Hot topics in other state legislatures this week

Number of bills filed nationwide so far this year: 113,684

Business
North Dakota: The Senate approved a measure that would make it illegal to operate a tattoo parlor or tanning salon without a state license. The Senate also endorsed a companion bill that would require parental permission for anyone under age 18 seeking to use either establishment. That same body also approved HB 1346, which would allow restaurants to seal and package unfinished bottles of wine for their customers to take home. This is similar to the Georiga bill I discussed a few weeks ago (the "Merlot to Go" legislation);

Florida: Officials in that state approved a plan to allow the state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp. to compete in the open market to sell fire and theft policies in high risk areas;

Oregon: The Senate approved legislation that would allow employers to fire medical marijuana users that fail a drug test. Incidentally, the Los Angeles Times reported this week that the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed a 2005 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that allows federal authorities to prosecute medical marijuana users and suppliers, regardless of whether their state law allows it;

Kentucky: The House approved changes made in the Senate to HB 305, a measure that would raise the minimum wage to $7.25-per-hour by July 2009. Also in the Kentucky House, the chamber unanimously endorsed legislation that will require state inspectors to conduct at least six inspections of coal mines each year, up from three currently;

Crime & Punishment
Texas: The Senate unanimously approved the "stand Your Ground" bill similar to that that Mike Burris filed that would overturn a Lone Star State law that requires residents to first retreat before using deadly force against an attacker. The measure would apply to anyone defending their home, automobile or business, and would exempt the shooter from civil liability;

Florida: Gov. Charlie Crist (R) signed legislation that requires judges to place repeat violent offenders back in jail if they violate their probation. A judge will then determine if the offender should be returned to a penitentiary;

Indiana and Arizona: These states entered into an agreement to send 1,200 Arizona inmates to Indiana in an effort to ease chronic overcrowding. These are medium security male inmates and the agreement is for a minimum of one year;

New Mexico: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) signed legislation that bars cockfighting. Louisiana is now the sole bastion of cockfighting in the United States, and there is (or was the last time I drove through) a cockfighting arena on the Arkansas-Louisiana border on Hwy. 71 (The Ark-La-Tex Game Club);

Education
Oregon: A Senate committee approved legislation that would bar school officials from endorsing or distributing anabolic steroids or other performance-enhancing supplements to students;

New Mexico: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) signed legislation that creates a six-year pilot program that will extend the school year for some kindergarten through third grade students in high-poverty school districts by up to two months;

Oklahoma: The House approved a bill that would require public colleges and universities to offer in-state students a chance to lock in tuition rates for the student’s freshman year and for the next four continuous years.;

Environment
Arizona: A federal appeals court rejected plans by a ski resort to extend its ski season by clearing 100 acres on a peak that Native American tribes consider sacred, and then using treated wastewater to make snow on that peak;

Health & Science
Iowa: The Senate endorsed a proposal to allow local governments to enact anti-smoking laws that are tougher than state statutes;

West Virginia: A House committee rejected a Senate-approved proposal to bar adults from smoking inside a car with anyone under age 14 present.

New Mexico: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) signed legislation that bans smoking in all workplaces, including restaurants and bars. That House in that state approved a proposal that would require sixth grade girls to receive the HPV vaccine before entering school;

Texas: Meanwhile, on that same issue, the Texas House endorsed legislation that says vaccinations against HPV cannot be required as a condition for school entry (this same proposal in Arkansas has stalled). The Texas bill would also grant lawmakers sole authority to require future vaccinations. If eventually passed in both chambers, the measure would overturn Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) recent executive order that all sixth grade girls receive the vaccine;

Washington: As you can see, this is a hot topics nationwide. The Washington House approved legislation that would require all public and private schools to give parents of sixth-graders information on HPV symptoms, causes and places to get vaccinations, but would not require girls to be vaccinated. Also in Washington, Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) signed SB 5093, which extends state-sponsored health care coverage to about 38,000 more children;

Arizona: The House approved HB 2757, which would allow health insurance providers to offer less-inclusive health care policies to individual policyholders who don’t want or cannot afford more extensive plans;

Idaho: The Senate endorsed a measure that would bar smoking in bowling alleys;

Immigration
Nevada: The House (known as the "Assembly" in that state) unanimously approved legislation that criminalizes disbursing a hoax substance that appears to be a weapon of mass destruction, a toxin or a lethal chemical, biological or nuclear agent. AB 137 also increases the penalty for making hoax terrorist threats, raising the maximum penalty from the current six years to 20;

Social Policy
Minnesota: A Senate committee approved SF 960, which would allow local governments to extend health benefits to the same-sex partners of their employees;

New Mexico: Gov. Bill Richardson (D) signed legislation that requires employers to provide nursing mothers with time and a private place in which to use a breast pump.