States begin long climb to recovery
From: feeds.stateline.org
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The overriding theme of the closing 2010 legislative session was the tremendous challenge of balancing the new fiscal year that begins Thursday, as lawmakers struggled to erase more than $100 billion in budget gaps. The way they did it will resonate in states for a long time.
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Are state lands in good hands?
From: feeds.stateline.org
"During the housing boom, some Western states turned state lands into a development bonanza. Now that development pressure has subsided, some think states should reform their land policies before growth comes back.
Part one of a two-part series.
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AK: AK expects pinch after stimulus extension fails
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Alaska may have to come up with another $60 million to cover Medicaid costs after Congress failed to pass a hoped-for extension of benefits.
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AK: Union endorses Walker in GOP gubernatorial primary
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Alaska's largest labor union has endorsed Bill Walker in the Republican primary for governor.
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AR: The math of Lincoln vs. Wall Street
From: feeds.stateline.org
"This is the first of two columns on the fallout of the financial reform bill as it relates to the U.S. Senate race in Arkansas.
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AZ: Arizona sanctions law to go to U.S. Supreme Court
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The U.S. Supreme Court later this year will hear arguments on the constitutionality of Arizona's landmark 2007 law that penalizes employers for hiring illegal immigrants. A decision is expected next year.
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AZ: Appliance rebates not all gone; Fridges, freezers now eligible
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Even though reservations went fast when Arizona offered appliance rebates in April, consumers didn't collect the entire $6.2 million in available federal stimulus funds.
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AZ: Embattled paver wins $45 million in state road work
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Fisher Sand & Gravel, which must dismantle an illegal Phoenix asphalt plant, on Monday secured $45 million worth of state road projects despite objections by Arizona transportation officials.
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AZ: Report touts contribution of Science Foundation
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Science Foundation Arizona has returned more than $3 for every $1 the state has invested in the group's university and non-profit grant programs over the past three years, a new report indicates.
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CA: Catch 22 -- California Lawmakers to head home without budget deal
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With California set to begin a new fiscal year Thursday with no budget, the Legislature had to decide between taking a scheduled recess throughout July or staying in Sacramento and collecting per diem with no deal to vote on.
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CA: Two more California state unions reach tentative deals
From: feeds.stateline.org
"California's labor chain reaction continued Monday with the announcement that two more state employee unions have reached tentative labor agreements with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
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CO: Criminal probe underway at state affordable-housing agency
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Denver District Attorney's office is conducting a criminal investigation into a possible theft of funds at the Colorado Housing Finance Authority.
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CT: House sales up sharply; prices flat
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The first-time home buyer credit continued to drive sales of single-family houses in May, as the total number of sales in Connecticut was up by 39 percent from May, 2009.
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DE: JFC reduces nonprofit grants
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A $35.2 million grant-in-aid bill with a 10 percent across-the-board cut for many nonprofit agencies was hammered out Monday by the Joint Finance Committee. However, fire companies, ambulance services, senior centers and veterans organizations were spared the 10 percent cut.
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DE: In $3.3 billion budget, cuts end up cut out
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state's $3.3 billion budget and $408.9 million bond bill don't contain the obvious pork that drew criticism in the past: golf courses, marinas or french fry machines.
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FL: Group demands special session on drilling, renewable energy
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With a massive oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico fouling Northwest Florida beaches, environmental activists, business leaders and academics convened a Clean Energy Congress at the Capitol on Monday and issued a challenge to Florida lawmakers.
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FL: Experts come up with risky plan to save sea turtle hatchlings from gulf oil spill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"To save a generation of sea turtles from being wiped out by the Deepwater Horizon disaster, state and federal biologists have hatched a daring but risky plan. They plan to excavate the 800 or so nests that the turtles have dug along Florida's Panhandle beaches and the Alabama coast, and carefully move all the eggs about 500 miles to the east — most likely to a climate-controlled warehouse at Kennedy Space Center.
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FL: Whistle-blower case details allegations of massive fraud at WellCare
From: feeds.stateline.org
"For years, WellCare Health Plans Inc. of Tampa seemed to defy gravity as it squeezed ever-growing profits from the business of providing health insurance to the elderly and poor. The company, which saw its earnings triple between 2004 and 2006, credited its success to hard work, customer service and a keen eye on costs. But Sean J. Hellein, a senior financial analyst at WellCare from 2002 to 2007, said the secret behind the company's stellar performance was simpler: It cheated.
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FL: Head shop owners don't like Florida's new 'bong bill'
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A state law that makes it a crime to sell smoking devices such as pipes and bongs at most head shops takes effect Thursday. And that has some of the shop owners fuming.
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FL: AG candidate Dan Gelber quit law firm after it agreed to represent BP
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Democratic attorney general candidate Dan Gelber disclosed late Monday that he quit his law firm after it agreed to represent BP against oil spill disaster claims.
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FL: Program may help some underwater homeowners in South Florida
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Scott Katzer owes about $200,000 more than his Fort Lauderdale home is worth. Unable to sell anytime soon, he wants to reduce his monthly mortgage payment by refinancing to a lower interest rate.
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FL: BP's fix-it man -- Calm in storm
From: feeds.stateline.org
"He has been cast in the role of fixer, sent in to clean up after BP's gaffe-prone chief executive and oversee efforts to contain the Gulf of Mexico oil gusher. But Robert Dudley is really more of a diplomat.
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FL: IRS is probing casino payouts
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The IRS is investigating allegations that the Miccosukee Tribe used armored vehicles to deliver up to $10 million in cash from its gambling operations to hundreds of Indians four times a year -- without anyone reporting the money as taxable income, according to federal court records.
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FL: Tropical Storm Alex will delay plan to capture oil gushing undersea
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Tropical Storm Alex, expected to intensify into a hurricane on Tuesday, may not deliver a direct hit to the fleet of ships, aircraft and workers responding to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but the storm will delay plans to capture more of the crude gushing from the undersea well.
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GA: State could face $375M budget hole
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The defeat in Congress of a sweeping jobs bill could rip a $375 million hole in Georgia's budget.
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GA: Georgia ports continue solid growth
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Peach State's ports posted 25.3 percent growth in May, according to the Georgia Ports Authority.
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GA: Competition is good for everything — except the Georgia ballot
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Competition will solve any problem, according to the wisdom of the rubber-chicken circuit.
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HI: To some, complaint blackout bill unfair; to others it's anti-consumer
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Need a dentist? A Realtor? A contractor? The state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs urges consumers to first check for a license and complaint history.
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IA: Northwest Iowa rains cut soybeans by 10%
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Rainfall of more than 10 inches last weekend in northwest Iowa has taken out at least 10 percent of the soybean crop and left farmers wondering how much of their nitrogen fertilizer is still left in the soil.
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ID: Idaho jobless to exhaust benefits by end of August
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state expects thousands of jobless workers to exhaust their unemployment benefits through the end of August after an extension was defeated in Congress.
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IL: Quinn to make budget cuts Wednesday
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Pat Quinn said Monday he will make "serious cuts" in state spending Wednesday, although he declined to give any specifics.
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IL: It makes sense to borrow billions
From: feeds.stateline.org
"It sounds outrageous, I know: Illinois' budget deficit is hovering around $13 billion, yet the Democrats in Springfield want to borrow about $4 billion to pay pension-fund obligations as well as additional funds to pay outstanding bills.
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IL: State fair horse racing more likely
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Illinois State Fair and Du Quoin fair is more likely to have horse racing this year, a Department of Agriculture spokesman said Monday.
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IL: Employment program cuts off new applicants as demand outstrips supply
From: feeds.stateline.org
"CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Illinois has stopped taking new applicants for the "Put Illinois to Work" program because the number of people seeking work has outstripped jobs available for them.
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IL: Quinn -- Budget details coming Wednesday
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A month after lawmakers approved a state budget proposal that forces Gov. Pat Quinn to make the toughest cutting choices, Quinn says he plans to announce those decisions Wednesday.
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IL: Quinn returns to law firm well for interim McPier board choice
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Pat Quinn went back to a familiar law firm as he chose his three appointees to the new interim board that will oversee the restructuring of McCormick Place operations and its transition to private management.
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IL: Quinn makes his 3 picks for McPier board
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Pat Quinn on Monday named two attorneys and an organized labor representative to the interim board of the agency that operates McCormick Place and Navy Pier.
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KY: Biden defends stimulus spending at Appliance Park
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Vice President Joe Biden took off his suit coat and rolled up his sleeves at Louisville's GE Appliance Park Monday as he vehemently defended federal spending to boost energy efficient industries and reboot American manufacturing, including $25 million awarded to GE.
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LA: Moratorium claims to be considered with others from Gulf of Mexico oil spill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Kenneth Feinberg, administrator of the claims fund for victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, said Monday that the White House and BP have agreed to give him jurisdiction over claims from individuals and businesses harmed by the Obama administration's six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling.
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LA: Jindal trims state's budget
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Bobby Jindal used his line-item veto power to slice just more than $1.8 million from a budget bill containing pork projects for state lawmakers, including nearly $700,000 slated for local causes in the district of House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Algiers.
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LA: Kennedy raps veto of $25 million in oil aid
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State Treasurer John Kennedy on Monday criticized Gov. Bobby Jindal's veto of $24.9 million the Legislature set aside to help coastal parishes and towns hit hard by the BP oil disaster.
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LA: Red tape keeps prized oil-fighting skimmers from Gulf, coastline
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Just weeks after the oil spill crisis began to unfold in the Gulf of Mexico, the French foreign minister volunteered a fleet of oil skimming boats from a French company, Ecoceane. A month later, in early June, Ecoceane Chief Executive Eric Vial met with BP and Coast Guard officials to present the idea. But after that meeting, weeks went by with little contact as oil continued gushing into the Gulf.
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MA: Audubon Society supports Nantucket Sound wind farm
From: feeds.stateline.org
"On the same day the federal government was sued for its opinion that the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm will not hurt endangered species, New England's largest conservation organization released its most emphatic statement to date backing the project.
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MA: Senators block bids to vote on casino bill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Disagreements over smoking and drinking have prevented state senators from finishing what they really came to debate: gambling.
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MA: No say? You bet
From: feeds.stateline.org
"You've got to hand it to the people on Beacon Hill who are hellbent on bringing casinos to Massachusetts: They're managed to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of people, and hardly anybody seems all that upset.
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MD: Maryland's College Savings Plan Reduces Fees
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The College Savings Plans of Maryland announced this morning that fees in the plan are being cut by 20 percent starting in July.
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MD: Feds kill plan for diplomatic training center in QA
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Federal officials say they are abandoning an effort to build a State Department training facility in Queen Anne's County. General Services Administrator Martha Johnson announced the decision Monday afternoon, noting community and environmentalist objections to the $100 million anti-terrorism training center planned for 2,000 acres of private land near Ruthsburg.
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ME: Mainers full of gusto for wind power, survey finds
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Maine residents overwhelmingly support wind power development, chiefly because it cuts dependence on fossil fuels and creates jobs, according to the first survey released by the industry.
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ME: PUC wants fewer PSAPs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State legislators have directed the commission to consolidate the number of communications centers that directly handle 911 calls.
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MI: Michigan taxpayers getting caught for double-dipping
From: feeds.stateline.org
"More than 33,000 homeowners across Michigan have been caught in the last three years wrongly claiming a large tax break on homes -- including rental properties and vacation properties -- that don't qualify.
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MI: Board clears way for Greektown Casino to have new owners
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Michigan Gaming Control Board unanimously approved Monday the transfer of interest in Greektown Casino to a group of investors, including several hedge funds.
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MN: Minneapolis bridge victims seek punitive damages
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Victims of the deadly 2007 Minneapolis bridge collapse took legal steps Monday to seek punitive damages against an engineering firm that evaluated the bridge's structural integrity before it fell.
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MN: Newly revealed documents suggest the consultants the state hired to make sure the I-35W bridge was safe actually feared it would collapse nearly a year before the disaster.
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Engineers working on the Interstate 35W bridge were concerned about a potential disaster 11 months before it collapsed into the Mississippi River but didn't alert Minnesota transportation officials, according to court documents filed Monday.
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MN: Editorial -- Awash in red ink, cities seek advice
From: feeds.stateline.org
"If a new Humphrey Institute analysis is correct, Minnesota's next governor won't be able to justify cuts in aid to cities by pointing at positive city fund balances, as the last two governors have done. In cities large and small throughout the state, those balances are on the verge of depletion.
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MN: Loan delays put tax credits at risk
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Christian and Samantha Bang were newlyweds who thought homeownership would be out of reach while they saved money and paid off debt. All that changed in February when they qualified for an $8,000 home buyer's tax credit from the federal government that they planned to use toward a house in Bloomington. Five months later, on the eve of Wednesday's closing deadline to get the credit, their loan still hasn't closed.
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MN: Talks between Minn. hospitals, nurses to resume
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Negotiators for 14 Twin Cities hospitals and 12,000 nurses are due to return to the bargaining table Tuesday one week ahead of a scheduled strike.
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MN: State searches second Minnesota farm in raw milk probe
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WORTHINGTON, Minn. — State investigators searched a second Minnesota farm that may have illegally sold raw milk as health officials investigate an E. coli outbreak that sickened several people, officials confirmed today.
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MO: Missouri Legislature tries to expand session
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A plan to offer tax incentives in Missouri for automakers picked up a hitchhiker Monday as a House panel added new enticements for computerized data centers.
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MO: Lawmaker says he was bumped from incentive panel
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A Missouri legislator says he was removed from a House committee considering incentives for Ford Motor Co. because he refused to pledge to vote for the bill.
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MS: Swedish firms coming to Miss. to offer help with oil spill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A delegation representing technology companies in Sweden is visiting Mississippi and Louisiana this week offering possible solutions to the ongoing oil spill crisis.
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MT: State finalizes settlement with Goldman Sachs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Goldman Sachs has agreed to buy back over $25.65 million in auction-rate securities sold to Montana investors, as part of a national settlement regarding the company's sales of the investments.
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MT: Tourism ads gain added attention
From: feeds.stateline.org
"There are signs of illness surrounding some of the state's tourism marketing efforts this summer — and the director of Travel Montana is delighted.
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NH: In N.H., it's live free or die but don't tax me
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Ken Trask figures it takes him about an hour to drive from his home in Peabody, Mass., to the Rockingham Mall in Salem, N.H., but it's a trip he and his wife make regularly. It's not that he can't find malls closer to home. But by driving over the state line, he avoids paying Massachusetts' sales tax.
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NH: Company seeks heat under Bow
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Bow officials have agreed to open the town's land to energy exploration after a Massachusetts scientist said geological maps show there's enough stored energy underground to indefinitely produce more power than the Seabrook Station nuclear power plant.
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NH: Lottery -- Launch of online game is delayed
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state Lottery Commission has pulled back its planned July 1 launch of new games that add an Internet element to scratch ticket gambling.
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NH: New women's prison requested
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Corrections Commissioner William Wrenn asked the state for $37 million yesterday to build a new women's prison and halfway house that advocates say is long overdue.
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NH: Residents air wind farm concerns
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Weighing concerns about noise and aesthetics against the altruistic benefits of clean energy, about 100 residents crowded into a Plymouth State University auditorium last night for a public hearing before the state panel that is reviewing a proposal to build 24 wind turbines in Groton.
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NJ: N.J. Assembly passes Christie's $29.4B budget; plan awaits governor's signature
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state Assembly debated into the early morning before passing Gov. Chris Christie's $29.4 million budget, dissecting it along party lines.
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NJ: N.J. Gov. Christie vows to veto bill easing fees on developers if separated from housing reform
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Commercial developers will once again have to pay a 2.5 percent fee to the state beginning Thursday because the Assembly and the Christie adminsitration are at an impasse over a measure to revamp the state's affordable-housing policies.
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NJ: N.J. Gov. Chris Christie's budget follows five administrations of increased spending
From: feeds.stateline.org
"N.J. Gov. Chris Christie's first budget is full of cuts — school aid and property tax rebates among many other difficult items — but they only partially offset the sizable, and almost regular, increases in state spending.
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NJ: Last minute N.J. budget change scraps filing fee increase for businesses
From: feeds.stateline.org
"On the day the Legislature is scheduled to vote on a $29.4 billion budget, last-minute changes are still being made to sew up all necessary votes – including killing a bill that would raise filing fees on businesses, Republican lawmakers said.
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NJ: N.J. Assembly Democrats to analyze Gov. Chris Christie's 2.5 percent tax cap, 33-bill 'toolkit'
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Assembly Democrats this summer will study Gov. Chris Christie's proposals to cap property tax growth at 2.5 percent cap and his 33-bill "toolkit" to help towns meet it.
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NJ: N.J. Democrats call on Gov. Chris Christie to support 'working poor' insurance plan for parents
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Democratic lawmakers and anti-poverty advocates called on Gov. Chris Christie and Republican lawmakers to set aside their "short-sighted, wrong-headed" agenda and support a bill today that would allow 39,000 uninsured parents to enroll in FamilyCare, the free and low-cost managed care plan for working poor people.
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NJ: N.J. GOP Assemblyman remains undecided about Gov. Chris Christie's proposed budget
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A Republican Assemblyman who previously announced his opposition to Gov. Chris Christie"s proposed budget now says he's undecided.
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NJ: N.J. Senate approves $100M tax credit for off-shore wind power projects
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state would be able to provide $100 million in tax credits for companies to develop off-shore wind power under a bill that passed the Senate this afternoon.
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NJ: N.J. Assembly Republicans say they will approve Gov. Christie's budget
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Assembly Republicans say the drama is over: each and every member will cast a yes vote for the budget and all of its ancillary bills.
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NJ: N.J. Assembly approves $175K salary cap for local officials
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Leaders of independent state and local authorities would not be able to make more than the governor's $175,000 salary if a bill that passed the state Assembly today becomes law.
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NJ: N.J. Senate considers allowing motorcycles to be sold on Sundays
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Dealers will be able to sell motorcycles on Sunday if a bill the state Senate passed today becomes law.
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NJ: N.J. Senate approves 2.9 percent property tax cap bill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state Senate today approved a bill limiting annual property tax increases to 2.9 percent, setting up a showdown with Gov. Chris Christie.
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NJ: Christie vows to veto developers fee moratorium bill after affordable housing impasse
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Commercial developers will once again have to pay a 2.5 percent fee to the state beginning Thursday because the Assembly and the Christie administration are at an impasse over a measure to revamp the state's affordable housing policies.
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NJ: N.J. groups protest 'outrageous' budget cuts $260M for elderly, poor, disabled
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State lawmakers are set to approve "an outrageous budget" tonight that eliminates more than $260 million in spending that would have protected senior citizens, people with disabilities and working poor families, according to a group of religious, labor, consumer and environmental groups.
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NJ: N.J. Senate restores $7.5M in budget for family planning clinics serving uninsured women
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Democrats who run the Legislature conceded Gov. Chris Christie got just about everything he asked for in his $29.4 billion budget, but today they drew the line at two programs that affect thousands of uninsured people.
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NJ: N.J. Senate passes $29.4B budget
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state Senate has passed Gov. Chris Christie's $29.4 billion budget, following some 90 minutes of debate.
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NM: No appetite for guns in some restaurants
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The new state "guns in restaurants" law goes into effect this week, but some owners of Santa Fe eateries want no part of it.
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NV: Shortfall headache looming
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Gibbons administration will leave it up to the 2011 Legislature to decide how to cover a $130 million shortfall caused by a recent U.S. Senate decision that means Nevada's Medicaid funding will not be increased.
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NV: State unemployment tax rate could rise to pay loans
From: feeds.stateline.org
"If you have a business, you probably spend a lot of time thinking about how to make it through the year. The worst recession since the Great Depression has taken a huge toll on Nevada, with bankruptcies, home foreclosures and business closures at record levels. Well, wait until next year. It is expected to get worse.
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NV: Rise in state taxable sales is first in two years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A key revenue source for Nevada posted its first upturn in two years in April, as consumers lifted spending on discretionary purchases.
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NY: Paterson -- State can't afford 'pork'
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. David Paterson is telling the Legislature that a balanced budget is more important than election-year pork.
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NY: Veto spells delay for budget
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Minutes after lawmakers were patting themselves on the back Monday for what they thought was a successful end-run around Gov. David Paterson's more modest budget proposal, they received a sign that the political battle may be far from over.
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NY: Wine sales bill rejected by Legislature
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Liquor store owners and small business advocates appear to have won the battle over wine in grocery stores by quashing a proposal by Gov. David Paterson that would have allowed such sales.
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NY: Tribes expect hit from ban on mailing smokes
From: feeds.stateline.org
"SALAMANCA, N.Y. -- A new federal law going into effect today puts an end to using the U.S. Postal Service to mail cigarettes, and nowhere will it be felt more than Indian country in New York's Southern Tier.
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OH: Ohio tax credit supports DimcoGray expansion in Centerville
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state has approved a 45 percent, six-year job creation tax credit for DimcoGray Corp. to support an expansion project that is expected to create 33 jobs and retain 50 positions, Ohio officials said Monday, June 28.
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OH: Report -- Ohio's kids suffering
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The deep effect of the recession on the lives of Ohio children shows itself in the 2009 Ohio Kids Count Data Book.
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OH: Republicans suggest shift for veterans' program
From: feeds.stateline.org
"House Republicans want to move the Ohio Disabled Veterans Outreach Program to a new overseer in the wake of reports that Ohio lost $525,000 in federal funds this year intended to help disabled veterans re-enter the work force.
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OH: Lawmakers urged to get back to work
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Aside from the guy dancing in the frog outfit and a video featuring a chorus of bad singing, Statehouse advocates gathered yesterday for a serious message to state lawmakers: Come back to work.
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OH: Racetrack slots now closer to a 'go'
From: feeds.stateline.org
"After spending more than $1.5 million to give Ohioans the right to vote on electronic slot machines at racetracks, three conservative activists abandoned their campaign today -- which appears to give Gov. Ted Strickland the go-ahead to proceed with his plans for 17,500 slot machines.
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OR: Ban begins this week on sale of phosphate-laden dishwasher soap in Oregon, Washington
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Oregon and Washington are banning the sale of phosphate-laden dishwasher detergent starting Thursday.
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OR: European financial crisis hits home for Oregon companies
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Spanish, Portuguese and Italians relish Oregon albacore for its oil content -- the world's highest. Germans prize Oregon hazelnuts for their size and taste.
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PA: PA budget framework deal reached
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Rendell and legislative leaders reached agreement on a $28 billion state spending plan early this morning after hours of intense negotiations.
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PA: State Senate panel says it can save $457M over three years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A state Senate panel that recommended $457 million in cuts and government savings on Monday offered a proposal to expand the state bureaucracy.
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PA: Pennsylvania budget edges toward finish
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With memories of last year's 101-day budget impasse, Democratic and Republican lawmakers Monday raced to approve a $28 billion state budget before the midweek deadline.
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PA: Pennsylvania Senate GOP leader plans to pass budget - with or without Rendell's support
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Republicans who control the Pennsylvania Senate will pass a budget by Wednesday night's deadline, their leader says. It just may not be the one the Rendell administration wants.
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PA: Pennsylvania budget deal depends on the governor, Senate Republican says
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A senior Senate Republican says getting a budget deal done before Pennsylvania's new fiscal year starts on Thursday depends on Gov. Ed Rendell's approach to the talks. Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi told a Pennsylvania Press Club audience Monday that making the deadline "depends solely upon the reasonableness of the governor."
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PA: Negotiators are working late, but there's no state budget deal yet
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State budget negotiators are working late Monday night trying to close on a roughly $28 billion budget proposal that would require no new taxes, but a deal has yet to emerge.
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RI: R.I. jobless assistance agency slashes wait time for benefits processing
From: feeds.stateline.org
"CRANSTON, R.I. — Not long ago, the state Department of Labor and Training took weeks to process a claim for unemployment benefits.
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SC: Greenville News editorial -- Jobs bill will help but tax reform still is needed
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A huge economic development bill signed last week by Gov. Mark Sanford takes some positive steps that will encourage industrial job growth in South Carolina.
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SD: South Dakota farmers finish up planting
From: feeds.stateline.org
"SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- South Dakota farmers are switching focus from planting to spraying, and waiting for better weather to aid the development of crops.
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US: State workers, long resistant, accept cuts in pension benefits
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Some public-sector unions, trying to avoid furloughs and layoffs, are accepting less-generous pension benefits for current workers and retirees, often for the first time in years.
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UT: New state registry to check legal status of workers goes online
From: feeds.stateline.org
"No employers had registered by early Monday afternoon, but a new state registry for checking the working status of new employees for businesses with 15 or more workers is officially online.
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VA: Big Tobacco won't have to pay $280 billion
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday put an end to Washington's bid to fine Big Tobacco more than a quarter of a trillion dollars for violating federal racketeering law.
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VA: Movies -- Sophie's Choice
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Would Gov. Bob McDonnell give a tax credit to Andr Serrano's controversial "Piss Christ"? Or to Chris Ofili's dung-spattered "Madonna"?
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VA: Utility seeks permission to raise electricity rate
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Dominion Virginia Power has asked state regulators to approve another rate increase next year to cover construction costs for two power plants.
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VT: Vermont health reform panel recommends analyst
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Health Care Reform Commission recommended Monday that the Legislature hire the Harvard economist who helped Taiwan revamp its health-care system for a six-month, $300,000 health research project for Vermont.
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WA: FDIC -- Shoreline Bank 'significantly undercapitalized'
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Shoreline Bank is considered "significantly undercapitalized" by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and needs to immediately sell shares of stock or sell itself to another bank.
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WA: Fireworks stands legally open in Washington state
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Retail fireworks stands legally opened across Washington state on Monday as state and federal fire officials ramped up surveillance and prevention efforts in anticipation of Fourth of July celebrations.
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WI: As smoking ban nears, bars hold their breath for outcome
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Bar and grill owner Robin Willms has talked to her customers, done her homework and spent $40,000 on an outdoor patio.
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WI: Part-time board work yielding big-time pay
From: feeds.stateline.org
"An accountant, a lawyer and two retired executives each collected more than $475,000 last year -- and one topped $600,000 -- doing part-time work for multiple Wisconsin companies.
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WV: Workers' compensation is no longer subsidized
From: feeds.stateline.org
"It turns out that BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co., the company established upon closure of the state's famously mismanaged Workers Compensation Commission, has been taking a bath on government accounts.
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Visit the Stateline.org Economy & Business Page
From: feeds.stateline.org
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Proactive tax planning to take advantage of timely tax saving opportunities.
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