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LA: Louisiana higher education officials say campus closures are a possibility
Legislators and higher education officials said Louisiana college systems would have to shut the doors of multiple institutions and campuses if they have to absorb a $300 million cut. Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration said higher education budget cuts will be anywhere from $200 million to $300 million next year.
ME: Public health groups slam Maine governor’s budget cuts
Health advocates are decrying proposed funding cuts in Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s two-year budget that would “decimate Maine’s public health system,” including programs aimed at reducing smoking and staffing at the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
MI: Governor vetoes Michigan gun bills
Republican Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed two bills backed by the National Rifle Association that could have made it easier for some people accused of domestic violence to obtain a concealed weapon license.
AR: Arkansas lawmakers say they’re ready to move quickly on tax-cut plan
Arkansas legislative leaders say they’re prepared to move quickly on Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s plan to reduce income taxes by 1 percent for those making between $21,000 and $75,000 annually. The cut would cost the state $33.7 million in the coming fiscal year, and $102.7 million the following year.
TX: Activists line up to support openly carrying guns in Texas
Gun rights activists came together Thursday to voice support for legislation that would allow Texans to openly carry handguns without a license. That practice, which proponents call “constitutional carry,” is allowed to varying degrees in 10 states.
WA: Washington state venture funding near pre-recession high
After plummeting in the early years of the decade, venture capital investments in Washington state have recovered nearly to levels before the past recession struck.
CA: California doctors use loophole to raise drug prices, study finds
Some California physicians who treat workers with job-related injuries and dispense drugs to their patients are exploiting a loophole in state regulations governing drug costs to increase their reimbursements by as much as 400 percent, a new study has found.
MN: Home care workers agree on contract with Minnesota
Five months after voting to unionize, a new tentative contract would give about 27,000 home care workers a minimum hourly wage of $11. The contract also provides training and five days of paid time off.
OK: Oklahoma and Florida execute convicted murderers
Oklahoma put to death convicted murderer and rapist Charles Warner Thursday, its first execution since a faulty lethal injection last April sparked widespread criticism and led the state to draw up new protocols for its death chamber.
FL: Governor wants $100 million for charter schools
In last fall’s campaign, Republican Gov. Rick Scott was backed by supporters of for-profit charters, voucher schools and online programs. His Democratic rival, Charlie Crist, was the favorite of teachers’ unions and promised to tap the brakes on the growth of charters.
KS: Kansas aqueduct would cost $18 billion
Engineers estimate it would cost more than $18 billion to build a canal under consideration to pump water 360 miles from the Missouri River to parched areas of southwest Kansas, where farmers and ranchers face rapid depletion of groundwater.
AZ: Arizona first to pass law requiring high school civics test
Arizona will become the first state to require students to pass a civics test to graduate from high school, following swift moves by state legislators and Republican Gov. Doug Ducey.
ND: Civics test for graduation bill passes North Dakota House committee
A North Dakota House committee has unanimously passed a bill that would require high school students to pass a civics test in order to graduate.
NV: Sandoval wants $882 million for education, new business fee to help pay for it
Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval unveiled a litany of education initiatives and tax reforms for Nevada he wants the legislature to tackle in the upcoming session.
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