MA: Massachusetts voters to decide fate of immigrant driver’s licenses
Massachusetts voters will decide this November whether to overturn a new law that makes immigrants lacking permanent legal status eligible for driver’s licenses. The act became a law in June after the House and Senate both voted to override Republican Gov. Charlie Baker’s veto.
TX: In Texas youth prisons, children use water bottles and lunch trays for toilets
For months, Texas children in at least two of five state lockups reported regularly lacking access to toilets as the Texas Juvenile Justice Department’s workforce shrunk below dangerous levels.
NY: New York governor to let COVID emergency expire
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, let her COVID-19 state of emergency lapse as cases of the virus continue to remain relatively low and criticism from her Republican opponents mounts.
MN: Nurses go on strike at Minnesota hospitals
Picket signs and strike chants rose outside 15 Twin Cities and Duluth hospitals in Minnesota, where as many as 15,000 nurses walked off their jobs for three days in protest over pay and staffing levels.
AL: Alabama ‘very likely’ ready to execute by nitrogen hypoxia, attorney says
The Alabama Department of Corrections has prepared but not finalized a first-of-its-kind protocol for executing inmates by nitrogen hypoxia, an attorney for the department said. To date, no human has been executed by nitrogen hypoxia, and no state has approved a protocol for its use.
OK: New Oklahoma legislative watchdog office finding its stride
When Republican legislative leaders created the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency three years ago, they envisioned an impartial entity to review Oklahoma agency programs and spending. They say the office already has exceeded their expectations.
NE: Nebraska state staff shortages have unions looking for raises
Could the state of Nebraska lack enough workers to plow the snow off highways this winter? Nebraska’s public employees union thinks so and will be seeking salary increases that keep up with inflation to combat shortages of highway maintenance workers and others.
CA: California to give $2,500 training grant to workers who lost jobs during pandemic
A one-time California program worth $500 million has opened up from its pilot program to support displaced workers who want to acquire new job skills.
HI: Black market weed is still the buyer’s choice over legal marijuana in Hawaii
A new state report estimates only about 20% of the marijuana sold in Hawaii last year came from local marijuana dispensaries and blames “market structure and regulation” for driving consumers to buy from illegal growers and sellers.
GA: Georgia colleges to discontinue 215 low-enrollment degree programs
Georgia’s public universities will offer fewer degrees in majors such as French, classical culture and certain specialized teaching fields after the Board of Regents terminated 215 programs at 18 schools.
OR: Weekend of wildfires in Oregon forces evacuees to flee their homes
Thousands of Oregonians had to evacuate their homes over the weekend because of wind-driven wildfires. It’s an experience that’s become more common for people in the West, as summers grow hotter and drier every year.
AK: Alaska park managers preparing for loss of some of the state’s most iconic attractions: glaciers
Future generations of Alaskans and Alaska visitors present at the end of the century will likely catch only faraway glimpses of the glacial ice that is currently a fixture in the Alaska scenery.
WY, MT: Yellowstone flood could have been worse if not for mining cleanup
It may be hard to comprehend, but the historic flooding in June that wiped out roads, bridges and buildings in Yellowstone National Park, prompting its temporary closure, could have been even worse.
ID: Long COVID is costing Idaho thousands of workers, data suggest
An estimated 7.8% to 10.5% of all Idaho adults were suffering from the aftereffects of COVID-19 infections this summer, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
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
