With little debate two years ago, state lawmakers passed a complex energy bill that enabled a sweeping change in how most Californians are billed for electricity. The legislation was what Pacific Gas & Electric had asked for from the state public utilities commission three months before: a transformation of electric rates so that households would […]
MADISON – Two wedding barn owners, represented by a prominent conservative law firm, sued the state on Tuesday over a new law they say will harm their businesses. Jean Bahn, owner of Farmview Event Barn in Berlin, and Daniel Gallagher, owner of Monarch Valley Wedding & Events in Blair, are represented by the Wisconsin Institute […]
North America has experienced two transcontinental total solar eclipses within the last seven years, and these satellite images compare the crisscrossing paths of totality. In 2017, a total solar eclipse moved from northwest regions to southeast areas, sweeping from Oregon to South Carolina and casting a shadow across 14 U.S. states coast-to-coast for the first […]
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The Maine Legislature approved sweeping gun safety legislation including background checks on private gun sales, waiting periods for gun purchases and criminalizing gun sales to prohibited people before adjourning Thursday morning, nearly six months after the deadliest shooting in state history. Democratic Gov. Janet Mills and the Democratic-led Legislature pressed for […]
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A former top utility regulator awaiting trial on charges he took millions in bribes in conjunction with the largest corruption scandal in Ohio’s history died by suicide on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Franklin County Coroner’s Office said. Sam Randazzo, 74, the one-time chair of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, […]
China’s crisis of consumer confidence may be turning a corner. China’s economy has been shaky for much of the past year, with economists pointing to a prolonged property crisis, stubbornly high youth unemployment, and continued costs from COVID-zero. But data from a recent April holiday may show that Chinese consumers are ready to start spending […]
Colorado Democrats are pushing a series of gun control bills that mirror policies in liberal states such as California but have overwhelmingly flown under the radar in the media, Second Amendment experts say. “This should be making national news as it doesn’t just impact Colorado, but the nation as a whole,” Ava Flanell, a firearms […]
As chairman of a key legislative committee, state Sen. Luke Rankin can decide what the panel discusses, guide the direction of conversations and use his position as a bully pulpit to support bills he thinks are important. This year, Rankin’s authority extends to legislation that would help the state-owned Santee Cooper power company build a […]
BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey on Wednesday proposed a blanket pardon of misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions in Massachusetts in what she described as the broadest action taken by a governor to forgive past marijuana crimes since President Joe Biden handed down federal pot pardons. Healey’s move to wipe out all past adult state court misdemeanor […]
Here are where things stand as Super Tuesday comes to a close. Donald Trump has won Republican elections and caucuses in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Maine, Alabama, Massachusetts, Texas, Arkansas, Colorado, Minnesota and California. Nikki Haley, however, scored an upset win in Vermont. The Alaska caucuses and Utah caucuses have not yet been called […]
BATON ROUGE, La. — In 2017, Louisiana overhauled its criminal justice system with broad bipartisan support, all in an effort to lose the distinction of having the nation’s highest incarceration rate. Sentences were reduced. Opportunities for parole were expanded. Alternatives to prison were introduced. But seven years later, the state is sending a very different […]
Thousands of Belarusians have been convicted on politically driven charges over the last three years as part of the authorities’ relentless crackdown on dissent, the country’s leading human rights group said on Monday. The Viasna human rights centre said that at least 4,690 people have been convicted on politically motivated charges since the August 2020 […]