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Top State Stories 10/14
OR: Oregon issues six-month ban on flavored vape products
Oregon regulators enacted a six-month ban on the sale of flavored nicotine and cannabis vape products amid an outbreak of illnesses that has sickened nearly 1,300 people nationwide.
AR: The Medicaid experiment in Arkansas: Thousands lost coverage, few gained jobs
More than 18,000 people were cut from the Medicaid rolls after Arkansas embarked on a closely watched experiment in June 2018, when it became the only state to fully implement a work requirement for program recipients. The outcome in Arkansas could help shape the future of Medicaid.
CT: New Connecticut law bars public from courtrooms when teens are charged with the most serious felonies
State prosecutors are considering a challenge to a new Connecticut law that closes courtrooms to the public and keeps records secret when teenagers aged 15, 16 and 17 years old are charged with the most serious felonies, such as murder, armed robbery and rape.
RI: State agency plan to charge customers $15 to wait in line a nonstarter with Rhode Island governor
Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo will not accept the Division of Motor Vehicles’ plan to charge Rhode Islanders for renewing driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations in person, her office said. The agency had proposed a $15 walk-in fee for renewals that could have been completed online or by mail.
NM: New Mexico has highest rate of missing, murdered indigenous women
There were 78 cases in New Mexico, the highest number in the country, and nearly half are girls less than 18 years old. A state task force on the crisis is expected to report in 2020.
NV: Local governments spend big on lobbying the Nevada legislature
Local governments and cities spent more than $3.9 million lobbying the 2019 Nevada legislature, the highest amount in more than a decade, according to a state report. Some critics say allowing governments to use taxpayer dollars for lobbying may go against the wants of the public.
MO: State owes Missouri counties over M for holding, transporting state prisoners
The Missouri Department of Corrections is responsible for reimbursing county jails for costs associated with holding and transporting state prisoners. In recent years, however, the state’s budget for reimbursements has not kept up with the amount it owes.
NY: New study questions benefits of New York’s investment in film industry
Billions of dollars to subsidize film and television projects in New York state hasn’t had a statistically significant impact on employment in the entertainment industry. A new study found there is “not much” of a link between job creation and the lucrative credit offered in New York, which was created in 2004.
MI: Michigan pulls M investment after sexist remarks
The state of Michigan has pulled $600 million of its pension fund from wealth management company Fisher Investments after the company’s founder and CEO Ken Fisher made sexist comments at a summit meeting. A state official called the comments “completely unacceptable.”
OK: Oklahoma legislators to study effects of conversion therapy on children
Oklahoma legislators from opposing parties are hosting an interim study to consider the effects of conversion therapy on the mental health of LGBTQ youths. Legislation to ban licensed medical providers from practicing conversion therapy on children may be heard during the 2020 legislative session.
ID: Idaho triples national average for out-of-state abortions
Over a six-year period, nearly 3,000 Idaho women had abortions out of state, an Associated Press analysis found, a number higher than the figure reported by the state. Three or four of every 10 Idaho abortions were performed out of state since 2012, because of the lack of clinics that perform abortions.
AK: Alaska governor vetoes bill that would have restrained his temporary hiring
Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has vetoed a bill intended to restrain the ability of Alaska governors to pay state employees more than allowed by the state salary scale and to hire workers for “temporary” duties not designated by the legislature.
GA: To save rural hospitals, Georgia requires classes for CEOs
Georgia lawmakers are requiring executives and board members at almost all the state’s rural hospitals to receive training on subjects like financial management and strategic planning to improve their decision-making and avoid missteps that can precipitate their hospitals’ decline.
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