States Ring In The New Year With New Laws
By: Pam On: Dec/31/06 - 3 Comments
What is the importance of this? It is the States and not the Congress passing them. From the Washington Times:
- Raises for hundreds of thousands of minimum-wage workers across the country.
- Musicians worried about copycats get some protection in Illinois.Â
- California takes steps to reduce the power-plant pollution that is thought to contribute to global warming.
- States also dealt with immigration (nurses from other countries must have English-language proficiency to practice in South Carolina)
- In Indiana, a new license plate featuring the American flag and the words “In God We Trust” will be available at no extra charge
- Eminent domain (Illinois requires local governments to pay more and meet a higher legal threshold before seizing private property)Â
- Campaign finance (North Carolina and Pennsylvania set stricter rules)
- Alaska will provide school systems with training to help prevent bullying, while South Carolina will require districts to adopt policies barring harassment, intimidation or bullying
- Wisconsin took steps to guard against wrongful convictions by requiring law-enforcement agencies to record all interrogations of felony suspects, with either video or audio.
- Alabama and West Virginia cut taxes on the poorest, and North Carolina lowered taxes on the highest earners. New York and Oklahoma dropped the so-called marriage penalty that imposed higher taxes on married couples than on single people. South Dakota and Texas raised taxes on cigarettes
- Georgia increased from 13 to 29 the number of screening tests performed on newborns to detect life-threatening metabolic and genetic disorders. Massachusetts’ new health care law hits a new milestone, allowing those earning up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level to buy into subsidized plans. (Those at or below the poverty level are already being signed up for virtually free health care.
What is virtually free healthcare? It is either free or it isn’t..and even if the recipient doesn’t pay, someone else does, therefore it isn’t free at all.
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December 31, 2006 - 10:28 AM on December 31st, 2006
“California takes steps to reduce the power-plant pollution that is thought to contribute to global warming.”
Ya, by moving the plants to neighboring states. So the solution to global warming is simply out of sight out of mind? Brilliant Arnold!
December 31, 2006 - 10:43 AM on December 31st, 2006
December 31, 2006 - 12:04 PM on December 31st, 2006
Drake is correct. The idiocy of what is going on in Kalifornia is staggering. They want to reduce CO2 emissions to combat GW. So what do they do? First enact regulations that cost millions to business and the economy yet reduce CO2 by only a very tiny fraction, and that is just a best estimate. Then they anounce a plan to build new power plants that will burn coal, which is the worst, dirtiest, most polluting technology of all. But they’ll be located out of state so they can pollute someone else’s air. And the Enviroidiots can feel all warm and fuzzy here.
And what about CO2 and GW? 42% of all the CO2 generated in kalifornia is from power plants. If they were really serious about reducing CO2, and didn’t have their heads up their politically-correct asses, they would go 100% nuclear for electric power generation. They could eliminate 42% of all CO2 generation with that alone. Plus the cost of electricity in Kalifornia would drop by 2/3, benefitting business, the comsumer, and the economy in general. The elimination of the huge market for natural gas for power generation would bring the cost of NG down, benefitting businesses and consumers again.
But no, we’re locked in the death grip of the politically-correct Jane Fona China Syndrome anti-nuclear hysteria idiots, and the Governator either doesn’t understand this, or doesn’t have the balls to do the right thing and promote what makes sense.
The anti-nuke crowd should be rounded up and sent to Al Qaeda for use in beheading videos, imo.