Good morning, it’s Monday, September 8, 2025. In today’s edition, blue states move to preserve Covid vaccine access; South Carolina considers total abortion ban; poll shows Sherrill up 10 in New Jersey:
Top Stories
PUBLIC HEALTH: At least half a dozen blue states have taken steps to preserve Covid vaccine access at pharmacies after new federal restrictions created confusion and backlogs at major chains. Officials in Colorado, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington have authorized pharmacists to follow recommendations from state health departments and national medical organizations when determining who is eligible for vaccines.
Major pharmacy chains in dozens of states have restricted access to Covid vaccines. CVS and Walgreens have said they are concerned about liability in the 16 states that require vaccines administered by pharmacists to be endorsed by a CDC advisory committee. The blue state actions are meant to ease those concerns. (Pluribus News)
REDISTRICTING: Utah lawmakers have asked the state Supreme Court to halt a district judge’s ruling requiring them to redraw state congressional district maps. The high court ruled unanimously last year that legislators needed to follow the law under a 2018 ballot measure requiring the creation of an independent redistricting commission. (Salt Lake Tribune)
MORE: Indiana House and Senate Republicans will hold private caucuses this week to discuss potential redistricting plans. Legislative Republicans met with White House officials last month to discuss potential redistricting plans. (State Affairs) Missouri’s House Rules Committee backed plans to redraw its U.S. House district lines, setting up a floor debate this week. (St. Louis Public Radio)
ABORTION: The South Carolina Senate will take up legislation next year banning abortion at conception. The bill, offered by Sens. Rex Rice (R) and Billy Garrett (R), would make abortion a felony on par with homicide, eliminating exceptions for rape, incest and fetal anomalies. (Statehouse Report)
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) and Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings (D) have warned OpenAI about concerns over the safety of ChatGPT for children and teens. Bonta and Jennings have authority to regulate OpenAI, which is incorporated in Delaware and operates out of California. They raised concerns after reports of children harming themselves after interacting with chatbots. (Associated Press)
Don’t miss our story from last week on chatbot regulation legislation pending in California,
DISASTER RELIEF: A coalition of 13 states, provinces and territories has established an agreement to prevent and suppress wildfires. The Northwest Wildland Fire Fighting Compact enables American and Canadian members to share firefighting resources and technologies. Nevada and California joined the group last week. (Los Angeles Times)
In Politics & Business
NEW JERSEY: A new Quantus Insights survey finds U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) leading former Assemb. Jack Ciattarelli (R) 47% to 37% in the race to replace retiring Gov. Phil Murphy (D). The candidates are virtually tied among men, while Sherrill holds a 20-point lead among women. (Quantus Insights)
NEVADA: Washoe County Commission chair Alexis Hill (D) will run for governor, she said last week. She will face Attorney General Aaron Hill (D) in the Democratic primary; Hill said last week he had raised $1.1 million for his campaign since launching his bid in July. (Nevada Current)
NEW YORK CITY: Mayor Eric Adams is expected to travel to Washington this week to discuss his future prospects, and the chances of winning a job in the Trump administration in exchange for dropping his re-election bid. A source said Adams could be appointed ambassador to Saudi Arabia. He faces $3 million in legal debts in connection with the now-dropped federal corruption indictment he faced. (State of Politics)
PEOPLE: John Burton, the former state senator, congressman and chairman of the California Democratic Party, has died at 92. Burton led the 1980s redistricting effort to consolidate California as a blue state, describing his efforts to gerrymander the state through bizarrely-shaped districts as “my contribution to modern art.” (KQED)
By The Numbers
$2.6 billion: The amount of revenue Ohio received in August, $52 million more than anticipated. The year-to-date total is $245 million greater than last year. (State Affairs)
52,000: The estimated number of legal psilocybin sessions that will take place in Oregon in the next two years, nearly double the number that took place over the last two years, according to state economists. Voters approved a ballot measure legalizing psilocybin in 2020. (Willamette Week)
Off The Wall
Florida Rep. Jim Mooney (R) has refiled legislation to end the common mockingbird’s reign as the state’s official bird. Mooney’s bill would name the American flamingo as Florida’s official state bird, and the blue-and-gray scrub jay as the official song bird. The scrub jay is Florida’s only exclusively native bird species. (Florida Politics)
Former President Joe Biden will build his presidential library in Delaware, his foundation said this week. Presidential library construction costs have soared, from $43 million for George H.W. Bush’s library to $1.6 billion the Obama Foundation hopes to raise. (Associated Press)
Quote of the Day
“I have to slip it on right at the last second, because we’re not allowed to have props for our speeches. I always get gaveled down as soon as I put it on.”
— Michigan Sen. Ed McBroom (R), donning a Green Bay Packers cheese head during a floor speech just before the opening of the NFL season. McBroom, who represents a district in the Upper Peninsula, is a Packers fan; the Packers beat the Lions 27-13 on Sunday. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)