State Legislatures Magazine: October/November 2002

Editor's Note: This article appeared in the October/November 2002 issue of NCSL's magazine, State Legislatures. To order copies or to subscribe, contact the marketing department at (303) 364-7700.

Stateline

VIRTUAL VISITS OK'D
A state judge overseeing a child custody dispute has recommended that a Connecticut man and his two children spend time together via computers, a first for the state. The mother wanted to move to another state so the judge recommended videoconferencing, in addition to regular visits, as a way of keeping everyone in touch. Earlier this summer, a judge in Massachusetts ruled that some of the time a father spends with his 5-year-old son and twin 2-year-old daughters will be via videoconferencing. Parents can use cameras attached to their computers to send live pictures to children thousands of miles away. With a fast enough Internet connection, the parent and child can share real-time conversations, although real-time hugs are so far impossible.

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND
Developers and government agencies are proposing 11 wind power projects across New England, from the mountains of Maine to the Boston Harbor islands, according to The Boston Globe. If built, these wind turbines would provide about 4 percent of the region's energy. This is important in Massachusetts, where a law that takes effect next year will require utilities to increase the amount of "green" power they provide to customers annually. Maine and Connecticut also have green power goals. New England's offshore winds and high, unobstructed inland hills are among the country's best wind corridors. Concerns about the wind turbines include their appearance and the fact that they may harm passing birds. Modern wind farms, however, are proving to be much less threatening to birds than their predecessors. The use of wind power has grown rapidly in the last two years, mostly in the windy Western states, where wind farms are seen as an economic development tool generating property taxes and royalties for landowners.

ODOMETER FRAUD HURTS
There are more than 450,000 cases of odometer fraud each year in the United States, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Rolling back odometers makes it appear that cars have lower mileage than they actually do. That costs us consumers thousands of dollars in inflated prices and financing, insurance, taxes, and vehicle repairs. All states now meet the minimum federal regulatory requirements passed by Congress to prohibit fraud, but NHTSA found that very few states have a compr-hensive way to identify cases of suspected fraud.

AMBER ALERT APPEAL
More states are adopting the AMBER Alert warning system to locate abducted children. Amber Alert, now in about 17 states, is a partnership between law enforcement agencies and radio and TV stations to inform citizens quickly of child abductions by strangers. The system (called different names in different states) mirrors that used to notify the public about disasters, such as tornadoes, storms and power outages. Nearly three-quarters of abducted children are murdered within the first few hours of being kidnapped, so time is obviously of the essence. AMBER (named after a Texas girl murdered in 1996, but which also stands for America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) has been credited with saving 20 missing children nationwide since 1996. States are also looking to add electronic highway warning signs to their systems, since they were credited with helping capture a man who abducted two California teenagers in July.

IT'S A FAIRNESS THING
Large funding gaps still exist in many states between rich and poor school districts, according to a new report by the Education Trust. In most states (30 of the 47 states that submitted financial data to the federal government), school districts that educate the greatest number of low income and minority students receive substantially less state and local money per student than districts with the fewest. The greatest disparities were found in New York and Illinois. New Jersey and Connecticut, on the other hand, have erased their gaps. The good news is that the gap in about 27 states has decreased since 1997.

NO SPECIAL IMMUNITY
California lawmakers recently passed a law repealing special legal immunity for the gun industry, overturning a 1983 law that the state Supreme Court interpreted as giving immunity to gun manufacturers. Gun makers could now be held legally accountable. The 2001 Supreme Court ruling found that gun maker Navegar, which produced the banned TEC-9 assault weapon, could not be held responsible for criminal use of the weapon even though the company deliberately designed and marketed it for criminals. Twelve California cities and counties are pursuing product liability, negligence and public nuisance claims against the gun industry.

ON-LINE REGISTRATION

Arizona has become the first state in the nation to allow its citizens to register to vote via the Internet through a link on the Motor Vehicle Division page. Driver's license records are used to verify the address and other personal information of the voter. Citizens can also change an address or a party affiliation through the site. Secretary of State Betsey Bayless hopes the convenience will make it more likely that the estimated 1,193,000 Arizonans who are eligible to register will do so. But don't go trying anything funny. Anyone convicted of supplying false information is guilty of a Class 6 felony and can be imprisoned for 1.5 years.

HIDDEN DANGERS OF PREGNANCY
Pregnant women and young mothers in Massachusetts are more likely to die at the hands of their husbands or boyfriends than from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, according to a recent study by the state Department of Public Health. The study looked at deaths from the beginning of pregnancy until one year after the birth of the child from 1990 through 1999. According to the study, 90 percent of domestic violence homicides occur in the period from six months to one year post-partum. The study suggests that obstetrical health care providers screen for domestic violence, receive more training, and develop effective referrals and resources to help women.

ENGLISH--A SECOND LANGUAGE
The wave of immigrants in the last 10 years has put a particular strain on schools required to teach these children English. There are simply not enough teachers of English-as-a-second-language, especially in rural areas far from traditional immigration hubs. The number of students with limited English skills has doubled to 5 million in the last decade, according to the U.S. Department of Education. That's more than four times the rate for the general student population. There is only about one qualified teacher, however, for every 100 students learning English. Many school districts are offering bonuses, loans and other incentives to teachers. Others have looked abroad for qualified candidates.

THOSE DARN WEEDS
No cow pasture. No deer grazing. No wildflowers. Blame it on noxious weeds-not necessarily poisonous, but not edible either. State lists of noxious weeds vary, but all of them can take over millions of acres of native plants and destroy wildlife habitat. Local weed management departments may be getting some federal help to fight these invaders if a proposed bill-The Harmful Non-native Weed Control Act-by U.S. Senator Larry Craig of Idaho passes Congress.

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