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AK: Legislators limit others' trips

By Pat Forgey, The Juneau Empire

The House of Representatives wants to rein in state spending by cracking down on travel, but it may be a case of "do as I say, not as I do."
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CA: Lawmaker proposes bill to derail funds for California bullet train

By Joshua Melvin, San Mateo County Times, The Mercury News (San Jose)

A bill proposed by a Southern California state lawmaker would derail the construction of the Los Angeles-to-San Francisco bullet train by cutting off $9.95 billion in voter-approved funding.
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CO: River users gain ground as Senate advances bill on access

By Jessica Fender, The Denver Post

Kayakers, anglers and all variety of private and commercial boaters could gain the right to float through private land after a state Senate committee on Monday overhauled a bill that has pitted property owners against outdoor enthusiasts. Read More

CT: Cash-strapped small towns to get overdue state grants to fix roads

By Don Stacom, The Hartford Courant

Cash-strapped rural towns throughout Connecticut should get about $30 million in overdue state grants to help fix potholes, resurface cracked pavement and make other road repairs. Read More

CT: Legislative committee approves bill requiring seat belts on school buses

By Amanda Falcone, The Hartford Courant

For years, lawmakers have proposed bills requiring seat belts on school buses, but Monday marked the first time that such a measure has made it out of a legislative committee. And it did so by a wide margin. Read More

FL: PolitiFact -- Rubio's Cash for Clunkers claim runs on fumes

By Amy Sherman, St. Petersburg Times

The statement The Obama administration "spent more money on the Cash for Clunkers program than the space program." Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio, Feb. 8, in Florida Today Read More

FL: Struggling cruise industry gets back into shipshape

By Martha Brannigan, The Miami Herald

Last week, Kevin Sheehan, the chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line, opened an e-mail from his pricing guru with an update on ticket prices and bookings. ``Yee-haw,'' wrote Crane Gladding, an NCL senior vice president. Read More

HI: Only one company bid to manage Hawaii rail project

By Sean Hao, The Honolulu Advertiser

A $36.7 million contract for Honolulu's planned train project failed to garner any competition. Read More

IL: Democrats focus red-light camera debate on Duffy ticket

By John Patterson, Daily Herald (Arlington Heights)

Time and again Monday, Illinois senators watched Dan Duffy's car cruise through a right-hand turn in Schaumburg without stopping despite the red light. Read More

IL: Red-light camera tickets may become cheaper to appeal, slightly harder to get

By Michelle Manchir and Bob Secter, Chicago Tribune

Red-light camera tickets would be slightly harder to get and cheaper to appeal under a reform plan endorsed by Senate leaders Monday that fell far short of the sweeping overhaul demanded by critics of the automated devices. Read More

KS: Despite tight budget situation, legislative travel expenditures in 2010 higher than in 2009 — and the year's not over

By Scott Rothschild, The Lawrence Journal-World

Even during a budget crisis, Kansas legislators and their staff hit the road at taxpayer expense to attend conferences. Read More

KS: Kansas tops Reader's Digest list of best state roads

By Staff Reports, Kansas City Star

This ranking couldn't come at a better time for Kansas highway advocates. Read More

LA: La. roads the worst, Reader's Digest says

By Staff Reports, The Advocate (Baton Rouge)

Louisiana has the worst roads in the nation, according to Reader's Digest.com. The state also is 48th for alcohol-related highway fatalities, the magazine said. Read More

MA: DA involved in infamous Chappaqiddick case dies

By Steve Urbon, Cape Cod Times

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — Edmund Dinis, the former district attorney who directed the grand jury in the case involving the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and the fatal plunge from the bridge at Chappaquiddick, died Sunday evening, according to friends and colleagues. Dinis was 85. Read More

ME: Rail line issue to bring federal officials to Maine

By Jen Lynds, Bangor Daily News

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Federal officials will be in Maine next month to meet with local and state officials and stakeholders regarding the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway's notice of intent to abandon its 233 miles of rail lines in northern Maine. Read More

MI: Cox -- U.S. Supreme Court will reconsider temporary closure of Chicago locks to prevent spread of Asian carp into Great Lakes

By Barrie Barber, mlive.com

The U.S. Supreme Court will reconsider closing the Chicago canal locks temporarily, state Attorney General Mike Cox says. The High Court is expected to take up the legal debate Friday, he said. Read More

MI: More ethanol may be coming soon to Michigan gas tanks

By Jeff Kart, mlive.com

A push by industry to increase the amount of ethanol blended with regular gasoline got a boost today from Underwriters Laboratory. Read More

MN: Pawlenty slashes bonding bill

By Bill Salisbury, St. Paul Pioneer Press

Gov. Tim Pawlenty carved up a $1 billion public works bill over the weekend, canceling more than half the money lawmakers had appropriated for state colleges and universities, scrapping all new funding for metro transit construction and eliminating cash for dozens of parks, trails, conservation projects and civic and cultural centers. Read More

NJ: N.J. Senate approves bill that would reduce state car usage in effort to save in budget

By Staff Reports, The Star-Ledger (Newark)

A state Senate panel yesterday approved a bill that would reduce the number of vehicles used to conduct state business. Read More

OK: Bills target distracted Oklahoma drivers

By Julie Bisbee and Michael McNutt, The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City)

Drivers using a cell phone, reading or eating could be ticketed for distracted driving — without first having caused a wreck — under measures moving through the Legislature on Wednesday. Read More

OK: Agri Department grant to improve Oklahoma transportation

By The Associated Press, The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City)

A grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be shared in western Oklahoma to help improve transportation and the economy. Read More

OR: Oregon state offices will close on Friday, but parks will still be open, state police on patrol

By Michelle Cole, The Oregonian (Portland)

Oregon's Department of Motor Vehicle Services Division offices will be shut Friday because it's a furlough day for employees. Read More

PA: Former turnpike head to be spared prison

By The Associated Press, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The former head of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission would serve six months of house arrest and pay $150,000 but would be spared prison time under a plea agreement with federal prosecutors who alleged that he got a no-work contract from a former state senator. Read More

PA: Acquittal in 2008 crash that killed lawmaker

By The Associated Press, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A jury on Monday acquitted a man of vehicular homicide while driving drunk in a 2008 crash that killed a state lawmaker. Read More

PA: New walks crumbing in Point State Park

By Jon Schmitz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Sidewalks installed less than two years ago as part of a $7 million renovation of Point State Park are already starting to crumble. Read More

UT: Utah has some of nation's safest roads

By Lynn Arave, The Deseret Morning News (Salt Lake City)

Utah has the fifth-best roads in the nation, according to a new ranking by Reader's Digest. Read More

WI: Grant will help bike trail reach from Madison to state line

By Emily Bisek, Wisconsin State Journal (Madison)

Bicyclists will soon be able to travel between Madison and the Illinois border without leaving a bike path, thanks to a federal grant announced Monday. Read More

WY: Governor's schedule packed on Australia trip

By Phil Noble, Casper Star-Tribune

As Gov. Dave Freudenthal embarked on a working trip to Australia last Saturday, the governor's office released a schedule of his time in the Down Under. Read More

USEFUL LINKS

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
AASHTO provides useful information on state transportation policy.

Governors Highway Safety Association
The association represents state highway safety programs and provides links to all 50 states? departments of transportation.

Grading the States 2005
The Government Performance Project's analysis of how well each state is managed in four areas: money,people,infrastructure and information.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving
MADD is a national victim?s advocacy groups that tracks drunken driving laws and statistics on traffic fatalities across the states.

State Transportation Web Sites
Link to the each state's Department of Transportation.

Statescape's BillFinder
BillFinder helps users find any bill eligible for consideration in the current calendar year using either keywords and phrases or bill numbers.

Surface Transportation Policy Project
The project, based in Washington, D.C. is an advocacy and research group that?s closely following the renewal of the federal surface transportation law.

U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics
The bureau offers an up-to-date database on transportation statistics.

U.S. Department of Transportation
The U.S. Transportation Department offers news and information from the federal cabinet agency.

STATE OF THE STATES 2010
“State of the States 2010” from the Pew Center on the States is the latest in a series of annual publications from Pew about issues impacting state government. Read our analysis of the recession’s effects on state governments and the 2010 elections. Featuring charts and maps including a calendar of 2010 legislative sessions.

Links to daily news and summaries of the governors' speeches

Full text of governors’ addresses going back to 2000

Dates for state of the state speeches

Read the latest news, analysis and research on the economic crisis in the states in Stateline.org's new Recession and Recovery special section.

The Stimulus and the
States
Follow how states are managing the stimulus money and which programs are receiving funding as part of the recovery effort using Stateline.org's stimulus special section.

Click here for a calendar of legislative sessions in 2010.

Click here to read summaries of action in all 50 states and major trends of the 2009 legislative session.

Stateline.org has compiled an extensive list of state issue political blogs to make it convenient for you to follow state government.

If a blog you find interesting and informative is not on our list, tell us about it by sending an email to editor@stateline.org.

Blogs organized by Issue

Blogs organized by State

Stateline.org has put together a list of state public policy resources organized by issue. Here, you will find useful links to essential information from government, academia, and think tanks. If you have a link to add, please email us.

Go to the state public policy resources page

The Pew Charitable Trusts applies the power of knowledge to solve today’s most challenging problems. Pew's Center on the States identifies and advances state policy solutions.