(The Center Square) – The Seattle City Council has begun discussions on a proposed bill that would amend the city’s App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinance. The bill, sponsored by Seattle City Councilmember Sara Nelson, attempts to reduce labor costs for network companies, while still guaranteeing a minimum earnings standard for app-based workers. Council Bill 120775 would remove minimum wage adjustments, reduce the per-mile rate, and remove the mileage factor from...

(The Center Square) – Washington State University announced that T. Chris Riley-Tillman has been selected as the institution of higher learning's new provost. He will succeed Elizabeth Chilton, provost and executive vice president, starting July 1. The hunt for a replacement ended Thursday on a search began in January after WSU President Kirk Schulz acknowledged the need to separate the chancellor and provost positions. Chilton became provost and executive vice...

(The Center Square) – A pro-Palestine protest led to arrests at the Tempe campus of Arizona State University on Friday. Protesters who set up an encampment were taken into custody by police. There were some pro-Israel counter-protesters as well. “Israel is a terrorist state,” protesters were shouting at one point, according to a video from ABC15. ...

(The Center Square) – Pro-Hamas demonstrations on college campuses have become increasingly intense, and even violent in recent days, pushing lawmakers to call for a change. U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., sent a letter this week to the Columbia University Board of Trustees with an ultimatum: “take action against antisemitism or lose federal funding.” “The anti-Israel mobs that have taken over Columbia University in New York City are as disturbing...

(The Center Square) – A former state lawmaker found guilty of one charge of sexual conduct with a minor was sentenced to one year in prison on Friday, a far cry from the 49 years he initially faced. With good behavior, former Arizona Sen. Otoniel “Tony” Navarrete could be released earlier. A jury in February found Navarrete guilty of sexual conduct with a minor aged 15 or older, a Class...

(The Center Square) – The Washington state primary is still more than three months away, but Democrats are making clear which of their candidates running for governor they will support. There’s no official endorsement at this point, but an organizing effort called the “Coordinated Campaign” has decided to put its eggs in the basket of outgoing Attorney General Bob Ferguson. State Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah, says he was told about...

(The Center Square) – Washington state's preemption doctrine limits local governments' ability to enact policies regarding controlled substances, but Spokane Valley is looking for a way around that. The state's "Blake fix" drug possession law that went into effect on July 1, 2023, makes illegal drug possession and public drug use gross misdemeanors, with the maximum jail time for the first and second offense up to 180 days per offense. A third arrest could mean up to 364 days in jail. The law limits any...

(The Center Square) - California legislators nearly unanimously voted to limit “influential” anonymous online free speech by requiring social media companies to “seek to verify” personal information — including government-issued identification — for “influential” accounts. While supporters say users need help distinguishing between good and bad information, opposition warned the bill, without defining “seek to verify,” threatens anonymous online speech. With the bill applying to companies with at least one...

(The Center Square) — Georgia officials are paying more than $400,000 to remove 167 variable speed limit signs in metro Atlanta. Georgia transportation officials approved the plan for the signs on Interstate 285 in 2012 and subsequently started introducing them along the interstate's northern portion, according to various media reports from the time. However, reports suggest that the system wasn't activated until about October 2014. At the time, GDOT said...

(The Center Square) – Beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, every public high school shall require a unit of instruction addressing climate change in either a required science class or a required social studies class. House Bill 4895 gives the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) the directive to create professional development resources for educators to best teach climate change coursework. State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr, D-Naperville, said she is...

(The Center Square) – Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen is holding off on disciplinary action against Sens. Jake Hoffman and Anthony Kern following their indictments in the 2020 elector case. Petersen said that due process will need to play out before he would take action, like removing the members from committee assignments. "The Senator and his colleagues in the Democrat party seem to have forgotten our citizens are presumed innocent...

(The Center Square) – It’s been more than 15 years since Kentucky executed an inmate, but that may change as the state’s top law enforcement official is seeking to overturn a court injunction that dates back to 2010. A hearing took place in Frankfort with Attorney General Russell Coleman’s office, arguing the order Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd issued in September 2010 should be lifted as state officials have proposed new rules regarding how capital punishment would be administered. ...

(The Center Square) — While Georgia Democrats continue to call for a Medicaid expansion, saying it could help address the state's high maternal mortality rate, a bill the state's Republican governor signed will create a commission to study maternal and infant health. House Bill 1046, which Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed earlier this week, created the Georgia Commission on Maternal and Infant Health, tasked with making policy recommendations on perinatal care. It also authorizes advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants to complete and sign...

(The Center Square) – Illinois lawmakers return to Springfield this week to resume the spring session, and the Chicago Bears could be on the agenda. The Bears unveiled a nearly $5 billion proposal for an enclosed stadium and the NFL team is asking for public funding to help make it happen. The plan calls for $3.2 billion for a new stadium plus an additional $1.5 in infrastructure. “We have the...

(The Center Square) – One strategy for state officials looking to transition Washington’s transportation sector to electric vehicles is by subsidizing them with taxpayer dollars. This week, Gov. Jay Inslee announced $45 million in subsidies through a Department of Commerce grant program for families deemed “low-income” to purchase an EV. “Washingtonians really get it when it comes to electric vehicles,” Inslee said at a Wednesday news conference in Tukwila. ...

(The Center Square) – Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson extended an executive order through Sept. 1 to provide government resources and coordination in response to ongoing drought conditions throughout the state. The drought alert began in late May last year and was scheduled to expire in November. However, it was extended until May of this year. A previous drought alert lasted from July 2022 until March 2023. Eleven of Missouri’s...

(The Center Square) – The city of Denver will review a $22.8 million plan to help 940 households deal with the costs of housing as part of the city’s effort in 2024 to wipe out homelessness. The two motions are before the city’s Safety, Housing, Education & Homelessness Committee’s May 1 meeting. According to the U.S. Census, Denver’s median rent averaged $1,665 a month from 2018 through 2022. Apartments.com listed...

(The Center Square) – A number of downtown Seattle property owners owe the city a collective $16 million in taxes after a Washington Court of Appeals ruling. Downtown property owners are subject to a local improvement district tax that go toward improvement projects near the Seattle waterfront. Property owners within the Seattle Waterfront district area contribute to a portion of the area’s improvement costs. They pay an annual assessment payment...

(The Center Square) - Iowa's three public universities are restructuring their diversity, equity and inclusion policies, in some cases shuttering offices and eliminating positions. The University of Iowa will not fill five vacant positions as it realigns to focusing on two objectives, state and federal compliance requirements and accreditation requirements, President Barbara Wilson told the Board of Regents. A 20-member task force worked on the recommendations. "We took a really...

(The Center Square) – “Remarkable and historic” or a “chaotic clown show"? There were dramatically different takes from the two Republican candidates for governor on how last weekend’s state party convention in Spokane went down. Ultimately, Semi Bird received the endorsement of the Washington State Republican Party, but not before a series of raucous events and shout-downs from delegates. ...