Latest Special interest groups News
Ivey promotes Alabama prison plan ahead of special session
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday blamed crumbling infrastructure for the state’s prison problems as she prepares to call lawmakers back to Montgomery for a special session on prison construction. “The main issue contributing to these...
Memphis high school student dies after contracting COVID-19
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — School officials in Memphis say a student died earlier this month after contracting COVID-19 as Tennessee continues to rank among the highest case rates in the nation. A spokesperson for Frayser Community Schools charter network tells The...
State cannabis lobbying group forms even as drug's illegal
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska remains one of only two states that haven't legalized cannabis use in some form, but the industry has already launched a lobbying group in the state to help influence the rules that will regulate the industry. John Cartier, president of the...
California enacts 2 laws to slice through local zoning rules
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday approved two measures to slice through local zoning ordinances as the most populous state struggles with soaring home prices, an affordable housing shortage and stubborn homelessness. He signed the most...
Lawsuit: Blind man, guide dog forced from N. Carolina mall
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Police officers violated civil rights law when they forced a blind man and his service dog to leave a mall and threatened to arrest him for trespassing if he didn't, according to a lawsuit filed by a North Carolina advocacy group. “Civil rights...
Federal court allows Wisconsin redistricting case to proceed
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A three-judge panel of federal judges on Thursday denied a request by Republicans to dismiss a redistricting lawsuit brought by Democrats, a move that keeps the case alive while the GOP-controlled Legislature wants the battle to instead be fought in state courts. ...
Democrats call oil giants to testify on climate campaign
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional Democrats are calling top executives at ExxonMobil and other oil giants to testify at a House hearing as lawmakers investigate what they say is a long-running, industry-wide campaign to spread disinformation about the role of fossil fuels in causing global...
Judge suspends Minnesota's tougher standards on deadly force
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A judge has suspended Minnesota’s new stricter standards on when police can use deadly force, halting a change in state law that followed the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis police. The new standards, passed by the...
Judge weighs challenge to Arizona ban on school mask mandate
PHOENIX (AP) — A judge was considering whether to overturn several new Arizona laws that restrict the power of cities, counties and school districts to impose COVID-19 restrictions like mask mandates after hearing arguments in the case Monday. A coalition of educators,...
Advocates, 2 women sue in bid to close Nevada legal brothels
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A national advocacy group and a Nevada lawyer have filed a sweeping federal lawsuit aimed at convincing a judge the nation’s only legal brothels are dens of illegal sex trafficking and unconstitutional slavery. The case filed Friday in Las Vegas by...
