State Legislatures articles from September 2008

State Legislatures archives from September 2008

Letters.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... Dear Editor: Thank you for your article explaining why America must put a greater emphasis on making sure our students learn science, technology, engineering and math. I can tell you from experience that the biotech industry supports...

State Legislatures online.(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... GO TO WWW.NCSL.ORG/MAGAZINE FOR MORE OF THE NEWS YOU NEED FROM STATE LEGISLATURES MAGAZINE. THIS MONTH ELECTION PREVIEW [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Look at arundown on how the legislative races stack up along with campaign news....

Help with kicking the habit.(STATESTATS)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of disease, disability and death in the United States, according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. In a growing number of states, both Medicaid and state...

New York's highest ranking Republican, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, shocked colleagues when he announced in July he will not seek re-election in November.(People & Politics)
September 1, 2008... New York's highest ranking Republican, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, shocked colleagues when he announced in July he will not seek re-election in November. Bruno, who served 32 years in the Senate, said he is ready to move on and give...

Wisconsin Senator Dave Hansen got handed some campaign style luck in July.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Wisconsin Senator Dave Hansen got handed some campaign style luck in July. His Republican opponent and former Green Bay City Council President Chad Fradette was chastised by the state elections board for handing out $128 in 34 cent increments...

Arkansas House Democrats and the state party are gearing up to block a former member from regaining his seat.(People & Politics)(Dwayne Dobbins)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Arkansas House Democrats and the state party are gearing up to block a former member from regaining his seat. Former Representative Dwayne Dobbins vacated his seat three years ago after he was arrested on a felony sexual assault charge and...

Representative Jeff Duyck has represented Oregon House District 29 since it was created in 2001.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Representative Jeff Duyck has represented Oregon House District 29 since it was created in 2001. But in July he faced withdrawing from the election or seeing the secretary of state take steps to remove his name from the November ballot. It...

Pennsylvania's so-called "Bonusgate" has snagged 12 current or former Democratic lawmakers and staff in July, prompting more calls for House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese to step down.(People & Politics)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Pennsylvania's so-called "Bonusgate" has snagged 12 current or former Democratic lawmakers and staff in July, prompting more calls for House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese to step down. The 12 were arrested on 289 criminal counts, alleging that...

Driver's Ed for parents and teens.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens. In 2006, teenagers were involved in more than 460,000 injury-related motor vehicle crashes and nearly 7,000 fatal crashes, leaving 3,500 youths between...

Hawaii lets the sun in.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The sun is shining a little brighter in Hawaii these days. Starting in 2010, all new single-family homes built in Hawaii must have solar water heating. It's a first in the nation. The Legislature recently...

No use for nooses.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Those who display nooses to intimidate or harass minorities and other targeted people face new penalties in Connecticut and New York. A person who places a real or simulated noose on any property without the written consent of the owner and...

Foray into four-day.(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Utah is experimenting with a four-day work week for one year to see if the state can save on energy costs. Thousands of government employees are working 10-hour days, Monday through Thursday. Officials hope that...

How safe are cranes?(TRENDS AND TRANSITIONS)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Recent well-publicized construction crane accidents bring the question of safety front and center. Federal regulations require operators to conduct detailed inspections on an annual basis. Operators must also inspect...

Gambling for gas.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This past summer, Florida joined Georgia, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Washington in giving away gasoline as a lottery prize. "Gas has become more precious than cash now," says Bernard Feldman, a customer service...

Help with hurricanes.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Florida will pay Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate $224 million in exchange for a pledge to provide cash if the state is rocked by hurricanes this season. Buffet has pledged to buy $4 billion in bonds if Florida's hurricane...

Diabetes gets help.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Tennessee legislators recently became the first in the nation to establish a diabetes coordinator in the state's Department of Health to work with other government departments and agencies to ensure that all programs dealing with diabetes are...

Victory for veal.(STATELINE)(law banning veal and pig gestation crates in Colorado)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Colorado recently passed a law to phase out veal crates and pig gestation crates. These crates imprison an estimated 150,000 breeding pigs in 2-by-7 foot metal enclosures where they are unable to move or lie down comfortably. Although there is...

Votes and vaccines.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... The flu kills about 36,000 people a year. Yet, despite an extensive public outreach effort, only about half of adults 50 years and older (those most likely to die from it) get an annual flu vaccine. Among Hispanics and African Americans, the...

No smoking, period.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Smoking by an actor on stage is still banned by the state's indoor smoking law, even if it is important to the character, ruled a Colorado appeals court. "Smoking, by itself, is not sufficiently expressive to qualify...

Amish Heyday.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Cheap is in. As the country's economy struggles, Amish-run salvage stores are doing well. These stores, often tucked away in America's farmlands, sell expired food and medicine dirt-cheap, according to the Associated...

Healthy San Francisco.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Under an initiative called Healthy San Francisco, the city is hoping to offer health care to all residents. Currently, the program is open only to those with incomes up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level, but city officials are...

The evolution of teaching science.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Louisiana's new Science Education Act allows science teachers to "use supplementary textbooks, and other instructional materials to help students understand, analyze, critique and review scientific theories in an objective manner." Supporters...

Religion and politics.(STATELINE)(United States Religious Landscape Survey)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... While religion is a vital force in the lives of most Americans, relatively few say they look to religion as the primary source of their views on social and political issues, according to the latest report from the U.S. Religious Landscape...

Motorcyclists see red.(STATELINE)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The wait is over. Motorcyclists in a number of states are being allowed to run certain red lights when sensors aren't able to detect they are there. Some lights are controlled by devices buried under the road that...

The perils of success: polls put Democrats in the lead, but victories in 2006 mean it will be a tough fight to take over more statehouses.(Cover story)
September 1, 2008... It is hard to find a Democrat who isn't bullish about the party's chances in legislative elections this fall. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] They cite President Bush's low job approval ratings and polling data indicating voters prefer generic...

In the voters' hands: ballot questions reflect what's on the minds of the Americans.
September 1, 2008... Statewide ballot questions have been high-profile at the national level since the 2004 election, when a whopping 11 states considered same-sex marriage bans. It was on Ohio's ballot then and is credited by some for drawing more conservative...

Win some, lose some: Supreme Court backs states over voter ID and executions, but favors federal laws in business-related cases.
September 1, 2008... The states had a mixed record in the Supreme Court this year, as big wins for a new voter identification law and the use of lethal injections in executions were balanced by a growing trend in favor of federal preemption of state laws. ...

Marketing drugs: debating the real cost: concern about close ties between doctors and pharmaceutical firms are prompting new financial disclosure laws and education efforts.
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Like any sales representative, Leigh Bradshaw cold calls her prospect list, befriends office managers and chats up harried physicians. Unlike her drug industry competitors, she visits doctors simply to educate...

Information overload? As genetic testing kits sold directly to consumers gain popularity, medical professionals and lawmakers wonder if more regulation is needed.
September 1, 2008... Information is power, the adage goes, and in the brave, new world of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, that information has the potential to help people lower their odds for developing disease. "In the not too distant future, we expect...

Heard at the NCSL Legislative Summit in New Orleans ...(AS THEY SEE IT)(National Conference of State Legislatures)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... "We'll get out of this slump. The short term is pretty clear. We're going to spend a lot of money. The longer-term problem is more difficult. You're going to have to make a lot of painful adjustments." --Lee Hamilton, former congressman...