TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalUS court upholds ban on gun sales to marijuana card holders
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal ban on the sale of guns to medical marijuana card holders does not violate the Second Amendment, a federal appeals court said Wednesday.
The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals applies to the nine Western states that fall under the court's jurisdiction, including California, Washington and Oregon.
It came in a lawsuit filed by S. Rowan Wilson, a Nevada woman who said she tried to buy a firearm for self-defense in 2011 after obtaining a medical marijuana card. The gun store refused, citing the federal rule banning the sale of firearms to illegal drug users.
Marijuana remains illegal under federal law.
Read more: http://hosted2.ap.org/AKKEN/00873362e3ae4101a4238b054d709f4d/Article_2016-08-31-US--Medical%20Marijuana-Guns/id-7a1ecd1df7d44aa8be0504ea5172edf5
USDA puts $27 million toward Alaska's villages to improve sanitation
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska's rural communities are set to receive $27 million in federal funds to help improve sanitation.
KTUU-TV reports (http://bit.ly/2bYtYSX ) that the funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development program announced Tuesday will support water, sewer and solid waste projects. The money will also be used to improve technical assistance and training, preliminary engineering and planning and solid waste management.
The village of Eek in southwestern Alaska will receive $5.9 million for a water and sewer project. Western Alaska's Unalakleet is getting $6.6 million for a water source and transmission project, while Saxman, in southeast Alaska, has been awarded $3.2 million to improve its wastewater system.
Officials say the state is required to match one-third of the $27 million awarded by the federal government.
http://www.newsminer.com/news/alaska_news/usda-puts-million-toward-alaska-s-villages/article_d6891f0a-6f7e-11e6-9fd0-0f3757f6a1d5.html (short article)
State analyzing higher claims for expanded Alaska Medicaid
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Costs for Alaska's expanded Medicaid program have exceeded first-year estimates by roughly $30 million so far, leaving some concerned about the impact the program may have on the state budget once the federal government stops covering the entire tab.
Gov. Bill Walker expanded Medicaid to provide coverage to thousands more lower-income Alaskans. Enrollment began last September, and as of July 31, nearly 20,400 people had signed up.
The federal government is expected to fully cover the health care expenses for the expansion enrollees through December; then, the state will start chipping in. The state share next year is expected to be 5 percent and grow to as much as 10 percent by 2020.
Under traditional Medicaid, the federal government funds half of most expenses, according to the state health department.
Read more: http://www.newsminer.com/news/alaska_news/state-analyzing-higher-claims-for-expanded-alaska-medicaid/article_dec9934c-6fc5-11e6-affc-2b31d81eba1d.html
Alaska Democrats say GOP Rep. LeDoux’s PAC is breaking campaign finance law
The Alaska Democratic Party has filed a complaint with state regulators against Anchorage Republican Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, arguing she's breaking campaign finance laws by raising money from lobbyists for a political action committee she controls.
Lobbyists are barred from donating to legislative candidates, except for lobbyists who live in the candidate's district.
But LeDoux, an attorney, had a new idea: soliciting lobbyists' contributions for a separate PAC she chairs. Officials at the Alaska Public Offices Commission, the agency that enforces campaign finance law, said the activity was allowed.
But Democrats say LeDoux and APOC officials misinterpreted the law — in particular, a section that says a "candidate" can be defined as a group that spends or accepts money with a candidate's authorization or consent, or under the candidate's control.
Read more: http://www.adn.com/politics/2016/08/31/alaska-democrats-say-gop-rep-ledouxs-pac-is-breaking-campaign-finance-law/
1,469-pound pumpkin broke the Alaska State Fair record
After five years of chasing the Alaska State Fair giant pumpkin record, Anchorage's Dale Marshall finally won the heavyweight title once again.
At the 11th annual state fair pumpkin weigh-off Tuesday, Marshall's 1,469-pound gourd beat the previous record of 1,287 pounds set in 2011 by J. D. Megchelsen of Nikiski.
It was a comeback of sorts for Marshall, who held the record in 2010. Marshall said warm weather and good seed selection led him to victory this year. Grown in a greenhouse at his Sand Lake home, the champion pumpkin weighs roughly as much as a large bull moose.
"
I did) pretty much what I do every year," he said. "And it panned out."
Read more: http://www.adn.com/alaska-life/gardening/2016/08/30/check-out-the-1469-pound-pumpkin-that-just-broke-the-alaska-state-fair-record/
Alaska attorney general: Marijuana social clubs are illegal
Alaska's attorney general has weighed in on whether or not marijuana social clubs – unlicensed venues where people consume cannabis, which sprang up in the aftermath of Alaska's vote to legalize marijuana – are legal.
"The answer is no," Alaska Attorney General Jahna Lindemuth wrote in a Wednesday opinion.
The 14-page document is addressed to Chris Hladick, commissioner of the Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development, who requested the legal opinion.
"If that place is not a licensed retail marijuana store, consuming marijuana there is unlawful," Jahna Lindemuth, Alaska attorney general, wrote in the opinion.
Read more: http://www.adn.com/alaska-marijuana/2016/08/31/alaska-attorney-general-marijuana-social-clubs-are-illegal/
State Agrees to $85M Foster Care Lawsuit Settlement
HONOLULU – Attorney General Doug Chin and Human Services Director Rachael Wong announced today the resolution of multiple class action lawsuits regarding state foster care payments.
In December 2013, a group of licensed foster parents – also known as resource families – filed a federal lawsuit asserting that the amount the State pays to resource families to cover the costs of caring for foster children was inadequate. A related lawsuit was later filed in state court. Prior to 2014 the basic board rate paid to resource families had not been raised since 1990, but was raised in 2014 following a 2013 DHS review process. Subject to federal and state court approval and approval of funding by the state legislature, the parties agreed on new board rates starting in the 2017-2018 fiscal year and also agreed on a methodology DHS would use to review those rates in the future.
Attorney General Chin said, “The settlement between DHS and the Plaintiffs ends years of litigation in both state and federal court and demonstrates that parties can work together on investing in the health and well-being of children and families.”
Director Wong said, "Our children and families are core to the state's ‘Ohana Nui (extended family) strategy. This agreement confirms our shared priority to invest in keiki and their families—biological, foster, hanai, or other—and provide them with resources and support to grow in healthy environments and homes. As Governor Ige often says, 'This is all about changing the trajectory of future generations' lives.'"
Read more: http://hawaiifreepress.com/ArticlesMain/tabid/56/ID/18163/State-Agrees-to-85M-Foster-Care-Lawsuit-Settlement.aspx
Credit union buys naming rights for Aloha Stadium field
HONOLULU (AP) - The field at Aloha Stadium has been renamed after a credit union purchased a three-year deal for the naming rights.
The field is now officially the Hawaiian Tel Federal Credit Union Field at Aloha Stadium. The credit union will pay $275,000 per year as part of the agreement.
That price is much lower than the $2.5 million Hawaii Airlines paid over the course of its five-year naming rights deal that expired in December.
Officials have cited declining attendance at UH games as a factor in the drop, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported.
Read more: http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/623312/Credit-union-buys-naming-rights-for-Aloha-Stadium-field.html?nav=5031
Court denies appeal in election case
HONOLULU - A federal appeals court Monday dismissed an appeal about whether a vote seen as a step toward self-governance for Native Hawaiians should be open only to Native Hawaiians or to all of the state's registered voters, saying that the issue does not merit consideration because the U.S. Supreme Court issued an injunction against such a vote.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also said it was dismissing the appeal because the Nai Aupuni group of Native Hawaiians dissolved in April. The group did not want non-Native Hawaiians to elect 40 delegates to draft a self-governance document.
Kelii Akina, who was among those saying it wasn't right for non-Native Hawaiians to be excluded from the vote, said that he and the other plaintiffs were reviewing the appeals court decision to determine whether they would take additional legal steps.
The appeals court cited the Supreme Court's December decision halting the vote and said it is possible that another Hawaii-based group may try to hold an election toward self-governance in the future.
Read more: http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/623375/Court-denies-appeal-in-election-case.html?nav=5031
Military man charged with urinating on Hawaiian burial mound at zoo
A 21-year-old military man has been charged with urinating on a burial mound protecting the skeletal remains of 200 Hawaiians outside Waikiki Zoo.
Cody Pace, of a Camp H.M. Smith address, was charged Tuesday with desecration, violating park closure, and urinating in public. His bail was set at $3,000.
About 2 a.m. Tuesday, Pace allegedly walked past an officer who warned him that the park was closed and urinated on the burial mound fronting the zoo, a source said. He was arrested at 2:03 a.m. at the zoo.
The burial mound was dedicated in 2002 and protects the iwi kupuna of 200 Hawaiians displaced by Waikiki construction projects. At the time of its dedication, the memorial still had room for hundreds more iwi kapuna that are displaced by construction projects in Waikiki.
Read more: http://www.staradvertiser.com/breaking-news/military-man-charged-with-urinating-on-hawaiian-burial-mound-at-zoo/
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