Latest news with #HB176
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
Two arrested at vape shops on Mansfield Rd, during SPD warrant operation
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Shreveport police announced the arrests of two people following the closure of a south Shreveport vape shop. Police say they arrested Alshameri Ali and Marie Ketterman during the closure of smoke and vape shops located at 9126 Mansfield Road and 9312 Mansfield Road. SPD stated that the arrests occurred on April 23 as part of 'Operation Curveball,' an enforcement operation. Investigators learned that the businesses were selling street drugs as well as unregulated products that are not FDA-approved. They believe that some of the items have made their way into local high schools. 'These types of businesses, when operated without proper oversight, place our children in jeopardy,' Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said. 'We are committed to protecting our community from those who seek to profit at the expense of public safety.' 118 warrants served, 60 arrested made during 'Operation Curveball' Ali was booked on two counts of distribution of narcotics and possession of a firearm with a controlled dangerous substance. Ketterman was arrested for the distribution of narcotics and the introduction of contraband into a penal facility. Legislators on the criminal justice committee voted to favorably pass House Bill 176, authored by Representative Gabe Firment, that would provide more stringent regulation of certain hallucinogenic chemicals in products that are packaged in ways that appeal to youth. If passed, HB176 would criminalize the production, manufacturing, distributing, or possessing with intent to produce, manufacture, or distribute products intended for human consumption that contain beta-phenyl-GABA, muscimol, ibotenic acid, or any analog thereof. The aforementioned chemical compounds all have psychoactive effects. Chief Smith stated in an SPD news release that his department is collaborating with city administrators and state legislators to explore legislation that would restrict the sale and availability of these products, particularly to minors. A Louisiana sheriff who testified in support of the bill detailed being called for a male who had taken psychotropic medication with his girlfriend, and after taking a higher-than-recommended dose, experienced a mental episode that required medical attention. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Unlimited wolf hunting bill dies quietly on final Legislative vote
A gray wolf in snow. (Eric Cole/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) After a relatively subdued floor debate — at least as far as wolf-related bills go — the Montana Senate on Friday voted to pass three wolf-hunting bills that originated in the House. One bill would extend the current wolf hunting season to align with the spring black bear season, one would allow the use of thermal and infrared scopes, and the third would have required an unlimited hunting season for wolves when the statewide population is more than 550 wolves. The latter bill, House Bill 176, drew the most attention during multi-hour committee hearings and on the House floor, where it was amended to change a 'shall' to a 'may,' merely stating that the Fish and Wildlife commission would have the option to create an open season. But that change was reversed with an amendment in the Senate committee. But during the weekend, seven Senators changed their minds on the bill, and during Monday's final vote on HB 176, the measure failed 23-27, after previously passing 26-24. Two senators, Sen. Gregg Hunter, R-Glasgow, and Shelley Vance, R-Belgrade, changed from nay votes to supporting the bill, while Sens. Jason Ellsworth, R-Hamilton, John Esp, R-Big Timber, Josh Kassmier, R-Fort Benton, Gayle Lammars, R-Hardin, and Sue Vinton, R-Billings, all opposed the bill on their final vote. Sen. Greg Hertz, a Polson Republican, carried all three wolf bills on the Senate floor, and opened his talking points by referencing the documents that originally delisted the gray wolf back in 2009, and estimated that the entire wolf population between Idaho, Montana and Wyoming would be around 1,100 individuals. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks estimates the state's numbers are around 1,100, Idaho's is roughly the same, and Wyoming has around 350 wolves. 'We've shown that we've reintroduced the wolves, and they have far exceeded where our expectations are,' Hertz said. 'So I think some of these new requirements and allowances on wolf hunting should be allowed.' But opponents said the bill was overly broad by applying to the entire state, rather than the northwest region where wolves are most heavily concentrated, and that overhunting wolves could set the state's management plans back. 'From a livestock part, we do worry, our associations do, that if we overdo this thing, there's a great likelihood that the wolves will get back on the Endangered Species list,' Sen. Butch Gillespie, R-Ethbridge, said, adding several livestock groups had opposed the bill in committee. 'Also, it's been my goal all along to get the grizzly bears off the Endangered Species list, and this also makes that a lot more complicated, if we reduce our wolf population too much.' Senate Minority Leader Pat Flowers, D-Belgrade, echoed Gillespie's comments, and said that a more targeted management approach would be a better option, and that frustrations that FWP wasn't doing enough to reduce the population should be addressed through other avenues than legislation. Their comments on the floor didn't seem to dissuade many senators, as the bill initially passed by two votes, but the final tally showed a much stauncher opposition. The vote put to bed the biggest legislative directive regarding wolves for the 2025 session. The two other bills passed on Friday sailed through their final readings with no vote changes, and will head back to the House for a final vote on Senate amendments. House Bill 258, extending the hunting season, was amended to remove a carve-out limiting hunting quotas near Yellowstone National Park — a change originally made by Democratic Representative Scott Rosenzweig of Bozeman to make the bill more appealing to the House. House Bill 259, expanding the use of night scopes, was amended to soften the directive from a 'shall' to a 'may.' The House has yet to schedule either bill for a floor vote. One other wolf-related bill passed the Senate earlier last week, allowing for hunters who lawfully kill wolves to be reimbursed for their hunting or trapping costs. [subhead] FWP adopts final wolf management plan [/subhead] Even as the Legislature has continued debating how it wants the state's wildlife agency to manage the wolf population, FWP announced last week it had adopted the final version of its wolf management plan. The new plan is the first comprehensive update to the state's management plan since 2003, and the department drew upon 20 years of 'management experience, evolution in conflict management, new laws, social perspective and public input,' according to an FWP press release. More than 24,000 comments were submitted during the multi-year drafting process. 'The former wolf plan served us well, but it was time to make sure our management plan contained the evolutions we've made in wolf research, monitoring, conflict management, and the changes to the legal framework we operate under today,' FWP Director Christy Clark said in the release. According to the department, the foundations for the management plan include: recognizing wolves as part of Montana's wildlife heritage; approaching wolf management similar to other wildlife species; managing wolf populations across the state with flexibility; and addressing and resolving conflicts. 'The overwhelming success of gray wolf recovery, to date, speaks to its importance and central role in the culture of Montana,' the record of decision for the plan states. 'FWP will continue to ensure the long-term presence of gray wolves in Montana.' One of the biggest shifts in the 2025 plan is a change in a 'key counting metric' for a minimum population benchmark. The old plan used the federal recovery baseline of having 15 breeding pairs of wolves, while the new baseline uses an estimate of the number of wolves that support 15 breeding pairs. FWP's new plan established 450 wolves as the 'benchmark to ensure' 15 breeding pairs, but emphasizes that 'this is not FWP's declared population target.' Instead, the plan states the wolf population may fluctuate anywhere within the 'estimated population size identified during the 2021 Legislative Session,' when a law was passed seeking to reduce the number of wolves to a 'sustainable population' of not less than 450. 'Wolf management discussions continue to draw a lot of attention from people in Montana and around the world,' FWP director Clark said. 'The 2025 Wolf Plan will ensure those conversations can be grounded in current science and the research FWP is doing every day.'
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
WWAMI has a vital role in the health care infrastructure of the state of Idaho
For decades, Idaho WWAMI has served as the major source of physicians in Idaho. House Bill 176 will sever this source of well-trained physicians leading to an exacerbation in the physician shortage, writes guest columnist Emina Gulbis. (Getty Images) As a current fourth year medical student at the Idaho WWAMI/University of Washington program, I'm compelled to address a major issue affecting the health of Idahoans: the proposed defunding of the Idaho WWAMI program being considered by the Idaho Legislature in House Bill 176. Idaho WWAMI in partnership with the University of Washington School of Medicine has been providing medical education and health care to Idahoans for 53 years. This partnership between Idaho and the University of Washington allows aspiring medical students to pursue their education at an academic center of excellence while remaining in Idaho. As I went through the medical school admission process in 2021, the drive to learn, train and return to practice in Idaho remained at the forefront of my decision. As a first-generation college graduate, I wanted to ensure I received the best medical education training I could and that I gave back to the community that supported my dream of becoming a well-trained physician. Idaho WWAMI was the clear choice in this regard. Idaho depends on attracting and retaining rural physicians As a student who has gone through the WWAMI program and whose set to graduate in three months, I can attest that attending the University of Washington/Idaho WWAMI was the best decision I've made. It allowed me to receive a top tier medical education and build connections with many local physician leaders while remaining in my home state of Idaho. I have elected to pursue OB-GYN residency and plan to return to Idaho and serve Idahoans after residency training. My clinical exposures in Idaho and the WWAMI physician network has further instilled a passion to return and serve Idahoans. In fact, the retention rate for physicians who train within Idaho WWAMI is 70%. This physician retention rate is among the highest across the country. HB 176 jeopardizes our ability to retain and recruit physicians to Idaho, which has disastrous impacts on the already strained health care network in Idaho. Idaho currently ranks 50th among U.S. states in physicians per capita. I have had the honor to serve in various leadership roles in free clinics in Idaho that provide care to some of the most underserved patient populations in the state. In every patient interaction one trend remains clear: accessibility to physicians is scarce. For decades, Idaho WWAMI has served as the major source of physicians in Idaho. HB 176 will sever this source of well-trained physicians leading to an exacerbation in the physician shortage. This shortage will lead to major impacts on health care accessibility across the state. Reduced health care access will in turn lead to worsening health outcomes for Idahoans. Funding Idaho WWAMI is essential and any loss of funding of the program will have detrimental impacts to public health in Idaho. Especially because the proposed legislation does not describe an actual plan for a future program. Ensuring the continuation of WWAMI Idaho is necessary to continue to recruit and build upon the current physician workforce. Let us work together to continue funding a well-established recruiting network of exceptionally trained physicians that aim to ensure every Idahoan has access to the healthcare they deserve. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
