State Lawmakers Push Anti-Protesting Bills; Calif. Gov. Urges Renewal of Cap-and-Trade Program
A crowd listens as Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett speaks during an inclusion rally on Inauguration Day. Darron Cummings / AP Photo
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Also in our State and Local Daily Digest; Mo. and Va. broadband legislation; Philly mayor OKs pay-equity legislation; and Charlotte stadium plan ‘doesn’t smell right.’
STATE LEGISLATURES | Lawmakers in an handful of states have proposed anti-protesting legislation that would crack down on protests and demonstrations, particularly those disruptive to traffic or industry. The states include Minnesota, Washington, Michigan, Iowa, North Dakota, Indiana, Colorado, and Virginia. While most of the bills simply increase the fines on protesters, Indiana’s bill would “require” the mayor, town board or sheriff to disperse any “mass traffic obstruction” within 15 minutes, using “any means necessary” to disperse the protest. [The Intercept, IN SB285]
Missouri and Virginia lawmakers have introduced bills that would limit municipally-owned and backed broadband networks in the states. Virginia’s bill would limit municipal broadband networks to areas that do not have current speeds available equal to or above 10 Mbps download and 1 Mbps upload. Missouri’s bill would both ban “retail and wholesale competitive service,” effectively disrupting opportunities for public-private collaboration around broadband deployment in localities. [Daily Yonder]
California Gov. Jerry Brown is urging state lawmakers to renew the state’s cap-and-trade program, which seeks to curb greenhouse gas emissions. There are signs that some industry groups may prefer the flexibility of the program to more stringent environmental regulations. The program is facing a long-running legal challenge led by the California Chamber of Commerce. Oral arguments in the case were scheduled to take place on Tuesday in a state appeals court. [The Sacramento Bee]
The Utah state legislature re-convened on Monday with House Speaker Greg Hughes getting a standing ovation in the Republican-controlled chamber for calling on President Trump to undo then-President Barack Obama’s designation of the Bears Ear National Monument under the Antiquities Act. [The Spectrum]
CITY HALLS | Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney signed controversial pay equity legislation that prohibits employers from asking job candidates about their salary history. The legislation had been opposed by Comcast, which has previously hinted that it would challenge the measure. [Technical.ly Philly]
The short-lived, 37-day tenure of Mayor Dan McQueen in Corpus Christi, Texas, is not short on “tumultuous” details. [Texas Monthly]
HEALTH CARE | Loren Adler, an associate director for the Center for Health Policy at the Brookings Institution, provided an early analysis of the Patient Freedom Act proposed by Republican U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Susan Collins of Maine, which would essentially kick off the decision as to whether to keep some or all elements of the Affordable Care Act to the states. It’s pretty wonky but a good early overview for those who are in the space. [Storify]
PIPELINES | President Trump took executive action Tuesday to help clear the way for the controversial Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines. [Bloomberg Politics]
STADIUMS | The Charlotte City Council is considering greenlighting a $43.7 million Major League Soccer stadium, but Mayor Jennifer Roberts nixed public discussion of the project Monday. Instead, she directed council members to ask their questions of city staff via email and vote on Friday. “This doesn’t look right, it doesn’t smell right,” said Councilwoman Patsy Kinsey, who represents the neighborhood where the stadium would be built. [The Charlotte Observer]
CORRECTIONS | Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is prepared to close two of five targeted prisons Thursday due to chronic state budget debt. More than 85 correctional officers from three of the prisons attended hearings at the state capitol Monday, though none are expected to lose their jobs due to relocation policies. [The Times-Tribune]
LAWSUITS | Texas filed 48 lawsuits against the Obama administration, 39 of them costing a total of $5.9 million as of mid-2016, and the state doesn’t intend to stop under President Trump. "For me it's about the Constitution, so if any administration, whether it's Republican or Democrat, oversteps what I think is constitutional, we're going to try to stop it," according to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. [Nextstar Broadcasting]
SIGNAGE | Honorary Trump street signs that a city crew in Chicago removed over a month ago have gone missing. “I don’t know what happened to them,” a city transportation department spokesman said, referring to “Trump Plaza” signs that were taken down near one of the Trump Organization’s buildings. Chicago’s City Council voted in early November to remove the signs, before Trump won the presidential election. Alderman in the city have called for melting down the signs or auctioning them off for charity. [Chicago Tribune]
CORRUPTION | Former Harrisburg Mayor Stephen Reed pleaded guilty to 20 stolen property charges on Monday. [WGAL-TV]
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