)
Phone lines will open 6 p.m. Feb. 21 for state residents to call and request applications to enroll in the TennCare Standard Spend Down program. This is a program for people who do not currently receive TennCare.
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TN: 'Don't Say Gay' bill delayed in Tennessee House
By The Associated Press, Chattanooga Times Free Press
Opponents of a measure that seeks to ban Tennessee public schools from teaching about gay issues said Wednesday they will continue to show up in large groups to protest the legislation. The proposal, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill, is sponsored by Rep. Joey Hensley and was scheduled to be heard in the House Education Subcommittee.
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TN: Haslam's judges plan gets support
By The Associated Press, The Tennessean (Nashville)
MOUNT PLEASANT, Tenn. — Gov. Bill Haslam's plan for writing the state's judicial selection system into the Tennessee Constitution survived a challenge Tuesday from a fellow Republican in the state House.
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TN: Tennessee is close to evicting Occupy Nashville
By Chas Sisk, The Tennessean (Nashville)
Tennessee lawmakers moved toward removing the Occupy Nashville encampment from the state Capitol with a pair of votes Tuesday in which they also amped up the threat of jail time.
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TX: Key players drive Texas medical board's stem cell rules
By Emily Ramshaw, The Texas Tribune
When the Texas Medical Board called a stakeholder meeting in July to discuss the state's burgeoning adult stem cell industry, it was at the behest of Gov. Rick Perry, the soon-to-be presidential hopeful who had just received an injection of his own stem cells, and of Stanley Jones, the orthopedist and biotech entrepreneur who performed Perry's experimental procedure.
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TX: Catholic Texans fight contraception mandate
By Holly Heinrich, The Texas Tribune
Catholic churches and affiliated organizations in Texas say they won't stand for a new federal law that would require many employers to provide contraception coverage in their health insurance plans.
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VA: Suffolk weighs ban on cross-gender clothing for students
By Hattie Brown Garrow, The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk)
The regulations, to be considered by the board tonight, ban clothing "that is not in keeping with a student's gender and causes a disruption and/or distracts others from the educational process or poses a health or safety concern."
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VA: Adoption law 'conscience clause' advances in Va. Senate
By Laura Vozzella, The Washington Post
A flurry of Democratic amendments failed Wednesday to stop a bill in the Virginia Senate that would allow private, state-funded adoption agencies to turn away parents based on sexual orientation or religious beliefs.
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VA: Virginia GOP shows its hypocritical side on abortion
By Staff, The Washington Post
Virginia Republicans, always quick to condemn overreaching government intrusions into people's lives, are themselves becoming the High Priests of the Nanny State. In driving a singularly obnoxious abortion measure through the state legislature — one that substitutes their own medical expertise for that of doctors — they are setting new standards for official arrogance and meddling.
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VA: Virginia adding 'conscience clause' to adoption laws
By Anita Kumar, The Washington Post
RICHMOND — Virginia will likely become the second state in the nation — after North Dakota — to allow private adoption agencies to turn away parents based on sexual orientation or religious and moral beliefs.
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WA: House sends gay marriage to governor for signing
By Brad Shannon, The News Tribune (Tacoma)
Washington's same-sex marriage bill is on its way to Gov. Chris Gregoire for signing in the next few days. The Democrat-controlled state House voted 55 to 43 this afternoon to approve Senate Bill 6239.
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WA: Wis. court upholds child abuse conviction
By The Associated Press, La Crosse Tribune
A state appeals court has ruled a jury properly convicted a Kenosha woman of forcing her young son to take a cold shower that killed him.
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WA: Hundreds of WA state employees paid to stay home
By The Associated Press, The News Tribune (Tacoma)
Hundreds of Washington state employees are paid to stay home every year during investigations for possible misbehavior or crimes such as theft or harassing co-workers.
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WI: State can't afford GAAP accounting yet
By Staff, The Post-Crescent (Appleton)
This is a story about two kinds of accounting. One kind uses "generally accepted accounting principles" and is the kind used by publically traded companies. The other is the kind the state uses and is called "cash accounting."
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WV: W.Va. Senate passes 911, protective order changes
By The Associated Press, Charleston Daily Mail
The West Virginia Senate unanimously passed two bills Wednesday that would offer increased protections for children and adult victims of domestic or sexual abuse, plus victims of stalking and harassment.
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WV: Bills in Senate limit tats, tans
By The Associated Press, Charleston Gazette
West Virginia lawmakers are looking to protect children from unhealthy decisions and to give parents more say in their children's body art choices.
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WV: State senator pushes for right-to-work legislation
By Jared Hunt, Charleston Daily Mail
Saying it is the first thing major companies look for in locating new businesses, state Sen. Karen Facemyer took to the Senate floor Monday to try to garner support for her bill to make West Virginia a "right-to-work" state.
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WV: Drug testing bill 'a distraction,' McAteer says
By Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's proposal to require drug testing for West Virginia's coal miners is "a distraction" from efforts to improve mine safety following the Upper Big Branch Mine Disaster, a leading safety advocate and the United Mine Workers agreed Tuesday.
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