Latest State legislature News

In this Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020, photo, Teiya Enriquez Sandoval, center, and her sister Jazzy Enriquez, right, the daughters of Honolulu Police Officer Tiffany Enriquez, hug family friend Tristel Tynanaes during a candlelight vigil in remembrance of Tiffany Enriquez in Honolulu. A handyman's landlord had recently started an eviction process before he stabbed a woman Sunday and fatally shot two Honolulu officers, including Enriquez. (Bruce Asato/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)

Hawaii eyes closing gun loopholes, bolstering mental health

Jan. 22, 2020 8:25 PM EST

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii already has some of the nation's strictest gun laws, but the fatal shooting of two Honolulu police officers by a man his lawyer and neighbors believe had psychiatric problems has added new urgency to efforts to close gun control loopholes and bolster mental health care treatment. ...

Members of a Kansas House committee indicate whether they want to be recorded as voting yes or no on a proposed amendment to the state constitution on abortion with thumbs-up and thumbs-down signs, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020, at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. The measure cleared committee on a 15-6 show of hands and would reverse a Kansas Supreme Court decision declaring access to abortion a

Abortion rights backers unsure of strategy in Kansas fight

Jan. 22, 2020 7:48 PM EST

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Abortion rights backers grappled with how to derail a proposed anti-abortion amendment to the state constitution as abortion foes marked Wednesday's anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision by advancing two versions of the proposal in the Republican-controlled...

FILE - In this Nov. 3, 2019 file photo, Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder is shown before an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y. Snyder has met with Maryland lawmakers to discuss allowing sports betting at a new stadium in the state. Sen. Guy Guzzone told reporters Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020, that Snyder asked to be included in the sports betting realm. Snyder met with state lawmakers Tuesday, Jan. 21 in Annapolis. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus, File)

Maryland lawmakers met with Redskins owner on sports betting

Jan. 22, 2020 7:44 PM EST

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder met with Maryland lawmakers to discuss allowing sports betting at a new stadium in the state, a lawmaker who participated in a meeting with the team's owner said Wednesday. Sen. Guy Guzzone, who chairs the Maryland Senate's budget committee,...

FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2015 file photo, TC Energy's Keystone pipeline facility is seen in Hardisty, Alberta. The Trump administration is approving a right-of-way allowing the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline to be built across U.S. land. Federal officials told The Associated Press that Interior Secretary David Bernhardt would sign the approval for about 45 miles of the line's route Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020. It pushes the controversial $8 billion project closer to construction, but it still faces court challenges. The 1,200-mile pipeline would transport up to 830,000 barrels of crude oil daily from western Canada to U.S. refineries. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

Trump administration approves Keystone pipeline on US land

Jan. 22, 2020 7:27 PM EST

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Trump administration on Wednesday approved a right-of-way allowing the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline to be built across U.S. land, pushing the controversial $8 billion project closer to construction though court challenges still loom. The approval signed by Interior Secretary...

Former Baltimore lawmaker pleads guilty to bribery, fraud

Jan. 22, 2020 6:05 PM EST

BALTIMORE (AP) — A former Maryland state lawmaker and leading advocate of marijuana legalization pleaded guilty Wednesday to bribery and fraud charges after being accused of accepting more than $33,000 in exchange for granting various legislative favors, including work relevant to the pot industry. Cheryl...

Va Senate passes 'red flag' gun law over fierce opposition

Jan. 22, 2020 5:54 PM EST

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The Virginia Senate approved legislation Wednesday that would allow authorities to take guns away from people deemed dangerous to themselves or others, as the state moves closer to joining a growing number of states enacting so-called “red flag” gun laws. The...

Speculation grows about Pennsylvania House speaker's future

Jan. 22, 2020 5:21 PM EST

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania House Speaker Mike Turzai, the most prominent fiscal and social conservative in state government, will hold a news conference Thursday amid speculation in the Capitol this week that he will leave the powerful office after five years. Turzai, a Republican, had repeatedly...

Prisoner advocates hold signs supporting inmate rights at a protest outside the Capitol in Jackson, Miss., Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020. The protesters called on the federal government to investigate Mississippi's prison system for possible civil rights violations. They say five deaths in recent days highlights deliberate violations of inmates' constitutional rights. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Another inmate dies in a troubled Mississippi prison

Jan. 22, 2020 4:47 PM EST

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Another Mississippi inmate died in a troubled state prison Wednesday, and state corrections officials said his death appeared to be a suicide by hanging. At least 10 inmates have died in the state's prisons since late December, most of them in outbursts of violence. Eight of the men...

Rhode Island to divest from private prisons, gun makers

Jan. 22, 2020 4:16 PM EST

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — The Rhode Island public pension fund will stop investing in companies that either operate private for-profit prisons or make assault-style weapons that are sold to civilians, General Treasurer Seth Magaziner announced Wednesday. “We don't want to be associated with businesses...

GOP state lawmaker announces bid for auditor general

Jan. 22, 2020 3:56 PM EST

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A three-term state lawmaker from northwestern Pennsylvania said Wednesday that he will seek the Republican nomination to run for state auditor general this year. Cris Dush made the announcement less than a week before he can start circulating nomination petitions to get on the April...

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