Latest news with #269
TimesLIVE
22-04-2025
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
New Bentley Continental GT hybrid arrives in South Africa
Laminated acoustic glass reduces exterior noise, but the start bark and delicious idle of the new, plug-in hybrid engine are loudly audible. A 4.0 l twin-turbo V8 in conjunction with a 140kW electric motor and a 25.9kWh battery gives the new Continental GT a total system output of 575kW and 1,000Nm, distributed to all the wheels. It's said to sprint from 0-100km/h in 3.6 seconds and on to a top speed of 335km/h. The battery can be charged in three hours from dedicated EV infrastructure, while an EV mode allows silent travel up to 160km/h and an 80km driving range. New-generation chassis technology — including active torque vectoring, four-wheel steering, an electronic limited slip differential, 48V active anti-roll control and dual-valve dampers — ensures grand touring comfort or sporty driving prowess. The new Bentley Continental GT is priced at R5,269,000 and comes with a three-year/100,000km warranty.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Iowa House Black Caucus responds to DEI legislation passed by House Republicans
DES MOINES, Iowa — On Tuesday, Iowa House Republicans passed three bills that take restrictions on diversity, equity and inclusion in the state even further. Three bills passed: House File 269 that bans Iowa's public universities from requiring a course that has topics or instruction of items related to DEI or critical race theory; House File 401 that states required courses cannot include materials that teach identity politics, systemic racism, oppression or distort historical events; and House File 856 that bans DEI offices at all Iowa community and private colleges in the Iowa Tuition Grant. It also bans local governments and state agencies from spending money on DEI offices or staff. 'Almost half of surveyed college students agree that some speech can be so offensive in certain cases that it merits such harsh penalties or punishment, like the death penalty,' said State Representative Henry Stone (R) District 9 from Forest City. 'DEI ideology that is being taught to our kids and it is destroying, in my opinion, our country.' On Wednesday morning, the Iowa House Black Caucus wanted to respond to remarks made during debate and the bills that were passed on Tuesday. How to watch Iowa teams in NCAA basketball tournament 'The fact that diversity is the reason that there are accessible elevators in this building. It's the reason that we take the act of including and being inclusive of people. It's the reason why the Republicans put forward in the bill in support of service animals. That's inclusion,' said State Representative Ross Wilburn (D) District 50, from Ames. 'They chose to talk about race.' 'It didn't just happen. It came about because this was a solution to an issue and a problem that was facing, not just Iowa, but an issue that was facing us here in America, and so, dismantling that dismantles the progress Iowa has pushed for,' said State Representative Rob Johnson (D) District 34, from Des Moines. while referencing members of the 55th General Assembly where 90 plus House Republicans voted to move for equality and end segregation in schools before Brown v. Board of Education was taken up in the United States Supreme Court. Another member of the Black Caucus spoke about comments made about how its members did not reach out to any House Republicans during the last two months when these bills were moving through the process. 'I feel like there were comments made yesterday about the Black Legislative Caucus and how we are not reaching out to individuals on the other side of the aisle,' said State Representative Jerome Amos Jr. (D) District 62, from Waterloo. 'That is not correct. I call it political fodder, is what I call it. And for me, we reach out, we talk to folks. You have to understand that we are not communicating as much as we probably could. But also the other side was not reaching out to us. And I firmly believe that we have to, as a body, start communicating with each other.' Members of the caucus asked Iowans to reach out to their representatives and senators, republicans or democrats, to urge them not to advance these three bills. Also calling on the governor to not sign these bills into law if they make it out of the Iowa Senate chamber this session. Iowa News: Iowa House Black Caucus responds to DEI legislation passed by House Republicans How to watch Iowa teams in NCAA basketball tournament WHO 13 Farm Report: Wednesday, March 19th Fort Dodge police investigating death, apartment fire Attempted murder arrest in Ames shooting Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gov. Cox signs controversial public union bill, along with 12 others
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Utah Governor Spencer Cox has signed the first 12 bills into law, including the controversial public union bill, that would prohibit collective bargaining for public employees. Announcing the signing early Friday evening, Gov. Cox in a statement expressed disappointment that a compromise was not reached. 'Utah has long been known as a state that can work together to solve difficult issues,' Cox stated. 'I'm disappointed that in this case, the process did not ultimately deliver the compromise that at one point was on the table and that some stakeholders had accepted.' H.B. 267 — or Public Sector Labor Union Amendments — would prohibit public employers from bargaining with unions on behalf of their employees. The bill passed in a controversial vote in Utah's Senate, passing only 16-13. The bill then went to the governor, with demonstrators calling for the governor to veto the bill. In a statement to ABC4, the Utah Educators Association said they are looking into pursuing a ballot referendum to overturn the law, among expressing disappointment in the signing. 'Despite overwhelming opposition, Governor Spencer Cox and the legislature ignored the voices of thousands,' the statement reads. 'This is a blatant attack on public employees and our right to advocate for the success of our profession and students.' Along with H.B. 267, the Governor signed H.B. 269, which would ban transgender students from sex designated dorms. Here is a complete list of the bills signed today: HB 1, Higher Education Base Budget HB 4, Economic and Community Development Base Budget HB 5, General Government Base Budget HB 6, Transportation and Infrastructure Base Budget HB 7, National Guard, Veterans Affairs, and Legislature Base Budget HCR 1, Concurrent Resolution Regarding the Grand County Water Conservancy District SB 1, Public Education Base Budget Amendments SB 5, Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Environmental Quality Base Budget SB 6, Criminal Justice Base Budget SB 7, Social Services Base Budget HB 267, Public Sector Labor Union Amendments HB 269, Privacy Protections in Sex-designated Areas For the full statement from the UEA, see below. This is a developing story. ABC4 will update this post as new information becomes available. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Transgender dorm bill passes Utah Legislature, heads to Gov. Cox's desk
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A Utah bill proposing restrictions on transgender students in university housing passed the Utah Legislature Monday and is now being prepared for Gov. Spencer Cox to review. H.B. 269 'Privacy Protections in Sex-designated Areas' was passed by Utah legislators Monday and sent to the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel Tuesday to be enrolled, or prepared, for Gov. Cox to review. Cox will choose between signing it into law, vetoing the bill, or allowing it to become law without his signature. The bill seeks to restrict from living in sex-designated university housing that does not align with their biological sex. The proposed law would not apply to unisex or single-occupant student housing and makes exceptions for intersex individuals. PREVIOUS STORY: Transgender dorm bill passes Utah Senate, returns to the House The legislation was proposed shortly after House Speaker Mike Shultz called out a transgender woman for allegedly working as a 'dorm mom' to female students at Utah State University. The university said she was a resident assistant but there are no all-female or all-male residence halls. One parent told ABC4 that the transgender student was living in her daughter's apartment, a claim that the university did not address in its statement. This controversy led to H.B. 269, a bill that supporters say would protect the privacy of students. 'To preserve the individual privacy of males and females, a degree-granting institution that provides student housing may only rent to, assign, or otherwise place an individual in a dwelling unit that is sex-designated … if the individual's sex corresponds with the sex designation of the dwelling unit,' the bill reads. Politicians in opposition to the bill called it 'government overreach' and claimed the bill may have been thrown together hastily as the inciting event happened only weeks before the start of the legislative session. 'I have to wonder if there's not a way for us to navigate these spaces where there's discomfort in a way that doesn't 'other' people and make people feel as if they're being legislated out of existence,' Senator Jen Plumb (D – District 9) said during the open session. If Cox chooses to sign the bill into law, it will go into effect on June 1, 2025. This means transgender students will not be approved for housing that aligns with their gender identity come fall semester. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘The college experience': Transgender dorm bill passes Utah Senate, returns to the House
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A bill proposing restrictions on transgender students in university housing is making its way back to the Utah House after it passed the Senate Thursday afternoon. H.B. 269 'Privacy Protections in Sex-designated Areas' is returning to the House after 20 out of 29 senators voted in favor of the bill. If signed into law, the bill would restrict from living in sex-designated housing that does not align with their biological sex. The proposed law would not apply to unisex or single-occupant housing. H.B. 269 makes exceptions for intersex individuals. The bill also outlines how a student can refute an allegation that they are in the wrong sex-designated housing by providing an 'unamended' birth certificate. While there is no way of predicting the future, the with 59 votes of approval and 13 opposing votes in the House last week. Representatives will now look over any changes made to the bill and take another vote before it heads to Gov. Spencer Cox's desk. Utah lawmakers introduce transgender bills, address pronoun use in schools Supporters of H.B. 269 say restricting transgender students from sex-designated housing would better protect the privacy of students. 'To preserve the individual privacy of males and females, a degree-granting institution that provides student housing may only rent to, assign, or otherwise place an individual in a dwelling unit that is sex-designated … if the individual's sex corresponds with the sex designation of the dwelling unit,' the bill reads. The bill comes shortly after House Speaker Mike Shultz called out a transgender woman for serving as a 'dorm mom' to female students at Utah State University. The university responded at the time saying it 'does not have all-female or all-male residence halls,' and the housing in question is a co-ed hall. One parent said the transgender student was living in her daughter's apartment, but the university did not confirm or deny this claim, saying only that the student worked as a resident assistant. During the Senate debate, Democratic Senator Kathleen Riebe said some people had expressed that this bill 'was heavy-handed' and 'government overreach.' Senator Jen Plumb suggested this bill might have been put together hastily as the incident that sparked the legislation happened only weeks before the session. She then told stories of her own college experience, saying discomfort is real and a part of 'the college experience.' 'I have to wonder if there's not a way for us to navigate these spaces where there's discomfort in a way that doesn't 'other' people and make people feel as if they're being legislated out of existence,' she said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
