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Editor’s Picks From Around the Web
US: States move to pull Confederate flag off license plates
Governors in five states — Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia — said they want images of the Confederate flag removed from auto license plates, following last week’s church killings in South Carolina and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said states have control of what license plates say.
MA: Massachusetts opens first casino; Gambling chief touts jobs, revenue
Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby said the casino would bring as much as million a year to the state in new tax revenue while creating 10,000 new jobs.
AZ: Lake Mead sinks to new low, risking water shortage for Western states
Lake Mead sunk to a record low, falling below the level that would trigger a water-supply shortage for Arizona, California and Nevada if the reservoir doesn’t recover by January.
CA: California ‘right to die’ bill stalls in Assembly committee
The Assembly Health Committee postponed a vote on legislation that would allow adults with a terminal illness to seek medication from a doctor to end their lives, raising doubts about the fate of the contested bill.
DE: Bill seeks to help Delaware’s stray cats
A Delaware legislator has proposed a bill that would remove the risk of penalty for people who provide food, care, spaying, neutering and vaccination of stray or feral cats.
FL: Florida, Feds reach a hospital funding deal ‘in principle’
Florida and the federal government reached a deal to continue for two years Florida’s pool of federal money that is distributed to hospitals and other providers to help cover the costs of treating uninsured and poor patients. The pool, which totaled .2 billion during the current fiscal year, was scheduled to expire. It will continue with the state paying million.
KY: Some Kentucky lawmakers question needle exchange program
Senate Republicans say Louisville’s needle exchange program oversteps Kentucky’s new anti-heroin law by distributing free syringes without requiring dirty ones in return — a policy that health officials view as the best approach.
NY: Lawmakers reach tentative deal on New York City rent regulation
New York state lawmakers reached a tentative deal to extend regulations that control rents on about a million New York City area apartments for four years.
WI: Plan calls for no across-the-board raises for Wisconsin state workers
Wisconsin’s Joint Committee on Employment Relations approved a plan that would not set aside money for across-the-board raises for 31,000 workers over the next two years. The proposal comes after two straight annual raises of 1 percent for state workers and wouldn’t preclude any merit raises. Republican Gov. Scott Walker suspended merit raises earlier this year, but they could be reinstated starting next month.
NJ: New Jersey Democrats float ‘millionaires’ tax’ to fund public pensions
Democratic lawmakers are proposing to raise taxes on New Jersey’s wealthiest residents and its corporations, and to pay .1 billion into the state’s public employee pension program. That contribution would be about five-sevenths of what actuaries recommend.
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