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Editor’s Picks From Around the Web
CA: California is first state to adopt sex-reassignment surgery policy for prisoners
California prisons will implement the nation’s first guidelines that would authorize surgical procedures sought by transgender inmates who are suffering from severe mental problems.
LA: Federal judge rules against Louisiana governor’s Common Core suit
A U.S. district judge refused Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal’s claims that the federal government was illegally coercing states such as Louisiana to use Common Core education standards, clearing the way for Jindal to take his case to an appeals court.
OH: Ohio Senate votes to yank money from Planned Parenthood
The Senate approved diverting more than $1 million in taxpayer funding away from Planned Parenthood—mostly federal money for programs such as infant mortality and cancer screenings that the organization receives through grant programs administered by the Ohio Department of Health.
NE: Ride-hailing service Lyft pays Nebraska fine
Lyft paid an undisclosed fine after failing to apply for authority as a transportation network company, a classification created by the Nebraska Legislature in May. The company got authority to operate in the state after settling with regulators.
MI: ‘Blue Alert’ wins final passage in Michigan Legislature
First there were Amber Alerts for missing children. Then came Silver Alerts to help locate missing senior citizens. Now, the Michigan Senate has given final approval for a Blue Alert to help get information out about suspects who have had violent encounters with police.
ME: Proposed rules for Maine prison inmates may ban outside communication
The Maine Department of Corrections has proposed rules that soon may block inmates from communicating with the outside world by limiting their communication with journalists or restricting correspondence with pen pals. The proposal has raised alarms about prisoners’ constitutional rights.
MA: Massachusetts likely to weigh in on fantasy sports leagues
Massachusetts legislative leaders and gambling regulators signaled that state oversight of the fantasy sports industry is increasingly likely, saying they would scrutinize the operations of companies such as Boston’s DraftKings with an eye toward the safeguarding of consumers.
WY: Wyoming losing 2nd largest health insurance company
Wyoming’s second largest health insurance company, WINhealth, is closing down at the end of the year because of financial problems, leaving some 13,000 people having to find new coverage.
TX: Texas poised to see new low in death sentences in 2015
Texas, which leads the nation in death sentences, is on track to see fewer handed down this year than in any other year since the state’s death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
HI: Hawaii transit authority running out of money for new rail line
Construction costs for Hawaii’s state capital commuter rail line are $1.1 billion over budget and rising, prompting Honolulu’s rapid transit authority to ask for more borrowing and an extension of an excise tax.
CO: Colorado cities voting on taxes, pot, broadband and bees this year
From municipal bonds to backyard bees, broadband and transportation from the mountains to the plains, voters in more than 80 Colorado cities and towns are deciding a wide range of local issues on the Nov. 3 ballot.
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