Good morning, it’s Thursday, May 7, 2026. In today’s edition, Connecticut expands privacy protections; Tennessee rolls out redistricting map; Louisiana, Minnesota consider gubernatorial term limits:
Top Stories
PRIVACY: Connecticut lawmakers have given bipartisan approval to new legislation adding restrictions on personalized pricing and geolocation data to the state’s comprehensive consumer data privacy law. The bill requires data brokers to register with state officials, and to make it easier for consumers to request the deletion of their data. Connecticut would join California as the only states with one-stop methods for consumers to request data deletion. (Pluribus News)
MORE: The Rhode Island Senate unanimously approved legislation requiring consumer-focused genetic testing firms — like 23andMe — provide customers with information about how customers’ genetic data would be accessed, transferred, secured and deleted. Companies would have to delete consumer data within 30 days of a customer’s request. (Rhode Island Current)
REDISTRICTING: Tennessee lawmakers have unveiled a new congressional district map carving Memphis’s Shelby County up into three Republican-heavy seats. The map would eliminate a Black-majority district held by U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D), the state’s lone Democrat in Congress. (State Affairs)
MORE: Mississippi House Speaker Jason White (R) says his state will consider redrawing electoral maps in the 2027 legislative session. White set up a special select committee to consider new map lines. (Mississippi Today) The Alabama House approved legislation pushing the primary elections for U.S. House seats if the U.S. Supreme Court allows the state to redraw congressional district map lines. (Alabama Reflector)
ECONOMY: The Colorado House has approved legislation to prevent credit card companies from charging swipe fees on sales taxes. The bill would allow companies to charge swipe fees only on underlying purchases, pre-tax. It now heads to Gov. Jared Polis for a signature or veto. (Colorado Public Radio)
CRYPTO: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) has signed legislation banning crypto ATMs over fraud concerns. Minnesota is at least the third state to ban the machines, often found in gas stations and convenience stores, following Indiana and Tennessee. (Fargo Forum)
GAMBLING: A federal judge has permanently blocked Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) from prosecuting the prediction market firm Kalshi for violating state gambling laws. Mayes had brought criminal charges against Kalshi, but the judge said regulating prediction markets falls under the authority of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. (AZ Mirror)
TAXES: Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders (R) signed new personal and corporate income tax cuts into law on Wednesday after a brief special session. The new law cuts top personal income tax rates from 3.9% to 3.7%, and the top corporate tax rate from 4.3% to 4.1%. The cuts are estimated to cost the state $192 million this year. (Talk Business & Politics)
In Politics & Business
ALABAMA: A new survey for Gray Television Alabama and the Alabama Daily News finds U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R) claiming 65% of the vote in the GOP gubernatorial primary. The next-closest candidate, Ken McFeeters (R), takes just 7%. (WBRC)
LOUISIANA: The state House has approved legislation prohibiting future governors from running for more than two terms. The proposed constitutional amendment would go before voters in November if it wins Senate approval. (Louisiana Illuminator)
Minnesota lawmakers are also considering setting a two-term limit on governors. (St. Paul Pioneer Press)
OHIO: Sen. Bill Reineke (R) is poised to become Ohio’s next Senate president after state Sen. Jerry Cirino (R) ended his campaign for the top job. Several Reineke-backed candidates beat out Cirino’s chosen contenders in Tuesday’s primary elections. (State Affairs)
VIRGINIA: The FBI executed a search warrant at the Portsmouth office of Senate President Louise Lucas (D) Wednesday, as part of a corruption investigation opened during the Biden administration. Lucas said the search was politically motivated, after she led the recent redistricting push. (Associated Press)
By The Numbers
200,000: The number of jobs California is “missing” because of remote work. Data from the Legislative Analysts Office show those jobs are held by people who live outside the state. (Sacramento Bee)
Nearly 50%: The decline in antisemitic incidents reported in Ohio last year. In Cleveland alone, the number of antisemitic incidents fell from 37 in 2024 to just eight. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
56%: The share of New Jersey voters who say they support banning data centers in their towns. Just 22% said they oppose such bans. (NJ Advance Media)
Off The Wall
The Connecticut Senate has approved legislation adding two official state birds — but only in March. Lawmakers named Sue Bird and Jordan Hawkins, alumni of the University of Connecticut’s championship-winning basketball teams, as official state birds during the March Madness tournament. (ESPN)
After a marathon round of voting in the waning days of this year’s legislative session, Connecticut Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding (R) went home — and went for a six-mile run. Harding, 38, said he had the energy. House Speaker Matt Ritter (D), also a runner, said he would have made the opposite choice: “I love my runs but I would have slept,” Ritter said. (News Times)
Quote of the Day
“Anyone who isn’t being paid to say otherwise will concede that 2026 is going to be a very difficult year for Republicans.”
— Michigan GOP strategist Dennis Lennox, following a special election in which a Democratic candidate won by 20 percentage points, a margin far greater than that by which his predecessor carried the district. (Associated Press)