POLITICS & LEADERSHIP
"Pay to play" ban finally passes in NJ

GOVERNORS 
Western govs want to change ESA
 

The week in session
Bird's eye view
Hot issues
In the Hopper
 

For more than a year, the debate over same-sex marriage has raged from the White House to the statehouse. Many states have moved to constitutionally define marriage, a drive that is shifting 
to the classroom.
 

States taking gay marriage battle to the classroom

Bolstered by a clean sweep at the polls last November, numerous legislatures across the country have this year been emphatically pushing to constitutionally define marriage as only being between one man and one woman. That drive has also spilled over into the classroom, where some lawmakers and education officials now want school textbooks to reflect that same definition. 

References to gay lifestyles have been a source of contention in choosing school textbooks for several years. In TEXAS in 2000, for example, the Santa Fe Independent School  District adopted a policy aimed at ridding elementary and middle school shelves of "vulgarity, profanity, references to homosexuality or other deviant behavior." That resulted in the removal of titles like Judy Blume's "Just As Long As We're Together," Katherine Paterson's "Bridge to Terabithia" and Jack London's "Call of the Wild." 

Texas education officials took that policy a step further last November when the State Board of Education asked book publishers to change health textbooks to specifically define marriage as only being between one man and one woman. Board member Terry Leo, who proposed the changes, said they were necessary to prevent "asexual stealth phrases" such as "individuals who marry" from finding their way into the books. 

"Marriage has been defined in Texas, so it should also be defined in our health textbooks as marriage between a man and a woman," Leo said at the time. 

Those changes drew immediate fire from gay and lesbian groups as well as some textbook publishers, who complained that because Texas is the second largest textbook buyer in the country, their action would unduly influence dozens of other states to follow suit. Books sold in large states like Texas and CALIFORNIA are frequently marketed in other states as well. 

A few states have already taken legislative action seeking to copy the new Texas policy. Last month, the ARKANSAS House passed HB 1136, which would have mandated that public school textbooks not be able to promote any form of marriage other than the one-man one-woman version approved in the Razorback State constitution. A Senate committee later rejected the bill, but its author, Rep. Roy Ragland (R), is contemplating bringing it back in an amended form later this session. 

The issue is still alive in ALABAMA, where House Bill 30, authored by Rep. Gerald Allen (R), is awaiting action in the House Education Committee. HB 30 would bar the state from spending any public funds "to purchase or promote" books for schools or libraries that contain homosexual characters. Allen is also the author of HB1, an amendment to the state constitution that would define marriage as only being between one man and one woman. At this writing, that measure has passed in the House and is under review in the Senate. 

Bills like HB 30 greatly concern Mark Potok, a spokesman for the Montgomery-based Southern Poverty Law Center. "I call (HB 30) a Nazi book burning," Potok says. "If this bill passes, half the classics of western civilization would be banned, including Plato, Shakespeare and Hemmingway." Potok says he doubts the bill will ever make it out of the Education Committee, lamenting that, "All this has done is heap ridicule on the state of Alabama from people all over the world."

Allen deflects that criticism, citing exit polls from the November election that showed moral issues were the number one voter concern as proof the people of his state want bills like HB 30 and HB 1 to become Heart of Dixie law. 

"I am not a bigot," he says. "I share a deep concern with my fellow citizens that the family is not being taken care of." 

Allen also says he is not suggesting a book burning or digging a hole to dispose of all copies of  "The Color Purple" or "Heather has Two Mommies," but that he would like to stop using public funds to purchase books that "teach alternate lifestyles are acceptable. If children are indoctrinated now by textbooks that say gay lifestyles are all right, then 20 years from now it will seem normal." 

Arkansas Rep. Ragland (R) says he has fielded many calls from constituents who accuse him of trying to impose his religious views on society, a charge he denies. 

"This bill is really just a preemptive measure," says Ragland, who compares the issue to the controversy surrounding teen executions. "We have never executed a teenager in the state," he says. "But until a few days ago (when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that executing teenagers is unconstitutional), there was no law saying we couldn't do it if we wanted to. It is the same with textbooks; without a law, there could still be textbooks that don't adhere to our state constitution. I want to protect taxpayers from paying for that." 

He also notes that he has had just as many phone calls and e-mails in support of his bill, and that the Arkansas constitutional amendment barring recognition of same-sex marriages passed overwhelmingly last November. 

Back in Texas, the same Santa Fe Independent School District policy that bans references to homosexuality also calls for district personnel to choose books that: "present various sides of controversial issues so that students have an opportunity to develop, under guidance, skills in critical analysis and in making informed judgments in their daily lives; represent many ethnic, religious, and cultural groups and their contributions to the national heritage and world community; [and] provide a wide range of background information that will enable students to make intelligent judgments in their daily lives." 

It is not always easy to balance those objectives, says Teresa Brown, a librarian for the Santa Fe Elementary North school in Santa Fe. Brown says that while librarians have the power to choose books, they have no control over the selection they are given to choose from.

"I choose books from approved vendors and if a parent has a problem, then a committee is formed to determine if the book is appropriate," Brown says. 

Those vendors are usually approved by local school districts, which is just how the Texas Education Agency (TEA) likes it. The TEA prefers that local  districts have the legal ability do choose for themselves the books that will be in the classroom or the library. "Local control is important," says DeEtta Culbertson, an information specialist for TEA.

Alabama's Rep. Allen counters that while he is generally in favor of local control, some communities don't have the leadership to see what is happening and they need some guidelines. "I wish all school districts had the backbone to do the right thing," Allen says.

Textbook manufacturers, which are effectively caught in the middle of the debate, are following the situation closely. Anne Deem, the author of a series of Texas-approved health and character development books called Myrtle Learns, says she incorporated lessons on persuasion and the environment in her books after she learned about the curriculum requirements in Texas and California. "I would not take those sections out to sell them to other states. It would be too difficult to differentiate."

McGraw Hill, which publishes textbooks used in a majority of the states in the nation "listens to requests and makes changes when it fits with the standards of the book," according to spokeswoman April Hattori. In the case of TEA's request that the gender of parents be clear, McGraw Hill "agreed to make the changes in some instances and not others" and created a Texas edition.

When asked about the proposed Alabama law, Hattori cautions, "a change in law does not automatically translate into a change in curriculum requirements." She said her company "works with educators" to determine what will be included -- and what won't.

Andrew Borchini, southeastern regional manager of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLADD), predicts that if Alabama's HB 30 passes, it will not withstand legal scrutiny. He points to a recent federal judge`s decision in GEORGIA to make a school district remove stickers that cautioned "evolution is a theory and not a fact" because they are unconstitutional. 
"It's a first amendment issue," Borchini says. 

Allen says he is not concerned about the legal aspects of his bill right now, noting that, "the legal question will be answered at a later date." Allen adds that he has gotten much positive response from all over the country since he filed the bill. 

"Alabama is a leader in this moral cause," he says. 

-- By J.T. LONG

 J.T. Long is a freelance journalist based in Roseville, California. State Net  Capitol Journal editor Rich Ehisen contributed additional reporting for this story. 

TOP OF PAGE

Budget & taxes

MARYLAND HOUSE PASSES SLOTS BILL: A little over a week ago, MARYLAND's House of Delegates did something it has never done before: pass a bill legalizing slot machine gaming. But many are still skeptical Old Line State residents will be depositing coins and pulling levers any time soon. For the last two years, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) has won passage of a slot machine gaming bill in the Democrat-controlled Senate, only to see it killed by Democrats in the House. But the third time proved to be the charm when the House narrowly approved a slots bill on Feb. 25. Unfortunately, that bill differs substantially from the one passed by the Senate earlier in the month, authorizing fewer machines (9,500 versus the Senate proposal's 15,500), specifying different locations, setting different profit levels for machine operators and stipulating an alternate method of awarding licenses. Ehrlich and Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller (D) said the House bill needs some changes, but House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D) says any tinkering will doom the bill in his chamber. Commenting on the state of affairs, Miller stated, "I would say we're at second base," adding, "A lot of times people get stranded on second base." (BALTIMORE SUN, DELAWARE STATE NEWS [DOVER], WASHINGTON POST) 

CODEY PROPOSES AUSTERE BUDGET: Acting NEW JERSEY governor Richard Codey (D) unveiled a state budget plan last week that not only includes the largest cut in state spending in more than 50 years, but also calls for substantial increases in taxes and other fees. Proclaiming it a "day of reckoning" that had been produced by "years of spending levels that couldn't, and cannot, be sustained," Codey recommended slashing overall spending by $600 million, while increasing taxes and fees by $570 million. The hard-line budget proposal, which came just weeks after Codey decided not to run for a full term as governor -- having replaced James E. McGreevey (D) in November -- drew immediate criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the isle. One of the main points of contention is Codey's proposal to scale back a popular state property tax rebate program. "If we continue to tax and spend in the manner proposed while cutting property tax relief, we will cease to be a place where working families can live and raise their children," warned Senate Republican Leader Leonard Lance. But the staunchest opponents of Codey's plan may be his fellow Democrats in the Assembly, all of whom are up for re-election this year. Assembly Majority Leader Joe Roberts, although praising Codey for his frankness, made the Democrats' position on the property tax issue pretty clear: "The idea that we would support a budget that completely eliminates property tax relief, I believe, is unacceptable." (NEW JERSEY STAR-LEDGER [NEWARK], NEW YORK TIMES) 

BUDGETS IN BRIEF: Both houses of VIRGINIA's General Assembly passed the state budget plan last week -- with no debate -- and quietly adjourned, a fairly remarkable departure from last session's budget debacle, which kept the two chambers locked in a bitter feud months past their scheduled adjournment date. With the state's financial situation having improved substantially this year and all 100 members of the House of Delegates facing re-election, lawmakers chose to forego contentious issues, such as the state's overburdened transportation system (VIRGINIAN-PILOT [NORFOLK]). * MICHIGAN Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) issued an executive order last Tuesday that officially ends the practice of awarding state contracts without competitive bidding. Granholm had reduced the number of no-bid and sole-bid contracts from 20 percent to 2 percent in her two years in office, and her new directive will eliminate the rest (ASSOCIATED PRESS, ANN ARBOR NEWS). * The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to weigh the issue of whether states may tax motor fuel sold on Indian reservations. Thirteen states -- ARIZONA, CALIFORNIA, CONECTICUT, IDAHO, IOWA, MASSACHUSETTS, MISSOURI, NEW MEXICO, NORTH DAKOTA, OKLAHOMA, SOUTH DAKOTA, UTAH and WYOMING -- asked the high court to hear the case, which was brought by the state of KANSAS against the Prairie Band Potawatomi tribe (ASSOCIATED PRESS, RAPID CITY JOURNAL, LAWRENCE JOURNAL-WORLD). * Last week, PENNSYLVANIA Gov. Ed Rendell (D) authorized the transfer of $68 million in federal highway funds to the financially-troubled mass transit agencies in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in order to stave off imminent fare increases and cuts in service. But the 11th-hour bailout must still be approved by the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, several members of which have expressed opposition to the stopgap measure (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE). * KENTUCKY moved a step closer to overhauling its tax code for the first time in over a decade when the Republican-controlled Senate unanimously passed the tax reform measure sent to them two weeks earlier by the Democrat-led House. Because the upper chamber made some minor modifications to the House bill, it has now gone to a conference committee (LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER, ASSOCIATED PRESS, COURIER-JOURNAL [LOUISVILLE]). * RHODE ISLAND home and business owners in some towns are paying four times more in property taxes than property owners in other towns on homes and businesses of equal value, according to a study by the Rhode Island Public Expenditures Council. RIPEC says the variation in tax rates is the result of several factors, including local choices about what services communities want to provide, the varying amount of state and federal funding communities receive and, especially, how much communities spend on education (PROVIDENCE JOURNAL). 
 

-- Compiled by KOREY CLARK

TOP OF PAGE

Politics & leadership

"PAY-TO-PLAY" BAN FINALLY PASSES IN NJ: After years of debate, the NEW JERSEY Senate last week finally -- and unanimously -- approved legislation banning "pay-to-play," the practice of rewarding campaign donors with government contracts. The 34-0 vote was a major victory for Gov. Richard J. Codey (D), who'd been embarrassed two weeks earlier when members of his own party had joined up with Republicans to oppose the legislation he'd authored. The governor had called lawmakers into special session last Monday for a re-vote, and he was clearly pleased with his change of fortune. "What a difference two weeks makes," he said. The Republicans and four Democrats who had abstained from the first vote, arguing that the bill contained too many loopholes, were swayed the second time around by a series of highly critical newspaper editorials, although the lawmakers continued to express misgivings. "I think this bill is just tinkering around the edges of real reform," said Sen. Robert Smith (D). "I don't know that we just made the system better. We might have made it worse. On the other hand, this bill has turned into a symbol, and I felt the need to change my vote." Codey is expected to sign the bill, but may do so with a conditional veto, requiring lawmakers to change some language to exempt highway contracts from the law, in order to free up $350 million in highway funds the federal government is withholding. (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, NEW YORK TIMES) 

SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE: Over the past few years, split control of the GEORGIA Legislature, with Democrats holding a majority in the House and Republicans dominant in the Senate, has virtually guaranteed conflict between the two chambers. But the GOP's takeover of the House in November apparently hasn't brought an end to the bicameral bickering. The two chambers have found themselves deadlocked over a midyear spending bill that observers say is the least complicated of several appropriations bills the Legislature must pass this year. A six-member conference committee has been trying for over a week to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the midyear budget, without making headway. The main point of conflict is the $20 million in "pork" spending the new Republican House leaders stuck in their proposal to thank constituents for facilitating their coup. Senate leaders say the midyear budget, which only covers the last four months of the budget year, is no place for such projects. But the House has held firm, focusing on the bigger picture. "Being the first budget between the two bodies, we don't need to set the tone by folding too soon," said Rep. Mack Crawford (R), who is seeking a $275,000 for a project in his district. Some lawmakers downplayed the conflict, suggesting it was just a phase. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Jack Hill (R), for example, said, "It's a little bit of a dance in a way in that we're learning more about our partner...Where do we hold hands? Where do we kick? So we're learning, and I don't see us all that far apart. Evidently prone to speaking in metaphor, Hill added, "I just don't think either side's going to be able have it all their way. We're not Burger King." But others view things a little less optimistically. Charles Bullock, a University of Georgia political scientist, says the Republicans' squabbling is a product of institutional House-Senate rivalry. "I suspect that in every bicameral legislature you have this "us" against "them," he said. That opinion is shared by Rep. David Ralston (R), who has actually served in both chambers. "It's just the nature of having the two houses. The only way you'd change that is to move to Nebraska." (ASSOCIATED PRESS, MACON TELEGRAPH) 

DEMS BOYCOTT KILLS 132 BILLS: The INDIANA House came to a standstill last Tuesday after Democrats withdrew from the floor, denying the Republican majority the quorum required to conduct legislative business. The move was undertaken to block two bills, one giving the governor his own prosecutor and the other requiring residents to show ID in order to vote, which the Dems contend reduces minority participation. But coming on the last day that the chamber was allowed to act on legislation and send it to the Senate, the 15-hour boycott killed 130 other bills in the process. The main problem for Republicans was that few of the bills awaiting action were sponsored by Democrats; many were actually legislative priorities of new Gov. Mitch Daniels (R), the most high-profile of which is a measure to shift the state to daylight-saving time. (Indiana is one of only three states that currently does not observe it.) Capitol-watchers say some of the legislation, such as a plan to fund a new stadium for the Indianapolis Colts, could just be folded into the House budget proposal, but other bills, like the daylight-saving time measure could be tougher to revive. At least one Democratic lawmaker, however, expressed the opinion that none of the legislation was dead yet. "This is not the death knell for anything," said Rep. Chester Dobis. One option that is evidently available to lawmakers is to simply extend the deadline for sending bills to the Senate. (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, JOURNAL GAZETTE [FORT WAYNE])

POLITICS IN BRIEF: CALIFORNIA's Democratic legislative leaders have offered to relinquish their power to draw legislative districts to an independent panel if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) agrees to wait until 2010 to redraw the lines. Schwarzenegger is pushing to create new maps in time for the 2006 election, and has proposed taking the issue to voters in a special election this fall (LOS ANGELES TIMES). * Last week, a TEXAS court began deliberating whether the state's 2002 legislative races, which gave the GOP control of the House for the first time since the 1870s, were conducted illegally. The case is the civil counterpart to a criminal investigation that has already produced several indictments against corporations and Republican operatives tied to U.S. House Majority Leader Tom Delay (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, ASSOCIATED PRESS, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS). * Juneau selected the winner of its competition to design a new Capitol building. City leaders are hoping the design will help cement Juneau's status as ALASKA's capital city, but it doesn't appear to be helping their cause. Neither the futuristic winning design -- which features a translucent, 150-foot, egg-shaped dome -- nor the three other finalists were especially popular with residents. "I would rather move the capital to Anchorage then look at one of these eyesores the rest of my life here," said one (ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS). * Last Monday, the OKLAHOMA Senate went live on the Internet with streaming audio and video. Initiating the Webcast cost the chamber nothing, because an existing surveillance camera and computer server were used (OKLAHOMAN [OKLAHOMA CITY]). 
 

-- Compiled by KOREY CLARK 

TOP OF PAGE

Governors

WESTERN GOVS WANT CHANGES TO ESA: Citing a need to "modernize" a 30-year-old law, the Western Governors Association (WGA) last week formally called on Congress to make a series of "common-sense changes" to the federal Endangered Species Act. The WGA represents governors from 18 western states and three U.S.-flag Pacific islands. In a letter sent to OKLAHOMA Sen. James Inhofe (R), who chairs the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, and VERMONT Sen. James Jeffords (I), the Committee's ranking minority member, the WGA asked Congressional leaders to give states more latitude in interpreting and enforcing the ESA statutes. The request mirrors an earlier call from some Congressional leaders seeking to alter the Act. Specific requests included allowing individual states to delist a species if it has reached acceptable numbers there, regardless of how it is doing in other states, and allowing states to participate in picking the scientists who review evidence used to designate species' as endangered. The letter drew immediate opposition from environmental groups, which claim the ESA already directs the federal government to work closely with states on conservation issues. Another specific request that agitated eco-groups was the letter's emphasis on ensuring the use of "objective, peer-reviewed science" in making ESA decisions. "Everyone agrees that (the ESA) should be implemented on the basis of good science," said Greg Loarie, an attorney with the environmental law firm EarthJustice. "The problem is that current proposals replace real science with political science." (DAILY HERALD [PROVO], BILLINGS GAZETTE, WESTERN GOVERNORS ASSOCIATION) 

PERRY BACKS TX NO CHILD CHALLENGE: TEXAS Gov. Rick Perry (R) broke ranks with the Bush administration last week on its No Child Left Behind (NCLB) education policy. Perry, normally one of the law's  biggest supporters, said he supports Lone Star State education commissioner Dr. Shirley Neeley's challenge to the federal law over standardized testing of special-education students. The NCLB statute requires that schools exempt no more than 1 percent of their students from testing because of learning disabilities, with any students in excess of that number counted as "failing."  Texas applied for a waiver from the U.S. Dept. of Education, but was flatly denied. That rejection apparently did not sit well with them, as Texas education officials exempted nearly 10 times that number anyway, an act of defiance that could endanger some of the more than $1 billion in federal funding the state receives anually. Perry stood by Neeley's decision to exceed the waiver limit, saying "She makes the daily decisions, and I support her and the Texas Education Agency." Texas is just one of many states to thumb its nose at NCLB mandates of late, most notably in the UTAH House, which passed legislation that gives priority to state education laws over federal statutes. (HOUSTON CHRONICLE)

GOVERNORS IN BRIEF: MAINE Gov. John Baldacci (D) introduced a bill that would add sexual orientation as a class protected against discrimination in employment, education and housing. If passed, the bill would amend the Maine Human Rights Act, which already bars discrimination based on race, gender and disabilities (BANGOR DAILY NEWS). * ALASKA Gov. Frank Murkowski (R) last week proposed a limit on state employees' personal holdings in companies they deal with on official business. The proposal would bar lawmakers from owning more than 1 percent of voting or equity interest in such a company, owning more than $10,000 of the company's fair market value or being on the company's board of directors (JUNEAU EMPIRE). * CALIFORNIA Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) says he will not continue seeking to replace the state employees' pension system with private retirement accounts as long as a new system can be devised that produces a cost savings for taxpayers and predictable costs for the state. Schwarzenegger has threatened to take his plan to move government workers hired from 2007 forward into 401(k)-style accounts in place of fixed payments guaranteed at retirement (LOS ANGELES TIMES).
 

-- Compiled by RICH EHISEN

TOP OF PAGE

Bird's eye view

Committing to tougher academic standards

Citing a steady decline in America's high school graduation rates and higher education achievement, more than a dozen governors attending the recent National Education Summit on High Schools in Washington, D.C. have agreed to work together to raise their respective state's high school academic standards. The coalition agreed to take specific steps to make high school curriculums more rigorous, including requiring every student take college prep courses in order to graduate. The governors also pledged to match their graduation standards with the expectations of colleges and employers, and to hold their schools accountable for ensuring students get their diplomas. The Summit was co-sponsored by the National Governors Association and Achieve Inc., a non-profit group that promotes higher high school education standards. The accompanying map shows the 13 states that make up the coalition. 
 

Hot issues

BUSINESS: The NEW MEXICO House overwhelmingly endorses HB 65, legislation that would, among other things, limit payday loans ­­ short-term cash advances against the borrower's paycheck ­­ to no more than $1,000 and give loan recipients 24 hours to change their minds. It heads to the Senate (SANTA FE NEW MEXICAN). * The COLORADO House backs HB 1179, which would double damage awards to workers who have not been paid what their bosses owe them. The Centennial State receives approximately 6,000 claims from workers every year saying they have not paid wages due them. The measure moves to the Senate (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS). * A federal court halts the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture from opening the border to Canadian live cattle. Canadian cattle have been barred from importation into the states since May of 2003, when bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, was discovered in a herd in Alberta (BILLINGS GAZETTE). 

CRIME & PUNISHMENT: The U.S. Supreme Court abolishes capital punishment for juvenile offenders, ruling that executing offenders who were under the age of 18 when they committed their crimes constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. The high court's ruling came in the case of a MISSOURI man who was sentenced to die for a murder he committed when he was 17. The ruling also overrides laws in 20 states that allow for the execution of juvenile offenders (WASHINGTON POST). * An ARIZONA House committee approves HB 2175, a measure that would require anyone purchasing pseudoephedrine-based cold and allergy products to present identification and to sign a police log book. It moves to the full House (ARIZONA DAILY STAR). * The NEW MEXICO House unanimously endorses HB 282, legislation that would require all people convicted of drunken driving to have an ignition interlock installed in their vehicle for a minimum of one year. Interlocks are breathalyzer devices that prevent drivers from starting their car if they are intoxicated. It moves to the Senate (SANTA FE NEW MEXICAN). * The MONTANA House approves legislation that says brandishing a firearm is not a crime, as long as it is in self-defense and the holder does not actually shoot anyone. It fires off to the Senate (BILLINGS GAZETTE). 

EDUCATION: The UTAH Senate approves HB 135, legislation that would place state education goals ahead of federal requirements. The measure was sent to Gov. John Huntsman Jr. (R), who called a special session of the Legislature rather than signing it into law. Huntsman called the special session in order to give his office, state education leaders and federal officials more time to negotiate the matter (DAILY HERALD [PROVO]). * The U.S. Dept. of Education rejects a CONNECTICUT request to be exempted from expanded testing requirements dictated by the No Child Left Behind Act. Connecticut education officials say the cost of the extra testing will exceed federal funding given to the state by $40 million (HARTFORD COURANT). 

ENVIRONMENT: A federal court rules that FLORIDA environmental officials must require dairy farms to get permits before discharging cattle waste into groundwater. The decision upholds the ruling of a lower court, which said the Sunshine State Dept. of Environmental Protections had wrongly allowed more than 50 dairy farms to send waste into groundwater without proper permits (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES). * The NEW MEXICO Senate approves SB 337, which would allow private Land of Enchantment game parks to grow from the current limit of 3,200 acres to a maximum of 15,000 acres. Game in the state's 28 game parks are privately owned, and state hunting licenses are not required to shoot them. The measure gallops off to the House (SANTA FE NEW MEXICAN). 

HEALTH & SCIENCE: The ARKANSAS House unanimously endorses HB 1442, which would require nursing aids to receive training in how to care for Alzheimer's patients. It moves to the Senate (ARKANSAS NEWS BUREAU). * A GEORGIA Senate committee approves HB 197, a measure that requires Peach State doctors to offer women seeking an abortion information on the medical risks associated with the procedure as well as alternatives like adoption. It must clear another committee before making it to the Senate floor (ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION). 

SOCIAL POLICY: A TENNESSEE House committee endorses HJR 24, which would ban recognition of same-sex marriages conducted in other states. It walks down the aisle to another committee (TENNESSEAN [NASHVILLE]). * The UTAH House okay's SB 227, a measure that will bar illegal immigrants from acquiring a Beehive State driver's license. The licenses will be replaced by a "driving privilege card" that looks different than a standard driver's license. It would not be usable as identification. The measure heads to Gov. John Huntsman Jr. (R) for consideration (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE). * The U.S. Supreme Court begins hearing arguments on whether government buildings can legally display a copy of the Ten Commandments. The hearing stems from cases originating in TEXAS and KENTUCKY, where plaintiffs have sued to have various forms of the religious symbol -- one a six-foot red granite monument -- removed from public buildings. The high court's decision is expected this summer (NEW YORK TIMES). 

POTPOURRI: A WASHINGTON Senate committee rings through on SB 5160, legislation that would require Evergreen State motorists to use a hands-free device if they talk on their cell phones while driving. The measure now goes to the full Senate (SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER). * A HAWAII Senate committee approves SB 1222, which would allow the state to seek reimbursement for search and rescue operations from people who fail to "exercise reasonable care" by trespassing or ignoring weather warnings before heading out into the forests or ocean. The bill now sets out for the Senate (HONOLULU STAR BULLETIN). * The INDIANA Senate puts the pedal to the metal for SB 127, which would raise the Hoosier State speed limit on certain non-interstate highways to 65 mph. The chamber had already endorsed a bill that would increase limits on many rural roads to 70 mph. Both measures zoomed off to the House (INDIANAPOLIS STAR).
 

-- Compiled by RICH EHISEN

TOP OF PAGE
 

---

Upcoming Elections (2/28/05 - 03/14/05)

03/05/2005  Louisiana  (Special Primary)
House  District 029, 036, 066

03/08/2005  Alabama  Special Election
House  082

---

Once around the statehouse lightly

MINISTRY OF SILLY STUNTS. A pair of British adventurers has descended on UTAH with the express intention of violating that state's silliest law. According to The Salt Lake Tribune, the dynamic duo landed in Utah while recklessly making their way across the continent in search of whack-o laws to break. Unfortunately, their research ran afoul of reality in the Beehive State, for Luke Bateman and Richard Smith had planned to hunt whales in the Great Salt Lake. It turns out, however, that the practice is not illegal in Utah because no whales inhabit the lake. Instead, Bateman and Smith might want to discriminate against someone who wants to buy butterfat -- that is against the law in Utah.

MARGARET HOULLIHAN LIVES. The statue that sculptor Joe Mullins created to honor female veterans in WEST VIRGINIA may never see the light of day. As The Associated Press reports, the director of the state Division of Veterans' Affairs has strongly objected to the work because it isn't feminine enough. The statue, first approved by the Division of Culture and History in 1999, shows a muscular woman in pants and a T-shirt. Several lawmakers also have harped on the fact that Mullins' creation does not follow military uniform regulations. Mullins objects to the objections, saying that Veterans' Affairs had nothing to do with commissioning the statue; that came from the Culture and History. Ah, yes, says a Culture and History spokesperson, but Veterans' Affairs must fork over $100,000 to have the statue cast in bronze. "The statue that Mr. Mullins created is dead," is the verdict from Veterans' Affairs. Mullins won't go begging, however; he has already been paid $50,000 for his design.

NEW DEMOCRATIC STRATEGY. Never mind taking a poll on issues. NORTH CAROLINA Gov. Mike Easley has a better way to determine how he and ostensibly other Democrats are viewed by a key segment of the electorate. As noted in the Charlotte News and Observer, Easley directed his pollsters to survey viewers of the animated Fox TV sitcom, "King of the Hill." The central character is a good old boy propane salesman who, the governor confesses, "reminds me of so many of my friends." Easley was the only Southern Democratic governor to win re-election in 2004.

FROM THE MIKE TYSON SCHOOL OF LEGISLATIVE DECORUM. It often seems like so much hogwash when a legislator refers to a hated rival as "my esteemed colleague" during a heated floor debate. Well, COLORADO Republican Bill Cadman dispensed with the false niceties last week when he confronted Democrat Val Vigil with these soothing words: "If you try that again, I'll ram my fist up your ass." The confrontation, reports the Rocky Mountain News, took place over a bill to allow the families of soldiers killed in action to use license plates normally reserved for active military personnel. The exchange was prompted by Vigil's attempt to amend the bill, which Cadman referred to as "garbage." Vigil responded that Cadman should know garbage, and the subsequent explosion -- and accompanying rhetoric -- was heard in parts of WYOMING. Both lawmakers were said to regret the incident. A vote on the bill was delayed.

LIVING HISTORY DEPARTMENT. British Petroleum wants to build a liquefied natural gas plant in NEW JERSEY along the Delaware River. But the $500 million project is tangled up in an agreement fashioned more than 320 years ago between William Penn and the Duke of York that ceded nearly all the river to what is now DELAWARE. So, reports The New York Times, a 2,000-foot pier jutting into the river from the proposed plant requires the approval of -- and a permit from -- Delaware. But Delaware authorities denied the permit last month on the grounds that the plant constitutes new heavy industry banned in the state's coastal zone. BP is appealing. Meanwhile, irate New Jersey lawmakers are rattling sabers at neighboring Delaware, the air thick with the talk of war -- economic war, that is.  
 

-- By A.G. BLOCK

TOP OF PAGE

Editor: Rich Ehisen
Associate Editor: Korey Clark
Contributing Editor: A.G. Block
Editorial Advisor: Lou Cannon
Correspondents: Richard Cox (CA), Steve Karas (CA), 
Bruce McKeeman (CA), Kelli Harvell Walter (FL), Linda Mendenhall (IL),
Lauren King (MA) and Ben Livingood (PA)
Design: Richard Hansen, Heather Conway

Copyright 2005 State Net
ISSN: 1521-8449