Tag: State Legislatures

US Senate Amends EARN IT Act — To Let States Restrict Encryption

Long-time Slashdot reader stikves reminded us that a committee in the U.S. Senate passed an amended version of the “EARN IT” act on Thursday. And this new version could do more than just end personal end-to-end encryption, warns Engadget: The other major concern opponents of the EARN IT Act raise has to do with Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act,…

Company Says It’s Built a Marijuana Breathalyzer That Will Hit the Market In 2020

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Techdirt: There’s currently no field test equipment that detects marijuana impairment. A company in California thinks it has a solution. From San Francisco Chronicle: “By mid-2020, Hound Laboratories plans to begin selling what it says is the world’s first dual alcohol-marijuana breath analyzer, which founder Dr. Mike Lynn says can test whether a user…

America’s FBI Is Running Facial Recognition Searches On Millions of Driver’s License Photos

America’s FBI and its Customs Enforcement agency “have turned state driver license databases into a facial-recognition gold mine, scanning through hundreds of millions of Americans’ photos without their knowledge or consent,” reports the Washington Post. They cite thousands of newly-released facial-recognition requests, internal documents, and emails from the last five years, revealed after a public-records request from researchers at Georgetown University,…

Bloomberg To Put $500 Million Into Closing All Remaining Coal Plants By 2030

In what marks the largest ever philanthropic effort to combat climate change, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is pledging $500 million to close all of the nation’s remaining coal plants by 2030 and put the United States on track toward a 100% clean energy economy. The New York Times reports: The new campaign, called Beyond Carbon, is designed to…

A closer look at Washington’s superb new 100% clean electricity bill

The bill contains groundbreaking changes to the way the state’s utilities do business. The trend of states targeting 100 percent clean electricity has gone viral. Last month, New Mexico targeted 100 percent clean by 2045. The Maryland legislature recently passed a bill targeting 50 percent renewable by 2030 and looking into the viability of 100… Continue reading A closer look at Washington’s superb new 100% clean electricity bill

8 things everybody should know about measles

In an unvaccinated population, one person with measles can infect 12 to 18 others. The measles virus is one of the most infectious diseases known to man. A person with measles can cough in a room and leave, and hours later, if you’re unvaccinated, you could catch the virus from the droplets in the air the… Continue reading 8 things everybody should know about measles

To Get Trump’s Tax Returns, N.Y. Democrats Try a New Strategy

A new bill being introduced Monday in Albany would allow New York tax officials to release state tax returns to congressional committees. Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/08/nyregion/trump-tax-returns-ny-state.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Prosecutors Sometimes Behave Badly. Now They May Be Held to Account.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York approved landmark legislation creating a commission to investigate misconduct by prosecutors. District attorneys vowed to fight it in court. Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/05/nyregion/ny-prosecutors-cuomo.html?partner=rss&emc=rss