State Legislatures articles from December 2004

State Legislatures archives from December 2004

Help for press secretaries.(Book Review)
December 1, 2004... Media Relations Handbook for Agencies, Associations, Nonprofits and Congress by Brad Fitch, TheCapitol.Net Inc. 2004. P.O. Box 25706, Alexandria, Va. 22313-5706.368 pages. $45. Available at www.MediaRelationsHandbook.com. We should pay...

Credit goes to wrong representative in Florida.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2004... Editor: In the article "Out of Classroom Experiences" by Jan Goehring in the September 2004 State Legislatures magazine, Florida Representative Rene Garcia was credited with passing legislation to establish drug-free zones around public...

It's Rutgers', not Rutger's.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
December 1, 2004... Editor: I note fondly that you used the word "myriad" correctly, as an adjective, in the paragraph just below the governor-race map in "The Real Race Is in the States" in the September issue. I note sadly that in the second paragraph under...

Corrections.(Correction Notice)
December 1, 2004... It was the New Jersey Senate that switched control after the 2003 election, not the governor's office as reported in "The Real Race Is in the States," on page 22 of the September 2004 magazine. In the state's off-year elections, Democrats took...

Homeland security: who gets what and how.(Statestats)
December 1, 2004... How will funds for first responders be distributed to the states in FY 2006? Will it be based on risk, population or some other formula? Will it include a state minimum? Will the current minimum be reduced? These are some of the unanswered...

People & politics.(Montana)
December 1, 2004... Montana has taken bipartisanship to a new level. Newly elected Governor Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat-the first elected in the state in 16 years--picked a Republican as his running mate, Senator John Bohlinger Bohlinger served three-terms in the...

More Hispanics call rural America home.(Trends And Transitions)
December 1, 2004... Hispanic Americans--who number 37.4 million nationally--have become the fastest growing population in small towns and rural areas. They have doubled in population from 1.5 million in 1990 to more than 3.2 million in 2000, according to a new...

Hawaii says no to pain.(Pain Patient's Bill of Rights )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... In a move that seemed to satisfy both the "assisted suicide" opponents and "death with dignity" proponents, Hawaii passed legislation this fall that focuses on people who suffer from chronic pain. The Pain Patient's Bill of Rights gives...

All for one one for all.(Trends And Transitions)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... When disaster--natural or man-made--strikes, it may take more than a village and even more than a single state to help the victims. In a country galvanized by the 2001 terrorist attacks, states are beginning to consider interstate compacts...

Enough's enough.
December 1, 2004... Virginia has passed a package of drunk driving bills that makes the state's laws among the toughest and most comprehensive in the nation. More than 20 bills were signed into law as the Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol and Drugs Omnibus...

Real or fake?(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... More Americans are celebrating Christmas with fake trees, believing that to be the more environmentally friendly alternative. But tree growers disagree. They cite the ecological benefits of real trees--before and after the presents are opened....

Fishy warnings.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Minnesota issued more warnings about eating fish caught in its waters than any other state last year. Indiana and Michigan followed closely behind. Only Alaska and Wyoming issued no advisories. Nationally, one-third of all lakes and nearly...

Help! I'm here.(Iowa, health policy)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Iowa joins about 23 states in using new 911 technology to help dispatchers pinpoint an emergency caller using a cell phone. That's good news since about half of all 911 calls in the state are placed by cell phones. By the end of this year,...

Plunge of the property tax.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... State and local governments rely half as much on property taxes today as they did a century ago, says a new report, The Role of Property Taxes in State and Local Finances, by NCSL. Other state and local fees and taxes, including those on sales...

RX alternatives.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... When it comes to alternative medicine, Arizona comes in first. The state is one of only 13 that license naturopathic physicians and is home to more than 10 percent of them in the nation. Naturopaths flock to the state to take advantage of...

The animals tell.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... As part of Washington state's biological warfare defense, veterinarians recently began monitoring unusual small animal deaths for evidence of tularemia, plague, anthrax and other diseases that could be caused by lethal agents. Small animals...

A beef bounty.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... A South Dakota project that sent beef sticks and jerky to troops in Iraq has prompted Nebraska to do the same, according to the Rapid City Journal. Last February, a state meat locker teamed with the South Dakota Beef Industry Council to ship of...

Give us a break.(schools)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Citing the plethora of hurricanes that have battered Florida recently, school superintendents have asked state officials to put off grading schools this year. Superintendents argue that the results of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test...

Who's in there?(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... The Georgia Supreme Court tossed out a state statute that outlaws heavily tinted car windows because it applies only to state residents, not drivers who reside elsewhere. The court ruled that there was no valid reason for the General Assembly...

Teak surfing time bomb.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... A first in the nation, California has banned the sport of teak or body surfing behind boats. While hanging on to the back of a boat, surfers or swimmers can inhale lethal doses of carbon monoxide (CO). That's what happened to 11-year-old...

Proving purity.(Stateline)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Illinois now joins a few other states in requiring the annual inspection of bottled-water plants along with water sample tests. "Bottled water is technically covered at the federal level," said Satya Rhodes, policy associate for the State...

Perpetual parity: just when it looked like state legislatures couldn't get any closer they did.
December 1, 2004... November's state legislative elections did little to change the political landscape that shows a divided electorate. Democrats and Republicans find themselves stuck as they try to squeeze through the door to control America's legislatures. The...

The people's choice: from stem cell research to electoral college reform, citizens have their say.
December 1, 2004... When voters are asked to pass laws directly, they often are quite selective. This year was no different. The people in 34 states considered 162 ballot measures in November. Some of them were high-profile and drew national attention--same-sex...

Terminating toughman competitions: sometimes you wonder how low we can go. The barbaric and bloodthirsty game called "toughman" is now banned or regulated in 24 states.
December 1, 2004... A 30-year-old mother of two was pummeled to death in Florida last year in front of a cheering crowd. Stacy Young was punched and pounded by a much younger, thinner and faster opponent. After two rounds, Young was no longer protecting herself....

Schwarzenegger blinked: California's movie star governor has taken a bipartisan tack that has surprised both parties.
December 1, 2004... Arnold Schwarzenegger faced a crucial turning point early in his young administration as governor of California. It was the first Friday in December, three weeks after the world-famous actor had taken office, and the Legislature had just...

Downsizing helps delinquents; Missouri has discovered that showering troubled teens with warmth, respect and concern works well in turning them around.
December 1, 2004... Thinking small has made a big difference for youth corrections in Missouri. The Missouri Division of Youth Services' (DYS) juvenile corrections system is gaining attention as a model for other states considering reforms favoring residential...

North Carolina's predatory mortgage lending law: 1999 N.C. Sess. Laws Chap. 332.(On Consideration)
December 1, 2004... THE ACT'S GOALS * Prohibit prepayment penalties on first-lien mortgages of less than $150,000. * Prohibit lenders from refinancing an existing home loan when there is no reasonable, tangible net benefit to a borrower (commonly...

Border studies: heightened security procedures don't stop Mexican students who want American college degrees.
December 1, 2004... At 9:30 on a Wednesday morning in July, eastbound traffic on the Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates is already backed up for nearly half a mile from the U.S. border checkpoint. Sitting in his family's battered Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera...

A Tex-Mex exchange: making it easier for cross-cultural exchanges between U.S. and Mexican students is the goal of some legislators.
December 1, 2004... Texas Senator Judith Zaffirini is not alarmed by the large number of Mexican residents who every day cross the World Trade Bridge connecting Laredo, Texas, with Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. In fact, if those residents are students, she would like...

Communicate an effective message: giving a speech can be a trying experience, even for seasoned pros. Here's some advice on how to make your speeches effective and memorable.(Tools Of The Trade)
December 1, 2004... With your stomach tied in knots, your knees buckling, your heart pounding, you approach the podium. It's time to give your speech, one of the most important yet intimidating aspects of being a lawmaker. Is there any way to be totally prepared?...

As they see it.
December 1, 2004... "I hope this don't get me back in prison. I can't afford that." --Arthur Wilkerson who registered to vote while on parole for assault. As many as 6,000 felons ineligible to vote are on the Colorado registration roles. Quoted in the Denver...