Tag: news
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Louisiana legislature refers two more amendments to the 2022 ballot concerning waiving certain water charges and limiting increases in assessed value for Orleans Parish properties
The Louisiana Legislature voted on Sunday and Monday to refer two more amendments to the Nov. 2022 ballot, bringing to total to four. A two-thirds vote is needed in each chamber of the Louisiana Legislature to refer a constitutional amendment to the ballot for voter consideration. Last week, the legislature referred two amendments to the…
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Exploring the history of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996
You may have heard about Section 230, but what exactly is it? Section 230 is a federal law passed as part of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) which contains two provisions that prevent internet service providers and website companies from being held liable for most content created by users of their services, including…
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Seventy-nine percent of state legislative incumbents in New Jersey will not face a contested primary this year
Ninety percent of state legislative incumbents in New Jersey are seeking re-election in 2021. Of these 108 incumbents, 79%—85 legislators—will advance to the general election without a primary challenge, according to Ballotpedia’s primary election competitiveness analysis. The remaining 23 incumbents—nine Democrats and 14 Republicans—will face contested primaries on June 8, 2021. When an incumbent faces…
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Federal Register weekly update: Year-to-date total tops 30,000 pages
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s overall regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions. From May 31 through June 4, the Federal Register grew by 958 pages for a…
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Stanfill confirmed as Maine supreme court’s chief justice
The Maine State Senate confirmed Valerie Stanfill as the chief justice of Maine’s highest court on June 3. Gov. Janet Mills (D) appointed Stanfill to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court on May 10 to fill a vacancy created when former Chief Justice Leigh Saufley retired in April 2020. The Maine State Senate was required to…
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Eight Democratic mayoral candidates debate on June 2—three weeks before NYC primary
Eight Democratic candidates for mayor of New York City participated in their first in-person debate on June 2, 2021: Eric Adams, Shaun Donovan, Kathryn Garcia, Ray McGuire, Dianne Morales, Scott Stringer, Maya Wiley, and Andrew Yang. They discussed gun violence, hate crimes, policing, the city budget, public education, and the economy. Heading into the debate, Garcia…
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A look back at government responses to the coronavirus pandemic, June 8-12, 2020
Although the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed on Jan. 21, 2020, it wasn’t until March when the novel coronavirus upended life for most Americans. Throughout the year, states issued stay-at-home orders, closed schools, restricted travel, issued mask mandates, and changed election dates. Many of those policies remain in place today. Here…
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Idaho governor rescinds lieutenant governor’s executive order banning mask mandates
Idaho Governor Brad Little (R) on May 28 rescinded an executive order issued in his absence by Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin (R) that banned mask mandates in the state. Little called McGeachin’s executive order an “irresponsible, self-serving political stunt” that, in his words, “amounts to tyranny—something we all oppose.” McGeachin issued the executive order on May…
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Louisiana legislature refers two amendments to 2022 ballot concerning investing state money in stocks and electronic filing and remittance of sales taxes
The Louisiana Legislature voted to put two amendments on the Nov. 2022 ballot last week. Louisiana Increase Maximum Amount Invested in Equities for Certain State Funds Amendment (2022) This amendment would increase the portion of money in certain state funds that could be invested in equities (stocks) from 35% to 65%. The increase would apply…
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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for May 2021
In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts from May 1 to June 1. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month. HIGHLIGHTS • Vacancies: There have been six new judicial vacancies since the April 2021 report. There are 82 vacancies…