Good morning, it’s Wednesday, August 28, 2024. In today’s edition, the California tech bills to watch; California moves to ban legacy admissions; Georgia aims to further restrict transgender athletes:
Top Stories
TECHNOLOGY: California lawmakers have until Saturday to finish their work for the year, and several major technology bills are on the agenda. Legislation barring algorithmic discrimination in employment decisions made it through the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month, where senators stripped out provisions that would have applied to housing and education.
Legislators are considering a bill to impose fines of up to $250,000 on social media companies that are liable for harm to children. Another bill would bar algorithmically curated social media feeds for minors, unless parents approve. A third bill would require internet browsers to come with settings that allow users to opt out of providing data to digital advertisers.
All of these could pass, or none of them could; crazy things happen in the waning days of a legislative session. But the tech industry and their lobbyists are on high alert: What happens in California in the next few days is likely to shape some of the big tech fights that will kick off in 2025. Read more at Pluribus News.
LGBTQ RIGHTS: A Georgia Senate committee heard testimony Tuesday from former college swimmers who are suing Georgia Tech over a transgender woman’s participation in the 2022 NCAA women’s swimming championship. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones (R), a possible candidate for governor, signaled the Senate would take up a ban on transgender women in college sports next year. (Associated Press)
MORE: California lawmakers have approved a bill expediting licenses for medial practitioners who specialize in gender-affirming care. The bill now goes to Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), who has until the end of September to sign or veto it. (Sacramento Bee)
EDUCATION: The California Senate has approved a bill barring private nonprofit colleges from giving preference in admissions to applicants related to alumni or donors. Legacy admissions have come under new state scrutiny after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions last year. (Associated Press)
ESG: Indiana Secretary of State Diego Morales (R) has sent a cease-and-desist letter to the financial firm BlackRock, claiming the company has deceived clients over environmental, social and governance policies. Morales’s office includes a Securities Division that licenses companies offering investment services to state residents. (Center Square)
SPORTS: Ohio Sen. Bill DeMora (D) and Rep. Brett Hudson Hillyer (R) filed legislation that would prohibit universities in the state from signing exclusive television rights deals with streaming services. The Big Ten signed a deal with several broadcasters in 2022 that awards some football games to NBC’s streaming service Peacock. (Ohio Capital Journal)
In Politics & Business
MISSOURI: More than 30 medical professionals have filed a complaint seeking to block an abortion rights measure from the ballot in November. They claim the proposed amendment violates the state’s single-subject rule, and they want Secretary of State Bob Evnen (R) to take the measure off the ballot. (Nebraska Examiner)
OHIO: The state Republican Party has endorsed every one of its nominees for state and federal office — except for House Speaker Jason Stephens (R). Stephens is running unopposed, but the vote exposes the raw feelings that still exist after Stephens won the Speakership with the help of Democrats. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
ILLINOIS: Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) and Chicago DNC Host Committee executive director Christy George say they want to host the Democratic National Convention again in 2028. Chicago has held more major party political conventions, 26, than any other city. (Chicago Sun-Times)
By The Numbers
$55.6 billion: The economic benefit visitors to America’s national parks contributed in 2023. More than 300 million people visit national parks on an annual basis, the National Park Service said. (NPS)
Great Smoky Mountains National Park had 13.3 million visitors in 2023, the highest number — by a lot — of any park in America.
$550 million: The amount in damages to Iowa properties hit by floods, tornadoes and derechos this year. Residents have qualified for about $60 million in FEMA assistance and filed $480 million in insurance claims for damage caused by the storms. (Des Moines Register)
Off The Wall
The Clearwater Thrashers, the single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, will keep their new bat dog Lucy May even after a rough (ruff?) start to her career. During her first game on staff, Lucy May ran into the other team’s dugout, then proceeded to poop near the pitcher’s mound. (UPI)
Dallas officials are seeking a new city manager, but there’s a little problem with the seven-page draft brochure advertising the open job: It shows Houston’s skyline. “I’m just going to say first off I hate this photo,” city council member Cara Mendelsohn said. (NBC DFW)
Quote of the Day
“With no chance of losing, with almost no chance of getting a primary challenger, with so many seats uncontested, you end up with one political party that’s sort of ossified in success and another political party that’s ossified in failure.”
— University of Massachusetts Lowell political scientist John Cluverius, on the number of uncontested races in deep-blue Massachusetts. (Boston Globe)