Legislative Update: Sports Gambling

Last week’s Big Game was unique not just for being the lowest-scoring Super Bowl ever, but it also marked the first time in a number of states outside of Nevada that a legal bet could be placed. In this week’s blog post, we review the current state of sports gambling in the United States, and speculate as to which states may be opening the next sports books.

Legislative Update: Minimum Wage

With Democratic gains in the states last year, both in the legislative and executive branches, several long-standing Democratic priorities are quickly finding their way to the top of legislative agendas across the country. One such item is an increase in the minimum wage.

In our blog post, we review the current status of minimum wage increases and look at states where an increase appears to be just on the horizon.

Legislative Update: E-Cigarettes & Vaping Devices

Supporters of this rapidly growing industry cite the idea that e-cigarettes provide smokers with a less-deadly alternative, while detractors express concerns over the increasingly widespread use of these products among teenagers.

Regardless of where on that spectrum you may fall, government at all levels has taken an interest in attempting to regulate this market, and we anticipate expanded efforts to do so in 2019 and beyond in our blog post.

This Week in the States

• Alabama – Proposed bill would make phone ‘spoofing’ a felony in Alabama
• California – ‘There’s going to be a fight here to weaken it’: Inside the lobbying war over California’s landmark privacy law
• Colorado – Animal Abuse Bill Draws Large Crowd At State Legislature
• Florida – Governor Orders Revamp Of Florida Education Standards
• Georgia – Kemp to seek Medicaid, Obamacare waivers for Georgia
• Hawaii – No smoking? Hawaii lawmaker wants to say goodbye to cigarettes forever
• Kansas – Kansas Senate Approves $115M Payment to State Pension System
• Louisiana – Understanding how some Louisiana legislative offices have quietly built $85 million surplus
• Maryland – In fight with legislature, Gov. Hogan endorses referendum on Maryland public schools starting after Labor Day
• Massachusetts – As Massachusetts moves toward legalizing sports betting, bars seek seat at the table
• Missouri – Defying voters, Missouri House passes ‘radical undermining’ of open records law
• Nevada – First female-majority legislature in US convenes in Nevada
• New Mexico – New Mexico House bill seeks to expand renewable energy, oil town lawmakers oppose agenda
• New York – Democratic state legislators’ constitutional moves
• Oregon – Lawmakers Gear Up To Make Oregon The 1st With Statewide Rent Control
• Pennsylvania – Gov. Wolf unveils budget: More money for public schools and a higher minimum wage
• Pennsylvania – Lt. Gov. John Fetterman to kick off pot legalization listening tour next week: ‘I want it to be an open exchange’
• Texas – Governor Abbott lays out priorities in annual State of the State address
• Texas – Texas Bill Aims To Stop Companies From ‘Throttling’ Internet Service During Disasters
• Utah – Utah Supreme Court will hear a challenge to the legislature’s medical cannabis replacement bill
• Utah – Utah Voters Approved Medicaid Expansion, But State Lawmakers Are Balking
• Virginia – Virginia legislators pass separate versions of budget
• Wisconsin – Legislative committee OKs GOP tax cut bill

Duane Morris Government Strategies can provide your business or organization with the solutions it needs to track these and other developments in state capitals across the country.

To learn more, please contact us at info@dmgs.com or 609-577-3687