Missouri Does Away With Concealed Handgun Permit Requirement; Indiana Plan to Limit Pensions for Employees: Trick Them
Connecting state and local government leaders
Also in our State and Local Daily Digest: LinkNYC halts free Wi-Fi due to bad behavior; Alaska needs LNG buyers for record public works project; and receding water costs Massachusetts city
JEFFERSON CITY, MISSOURI
GUN LAWS | Republican lawmakers in Missouri on Wednesday voted to override Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of a bill that would loosen the state’s gun laws. Members of the state Senate backed the override 24-6, and House lawmakers favored it by a margin of 112-41. Nixon disapproved of provisions in the legislation that would eliminate training and permit requirements for carrying a concealed handgun in public. Rep. Kevin Engler, a Farmington Republican, said Wednesday that concerns about the bill had been overblown. “This bill will not do the crazy things that are being said,” he said. [Kansas City Star]
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
PENSIONS | Republican lawmakers opposed to lifelong pensions for retired state employees want new public workers to give up theirs. So they’re preparing legislation that would see incoming staff registered as members of a 401(k)-style defined contribution retirement plan, unless they submit additional paperwork opting into the state pension fund. “The state will renege on its obligations when the money runs out,” said state Sen. Greg Walker. “I would rather put my confidence in the marketplace.” [The Times of Northwest Indiana]
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
WI-FI | LinkNYC, which operates kiosks that provide free Wi-Fi on the streets of New York City, is pushing the pause button on a service that was meant to replace the city’s phone booths. The reason? Bad behavior sparked by the unfettered public internet access; people would linger near the kiosks for hours drinking, doing drugs and at times brazenly watching pornography. The setback comes just seven months after Mayor Bill de Blasio introduced the project as a way to bridge the internet access divide among the city’s residents. [The New York Times]
JUNEAU, ALASKA
LNG | The state government recently assumed ownership of the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas project—once a public-private partnership with BP, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips—and is courting the Japanese government as an LNG buyer. Oil giants are letting the Alaskan government take the lead on building a gas processing facility, 800-mile pipeline and 20-mtpa liquefaction plant for at least $50 billion because of weak LNG pricing in the Asia-Pacific region. Securing interest from buyers is the first step toward getting investors and regulators on board with what stands to be one of the largest public works projects in U.S. history. Gov. Bill Walker will visit Singapore and South Korea soon to pitch the project. “Japan is the largest LNG-buying nation in the world, and their interest in Alaska is very encouraging,” he said. [The Maritime Executive]
WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
WATER | Receding water levels in parts of Massachusetts have local officials scrambling to find additional sources. In Worcester, local leaders were forced to activate a connection reserved for emergencies from the state’s Water Resources Authority. The emergency water doesn’t come cheaply, however. It costs $1.7 million per month to tap into the supply. [The Boston Globe]
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA
PETS | Animal rights activists are snarling at the mayor here on social media, upset over the euthanization of unwanted pets in the county. One comment: “INNOCENT ANIMALS ARE BEING KILLED LIKE TRASH AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!” Police are investigating at least one threat against Mayor Carlos Gimenez and his family. “When you start threatening my family, you’ve gone way too far,” Gimenez said. One of the issues fueling the controversy is a ballot measure passed in 2012. It was backed by a group called Pets Trust and would have raised about $20 million from property taxes for pet sterilization and other animal-related efforts. But Gimenez and other county leaders decided not to pursue the tax revenue after the ballot measure passed. The mayor is currently running for re-election against an opponent who has support from some of the county’s more prominent animal activists. [Miami Herald]
NEXT STORY: Boston Has Plans for Autonomous Vehicle Testing by the End of 2016