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US: 40 states settle Google location-tracking charges for M
Search giant Google has agreed to a $391.5 million settlement with 40 states to resolve an investigation into how the company tracked users’ locations. The states’ investigation was sparked by a 2018 Associated Press story, which found that Google continued to track people’s location data even after they opted out of such tracking by disabling a feature the company called “location history.”
OK: A lawmaker seeks to make Oklahoma top-10 state for women, omits abortion from study
Last month, Oklahoma Republican state Sen. Jessica Garvin invited about a dozen experts to participate in an interim study on some of the biggest issues facing Oklahoma women. Domestic violence, economic inequality and poor access to health care were included. Abortion rights were not.
AL: Alabama negotiating potential settlement with inmate who survived execution attempt
Alabama has asked the state Supreme Court not to set a new execution date for Alan Eugene Miller as the two parties discuss a potential settlement agreement. Miller survived the state’s first execution attempt Sept. 22. He could be the first person in U.S. history to face a second attempted execution by lethal injection.
MN: Minnesota crash responders were hit 544 times between 2017 and 2021
In the five-year period from 2017 to 2021, Minnesota tow truck drivers, law enforcement officers, firefighters and others who responded to roadside scenes were involved in 544 crashes, leading to one death, according to Minnesota Toward Zero Deaths, a program of the Department of Public Safety.
MI: Michigan lawmakers launch ‘Grand New Party’ initiative, calling GOP ‘too moderate’
A group of Michigan Republicans launched an initiative aimed at electing conservatives and accused party leaders of being “too moderate” and “too passive.” State Rep. Steve Carra, a Republican, announced a political action committee called the “Grand New Party,” a play on “Grand Old Party.”
CA: California breaks ground on Native American monument
California state and tribal officials gathered to break ground on a statue of the late William Franklin Sr., a well-known member of the Miwok tribe who worked to preserve the culture of the tribe, including its traditional dances. The statue will replace one of the Rev. Junipero Serra, a Roman Catholic priest who built missions from San Diego to San Francisco with the aim of converting Native peoples to Christianity.
KS: Kansas voters narrowly reject plan to shift power from the governor to the legislature
The proposed Kansas amendment failed by less than 10,000 votes in the initial ballot count. It would have allowed the Republican-controlled Kansas legislature to take away some policy-making capabilities from the Democratic governor’s administration.
WA: Washington will not renew leases for Puget Sound fish farms
The Washington Department of Natural Resources decided not to renew the last of fish-farming company Cooke Aquaculture’s leases on net pens in Puget Sound. The decision to cut ties stems from a 2017 spill of tens of thousands of nonnative Atlantic salmon after a net-pen break at Cypress Island near the San Juans.
KY: Kentucky Supreme Court to hear challenge to abortion bans
Kentucky’s highest court will meet to hear legal arguments as it weighs whether two state laws that all but outlaw abortion should be suspended again until a case challenging their constitutionality is decided.
DE: Delaware admits to ‘missteps’ in not revealing lead levels in school water
After weeks of defending its approach to testing and a year of not communicating high levels of lead in school water sources, Delaware officials are now promising to do better without explaining why proper protocols weren’t followed in the first place.
TX: Texas governor calls for investigation into Harris County election
Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called for an investigation into election improprieties in Harris County, which includes Houston and is the state’s largest county. Harris County had problems at several voting locations last week, prompting advocacy groups to sue to keep polls open an additional hour.
MO: Settlement checks are in the mail to thousands of Missouri prison workers
Thousands of Missouri prison guards will begin receiving settlement checks this week as part of a decade-long lawsuit involving overtime pay. Correctional officers successfully argued that the state Department of Corrections failed to pay them for work done once they arrived at their prison for the beginning of their shifts.
IN: Indiana tax revenue surges, big surplus likely
Indiana tax collections are already more than $700 million ahead of what the state budget needs, just four months into the fiscal year. That’s better than the revenue picture last October when the state was on its way to a $3 billion surplus.
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