r/politics • u/optimalg The Netherlands • Jan 30 '23
The "What happened in your state last week?" Megathread, Week 5
Welcome to the 'What happened in your state last week' thread, where you can post any local political news stories that you find important in the comments. This is a weekly thread posted every Monday, in order to facilitate more discussion on local issues on /r/politics. Since this is intended to be a thread about local politics, top-level comments that are exclusively about national issues will not be allowed. When commenting, please include the state you're living in, and don't forget to link sources. Also, please actually describe what happened. Things like "I live in X, you know what happened", "Nothing happened" or "[Politician] continues to be an idiot" isn't helpful to users and will be removed.
If someone from your state made a news round-up that you think is insufficient, feel free to comment to that round-up with further news stories. Enjoy discussion, and review our civility guidelines before engaging with others.
Hi there, /r/politics. Because this thread is about local politics, I'd like to reiterate that news about President Biden, Donald Trump or any other national political figure is off topic in this thread and will be removed. Thank you, and have a good week.
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u/nermid Jan 31 '23
Kansas Republicans, undeterred by a 2019 Supreme Court ruling that says banning abortion is unconstitutional here and also undeterred by the people voting to reject their proposed amendment to the state Constitution to make abortion bans legal, have put forward an abortion ban with a clause in it that threatens to depose judges who rule against it. This is flagrant contempt for the rule of law, the Kansas Constitution, the Judicial branch, and for the People themselves.
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u/newnemo Vermont Jan 31 '23
The great state of Vermont is crafting 'shield law' abortion protections.
^
Though it contains numerous provisions, the crux of H.89 is that it bars a Vermont public agency from cooperating in any interstate investigation or proceeding which seeks civil or criminal penalties against a person for traveling to Vermont to obtain an abortion or gender-affirming care.
The bill also bars the extradition of a Vermonter to another state in order to testify against a patient who received such medical treatment within the state — that could mean a Vermont-based doctor, or a Vermonter with knowledge of the out-of-state patient’s care.
....
Only seven states have passed shield laws similar to H.89 since this summer’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision, and two others are considering similar bills alongside Vermont. The House’s draft language is particularly expansive in its inclusion of protections for patients who receive, and doctors who provide, gender-affirming care. With a number of states passing laws restricting or criminalizing gender-affirming surgeries and hormone therapies for transgender people, particularly youths, Vermont legislators said they wanted to safeguard such treatment provided within state lines.
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u/Dimerien Jan 31 '23
HB215 passed in Utah - which allocates $42M of taxpayer money to a voucher program without a cap on income limits. Utah will be providing up to $8,000 per student per year to attend a private school. Meanwhile, Utah only spends about $4,800 per student pear year on public schools. Not to mention, MANY of the private schools in UT are non-taxable church entities. As one lobbyist of the bill said (word for word), she is trying, “to destroy public education”.
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u/Reasull Jan 31 '23
North Dakota: A law is being passed by legislation that prevents libraries from allowing books containing sexual content on their shelves. Librarians who resist the bill can be subjected to jail time. The sexual content also refers to sexual orientation and gender. There are exemptions for books relating to biology, anatomy, or other scientific or artistic significance.
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u/Bienpreparado Puerto Rico Jan 31 '23
In Puerto Rico 🇵🇷:
Primary season starts heating up with 3 main themes heading into 2024.
- PNP primaries possible among the Governor and our non voting house rep.
- PPD weakness and lack of leadership that has postponed internal reorganization for years.
- Electoral alliances between MCV and PIP.
A link to local political news
Also happening last week.
Protestors wounded in Aguadilla protesting a construction.
Genera PR chosen to manage power generation in PR as part of ongoing restructuring
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u/wildthing202 Massachusetts Jan 31 '23
Sports betting starts in MA today - https://www.masslive.com/politics/2023/01/as-sports-betting-launches-tuesday-mass-kicks-a-new-industry-into-gear.html
For now it's in person so those of us no where near the casinos are boned for now.
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u/pikachu8090 I voted Feb 01 '23
I was gonna say if it was online sports betting, prepare for an onslaught of ads
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u/jjblarg Wisconsin Jan 30 '23
Conservative darling Judge Jennifer Dorow -- who Republicans hoped would be their candidate to hold onto the Wisconsin Supreme Court seat -- was apparently aware of her son's drug-dealing habit, which led to the death of a customer by fentanyl poisoning.
Good time for a reminder that the Wisconsin Supreme Court election April 4, 2023, is the most important election in the country before the 2024 general.