Wyoming Preps to Take Over Nuclear Permitting From Feds
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STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Mississippi state lottery … S.F. mayor presses for housing approvals … and Seattle city attorney’s warning to protesters.
Good morning, it’s Friday, Aug, 31, 2018. News from Wyoming leads Route Fifty’s state and local government news roundup, but scroll down for more news from places like San Francisco, California; Warren, Ohio and Helena, Montana. Have a good Labor Day weekend.
STATE GOVERNMENT | Wyoming, which has the nation’s largest uranium reserves in the U.S., is set to begin regulatory authority of uranium production in the state in October, taking those responsibilities over from the federal government. It’s been a long-planned move that is “ahead of schedule and ahead of budget,” according to Kyle Wendtland, land quality division administrator for the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality. In all, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission “will transfer 14 specific licenses for radioactive material to Wyoming’s jurisdiction.” [Wyoming News Exchange via Casper Star Tribune]
- Helena, Montana: There’s good news for Montana state agencies that saw their budgets slashed during last year’s special legislative session: the state is restoring $45.7 million in cuts, though most will go to the Department of Public Health and Human Services. [Helena Independent Record]
- Providence, Rhode Island: Gov. Gina Raimondo on Wednesday announced an executive order to “ban all firearms, except those carried by police officers, from public school buildings and grounds in the state.” [Providence Journal]
- Jackson, Mississippi: Gov Phil Bryant plans to sign legislation to create a state lottery by mid-September. [AP via Sun Herald]
- Santa Fe, New Mexico: A federal judge has sentenced a former New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department employee to 46 months in prison on a three-count extortion felony. [The Albuquerque Journal]
LOCAL GOVERNMENT | Plans to build a light-rail line connecting Brooklyn and Queens, a proposal supported by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, have been scaled back by five miles. But the $2.73 billion, 11-mile transit proposal faces numerous challenges: “To do it, we would need the combination of the revenue that it would generate and federal funding and that’s the only way, realistically we’ll get something done on this level,” de Blasio said at a news conference. [Gothamist]
- San Francisco, California: Mayor London Breed wants city departments to speed up approvals for 900 proposed housing units that are currently stuck in the process. [San Francisco Chronicle]
- Seattle, Washington: In a Seattle Times op-ed, City Attorney Pete Holmes warns would-be protesters: “If you are arrested for an unpermitted street-closure protest that requires the redirecting of critical lifesaving emergency-response resources that may be needed elsewhere on a moment’s notice, it’s likely my office will file charges against you.” [The Seattle Times]
- Liberty County, Texas: County commissioners passed a resolution earlier this week that establishes a jail diversion program for veterans. [Houston Chronicle]
- Warren, Ohio: There can only be so much multitasking: “Trumbull County Commissioner Dan Polivka said he now realizes that Trumbull County Transit administrator is a full-time job and shouldn’t be combined with county administrator’s duties.” [Vindicator]
Michael Grass is Executive Editor of Government Executive's Route Fifty and is based in Seattle.
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