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Good morning, it’s Wednesday, October 2, 2024. In today’s edition, North Carolina crafts Helene relief bill; California Assembly backs Newsom gas plan; Fat Bear Week begins:
Top Stories
DISASTER RESPONSE: North Carolina lawmakers are crafting an emergency appropriations bill to include disaster relief for eastern counties inundated by rain from Hurricane Helene. Lawmakers plan to return to session Oct. 9 to take up legislation, though few details are available. (NC Newsline)
ENERGY: The California Assembly has signed off on legislation requiring petroleum refineries to maintain sufficient reserves to avoid gas price spikes during maintenance outages. The Senate plans to reconvene next week, teeing up a floor vote by Friday.
The measure, a big priority for Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), is meant to ease gas price spikes. Business groups, the governors of Arizona and Nevada and even some labor unions oppose the measure, but the California Energy Commission estimates it would save consumers nearly $2 billion a year. Read more at Pluribus News.
CONSUMER PROTECTION: California Gov. Newsom has signed legislation standardizing quality and safety date labels on food products. Beginning in 2026, food products must use “best if used by” dates to indicate quality, and “use by” dates to indicate safety. The new law bars “sell by” dates on food packaging. (Pluribus News)
MORE: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has signed legislation requiring gambling and sports betting advertisements to carry warning labels about gambling addiction. The law will expand existing requirements to cover mobile sports wagering, which started two years ago in New York. (WCAX)
HEALTH CARE: New York Gov. Hochul has signed legislation requiring insurance plans to cover breast cancer screenings and diagnostic imaging. Hochul signed the bill on the first day of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. (State of Politics)
TRANSPORTATION: The New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee will consider legislation requiring two-person train crews and limiting the length of hazardous freight trains carrying oil or chemicals. The Senate and Assembly transportation committees have already cleared the bill. (NJ Advance Media)
TAXES: Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R) will call the legislature back into special session in November to address the state tax code. Landry’s plan would reduce income tax rates and expand sales taxes to include services including lobbying, dog grooming and car washes. (Associated Press)
In Politics & Business
NORTH CAROLINA: The devastation from Hurricane Helene will mean a late start to early voting in eastern counties in North Carolina, where 13 county elections offices remain closed. County offices are racing to reopen early voting sites and Election Day polling places. (WUNC)
MORE: Two more gubernatorial polls out this morning: Quinnipiac puts Attorney General Josh Stein (D) ahead of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R) by a 53% to 41% margin. Emerson College has Stein leading by a whopping 52%-33% margin.
Somebody poll New Hampshire!
REPUBLICANS: Nineteen Republican attorneys general are demanding proof that ActBlue, the Democratic fundraising platform, maintains a proper verification system to vet suspect donations. In a letter, the Republicans do not show evidence of unlawful activity, but it raises concerns over “smurfing,” in which large donors break up donations into smaller amounts to avoid campaign contribution limits. (Des Moines Register)
By The Numbers
1,206: The number of bills that crossed California Gov. Newsom’s desk this year. He signed 1,017 of them and vetoed 189, his spokesperson tells us.
$98.4 million: The amount of money spent lobbying Minnesota’s legislature in 2023, an 18% increase from the year before. Xcel Energy spent more, nearly $2 million, than any other group. (Minnesota Reformer)
5,000: The number of vacant properties in Baltimore that will be transformed into livable homes over five years, under a new executive order signed by Gov. Wes Moore (D). Baltimore has about 13,000 vacant structures and 20,000 vacant lots. (Associated Press)
Off The Wall
The polls are open! Voting begins today in the annual Fat Bear Week contest in Katmai National Park. The bracket features 12 bears that have been packing on salmon weight all summer ahead of winter hibernation. One of the front-runners, named 32 Chunk, was filmed devouring 42 salmon in 10 hours. (Associated Press)
The moon is about to get a younger sibling. A school bus-sized asteroid, 2024 PT5, will be trapped by the Earth’s gravity for about two months beginning this weekend, astronomers say. But don’t strain too hard to find it: The “mini moon” won’t be visible to the naked eye, or even through amateur telescopes. (Associated Press)
Quote of the Day
“The tigers that live in sanctuaries live a lot longer than the tigers that live out in the wild, because the tigers that live out in the wild, they don’t get an opportunity to go around the corner and see a veterinarian.”
— Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R), who wants Louisiana State University to bring its live tiger mascot, Mike VII, onto the field at home football games. (Baton Rouge Advocate)