Vermont legislature approves marijuana legalization bill
BOSTON (Reuters) – Vermont lawmakers on Wednesday approved a measure to legalize recreational use of marijuana, which if not vetoed by the governor would make the state the ninth to legalize the drug and the first to do so by legislation rather than ba…
Dakota Access Pipeline spilled oil 84 gallons of oil in South Dakota
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Dakota Access Pipeline leaked 84 gallons of crude oil at a pump station in South Dakota last month, according to state documents, just weeks before the pipeline is set to start commercial service.
Texas House Oks adoption agencies barring LGBT families
AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) – Adoption agencies in Texas would be able to reject foster parents on religious grounds under a bill approved by the state’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives that critics say discriminates against LGBT Texans and non-Christians.
ACLU sues New Hampshire for rejecting hundreds of absentee ballots
(Reuters) – The American Civil Liberties Union sued New Hampshire on Wednesday after the state invalidated the absentee ballots of hundreds of voters in the November 2016 election, including a blind woman, because of mismatched signatures, the civil ri…
California Controller warns that economic downturn may be near
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – California’s state tax collections in April fell short of expectations, a sign that the state may be headed toward an economic downturn, State Controller Betty Yee warned on Wednesday.
Trump claims absolute immunity from D.C. wine bar’s lawsuit
(Reuters) – Lawyers for Donald Trump on Wednesday said the U.S. president has “absolute immunity” from a lawsuit by owners of the Cork Wine Bar in Washington, D.C., who claim that his ownership of a nearby hotel constitutes unfair competition.
Chicago mayor weighs options to fill widening gap in school budget
CHICAGO (Reuters) – A gap in Chicago’s public school system budget is likely to grow more than 4-1/2 times beyond a previous estimate and Mayor Rahm Emanuel is considering a property tax increase or additional borrowing among options to close it, a cit…
Trial starts of Oklahoma officer charged with manslaughter
TULSA, Okla. (Reuters) – Prosecutors opened the manslaughter trial on Wednesday of a white Tulsa police officer by recounting the events of a day when she shot an unarmed black motorist, seeking a conviction in a case that fanned concerns of possible r…
West Virginia reporter jailed after questioning U.S. health secretary
(Reuters) – A West Virginia journalist was arrested and jailed after following U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price down a hallway in the state’s capitol building and peppering him with questions about healthcare policy, the reporter said…
Four U.S. states sue Interior Department over coal leases on public lands
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Four U.S. states have sued Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, the Interior Department and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to block new leases of public lands for coal mining, according to papers filed on Tuesday in Montana federal c…
