The Thicket at State Legislatures

Heads Up

By Meagan Dorsch

Approximately 1.7 million people suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI) annually with 52,000 dying. While most of these injuries are mild, resulting in short-term disruption, such as from a concussion, many are severe, resulting in prolonged unconsciousness or amnesia and occasionally leading to permanent disability or death.

State lawmakers are working to develop policies dealing with TBI that seek to prevent injuries from occurring, diagnose cases of TBI, and to respond and rehabilitate TBI patients effectively. Two populations particularly vulnerable to TBI that policymakers have addressed are athletes, especially youth athletes, and veterans.

In this edition of The Buzz, we talk with Hollie Hendrikson, a policy analyst at the National Conference of State Legislatures who is tracking state legislation regarding TBI. Hollie talks about

Listen to this podcast (3:10) and find out what measures states are taking to protect young athletes.

You can also learn what steps states have taken to prevent traumatic brain injuries in youth sports.

Also, you can read an interview with NFL Commissioners Roger Goodell as he talks about the importance of laws to help prevent head injuries in students athletes in the February edition of State Legislatures Magazine. You can also view videos about legislation and see other steps the NFL is taking to improve football safety.

Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month

By Meagan Dorsch

Violence in relationships knows no age, race or gender. Physical aggression occurs in 1-in-3 teen dating relationships, according to the American Psychological Association.

State legislators have been working to bring attention to this issue not only in the public, but on the floors of statehouses across the country.

Their concerns are illustrated in statistics from the “Journal of the American Medical Association” that show one out of every five high-school age girls in the United States has been physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner. And during the time of abuse, 40 percent of girls reported that another person or a group of people was present.

Congress has designated the month of February as “Teen Violence Awareness Month,” and Hollie Hendrickson at the National Conference of State Legislatures has been tracking policy and legislation regarding this issue in America’s statehouses.

Hollie sits down with us in this podcast to discuss what actions lawmakers are taking to address this issue, what policy has been put into place, and how young teens can benefit from addressing this issue.

Listen to this podcast (3:09), and visit NCSL’s website for additional information on teen dating violence initiatives.
 

Lawmakers are Loving Hearts

By Meagan Dorsch

Many of us celebrate Valentine’s Day with dinner out or a box of chocolates. But it might also be a good time to think about our own health and heart. 

February is American Heart Month and it has become an opportunity to highlight both heart disease and stroke prevention. The newest edition of the Centers for Disease Control’s, Vital Signs,focuses on high blood pressure and cholesterol in the United States. The report indicated high blood pressure and high (LDL) bad cholesterol are out of control in our country.

Many Americans suffer from high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This can be attributed to our lifestyles and also genetics. One in three U.S. adults has high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and more than half of those with high blood pressure and two-thirds of those with high cholesterol do not have the conditions under control.

In this edition of the Buzz, Ashley DePaulis from the National Conference of State Legislatures joins us to talk about heart health. Ashley explains what high blood pressure and cholesterol mean to state lawmakers.

In this podcast (3:18), we discuss with Ashley recent action by state legislators that can improve health care access and treatment options for health care providers, policymakers and individuals.

Voters Take Stands on Budget Issues

By NCSL Communications Staff

Balancing the budget could become more difficult in several statehouses across the country after Tuesday night. Generally speaking, voters on Tuesday made it more difficult for legislatures to pass tax increases, yet gave consent to programs with high price tags and no revenue stream.

Voters in Washington rejected a plan to raise $11.2 billion in revenue over the next five years and required the legislature to have a two-thirds, rather than a simple majority, to approve tax increases. California, which already has the two-thirds requirement, now must meet the same threshold to raise regulatory fees. In separate actions, California voters rejected $3.3 in potential revenue increases and restricted the legislature to take funds from transportation programs and local government to help balance the state budget.

In this video, NCSL's ballot measures expert, Jennie Drage Bowser, recaps the actions that voters took on election day regarding ballot measures, and what it might mean for state legislatures.

 

For more information and a Complete wrap-up of the 2010 election on state legislatures, turn to NCSL's StateVote 2010 website. NCSL's press release also gives an overview of all the ballot measures across the country and what action voters took on various issues.

The 2010 Election Will Shape the Political Landscape for the Next 10 Years

NCSL Communications Division

Tuesday night’s GOP power sweep exceeded expectations, giving the party its largest number of seats since the Great Depression.

Republicans now hold about 3,890, or 53 percent, of the total state legislative seats in America, the most seats in the GOP column since 1928. The GOP will now control at least 54 of the 99 state legislative chambers, its highest number since 1952. As a result, state legislatures will likely reflect a more conservative political agenda when they convene in 2011.

Watch the video with NCSL's elections expert, Tim Storey, give an overview of the 2010 state legislative election.

 

Read NCSL's press release on how Republicans in 2010 state legislative elections.

For a detailed breakdown of state legislative elections and the results of ballot measures, log onto StateVote 2010.

Distracted Driving: It's More Than Just a Text

By Meagan Dorsch

Sit down, check your email, call a friend, text a co-worker or maybe watch a movie. Many of these tasks are done from the front seat of a car, not the living room sofa.

The cell phone is not the only thing that can distract a driver once they are behind the wheel, but it is quite often, it's the number one thing that pulls our attention away from the road.

Previously, we have discussed the issue of texting while driving in The Buzz, but since our posting over a year ago, more than half of the states have passed legislation related to distracted driving.

We thought it was time to sit down once again with Anne Teigen, a transportation policy analyst at the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Anne has tracked distracted driving and cell phone ban legislation over the past few years at NCSL and explains to us how this topic has remained relevant in state legislatures.

In addition, Anne explains what distracted driving policies are starting to take shape on the federal level and how it could impact the work of states.

Listen to the podcast (5:30) and let us know if you think distracted driving legislation should be passed at the federal level. 

K2 Legislation

By Meagan Dorsch

Its name on the street is K2 or spice. It's a manufactured substance that spread like wildfire across Europe just a few years ago.

Now, it has jumped the pond and hit the United States. This new drug can be bought over the Internet or in the convenience store on the corner. The high people experience from K2 is very similar to marijuana, but the drug itself is very different.

In this edition of The Buzz, we sit down with Alison Lawrence, a criminal justice policy analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). Alison is one of the only people in the United States tracking state legislation regarding the drug K2.

Alison takes time to explain this new drug and why existing state laws do not make K2 illegal. She also breaks down the actions state legislators took during the 2010 legislative session to combat K2 and what legislators are working on for the 2011 session. 

Listen to the podcast with Alison Lawrence (6:44) and get more data and resources on K2 off of our website and in State Legislatures magazine.

Download K2

 

Parties Vie for Control

By Meagan Dorsch

Will this year’s state legislative election be a landslide for Republicans? Voters will decided more than 80 percent of the country's 7,382 state legislative seats on Nov. 2.

Democrats are playing electoral defense in almost every state as Republicans are poised to make gains across the country. The only question is, will the gains be modest or historic?

In this edition of The Buzz at State Legislatures, we sit down with Tim Storey, an elections expert with the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Tim explains why Democrats will have to buck one of the most consistent trends in American politics this November and what this election means for the state's role in redistricting, which take place in 2011.

 

 

Tim also lists the top 11 battle ground states in the November in NCSL's press release.

NCSL has launched its StateVote 2010 website. This is a great resource for the public and reporters to get detailed analysis on legislative elections and ballot measures.

On election night, StateVote, along with The Thicket and Prop*50 blogs will have the latest results from across the nation.

What's On Your Ballot?

by Meagan Dorsch

Statewide ballots for the Nov. 2 election are coming into focus. The only way the total count will change at this point is if a court intervenes to remove a question from a statewide ballot.

In 36 states,155 measures have qualified for the November ballot, and another 24 measures have already appeared on primary and special election ballots.

Historical trends are not holding true this year, with the number of citizen initiatives topping out at just 42. Typically the total number of statewide ballot measures ends up in the neighborhood of 200, with around half of the total made up of citizen initiatives.

In this edition of The Buzz at State Legislatures Magazine, NCSL's elections policy analyst Jennie Bowser, gives us a preview of the measures voters will see on the ballot, any themes among them and what issues voters need to keep their eyes on.    

Our Prop*50 blog covers all of the latest ballot measure news from all 50 states. In addition, NCSL's StateVote website will keep you up to date on the critical 2010 election. You can see a state-by-state look at party control of legislatures, state government and governors' seats on our interactive maps. You also can get a nationwide view of ballot measures and breakdowns on some of the pivotal issues voters will decide on election day.

Reducing Sodium

By Meagan Dorsch

Consuming too much sodium put millions of Americans' health at risk. The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture recommend that Americans consume less than the maximum limit of 2,300 mg of sodium per day. But on average, U.S. adults consume twice that amount.

According to a report this year published in the New England Journal of Medicine, if the average American decreased their intake of salt by 1,200 mg per day this would result in 11 percent fewer cases of new heart disease, 13 percent fewer heart attacks, 8 percent fewer strokes and 4 percent fewer deaths each year. This could save states billions in annual health care costs and treatment associated with high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

In this edition of the Buzz at State Legislatures Magazine, we sit down with Ashley DePaulis, a health policy associate at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) to talk about sodium and what the possible health risks can be for consuming too much. Ashley also explains where our intake of sodium comes from and how sodium awareness has become a policy issue on the state and federal levels.

Listen to Ashley DePaulis' podcast (4:43) on reducing sodium to improve health.

NCSL has additional resources on sodium with a LegisBrief for purchase in NCSL's bookstore, or on our website.