bills

FILE - In this Jan. 9, 2017 file photo, Sen. Maureen Walsh, R-Walla Walla, right, takes the oath of office on the opening day of the 2017 legislative session at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Sen. Walsh has angered nurses by commenting in a speech that some nurses may spend a lot of time playing cards in rural hospitals. The Olympian reports that state Sen. Maureen Walsh, a Republican, made the comments this week while debating a Senate bill that would require uninterrupted meal and rest breaks for nurses. Walsh wants an amendment that would exclude hospitals with fewer than 25 beds. A Washington State Nurses Association blog about the comments drew so many readers Friday, April 19, 2019, that the site crashed. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
April 20, 2019 - 7:32 pm

Washington state lawmaker's comments raise ire of nurses

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — A Washington state lawmaker has angered nurses and spawned a flurry of viral hashtags and memes on social media by saying that some nurses may spend a lot of time playing cards in small, rural hospitals. State Sen. Maureen Walsh, a Republican representing College Place,...
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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, April 9, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
April 18, 2019 - 12:03 pm

McConnell proposes national minimum age of 21 for tobacco

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he plans to introduce legislation to raise the minimum age to buy tobacco products from 18 to 21 nationally. The Senate leader said Thursday his bill will cover all tobacco products, including vaping devices. The Kentucky Republican...
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FILE - In this Jan. 3, 2019 photo, Idaho Gov.-elect Brad Little answers a reporter's question at the State Capitol building in Boise, Idaho. Republican Gov. Brad Little says Idahoans can trust him to do the right thing after the Legislature handed him sweeping authority to eliminate thousands of state-approved rules going back decades that touch on just about every aspect of daily life. Little on Tuesday, April 16, said he doesn't view the unusual power handed the executive branch this year as an opportunity to do mischief. (AP Photo/Otto Kitsinger, File)
April 17, 2019 - 6:55 pm

Idaho governor has unfettered chance to cut state rules

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho's governor now has sweeping authority to eliminate thousands of state-approved rules without public participation or lawmaker oversight. That's because the state Legislature, which is controlled by Gov. Brad Little's fellow Republicans, failed to pass a bill approving 8,...
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April 16, 2019 - 6:37 pm

North Carolina 'born-alive' abortion bill wins final passage

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina lawmakers have given final passage to a bill to require doctors and nurses to care for babies born alive during a failed late-term abortion, a measure critics say is really intended to intimidate abortion providers. The state House passed the bill Tuesday, a day...
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2020 Democratic presidential candidate Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, left, walks with climate analyst John Davis, of Hamburg, Iowa, while touring flood damage, Friday, April 12, 2019, in Hamburg, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
April 16, 2019 - 2:21 pm

Iowa flooding presents campaign challenge for some 2020 Dems

HAMBURG, Iowa (AP) — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee recently toured this waterlogged town near the Missouri River, blasting President Donald Trump as complicit in the flooding that has plagued large swaths of western Iowa in recent weeks. "We have a president who says that climate change is a hoax,"...
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April 15, 2019 - 7:31 pm

Bill to outlaw most abortions in Alabama to get hearing

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers are set to hold a public hearing Wednesday on legislation before a House committee that seeks to outlaw almost all abortions in the state, what critics call one of the most extremely anti-abortion proposals in the country. The bill would make performing an...
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People are silhouetted as they walk along an avenue past an old Orthodox church in the background in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, April 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
April 11, 2019 - 5:17 am

Russia moves to expand government control of internet

MOSCOW (AP) — The lower house of the Russian parliament has passed a second reading of a bill that would expand government authority over the internet but whose opponents fear heralds widespread censorship. The bill, which passed 322-15, would install equipment to route Russian internet traffic...
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Ohio Representative Michele Lepore-Hagan wipes tears from her face during a hearing to propose amendments to the "Heartbeat Bill" which was later voted to pass through the committee and to the House floor at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio on Tuesday, April 9, 2019. (Brooke LaValley/Columbus Dispatch via AP)
April 10, 2019 - 9:19 pm

Heartbeat Abortion Ban Bill Nears Final OK In Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — No topic seemed off limits, including tales of back alleys and coat hangers, as abortion-rights supporters in Ohio fought perhaps the last battle over a twice-vetoed heartbeat abortion ban, which Gov. Mike DeWine has said he will sign. After nearly 10 years of fighting,...
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Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, left, signs into law HB 2569 making Arizona the first state in the nation to provide universal recognition for occupational licenses as he is joined by the bill sponsor state Rep. Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, at the Arizona Capitol, Wednesday, April 10, 2019, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
April 10, 2019 - 4:28 pm

Arizona becomes 1st to match out-of-state work licenses

PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed legislation Wednesday making the state the first in the nation to automatically grant occupational licenses to anyone who moves there with an unblemished credential from another state. The action removes a barrier for doctors, manicurists, home...
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In this March 19, 2019, photo Zack Shelton, of Swish Analytics, left, explains how to place a bet at the Skyloft Predictive Gaming Lounge inside the Golden 1 Center, home of the NBA's Sacramento Kings, in Sacramento, Calif. Although sports betting is not legal in California, the SkyLoft Lounge is being used for contests that don't involve gambling. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
April 08, 2019 - 6:28 pm

Casino-operating tribes influence sports betting debate

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Native American tribes have emerged as key players in the legislative debates over whether states should legalize sports betting, with some opposing the idea because it could threaten their casinos and others supporting legalization but only if they retain a monopoly. In many...
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