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  • Blog Post: Pre-election voting restricted in many states

    In most states eligible voters can cast their votes before Election Day, either by going to the polls during designated early voting periods or by voting via absentee ballot. But 30 states have no early voting period, although 13 of those states allow voters to cast absentee ballots in person before...
  • Blog Post: States Still Divesting from Iran

    Twenty-two states and the District of Columbia have laws on the books prohibiting at least some state pension or retirement funds from investing in companies that do a certain amount of business in Iran. Ten of those states also have laws on the books prohibiting at least some government contracts with...
  • Blog Post: Crime & Punishment - April 18 2016

    HB 1947 Approved in PA The PENNSYLVANIA House approves HB 1947 , which would eliminate criminal statutes of limitation on child sex crimes and extend the window for victims of child sexual abuse to take civil actions to age 50. It moves to the Senate (PENNLIVE.COM). SB 367 Signed in KS KANSAS...
  • Blog Post: Most States Allow Transportation Network Companies

    Thirty-seven states have passed laws regulating transportation network companies (TNCs), according to the R Street Institute and LexisNexis State Net’s legislative tracking database. The most recent addition to that group is Delaware, where Gov. Jack Markell (D) signed SB 262 last week. TNC legislation...
  • Blog Post: Over Half of States Seeking to Maintain ‘Net Neutrality’

    At least 29 states have introduced legislation this year aimed at reinstating the requirement that internet service providers treat all content the same in terms of price and accessibility, which was eliminated last year with the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of its so-called “net...
  • Blog Post: Many States Considering Bans on Pharmacy ‘Gag Clauses’

    As of March 22, at least 27 states had introduced bills this year prohibiting pharmaceutical benefit manager (PBM) or health insurer contracts that prevent pharmacists from informing customers about alternatives to medications they’ve been prescribed, including drugs that may be cheaper or more...
  • Blog Post: Some State Progress in Deadly Opioid Crisis

    Thirteen states have made progress in battling the deadly opioid epidemic while eight states have notably failed to deal with the crisis, according to a report issued this month by the National Safety Council (NSC). It comes on the heels of a report earlier this year by the Centers for Disease Control...
  • Blog Post: Half of States Have Considered Internet Privacy Bills in 2017-18

    At least 27 states have considered but only two, Oregon and Virginia, have passed legislation dealing with internet privacy in the current session, according to information compiled from the National Conference of State Legislatures and LexisNexis State Net. Many of the measures were introduced last...
  • Blog Post: States Seek to Maintain Net Neutrality

    At least 32 states have introduced legislation this year that would require internet service providers to uphold net neutrality principles, according to analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures and LexisNexis State Net . Many of those states introduced resolutions expressing opposition...
  • Blog Post: Democrats Seem Poised for State Election Gains

    The pendulum of politics that in many states has swung Republican for the last eight years appears to be heading in a Democratic direction in the Nov. 6 midterm elections. Nonpartisan analysts and pollsters give Democrats a solid chance to win nine to 15 legislative chambers and as many as 11 governorships...
  • Blog Post: Democrats Gain in State Elections

    Buoyed by the votes of suburban women and independents, Democrats gained hard-won ground in the nation’s statehouses in Tuesday’s midterm election. Democrats won seven governorships and six legislative chambers previously held by Republicans. They also took outright control of...
  • Blog Post: Dozen States Adopted ‘California Rule’ on Pensions

    In 1955 the California Supreme Court ruled in Allen v. City of Long Beach (1955) that workers enter a contract with their employers from their first day on the job, and their pension benefits can’t be reduced unless they’re replaced with comparable benefits. The so-called “California...
  • Blog Post: States Taking Action to Ensure Complete 2020 Census Count

    Although the decennial census is a federal responsibility, with states having so much to gain from an accurate tally, 30 have established committees - either through legislation or executive order - to ensure their populations are fully counted, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures...