Author
Special Sessions Rarely Live Up to the Name
With the region still reeling three weeks after Hurricane Katrina, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) in September began calling lawmakers back to the capital in Jackson for a special session to aid the anxious riverboat casino industry and sort out the financial mess the storm left behind. Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D) waited until November, […]
States Abstain From Federal Sex Ed Money
Maine has stepped out of the collection line of states getting federal money to help subsidize sex education, joining California and Pennsylvania in saying, “No, thanks.” Citing a potential conflict with a 2002 state law that mandates teaching teenagers everything from self-restraint to contraception, Maine declined about $160,000 in federal money for fiscal 2006. Maine […]
California Next to Decide Unions’ Role in Politics
The ability of public worker’s unions to influence politics, already curtailed in several states, now faces a judgment day in California. Proposition 75, one of eight ballot measures that Golden State voters will decide Nov. 8, would require public-sector employee unions to get written permission from members each year before spending their dues to support […]