Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol say students need free speech protections on University of Wisconsin campuses.
The Assembly Committee on Colleges and University held a public hearing on a pair of plans Republicans say will not only make sure the Universities of Wisconsin are respecting the First Amendment but will also open the campus to more students.
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Florida’s Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book has filed three pro-abortion bills for the 2024 legislative season.
Senate Bill 256 focuses on crisis pregnancy centers – clinics that provide a variety of reproductive services for free to the community, including prenatal care and anti-abortion counseling. The clinics are not required to be licensed or inspected and Book, D-Plantation, wants regulation.
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by Bethany Blankley More than 10 million people have been reported illegally entering the United States since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021, the greatest number in history and of any administration. They total more than the individual populations of 41 states. The number of people illegally entering the country surged after Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas halted many preexisting border security policies, advanced sweeping parole and other policies to release the greatest number of illegal foreign nationals into the country, encouraged people from all over the world to use a phone app to enter the U.S., and facilitated U.S. entry application processes in foreign countries, among others. Official U.S. Customs and Border Protection data includes 3,201,144 apprehensions in fiscal 2023; 2,766,582 in fiscal 2022; 1,956,519 in fiscal 2021; and 471,954 in the nine months Biden was in office in fiscal 2020. CBP’s fiscal year is from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30. Combined, official apprehensions total 8,396,199. They exclude gotaway data, which CBP does not report publicly. The Center Square has been reporting preliminary gotaway data solely reported by Border Patrol agents at the southwest border. The information is obtained from a Border Patrol agent…
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The United Auto Workers union and General Motors have reached a tentative agreement to end the auto strike, a report says, marking the possible end of a 45-day historic strike against the Big Three Automakers.
Bloomberg News first reported the deal. The UAW hasn’t publicly released contract details yet.
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Tennessee unemployment benefits will soon be rising to a maximum $325 per week while standard eligibility will move from 26 to 12 weeks.
New Tennessee laws passed over the past three years are set to go into place Dec. 1. The standard eligibility across the country is 26 weeks with Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Missouri the states that have lower than 26 weeks, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
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The complete costs of “fueling” an electric vehicle for 10 years are $17.33 per equivalent gallon of gasoline, a new analysis from the Texas Public Policy Foundation says.
The study authors say the $1.21 cost-per-gallon equivalent of charging a car cited by EV advocates excludes the real costs born by taxpayers for subsidies, utility ratepayers for energy investments, and non-electric vehicle owners for mandate-and-environmental-credit-driven higher vehicle costs, which they say total $48,698 per EV. Those costs must be included when comparing fueling costs of EVs and traditional gas-powered vehicles, TPPF maintains.
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Options for school teachers to be armed, and school systems to allow it, will be considered by Georgia lawmakers.
Republicans proposed a state-funded certified firearms training program for teachers as part of a proposed School Safety Initiative. Lawmakers plan to introduce the proposal during next year’s legislative session, saying it builds on previous reforms educators have passed.
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Newly released polling data shows most American think the government is too big and has too much power.
Gallup released the new survey data, which shows that 54% of surveyed Americans say government is “trying to do too many things that should be left to individuals and businesses.” That number has stayed relatively the same since 2021.
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Tennessee voters were even on their opposition or support of publicly-funded stadiums in a new Beacon Center poll.
The nonprofit policy center that supports free market solutions to public policy polled 1,181 potential Tennessee voters and found that 35% support publicly funding stadium such as the Tennessee Titans and Minor League Baseball stadiums in Knoxville and Chattanooga. Another 34% oppose the funding with 22% saying they are neutral and 8% unsure.
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Lead paint, coal furnaces, hallway instruction, classrooms partitioned with teetering stacks of books and supplies, students and teachers struggling to work in unabated heat during sweltering weather — these are all images invoked by testifiers before the Basic Education Funding Commission over the last few months.
Experts say this barely scratches the surface of a massive infrastructural crisis across the state.
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The plan to spend $500 million in taxpayer money on the Milwaukee Brewers’ stadium may look different once it gets through the Wisconsin Senate.
A Senate panel held a hearing on the stadium funding proposal Wednesday and immediately hit supporters with questions.
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Arizona’s business tax climate is moving up the ranks in comparison to other states, according to a new report from the Tax Foundation.
The state lies at No. 14 in 2024 after previously being at No. 19 in the index, and the organization credits this to changes to the income tax signed into law by former Republican Gov. Doug Ducey.
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A Virginia court has ruled in favor of Attorney General Jason Miyares against Look Ahead America, who had filed a lawsuit and a motion for an injunction and temporary restraining order against Miyares, alleging interference with the group’s First Amendment rights.
The group, a get-out-the-vote organization, has been active in the weeks leading up to the General Assembly general election and received a cease-and-desist order from the attorney general’s office on Oct. 10 about some materials it had distributed as part of its efforts.
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Florida’s Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book has filed three pro-abortion bills for the 2024 legislative season.
Senate Bill 256 focuses on crisis pregnancy centers – clinics that provide a variety of reproductive services for free to the community, including prenatal care and anti-abortion counseling. The clinics are not required to be licensed or inspected and Book, D-Plantation, wants regulation.
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Michigan plans to hand out more than $200 million in federal taxpayer funds for grants to provide high-speed internet access to underserved areas.
The Michigan High Speed Internet Office announced the first round of the Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks grants, awarding $203 million to more than 70,000 Michigan homes and businesses to connect them with faster internet.
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Ohio falls short in creating competition between public schools and allowing students to find the best schools that work for them, according to a recent report.
The Reason Foundation examined each state’s open enrollment policies, evaluating them based on best practices. The report said 73% of parents support open enrollment for public schools.
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A federal court has ruled that Georgia’s congressional and state legislative maps violate a section of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones ruled that Georgia lawmakers must redraw the districts by Dec. 8.
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Two Ohio lawmakers worried hunting and fishing abilities could be stripped in the state want the rights enshrined in the state’s constitution.
Reps. Ron Ferguson, R-Wintersville, and Nick Santucci, R-Howland Township, want the House and Senate to pass joint resolutions to amend the state’s constitution to establish a constitutional right to hunt and fish.
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Schools across Wisconsin have not yet rebounded from enrollment losses during the coronavirus outbreak.
A recent report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum found more than 4,500 students are still “missing.”
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Michigan Democrat lawmakers introduced a seven-bill package aimed at reducing pollution.
The lawmakers say current law doesn’t hold polluters accountable for the public cost of remediating land, often shouldered by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
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Emergency service agencies across Pennsylvania have warned of funding shortfalls and labor shortages, but a recently passed bill will help ease a fraction of the pain.
House Bill 1351, signed into law this week as Act 15, will require Medicaid to reimburse EMS agencies for every mile an ambulance travels with a patient. Previously, no payment would be made for the first 20 miles of travel.
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Sheriff’s departments in rural Arizona counties are sending deputies to Cochise County to assist with border security efforts as the crisis persists in southern Arizona.
The Arizona Sheriff’s Association released a group statement explaining that departments in Coconino, Apache, Navajo, Yavapai and Pinal counties see sending some officers down to the border as a preventative measure.
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A new bill has been filed in the Florida Legislature that would allow nonviolent offenders to receive parole after serving a certain amount of prison time.
House Bill 223 is sponsored by state Rep. Alina Garcia, R-Miami, and would make provisions for parole granted to nonviolent prisoners under certain circumstances while retaining jurisdiction for courts.
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There were over 3.2 million people who entered the U.S. illegally nationwide in fiscal 2023, the most in recorded U.S. history, according to the latest data published by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Combined with gotaway data only reported by Border Patrol agents at the southwest border, illegal border crossers totaled at least 3,970,318 in fiscal 2023.
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Virginia was the eighth-most popular state to move to in the U.S. – and the sixth-most popular to leave – in 2022.
The commonwealth was not alone in this trend. Almost all of the top 10 states that gained the most new residents last year are among the most populous, while eight of those lost the most residents.
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Critics of a Connecticut law banning religious exemptions from school vaccination requirements have lost several rounds in federal court but are planning to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case.
A lawsuit, filed by We the Patriots USA Inc. on behalf of parents whose children attend a school at Milford Christian Church, argued that Connecticut violated their First Amendment rights by repealing the state’s long-held religious exemptions to childhood vaccines.
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer spent $285,709 on her seven-day trip to Japan.
The September trip marked her third privately funded trade mission this year including trips to Switzerland ($44,117) and Austria ($55,705).
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A materials and advancement research hub in Lansing will receive $400,000 in federal taxpayer money to develop faster charging electric vehicles.
The Federal Economic Development Administration announced the grant for project, which is a partnership between the Michigan State University Foundation and the EDA’s tech hub program. The hub will be used to research advanced materials, such as synthetic diamonds and rare isotopes, to advance semiconductor and defense technology. One of the hub’s key goals is to charge electric vehicles up to five times faster.
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Part of U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance’s plan to stop federal mask mandates passed the Senate on Wednesday afternoon.
Vance, R-Ohio, attached an amendment that would ban federal mask mandates on public transit to the Senate minibus bill. The amendment cleared the Senate by a 59-38 vote.
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There is traditional support for and opposition against a series of constitutional amendments that deal with voting in Wisconsin.
The Joint Senate Shared Revenue, Elections and Consumer Protection and Assembly Campaigns and Elections Committees held a public hearing Tuesday on three amendments.
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The Pennsylvania Senate remains divided over a proposal that asks for parental permission before students can view sexually explicit content at school.
In the end, a majority of lawmakers – including all 21 Republicans and one Democrat – approved the legislation, sending it to the House for consideration.
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The 1990s and early 2000s weren’t particularly kind to Southside Virginia’s Pittsylvania County, but some sustained, concerted efforts to turn things around may be paying off.
For much of those decades, the county’s unemployment rate exceeded the nation and Virginia. But in recent years, that has changed. Now, Pittsylvania County’s unemployment rate of 3.1% is significantly better than the national average, though it still lags the state (Virginia has the eighth-lowest rate in the country).
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As housing costs rise in many parts of the commonwealth, Pennsylvania policymakers want to boost supply to meet demand.
“If we don’t continue to increase the inventory at all levels, we’re never going to get to where we need to be,” Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, said during a House Housing and Community Development meeting on Monday. “We can’t build our way out by just building subsidized housing.”
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According to the latest figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Florida has a seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate of 2.8% and ranks 14th overall, sharing a spot with Kansas and Hawaii.
Of the five largest states by population — California, Texas, Florida, New York and Pennsylvania — Florida has the lowest unemployment rate. At the same time, New York, Texas and California all sit above the national average of 3.8%.
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Wisconsin’s top economist says the state’s economy is in a great place to grow, as long as the state doesn’t lose what makes it great.
John Koskinen, the chief economist for the state of Wisconsin, told the Wisconsin Economic Summit on Monday that Wisconsin has a strong workforce that wants to work, a large and solid manufacturing base and the potential to grow.
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The Michigan Court of Claims ruled Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office must either rescind or revise a May 2022 Manual for election poll challengers.
The 15-page ruling analyzed four restrictions on poll challengers, including the credential form requirement, the requirement that communication only is with the “Challenger Liaison”, the prohibition on recording “impermissible challenges,” and the prohibition on electronic devices in the Absent Voter Counting Board.
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An independent, Columbus-based analysis group believes approving recreational marijuana would mean hundreds of millions of tax dollars for the state.
But a state senator thinks it’s not worth it.
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The United Auto Workers expanded its far-reaching strike on Tuesday to include a General Motors SUV plant in Texas.
About 5,000 workers at the Arlington Assembly Plant, where the Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, Chevrolet Tahoe and other SUVs are made.
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The Florida Legislature has called a special legislative session to expand sanctions on Iran, express support for Israel and advance several legislative priorities.
Senate President Kathleen Passidomo and House Speaker Paul Renner issued a joint proclamation on Friday outlining eight agenda items including prioritizing tax relief and other financial assistance related to damages resulting from Hurricane Idalia. Other items on the agenda include expanding funding for recovery efforts related to natural disasters and expanding school choice for students with special needs.
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Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine planned to move ahead Monday afternoon with moving control of the state’s education system from the school board to his office.
In July, DeWine signed the state’s two-year budget, which included legislation to transfer the duties of the majority-elected state board to the new cabinet-level Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.
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Schools through Michigan must test for lead in water and install wall-mounted water filtration systems after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed three bills into law.
House Bill 4341, HB 4342 and Senate Bill 88 establish the new mandates, and installation of new filter systems is covered by an $600 million state budget appropriation dedicated toward clean water access and rebuilding sewage lines.
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More than 300,000 people illegally entered the U.S. through the southwest border in September, according to newly released U.S. Customs and Border Protection data and gotaway data first reported by The Center Square.
Border Patrol and Office of Field Operations agents apprehended 269,735 people last month and Border Patrol agents reported at least 33,203 known gotaways, bringing the total to 302,938.
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Tennessee’s unemployment rate rose slightly above a record low in September, rising to 3.2% after spending July and August at 3.1%.
The September rate was 0.2 percentage points lower than September 2022.
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There were 736 known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) apprehended at the northern and southern borders in fiscal 2023.
The Center Square initially reported 659 were apprehended for the fiscal year, as of Sept. 15, 2023. The fiscal year ended Sept. 30.
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A DeKalb County homeowner won part of his short-term rental case in front of the Tennessee Supreme Court but he still won’t be able to short-term rent the property in the future due to amendments to homeowners association rules that came after his purchase.
Pratik Pandharipande bought a property in the Four Seasons neighborhood on Center Hill Lake in 2015 and began to lease the property on a short-term basis between two and 28 days.
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A Florida lawmaker has filed a new bill to impose term limits on county commissioners.
House Bill 57 is sponsored by Rep. Michelle Salzman, R-Cantonment, and would introduce a term limit for county commissioners, limiting them to two four-year terms.
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Republicans and Democrats each question the plan to change the state’s indefinitely confined voter rules at the Wisconsin Capitol.
Rep. Cindi Duchow, R-Town of Delafield, presented her plan to tighten the state’s indefinitely confined voter law by defining what indefinitely confined means, requiring people apply for a separate indefinitely confined absentee ballot, clarifies a public health emergency does not allow people to claim indefinitely confined status and would ban people from voting indefinitely confined if they vote in person.
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Recent advances in quantum computing have caused industry experts to believe it’s becoming viable, and Virginia wants in on the action, according to the latest edition of the Virginia Economic Review.
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the state’s economic development authority, used the most recent issue of its quarterly magazine to dive into the field of quantum computing – what it is and potential ways to bring it to Virginia.
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The state Treasury Department said it invested $20 million into Israeli bonds amid the country’s ongoing war with Hamas.
Altogether, the 44% increase brings the state’s total ownership to $56 million. Israel invests the money into its economy and pays investors interest twice a year, typically.
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Maricopa County will soon offer on-site child care for its employees in downtown Phoenix.
A child care facility near several of the county office buildings will be operated by KinderCare Education at Work with the goal of eventually being a 24/7 facility known as MCKids Club.
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