legislation

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Pull a Swatting Prank, Spend 2 Decades in Jail? Maybe

The bill just passed a committee vote

(Newser) - It's a "potentially lethal" prank that could soon be attached to some pretty serious legal consequences. The Washington Post reports a bill that would make the penalty for swatting—calling in false threats to prompt an armed law enforcement response on unsuspecting victims—up to 20 years in...

Calif. Governor Decides on 'Assisted Suicide'

Gov. Jerry Brown meets with bishop, doctors before deciding

(Newser) - Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Monday allowing terminally ill people in the nation's most populous state to take their own lives, saying the emotionally charged bill forced him to consider "what I would want in the face of my own death." Brown, a lifelong Catholic and former...

Spain May Make Its Kids Do Chores

Proposed legislature also includes mandate to 'respect teachers'

(Newser) - Is it a daily battle to get your kids to do their chores? You may want to move to Spain, where parliament on Friday approved a bill that would make children legally obliged to do housework—and more, BBC News reports. If the bill becomes law, those under the age...

22 Years Later, Waiters Still Work for $2.13 a Hour

Legislation could raise minimum, used in 13 states, this year

(Newser) - Many waiters are still waiting for their minimum wage to rise—which it hasn't in more than two decades. The federal minimum for servers is set at $2.13 an hour, though if they don't make at least the regular minimum of $7.25 when tips are added...

Gun Rights Group Backs Toomey- Manchin Bill

Says legislation offers 'advances for our cause'

(Newser) - The NRA has slammed Sens. Pat Toomey and Joe Manchin's new background-check proposal , but another gun-rights organization is supporting it. Calling itself the country's second-biggest gun-rights advocacy group, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms says the proposal includes "advances for our cause,...

Immigration Bill Will Ramp Up Border Security

Senate preps legislation as marchers gather in DC

(Newser) - Today, thousands are gathering in Washington to demand immigration reform—and with a Senate bill set for release as soon as tomorrow, "we are optimistic," an activist tells WCSH . Possible details of the legislation are emerging, and it may set some tough standards in terms of security, notes...

Sens. Paul, Cruz: We'll Filibuster Gun Control

Republicans deliver warning to Harry Reid

(Newser) - If Harry Reid goes forward with a possible gun-control measure, he'll face a filibuster, say three Republican senators. Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, and Mike Lee have penned a letter to the Senate majority leader, saying, "We will oppose the motion to proceed to any legislation that will serve...

West Virginia Mulls Ban on Google Glass While Driving

State rep sees 'safety concern' with Internet headset

(Newser) - Ever imagined Google Glass causing nasty accidents? So has West Virginia state Rep. Gary Howell, who introduced a bill last week to ban wearing such gizmos while driving, CNN reports. "The primary thing is a safety concern," said Howell."It could project text or video into your...

DA's Hubby Tweet-Bashes Swartz Family

While a state rep pens law to lower penalties for terms of service violations

(Newser) - Just three days after Internet prodigy Aaron Swartz committed suicide , the husband of a prosecutor who had sought to put the hacktivist behind bars slammed the deceased's family on Twitter, reports the Guardian . "Truly incredible that in their own son's obit they blame others for his death...

Judge to CA: You Can't Ban 'Gay Cures'

Temporary injunction blocks new law from being applied to 3 people

(Newser) - Sorry, California, but you can't ban gay-to-straight "conversion" therapy for minors just yet, a federal judge ruled yesterday. Gov. Jerry Brown signed a law in September prohibiting so-called "gay cures," the first law of its kind in the US. But the judge found that the law,...

73 in Congress Sponsored Bills, Reaped Rewards
73 in Congress Sponsored Bills, Reaped Rewards
INVESTIGATION
Oct 8, 2012 12:20 PM CDT

73 in Congress Sponsored Bills, Reaped Rewards

Lawmakers sought legislation from which they benefited

(Newser) - From a PBS exec's husband who defended the station's funding to a congressman who sought tax breaks for racehorse owners before buying seven horses: A Washington Post investigation finds 73 members of Congress who have recently sponsored or co-sponsored bills that help industries to which they have personal...

Jerry Brown Signs Bill Banning 'Gay Cures'

But conservatives say they'll fight the law in court

(Newser) - California Gov. Jerry Brown made history yesterday by signing the nation's first legislation banning "gay cure" therapy for minors, the LA Times reports. "This bill bans non-scientific 'therapies' that have driven young people to depression and suicide,'' Brown said. "These practices have no...

Senators Want 'Lunatic' Deleted From Federal Laws

It's an outdated, offensive term, says proposed legislation

(Newser) - Two senators have introduced a bill to erase the word "lunatic" from the federal code because the term is considered outdated and offensive, reports the Los Angeles Times . "Federal law should reflect the 21st century understanding of mental illness and disease," says Kent Conrad of North Dakota,...

Wyoming Bill Prepares for Doomsday

Lawmakers plan for nationwide economic meltdown

(Newser) - Wyoming lawmakers are ready for anything—even the apocalypse. House legislators advanced a bill Friday to prepare for a possible nationwide economic or political meltdown, the Casper Star-Tribune reports. The legislation would create a task force to consider steps such as issuing a state currency, drafting a statewide army, and...

Ron Paul's House Record a Picture of Futility
 Paul's Record: Quiet Futility 
Dec 27, 2011 7:58 AM CST

Paul's Record: Quiet Futility

Only 0.2% of his bills have become law

(Newser) - Ron Paul has sponsored 620 measures in his 11-and-a-half terms in Congress, but only one of them has become a law—a bill allowing the sale of a Galveston customhouse to a historical society. That tells you much of what you need to know about Paul’s congressional record, which...

Herman Cain: If a Bill Is More Than 3 Pages, I Won't Sign

Because short bills make for great dinner-table reading

(Newser) - People who may want to consider supporting Herman Cain: lovers of trees, fans of brevity, Americans who like the idea of reading government bills while eating dinner. At an appearance in Pella, Iowa, yesterday, Cain took shots at Barack Obama's "failure of leadership," and said he decided...

5 Common-Sense Bills We Need to Pass
 5 Common-Sense 
 Bills We Need to Pass 
ezra klein
May 15, 2011 5:13 AM CDT

5 Common-Sense Bills We Need to Pass

Here's two: Let's vote on weekends and stop making pennies

(Newser) - Ezra Klein uses his Washington Post column to give a push to what he sees as logical bills languishing for lack of "partisan passion." Among his first No-Brainer Awards:
  • Weekend voting: A bill from Rep. Steve Israel and outgoing Sen. Herb Kohl would end the outdated silliness of
...

Nine Batty Tea Party Bills
 Nine Batty 
 Tea Party Bills 
Feb 21, 2011 4:41 PM CST

Nine Batty Tea Party Bills

Tea Partiers are busy at the statehouse level

(Newser) - Tea Partiers are taking their fight to state halls around the country, and Justin Elliott over at Salon rounds up some of the more creative pieces of legislation they've put on the table. Without ado:
  • Yay, global warming: Montana not only wants to proclaim that global warming is a natural
...

Smoking in Bhutan? Cops Can Raid Your Home

New law is quite unpopular

(Newser) - It’s not a good time to be a smoker in Bhutan: In an effort to become the world’s first smoke-free nation, the Buddhist country will now allow police to raid homes in an effort to smoke out illegal smokers. Bhutan banned sales of tobacco in 2005, but it's...

Most Productive Congress Since 1960s Adjourns

111th passed vast legislation in 'dysfunctional' environment

(Newser) - The 111th Congress adjourned last night, after passing more key legislation that affected more Americans than any since Lyndon Johnson’s 1960s “Great Society,” Bloomberg reports. That included $1.67 trillion spent to save the economy, health insurance for 32 million people, and new regulations on Wall Street;...

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