Latest news with #SenateBill43
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
CFA looks to continue message building
AUSTINBURG TOWNSHIP — The Ashtabula County Convention Facilities Authority met Friday morning and continued to discuss how to proceed with the organization's role in county economic development. Authority members discussed recent presentations with interested parties in Conneaut, Andover, Orwell and Jefferson regarding projects that could spur economic growth around the county. The organization receives a portion of bed tax revenue collected in the county. CFA President Holly Mayernick said she was disappointed with the attendance at the four meetings. CFA member Lara Reibold said some people in the southern part of the county thought the meeting was for elected leaders only, which affected attendance. The meetings were intended to share information from a study related to needs for lodging in different parts of the county. Mayernick asked members what should be the next step. Former Geneva City Manager James Pearson, a CFA member, suggested trying to gather a leadership team from each of the four communities to come to the next meeting. Other board members suggested inviting potential investors and economic development agencies from the county as well. 'We definitely want to talk about what our next step is,' Mayernick said. Nathan Hessler, an attorney and advisor to the authority, said it is important to get the message out to as many people as possible so investors and business leaders know what the authority has to offer. Hessler agreed with the idea of a combined meeting of economic development officials and leadership teams representing the various areas. Pearson said he would be willing to help facilitate the creation of leadership teams from each of the areas. 'Each of the communities need their cheerleaders,' Ashtabula County Commissioner Casey Kozlowski said. CFA member Meeghan Humphrey said she believes it is important to qualify in detail what the authority is and is not able to do. Authority members talked about a website, which could detail ways they can help a development project. Hessler said one way the authority can help projects is through ancillary assistance such as sidewalks or other infrastructure, which could lower the cost of a project. Kozlowski reported it appears state Senate Bill 43, which would eliminate the portion bed tax that goes to the CFA, is not active, but he is monitoring potential opportunities for it to be placed in the state budget bill. 'I think we are in good shape,' he said after thanking all the local people who contacted state legislators about the bill.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
REAL ID Delay? Kentucky lawmakers send request to Homeland Security Secretary
FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — A majority of Kentuckians still don't have a REAL ID. As previously reported, many are facing long wait times at drivers licensing offices, and now several lawmakers are telling the federal government Kentucky is just not ready. 'Somebody needed to speak up,' Sen. Jimmy Higdon (R-Lebanon) told FOX 56 News on Thursday. Beshear highlights efforts to return inmates to workforce REAL ID Delay? Kentucky lawmakers send request to Homeland Security Secretary Adair County school leaders cancel classes to attend funeral of middle school student May 7th is a date looming large for Higdon, who chairs the Senate transportation committee, when the nation's 2005 REAL ID law is set to take effect. 'Kentucky is simply not ready. We have less than 40% of our licensed drivers that are REAL ID compliant,' Higdon said. While a passport or permanent resident card is another form of a REAL ID, the most common is a driver's license, indicated in Kentucky by a black star in the upper right corner. If the government holds to the May 7th deadline, a REAL ID will be required to access military bases or federal buildings, and it'll be needed for any air travel. 'If it goes into effect, we're going to see an equal and more severe problem at our airports. When people show up to fly and they don't have a real ID,' Higdon said. Beshear highlights efforts to return inmates to workforce REAL ID Delay? Kentucky lawmakers send request to Homeland Security Secretary Adair County school leaders cancel classes to attend funeral of middle school student In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, cosigned by 27 other GOP state senators, Higdon asks for a delay and explains how the state has faced limited appointment availability and long wait times at regional drivers licensing offices 'A year would do; two years would be perfect,' he said. Higdon believes that, if implemented on May 7, the requirement could put additional strain on those offices that are seeing more in-person visits for more than just REAL ID. 'I think it's over 100,000. I'm going to get you the number. More appointments being scheduled because of the vision screening than we used to. That means there's been a huge shift from online to in-person, right as these other things are happening,' Gov. Andy Beshear told FOX 56 during Thursday's Team Kentucky briefing. Beshear said he agrees that a delay is needed, and both he and Higdon are encouraged that some relief is coming down the pipes when third parties like AAA can start issuing renewals in June when Senate Bill 43 takes effect. Higdon is also encouraging those that don't plan to fly soon or visit a military base to not worry about getting one. 'Your standard Kentucky driver's license is still a good tool. It helps with identification. It's all you need to go vote,' he said. So far, Noem has not responded to the letter. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kentucky lawmakers send letter asking for REAL ID deadline extension: ‘We just aren't there yet'
FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — Do you have your REAL ID yet? If not, you aren't alone. The national deadline requiring citizens to have a REAL ID to board a domestic flight in the United States is less than two weeks away, but Kentucky lawmakers sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Friday asking federal officials to delay its implementation yet again. According to a news release on Tuesday, April 23, Senate Transportation Chair Jimmy Higdon (R-Lebanon) joined 27 members of the Senate Majority Caucus in sending a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem asking for the delay, citing limited appointment availability throughout the state's regional driver licensing offices as well as an overall lack of REAL ID compliance in 30 states. Madison County advocates for emergency shelter funding on 'National Day of Action' 'Only about 40 percent of our residents have a REAL ID, but I would also like more time to help Kentuckians understand that they may not need a REAL ID,' Sen. Higdon said. 'Kentucky has made a good faith effort, but we just aren't there yet.' Kentucky lawmakers said in the letter that moving forward with the national REAL ID enforcement deadline as scheduled would strain regional offices that are already overburdened, as well as create unnecessary hardship for senior citizens and members of rural communities who can't find transportation to get or renew their license by the deadline. The Senate Majority Caucus noted in its letter that Senate Bill 43, allowing third-party vendors to help with license renewals, won't take effect until June 27, leaving over a month-long gap after the current deadline to help Kentuckians get REAL IDs. Kentucky lawmakers send letter asking for REAL ID deadline extension: 'We just aren't there yet' Nicholasville man allegedly had 300+ sexually explicit images of children on computer Detroit woman sentenced to 30 years for drug trafficking in Lexington According to the news release, the REAL ID ACT was passed by Congress in 2005. Initially set to be enforced in 2008, the deadline was postponed multiple times before the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to other delays across several states. For more information on REAL ID requirements and acceptable alternate forms of documentation, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alaska Gov. Dunleavy signs law declaring March as Women's History Month
Elizabeth Peratrovich, second from left, is one of the leading female civil rights leaders in Alaska history. On Thursday, Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed a bill declaring March to be Women's History Month in the state. Former Territorial Gov. Ernest Gruening signs the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945 in the photo. (Photo courtesy of Alaska State Library, ASL-PCA-274-1-2) Alaska will recognize March as Women's History Month, under a new law signed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday. 'This legislation encourages schools, communities, and organizations to honor the contributions of women who have shaped our state and nation,' Dunleavy said in a statement on social media. He shared a photo of signing Senate Bill 43 into law, pictured by himself at his desk in his Juneau office, with the Alaska and U.S. flags on either side. Bill sponsor Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson, D-Anchorage, celebrated the occasion. 'Women's history in Alaska is not only about past achievements but is also a way to honor the current and future contributions of women in Alaska,' Gray-Jackson said in a written statement Thursday. 'This bill is aimed to encourage our Alaskan communities to honor the contributions of women who have helped paved the way throughout our state's rich history.' Gray-Jackson thanked legislators for supporting the legislation, including Rep. Carolyn Hall, D-Achorage, who carried the bill in the House. 'Together, we will continue to inspire the future generations of Alaskan women,' she said. This year, the Alaska Legislature has a historic number of women representing districts across the state, with the first majority of women serving in the Alaska House of Representatives – also recognized in a letter of support for the bill by former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, the first woman to represent Alaska in the U.S. House of Representatives. 'It would be fitting for this legislation to be passed by our 34th Legislature, where we have a record number of women serving our state,' she wrote, acknowledging several trailblazing female leaders of Alaska, including Alaska's first female U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski. Murkowski and Peltola served alongside each other in the Alaska House from 1999 to 2002. 'By recognizing Women's History Month, we make it clear to women, especially young women and girls that they should not be afraid to be the bold leaders Alaska needs to guide us into the future,' Peltola said. 'We also honor the trailblazers that came before us, displayed remarkable leadership, and now serve as role models for our generation and the next.' Next year will be the first March that the law will be in effect. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Casino study is a good place to start but could be even better
Lawmakers want to study new locations for casinos. (Photo by) If Indiana were to start from scratch and legalize casino gambling today, we obviously wouldn't leave out the state's two largest population centers. That's why I am intrigued by a bill that would study casino reorganization — from the transfer of an existing, underperforming license to potentially adding a new license. Senate Bill 43 was the result of a failed attempt to move the Rising Star casino in southern Indiana to New Haven, just outside of Fort Wayne. The intense opposition stopped that idea, but led to the next one. The legislation requires the Indiana Gaming Commission to contract out for a study to identify two regions where a license could locate, which could add a 14th license to the mix. Honestly, I think the state needs a much broader study looking at gambling overall. Since Indiana legalized the lottery in 1988, lawmakers have approved virtually every other gambling option you can think about. Riverboat casinos (which have since moved onto land); racinos (which started out as slots at the horse tracks and now are full-fledged casinos); sports betting; charitable gambling; and low-stakes gambling at bars. iGaming proposal for lottery and casinos dead for the session All of these are cannibalizing each other at some point. Not to mention the interactive online gambling that casinos and the Hoosier Lottery are seeking. That bill also stalled this session. Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, called the study 'incredibly shortsighted' in an opposing speech from the Senate floor last month. 'If we are really going to look at this, instead of doing this piecemeal, then let's really look at our gambling revenues,' Brown said. '… If we care, then we should have an honest look at our gaming revenue that we're seeing. Whether it's horse tracks, whether it's the sports betting or whether it's the on-the-ground casinos.' 'It's a Jenga game. They all need to be looked at in a fix,' Brown added. But alas, we will stick with the current discussion. I understand that when gambling started in Indiana, lawmakers chose to put facilities near state lines to attract gamblers hailing from other states in which it wasn't legal. But it's a different world now. It makes no sense that the Indianapolis and Fort Wayne areas don't have casinos — if, indeed, the goal is to maximize tax revenue to the state. An amendment made to Senate Bill 43 acknowledged this, by narrowing the study from three regions to two. Sen. Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis, said any 'serious conversation' about a license needed to include his hometown, adding that the southeastern casino was 'dying.' 'If the purpose of gaming is revenue, why there is not a casino in downtown Indianapolis defies my understanding,' Freeman said. 'Because it would support all of our tourism, all of our big games, all our industry. Everything in Indianapolis — it would support it.' Some Indiana gambling operators have said this is destabilizing. And, of course, if you move a license to Indianapolis, it will impact the number of people from central Indiana willing to drive to the racinos in Shelbyville or Anderson. Same for Fort Wayne. But I think lawmakers need to look at the overall health of the industry and taxes brought to the state, rather than individual operators. According to annual reports by the Indiana Gaming Commission, gaming and sports wagering operations brought in $691 million in taxes in fiscal year 2022. That dropped down to $655 million in fiscal year 2024. Maybe the answer is fewer licenses overall, but placed for maximum impact. Maybe a study would find we need to go all in on more expansions. Or maybe we are right where we need to be. We need to think bigger, and consider what's best for all of Indiana. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
