State News

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office on Friday confirmed the arrest of two illegal immigrants who were charged with firing at a moving vehicle during a road rage incident, causing damage to the vehicle but no injuries to its passengers, prompting Sheriff Mike Chapman to urge the federal government to improve border security. In a press release, the sheriff's office announced the arrests of Aldo Betancourth Rivera and Jimmy Paredes Madrid, who authorities described as, "both of Sterling and undocumented."

The Arizona Supreme Court adopted an amended version of a rule on Tuesday to separate the State Bar of Arizona's regulatory and non-regulatory functions. The think tank sought to end the practice of the mandatory state bar using attorneys’ dues for political purposes. However, the state’s highest court also included an amendment that gutted the rule. The changes to R-24-0030 Rules 32(b) and (c), Rules of the state Supreme Court, will go into effect on January 1, 2025.

Two bills before the Michigan House Committee on Government Operations would grant public and district library directors sole authority over the selection, inclusion, and withdrawal of library materials, as well as prohibit out-of-district withdrawal requests. House Bills 6034 and 6035 would respectively create the Public Library Freedom to Read Act and the District Library Freedom to Read Act, which do not apply to school libraries. Cosponsor of the bills state Rep. Carol Glanville, D-Walker, said the bills are nonpartisan and aim to both support librarians and the communities they serve.

The University of Minnesota has been hit with a federal civil rights complaint regarding a race-based program—and it isn’t the first time the feds have been called in to investigate. Bill Jacobson, president of the Legal Insurrection Foundation and its Equal Protection Project, joined Liz Collin Reports to speak about the latest complaint his group has lodged against the U of M Twin Cities.

Pennsylvania schools looking to switch to renewable energy can now receive assistance from the state through its $25 million Solar for Schools grant program. For eligible schools, the program will cover up to half the cost of installing solar arrays on their campuses.

Eli Lilly and Company announced plans for a $3 billion expansion of the Kenosha facility that it bought in April. The expansion will be used to expand the medical supply company’s injectable manufacturing for diabetes, obesity and future medicines.

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp recently announced winners for grants encouraging both rural development and housing infrastructure. All the grants were issued through OneGeorgia Authority, an initiative of the Department of Community Affairs hoping to encourage “economic vitality in rural Georgia.”

New charter schools in Arizona are expected to be developed as a result of new federal taxpayer funding from the United States Department of Education. The state received a $34.8 million cut of the over $143 million awarded through the Expanding Opportunities Through Quality Charter Schools Program. Although the funding came from fiscal year 2024, it will be doled out in portions each year through 2029. The first two years will have a roughly $8.7 million budget, roughly $10 million in year three, and $5 million and $2.8 million in years four and five, respectively.

Republicans in the Arizona State Senate on Wednesday had submitted three bills ahead of the upcoming legislative session that they acknowledge are tougher versions of legislation previously vetoed by Governor Katie Hobbs earlier this year in remarks published less than one month after Senate Pro Tem T.J. Shope (R-Coolidge) suggested lawmakers could allow voters the final say on anything she rejects. The bills include SB 1001 by Senator J.D. Mesnard (R-Chandler), which would require voters using mail-in ballots to present their identification if submitting their ballots on the Friday before Election Day.

Polling released Thursday by Roanoke College found the majority of Virginians are either optimistic or hopeful for the future of the United States ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's second term in the White House. The survey found 60 percent of Virginians have a positive view of Trump's reelection, with 32 percent of Virginians hopeful as they approach Trump's second term in office, and an additional 28 percent telling pollsters they will respond optimistically to president-elect regaining the White House.

by Madeline Armstrong   Roosevelt School District in South Phoenix is considering closing five schools amid a deficit that a school official blames on universal school choice and low enrollment. District data suggests a different story. Superintendent Dani Portillo has cited declining birth rates and the expansion of ESA vouchers as the reason for low […]

The state of Ohio plans to use donated driving simulators to teach people living in or entering the country illegally in Springfield safe driving skills in hopes of easing ongoing traffic issues throughout the community.

Attorneys representing Jose Ibarra, the Venezuelan illegal immigrant sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student killed while jogging on the University of Georgia campus, on Tuesday formally requested a new trial for their client. Ibarra was found guilty of all charges related to his murder of Riley by Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge Patrick Haggard on November 20. The judge rendered his verdict after Ibarra waived his right to a trial by jury, and instead allowed the judge to determine his fate at a bench trial.

The day before the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in a case that could decide the availability of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgical removal of healthy breasts and genitals for gender-confused minors, the Minnesota Supreme Court heard arguments on another transgender issue: eligibility rules in private athletic competition. The hypotheticals from the justices got creative, with one speculating that bowling leagues could bar Catholics from competition if the high court upheld USA Powerlifting's ban on athletes in women's competition who have completed male puberty.

With the construction of the Ultium Cells LLC battery cell plant in Lansing nearly finished, General Motors announced it will sell back its stake to its joint venture partner LG Energy Solution. According to a news release, the transaction does not change GM’s ownership interest in the Ultium Cells LLC project, in which GM and LG have invested a total of $7 billion U.S. taxpayer dollars, sourced from a Department of Energy loan program.