Good morning, it’s Friday, February 6, 2026. In today’s edition, age-appropriate design code gets a constitutional facelift; Virginia Dems roll out redistricting plan; 16th candidate enters Alaska governor’s race:
Top Stories
SOCIAL MEDIA: The Electronic Privacy Information Center has released draft legislation for Age-Appropriate Design Code laws designed to withstand constitutional challenges. The new model comes after the tech industry challenged California and Maryland laws in court. It is based on Vermont’s version, as lawmakers seek to protect kids from new chatbots they worry could cause harm. (Pluribus News)
REDISTRICTING: Virginia House Speaker Don Scott (D) and Senate President Pro Tem Louise Lucas (D) unveiled new proposed congressional district map lines Thursday. The map would give Democrats the advantage in ten of the state’s 11 congressional districts. Democrats are appealing a court ruling blocking their redistricting push. (Associated Press)
See the proposed map, and its partisan breakdown, here.
MORE: South Florida voters have asked the state Supreme Court to decide whether Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) usurped state lawmakers by ordering an April special session on redistricting. The challenge argues redistricting is a legislative responsibility, and therefore DeSantis overstepped by ordering the session. (State Affairs) Maryland Sen. Arthur Ellis (D) won’t attend Senate floor sessions until the chamber takes up redistricting, he said Thursday, as pressure mounts on Senate President Bill Ferguson (D). (Baltimore Sun)
GUN POLITICS: The Virginia House approved half a dozen bills aimed at restricting access to firearms. The bills would ban the sale of assault-style weapons and large capacity magazines, create new penalties for leaving guns unattended in vehicles and require firearms be locked up in homes where children are present. (Virginia Mercury)
DEATH PENALTY: Alabama lawmakers have approved legislation allowing prosecutors to seek the death penalty against those convicted of rape of a child. The bill’s sponsor said its goal is to get the Supreme Court to revisit a 2008 ruling barring capital punishment for such crimes. Florida, Tennessee, Idaho, Arkansas and Oklahoma have passed similar bills in the last three years. (Associated Press)
ABORTION: Oregon lawmakers are considering legislation to bar state agencies from cooperating with out-of-state or federal investigations into the delivery of reproductive or gender-affirming care. The bill includes provisions narrowing the governor’s authority to extradite someone to another state for providing that care. (Oregonian)
PUBLIC HEALTH: The Iowa state House is advancing legislation that would end vaccination requirements for elementary school students. Students are currently required to be vaccinated against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella and chickenpox unless they claim religious or medical exemptions. (Des Moines Register)
GAMBLING: A Nevada judge has blocked Polymarket from offering sports predictions contracts in the state ahead of this weekend’s Super Bowl, at the request of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. (Nevada Independent) Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) is pushing legislation to require prediction markets to verify that users are 21 years old. (In Game)
In Politics & Business
ALASKA: Former state Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D) is the third Democrat to enter the race for governor. Kreiss-Tomkins, 36, serve in the legislature for a decade before leaving to work for a New York City-based nonprofit. (Anchorage Daily News)
For those keeping count, that’s 16 candidates running to replace Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R).
NEW YORK: Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay (R) will step down from leadership and won’t seek re-election in 2026, he said Thursday. Barclay has served in the legislature since winning election in 2002. (State of Politics)
MISSISSIPPI: The Senate Elections Committee has adopted legislation that would partially restore the ballot initiative process. The bill would require organizers to gather signatures from 10% of registered voters to qualify for the ballot. The legislature would be barred from undoing or changing a successful initiative for at least two years unless a supermajority votes for an emergency circumstance. (Associated Press)
A quirk in state law has barred initiatives since 2021. Mississippi law requires a certain number of signatures from each of five congressional districts — but the state only has four districts after the last Census.
OHIO: Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy (R) and his wife Apoorva welcomed their third child this week, his gubernatorial campaign posted on social media. Savithri, Ramaswamy’s first daughter, was born Wednesday. (Columbus Dispatch)
By The Numbers
32: The number of states that sent Olympians to Milan Cortina this year. The United States has 232 athletes competing in the games, the most of any nation. See where they’re all from, right here.
$92 million: The projected amount Delaware will spend on GLP-1 weight loss drugs for state employees this year, up from $14 million in 2023. (Delaware Public Media)
Off The Wall
The Rhode Island Department of Administration is issuing new W-2 forms to state workers, after initial forms incorrectly included the State of Rhode Island Umbrella Company as the registered employer. It’s not clear how many incorrect forms went out. (Rhode Island Current)
A California man facing criminal charges for allegedly BASE jumping off Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park says his Instagram video of the stunt was actually artificial intelligence. At least one other person was charged with BASE jumping near the park’s El Capitan during the government shutdown last year. (Los Angeles Times)
Zara Ibrahimi was summoned to jury duty in Darien, Conn., this week. The only problem: She’s just four years old. State officials said the mix-up came when Zara’s name appeared on a list from the Department of Revenue Services, the only agency that doesn’t include dates of birth for those listed. (New York Daily News)
Quote of the Day
“Do I make myself clear that we’re not going to have this tomfoolery and riffraff ever again this session?”
— Connecticut House Speaker Matt Ritter (D), rebuking a lawmaker who wore a political message on her blazer. (Hartford Courant)