State Legislatures articles from February 2009

State Legislatures archives from February 2009

Letters.(Letter to the editor)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Dear Editor: I direct your attention to the first paragraph of the article entitled, An Irish Eye on the Capitol, as featured on page 34 of the October/ November 2008 edition of State Legislatures. As active...

Indian Nations.(THIS MONTH)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Read a discussion about relations among Native American tribes and state governments.

Budget update.(THIS MONTH)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Read NCSL's State Budget Update with details on what the states are facing in budget shortfalls this fiscal year and next. Also, see an interactive map that offers a quick overview of the states and more material...

TV goes digital.(THIS MONTH)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] See resources for how consumers can check on places to recycle obsolete TVs and other electronic devices, more information on the digital transition and a website on how to order discount coupons for digital...

Nonpartisan help.(THIS MONTH)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Terry Anderson, director of the Wisconsin Legislative Council, talks about the key role the organization plays in the Legislature. NCSL offers a full range of background information on unemployment compensation.

GrassCatcher: daily news.(REGULAR FEATURES)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] See what major news outlets are writing about state policy at State Legislatures' GrassCatcher. It's updated daily.

The reflecting pool.(REGULAR FEATURES)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] NCSL Deputy Executive Director Carl Tubbesing is State Legislatures' eye on the state-federal relationship. Read what he has to say this month.

Blog: the thicket.(REGULAR FEATURES)
February 1, 2009... A bipartisan blog about the legislative institution and federalism written by and for legislative junkies. Updated often. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Will the safety net hold?(STATESTATS)(state budgets for unemployment benefits)
February 1, 2009... Claims for jobless benefits are rising at an alarming rate and unemployment trust funds in many states are facing a crisis. More than 2.5 million jobs disappeared in 2008, and more than 4 million unemployed workers currently receive...

Montana Representative George Groesbeck, 38, died in December following surgery on a knee he injured in a car accident.(People & Politics)(Obituary)
February 1, 2009... Montana Representative George Groesbeck, 38, died in December following surgery on a knee he injured in a car accident. Groesbeck was elected to the Montana House in 2005, and had been appointed chair of the Federal Relations, Energy and...

A former New Jersey lawmaker who sponsored legislation to fight child pornography and abuse has been indicted on four counts of possessing, reproducing and distributing child pornography from his state-owned computer.(People & Politics)(Neil Cohen)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... A former New Jersey lawmaker who sponsored legislation to fight child pornography and abuse has been indicted on four counts of possessing, reproducing and distributing child pornography from his state-owned computer. Neil Cohen resigned his...

Arkansas Senator Bob Johnson, a former speaker of the House, is the new president pro tem, taking the reins from Senator Jack Critcher.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Arkansas Senator Bob Johnson, a former speaker of the House, is the new president pro tern, taking the reins from Senator Jack Critcher. The Democrats control the Senate 27-8, but Johnson chose Republican Gilbert Baker to chair the powerful...

Iowa House GOP members replaced minority leader Christopher Rants following losses in four consecutive election cycles.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Iowa House GOP members replaced minority leader Christopher Rants following losses in four consecutive election cycles. Republicans lost six seats in November putting them in a 56-44 minority. Rants, elected in 1992 at the age of 25, became...

John Knight.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... An Alabama lawsuit by state lawmakers against Governor Bob Riley's use of the line-item veto may proceed, the state's Supreme Court ruled in December. Lawmakers sued when Riley eliminated a section of the budget for the fiscal year beginning...

Former Colorado Representative Bernie Buescher, who was on track to become speaker of the House until he lost his primary to Laura Bradford, has been selected as secretary of state by Governor Bill Ritter.(People & Politics)
February 1, 2009... Former Colorado Representative Bernie Buescher, who was on track to become speaker of the House until he lost his primary to Laura Bradford, has been selected as secretary of state by Governor Bill Ritter. He will succeed Mike Coffman, who was...

The costs of climate change.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... The changing climate could be very costly for states. Farming, forestry, water resources, tourism and transportation all may suffer losses from increasing temperatures, changes in rainfall and rising sea levels. State lawmakers are exploring...

Move over for safety.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... More than 150 emergency responders stopped along the highway have been killed by motorists in the past 10 years. Twenty-nine states now require drivers to slow down or change lanes when passing police cars, fire trucks, ambulances and tow...

Helping combat veterans.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] From screening to counseling to treatment options, state and federal policymakers are working to help members of the armed forces who are dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. In a...

Building healthy places for children.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] To keep children active, reduce obesity and make communities more attractive, smart growth planners are focusing on the importance of playgrounds and open spaces where children can play and grow. Developments...

Getting a handle on innovation.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... One tool for measuring a state in relation to others is an "Innovation Index." Oregon is noted for its "creativity and innovation," says Representative Tobias Read. To measure this, the state has a scorecard that monitors trend data and...

Trials on hold.(STATELINE)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Superior courts in New Hampshire are suspending jury trials for a month this winter to save money. The court staff will focus instead on nonjury trials, pretrial hearings and paperwork. The suspension of jury trials...

Too young to hunt?(STATELINE)(age requirement for hunting)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... After a woman in Washington was shot and killed by a 14-year-old hunter who mistook her for a bear, some state lawmakers want to reinstate a law requiring that young hunters be accompanied by adults. Hunting groups and state wildlife officials...

Midwest warning.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... A study financed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency predicts casualties and damage to homes, hospitals, roads and utilities in six states along the New Madrid seismic zone--Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi and...

Farmers' fortunes.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Home values may be taking a dive nationwide, but farmland is soaring. It's probably America's strongest real estate market, according to The Christian Science Monitor. Nationally, farmland is up nearly 9 percent from a year ago. In Iowa, it's...

Time to cool off.(STATELINE)(child anger management program)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Children who are deeply troubled but have not committed a crime or are not abused or neglected are no longer falling through the cracks in Florida. Voluntary emergency shelters are giving them a safe place for two weeks to receive...

Horses hurting.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Horses are fairly expensive to keep. Feeding and properly caring for one "recreational" horse can cost a few thousand dollars a year. With the downturn in the economy, animal control workers in Kentucky have seen an...

Guns can kill.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... States with lax gun laws had higher rates of handgun killings, fatal shootings of police officers, and sales of weapons that were used in crimes in other states, according to a study by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a bipartisan coalition. The...

Seeing is believing.(STATELINE)(drivers license requirement)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A Florida law that requires drivers older than 80 to pass a vision test before getting their licenses renewed appears to be doing its intended purpose: saving lives. Since the law took effect in 2004, the death rate...

Good-bye brownies.(STATELINE)(food sold in schools)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Strict new nutrition guidelines for public schools are hurting the lucrative school fund-raiser: the bake sale. New standards regulate the types of food that can be sold to students. And that is hurting bake sales...

Smile, you're on camera.(STATELINE)(traffic-enforcement cameras)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... A federal judge recently ruled that traffic-enforcement cameras in Ohio do not violate the U.S. Constitution. Typically, traffic law violations caught on the cameras are treated as civil offenses, without traffic-court hearings, points assessed...

Ban saves lives.(STATELINE)(smoking bans)(Brief article)
February 1, 2009... Almost 600 Massachusetts residents have not died from heart attacks each year since lawmakers banned smoking in all restaurants, bars and workplaces four years ago, according to a study by the state Department of Public Health and the Harvard...

A grim forecast: the fiscal crisis slamming states won't be letting up soon.
February 1, 2009... Rising unemployment, dropping income tax revenue, the ongoing foreclosure debacle and a deep crisis in consumer confidence leave states facing the worst fiscal crisis in more than 50 years. The double whammy of a drop in sales and income...

An issue of sovereignty: the independence of Native American nations, an idea long undermined by dependency and deprivation, is again a reality.
February 1, 2009... A grainy photograph taken after the Wounded Knee massacre of 1890 captures a U.S. soldier sitting on a horse surrounded by frozen Lakota bodies lying in the snow. A snapshot of the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota today shows slumped...

Tribes: a new era: from economic development to health care and family services, Native Americans are making a better life for themselves.
February 1, 2009... At a school on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in northwestern Montana, the students had just received computers but didn't know what to call them. This is no ordinary elementary school. It is an immersion center called Nizipuhwahsin--"real...

Television in transition: the switch to digital TV broadcasts has state lawmakers concerned that old sets will flood landfills.
February 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The analog world is headed for the dustbin of history, at least when it comes to television. On Feb. 17, broadcasters in the United States will turn off transmission of analog signals and broadcast only digital...

Whose job is it? A federal bill is pending, but some state lawmakers believe they should have a role in looking out for consumers.(REGULATING WIRELESS)
February 1, 2009... Walk into any airport or coffee house and you may find it hard to imagine a world without wireless telephones. Today, nine out of 10 American adults--more than 262 million subscribers--own a cell phone, a 12 percent increase from 2006. ...

Reliable research: nonpartisan legislative service bureaus keep lawmakers informed--and offer a little historic perspective, too.
February 1, 2009... There are few commodities more valuable to a legislature than professional, nonpartisan research. And some institutional memory doesn't hurt either. Those needs gave birth to legislative service agencies that provide legislators on both...

Genetic specialists trailing research boom.
February 1, 2009... The rapid pace of genetic discoveries is nothing short of extraordinary. Today, genetic tests are available for 1,500 diseases--up from 100 in 1993. Advances in newborn screening mean infants are routinely tested for a growing number of genetic...

As they see it.(quotations)(Quotation)
February 1, 2009... "If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won't have an affordable system of higher education.... Already, we're one of the few countries where 25- to 34-year-olds are less educated than older workers." --Patrick M. Callan, president...