0:00
News Story
LA: Louisiana regulators remove patient cap on marijuana doctors
Amid concerns about bottlenecks to access, Louisiana regulators agreed to loosen limits on how many patients doctors authorized to dispense medical marijuana can treat. People seeking the treatment pushed elimination of the cap, worried they will have difficulty getting the medication when it becomes available later this year.
TN: Group focused on improving black voter turnout in Tennessee registers people statewide
A Nashville-based group is working to register 55,000 voters this fall before registration to vote in the Tennessee general election closes in October, and it’s about halfway there.
CA: Anger in California’s carpool lanes as more than 200,000 drivers are set to lose decals
On Jan. 1, the owners of as many as 220,000 low- and zero-emission vehicles stand to lose the decals that allow them to drive solo in high-occupancy-vehicle lanes across California. To relieve overcrowding in HOV lanes, drivers who received their clean-air stickers before 2017 will have to buy new vehicles to qualify for the program, and some who earn above a certain amount won’t be eligible for the stickers at all.
MO: Missouri lawmakers closer to passing gay rights legislation
Next year is when advocates expect to see passage of proposals floated every session since 1998 to include sexual orientation among classes protected from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations. The effort has gone by the moniker MONA — the Missouri Nondiscrimination Act.
MI: Expanded Medicaid boosted finances of Michigan’s poor, study finds
Enrollment in Michigan’s expanded Medicaid program boosted the finances of many low-income residents as well as their health care status, according to a new University of Michigan study.
DC: Initiative 77 to raise tipped wage in D.C. seems doomed at council hearing
District lawmakers grappled with whether they should take the extraordinary step to overturn a law approved by voters that raises wages for servers, bartenders and others who earn tips. A majority of the D.C. Council backs repealing the ballot measure.
MT: Montana gets more land in ‘historic’ deal
Montana accepted 5,816 acres of federal land from the federal government to settle a 130-year-old dispute over land the state did not receive during statehood in the 19th century.
WV: West Virginia Legislature mulls banking fix for medical marijuana
A West Virginia legislative committee is trying to patch up a gaping hole in the state’s medical marijuana program slated to launch next summer — the banking.
VT: Vermont launches effort to collect toxic foam from fire departments
As part of a broader effort to address PFAS contamination, Vermont is collecting an outdated, and toxic, firefighting foam from local departments. The Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Public Safety’s Division of Fire Safety teamed up to dispose of Type B Aqueous Film Forming Foam, known as “AFFF.”
TX: Texas school district, lacking teachers, considers virtual learning
Faced with a drastic shortage of teachers, one West Texas school district may join a small but growing group of Texas communities settling for hiring some only available via screens. As the oil boom has caused the cost of housing to soar in the area while simultaneously luring teachers away to high-paying energy jobs, open teaching slots have only increased.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. AP and Getty images may not be republished. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.
Related News
