Civil rights records, walking in spiderwebs, making saints: News from around our 50 states

Alabama

Montgomery: The quest by civil rights pioneer Claudette Colvin to have her arrest record wiped clean nearly 70 years after she protested segregation has raised the possibility of similar bids to clear the names of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., whose convictions remain on the books in the former capital of the Confederacy. Parks, a Black seamstress and activist who refused to give up her bus seat to a white man in 1955, was convicted of violating racial segregation laws. King, who helped lead the resulting Montgomery Bus Boycott, paid a $500 fine after being convicted in 1956 of violating a law banning boycotts. Parks refused to pay her $10 fine, and she and King went on to become icons of racial justice and the modern civil rights movement. Yet their cases remain on the books, said civil rights attorney Fred Gray, who represented both. Montgomery County District Attorney Daryl Bailey said he would generally support a move to expunge the arrest records of King and Parks, but he’d need to see details of any such request before responding in court. Colvin asked a court last week to remove records stemming her from arrest and conviction after she refused to move to the back of a bus in 1955 in Montgomery, before Parks did the same. Now 82, Colvin – who was a 15-year-old high school student when she was convicted of assaulting an officer during her arrest and declared delinquent – isn’t sure such an effort would be possible since there was so much injustice for so long. “That would take a hundred years, maybe 200 years to go through the court system,” she said. “You could never finish it.”

Alaska

Sitka: Twelve bears have been killed in the city this year, including four last week, that were deemed dangers to life and property, the Daily Sitka Sentinel reports. The southeast Alaska city “has a garbage problem,” Stephen Bethune, a wildlife biologist with the state Department of Fish and Game, told the local Assembly recently. “Neither I or any of my agency colleagues like killing bears or the labor that ensues but will continue to do so as necessary,” he said. “However, removing bears from the population only serves to treat the symptom and fails to cure the root problem. ... That problem can be linked directly to Sitka’s current garbage disposal system and the unwillingness or inability of some members of the public to properly store trash.” He urged the use of bear-resistant trash cans and told the newspaper he would encourage the use of electric fences to help deter bears. Teal West owns a car damaged by bears last month. “My back trim and my back bumper were basically ripped off my car,” West said. “I taped the bumper back on, but I’m looking at around $6,000 worth of damage.” Bethune said he hopes the tension with bears in town eases soon. “Hopefully in the next couple weeks they’ll disappear, go up into the hills for the winter,” he said.

Arizona

Flagstaff: Conservationists and state officials say the popularity of Oak Creek Canyon, near Sedona, has created some real ecological problems for the corridor. A group of Arizona Conservation Corps members recently completed the second phase of a project that officials hope will rehabilitate many areas hit hard by visitors, improve water quality in the creek, and protect habitat for the threatened narrow-headed garter snake, the Arizona Daily Sun reports. A collaboration among the AZCC, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, the National Forest Foundation and the Coconino National Forest’s Red Rock District, among other groups, the project seeks to close hundreds of unofficial social trails that crisscross the area between the highway and the creek. Large rocks have been stacked under a fence. Guardrails installed along 89A have limited roadside parking spots that led visitors to cut more and more new trails. Teams have installed low fencing and placed thick blankets of cut juniper limbs along the edge of pull-offs. And they’ve improved about 40 trails in an effort to leave direct pathways to the creek, reducing erosion and making them safer. Over the last year, AZCC crews have addressed nearly 200 social trails along the creek corridor, said Ron Tiller, a Department of Environmental Quality scientist. In one area, he said, they cataloged 47 individual trails visitors had cut within just a quarter-mile stretch. The foot traffic increases erosion of sediment into the creek and often contributes to outbreaks of E. coli as human waste left by visitors is swept into the water.

Arkansas

Springdale: Jim Bob Duggar, whose large family was featured in the TLC reality show “19 Kids and Counting,” has announced he’s running for a seat in the state Senate. Duggar, who previously served in the state House, announced Friday on the family’s Facebook page that he’s running for the northwest Arkansas district that includes Springdale. Last week, Republican state Sen. Lance Eads resigned the seat to take a job in the private sector. A special election will be called to fill the term. TLC pulled “19 Kids and Counting” in 2015 over revelations that Duggar’s son Josh had molested four of his sisters and a babysitter. His parents said he confessed to the fondling and apologized. Josh Duggar has also apologized for his pornography addiction and for cheating on his wife. Josh Duggar is set to go to trial in federal court in November on two counts of downloading and possessing child pornography. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 on each count if convicted. A longtime family spokesman, Chad Gallagher, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that no family “is immune from tragedy, heartbreak or impact from the decisions of the ones they love.” He added that it’s “important to note that Josh is a grown adult.” Jim Bob Duggar, who was born and raised in Springdale, and his wife, Michelle, have 20 children and 22 grandchildren.

California

Los Angeles: A $650 million plan would give the Los Angeles Zoo a theme park-style transformation over the next 20 years. The city-owned zoo in the city’s Griffith Park area would get exhibit upgrades and new attractions such as a 60-foot-deep canyon for rock climbing and a hilltop building called the California Center in the style of a Yosemite National Park lodge with a sweeping view of a 25,000-square-foot vineyard, the Los Angeles Times reports. Supporters of the zoo’s “20-year Vision Plan” said building the features would increase zoo attenance by 72%, to up to 3 million visitors annually. But the construction would consume 23 acres of native woodlands, drawing opposition led by the historical preservation group Friends of Griffith Park and the California Native Plant Society. Zoo officials were thinking about the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games as they crafted the plan, said Denise Verrett, the zoo’s director and chief executive. The renovation would happen in seven phases starting next year and would be funded by grants and donations raised by the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, a nonprofit support group, and possibly a bond issue, according to the Times. The next step for the proposal is consideration by the Los Angeles City Council’s Arts, Parks, Health, Education, and Neighborhoods Committee.

Colorado

Brighton: Three police officers and two paramedics indicted on manslaughter and other charges in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain appeared in court for the first time Monday since being charged. Officers Randy Roedema, Nathan Woodyard and Jason Rosenblatt and fire department paramedic Jeremy Cooper and fire Lt. Peter Cichuniec each took turns standing before Judge Priscilla Loew with their lawyers in a courtroom in Brighton. As McClain’s mother, Sheneen McClain, watched from the gallery with her lawyers, each waived a reading of the charges and penalties they face. None was asked to speak. McClain, a 23-year-old Black man, died after being put into a chokehold and injected with a powerful sedative in a fatal encounter in the Denver suburb of Aurora that provoked a national outcry during racial injustice protests last year. He never regained consciousness and was later declared brain-dead at a hospital. While the former district attorney said he could not file charges because an autopsy could not determine how McClain died, the officers and paramedics were indicted by a grand jury this summer over a year after Gov. Jared Polis ordered state Attorney General Phil Weiser to open a criminal investigation into the case.

Connecticut

New Haven: With the legalization of recreational cannabis for adults and the impending start of retail sales in the state next year, several coastal towns are saying no, for now. Guilford, Madison and North Branford recently put in place measures that stop cannabis establishments from opening for nine months to a year from now, and Clinton has made it unlawful for any building, structure or land to be used as a cannabis establishment, producer, retailer or dispensary, the New Haven Register reports. The law signed in June by Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont law allows individuals ages 21 and older to possess or consume up to 1.5 ounces of “cannabis plant material” and up to 5 ounces in a locked container in a home or in the trunk or locked glove box in the person’s vehicle. Retail sales of recreational cannabis in Connecticut are not expected to begin until summer 2022 at the earliest. Clinton town manager Karl Kilduff told the Register that at a public hearing in September on the issue, 15 of 17 people spoke against allowing cannabis establishments in the town. The town’s police chief also expressed concern about a “black market” developing alongside the legal market.

Delaware

Dover: The University of Delaware has introduced new safety measures following student protests that criticized the school’s delayed action after a student was charged with attacking his ex-girlfriend, also a UD student, on Oct. 8. The security initiatives, which went into effect last week, include an expanded safety escort program, a new nighttime shuttle service and a reevaluation of the blue light phone system that connects students to police. “The safety of our community is our top concern and we’ll be actively driving improvement of all available resources for our students to address that priority head on,” John Long, the university’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, said in a statement. Long, who oversees the units in charge of campus safety, said he worked with President Dennis Assanis and other campus leaders to develop the new pilot programs. He said they are specifically focused on students going to and from their residences. University police officers will now have a golf cart to drive students to and from on-campus residences, according to the announcement. Those in nearby off-campus housing can take a shuttle from four on-campus locations. Both programs will run from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., seven days a week. Students can request rides using the LiveSafe app or by calling 831-RIDE.

District of Columbia

Washington: A George Washington University fraternity house was broken into and vandalized, with a Jewish text desecrated, WUSA-TV reports. George Washington University Police are investigating the incident in which a Torah scroll at Tau Kappa Epsilon was destroyed. The crime happened Saturday and was discovered Sunday morning, according to a police report. “Our entire chapter is outraged and saddened by the blatant act of antisemitism against our brothers,” the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity said in a statement on Instagram. The fraternity said it is cooperating with police and the Anti-Defamation League. In a tweet, the ADL’s D.C. regional office said it was disturbed by the incident and said officials were in touch with students and the campus police. “We expect a full and rapid investigation,” the ADL said. University President Thomas LeBlanc issued a statement late Sunday saying George Washington University Police is working with D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department to find who is responsible. “I want to be clear: I condemn all such acts of antisemitism and all forms of hatred, discrimination, and bias in our community. Any act of antisemitism is an attack on the entire GW community and cannot, and will not, be tolerated,” LeBlanc said in the statement.

Florida

Orlando: The University of Florida is prohibiting three professors from providing expert testimony in a lawsuit challenging a new law that critics claim restricts voting rights, saying it goes against the school’s interest by conflicting with the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis. Though the decision is being criticized as threat to academic freedom and free speech, the university said in a statement Saturday that allowing professors Dan Smith, Michael McDonald and Sharon Austin to serve as paid experts for plaintiffs challenging the law would be “adverse to the university’s interests as a state of Florida institution.” Lawyers for a coalition of civic groups challenging the law said in court papers Friday that the professors were told by the university that their expert testimony would dissent from the DeSantis administration, creating a conflict for the school. Attorneys for the professors said Saturday that they would take legal action claiming violations of the First Amendment and academic freedom if the school doesn’t reverse the decision. “The university cannot silence the professors on matters of great public importance. These professors are citizens entitled to participate in the marketplace of ideas,” attorneys Paul Donnelly and Conor Flynn said in a letter to a university lawyer. “These unlawful restrictions are shameful, and could very well deter top scholars from joining UF’s ranks.”

Georgia

Atlanta: A large spider native to East Asia has spun its thick, golden web on power lines, porches and vegetable patches all over north Georgia this year – a proliferation that has driven some unnerved homeowners indoors and prompted a flood of anxious social media posts. In metro Atlanta, self-described arachnophobe Jennifer Turpin stopped blowing leaves in her yard after inadvertently walking into a web created by the Joro spider. Stephen Carter has avoided a walking trail along the Chattahoochee River where he encountered Joro webs every dozen steps. Farther east in Winterville, Will Hudson’s front porch became unusable amid an abundance of Joro webs 10 feet deep. Hudson estimates he’s killed more than 300 of the spiders on his property. “The webs are a real mess,” said Hudson, an entomologist at the University of Georgia. “Nobody wants to come out of the door in the morning, walk down the steps and get a face full of spider web.” The Joro – Trichonephila clavata – is part of a group of spiders known as orb weavers for their highly organized, wheel-shaped webs. Common in Japan, China, Korea and Taiwan, Joro females have colorful yellow, blue and red markings on their bodies. They can measure 3 inches across when their legs are fully extended. Hudson is convinced they will spread across the South.

Hawaii

Honolulu: Lava continues to pour out of Kilauea’s summit crater, more than a month after the latest eruption began at the Hawaii volcano. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said Friday that lava was emerging from a single vent inside Halemaumau Crater. The eruption is contained within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and isn’t threatening any homes. Nightime aerial video shot from a helicopter shows lava gushing from a vent and spreading across the crater floor. Kilauea is one of the world’s most active volcanoes. It has erupted dozens of times since 1952. The latest eruption began inside the crater Sept. 29. In 2018, the volcano erupted from vents within a residential neighborhood. That episode sent streams of lava across the Puna district of the Big Island, destroying farms and more than 700 homes.

Idaho

Boise: Instances of hoarding, illegal reselling and bad behavior by customers have caused the state agency that sells alcohol to change how it rolls out rare spirits at stores, officials said. The Idaho State Liquor Division late last month announced new rules involving rare but highly sought-after bourbons, whiskeys and other small-batch liquor offerings. That combination has resulted in what the agency calls unsavory behavior by some customers that includes harassment of store workers. The new rules mean the agency will now sporadically allocate rare products across its 67 retail outlets to create what it calls a “treasure hunt” approach. The agency also has stopped listing rare-product inventory on its website and will only sell alcohol visible on store shelves. The changes follow reports of shoppers getting “very aggressive with these products,” Tony Faraca, the Idaho State Liquor Division’s chief financial officer, told The Idaho Statesman. “We know that there is a lot of hoarding going on,” he said. “We know that there are illegal secondary sales going on. Our store employees are being harassed by these whiskey groups. It’s causing a lot of stress and turmoil with our staff.” He said some groups try to buy up rare bottles that have limits of one per customer. Some customers, armed with inventory details, have tried to persuade employees to go into storage and dig through unopened boxes. Now that the agency has stopped sharing inventory details, “our hope is that more people will get to partake in the rare product,” Faraca said.

Illinois

Chicago: A judge on Monday suspended a Dec. 31 deadline for the city’s police officers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 but didn’t interfere with a requirement that they be regularly tested for the coronavirus. Disputes over vaccinations should be handled as a labor grievance with an arbitrator, Cook County Judge Raymond Mitchell said. “The effect of this order is to send these parties back to the bargaining table and to promote labor peace by allowing them to pursue” remedies under Illinois law, Mitchell said. The grievance process could last months, the city said last week. Officers who haven’t been vaccinated still must be tested twice a week under city policy. Officers also can lose work and pay if they don’t disclose their vaccine status. “The principal risk to those who are unvaccinated is to themselves and to others who choose to be unvaccinated,” the judge said. Police Superintendent David Brown last week said 70% had disclosed their vaccination status, and 80% of those officers reported being vaccinated. Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration announced the vaccine policy weeks ago, drawing sharp objections from police union leaders. The judge noted that COVID-19 has killed many officers nationwide. “In light of that terrible sacrifice, the police unions’ request just to have their grievances heard seems a pretty modest task,” Mitchell said.

Indiana

Connersville: A fire that badly damaged a Black City Council member’s home is being investigated by the FBI after a racial slur was found spray-painted at the house. The fire broke out about 3:30 a.m. Friday at the home of Connersville City Councilman Tommy Williams, who is Black, while his wife said the couple and their two sons were away on vacation. The racial slur was painted on the back patio, and FBI agents spent Saturday at the house, Emma Williams said. FBI Special Agent Steve Secor confirmed Monday that the agency was working with state and local authorities investigating the fire in the 13,000-person city about 50 miles east of Indianapolis. Secor said no suspects had been immediately identified. Williams said she had no idea who would attack her family in this way, and she was forgiving whoever is responsible. “I’m grateful for our community,” Williams told WXIN-TV. “We have really good people here, and I don’t want this to be a message that represents our village here because it’s a lie. It’s not what we’re about here.” Tommy Williams, a retired U.S. Postal Service worker and Army veteran, was elected by a Republican caucus last year to fill a City Council vacancy. An online fundraiser had collected more than $30,000 on Monday to assist the family’s recovery.

Iowa

Cedar Rapids: Beef, chicken, bread, fruit and vegetables, and paper products are among items school districts are struggling to get so they can provide varied and quality meals to students. Schools are making changes to their breakfast and lunch menus “nearly weekly” to account for items that are delayed or unavailable, said Alison Demory, Iowa City schools’ nutrition services director. “If we saw the light at the end of the tunnel, we might feel a little better,” Demory told the Cedar Rapids Gazette. “I’ve heard this isn’t going to go away any time soon.” Staffing shortages at food manufacturers and distributors are making it challenging to make and transport enough products to meet the demand, Demory said. Some items can be ordered only in a limited quantity, which may not meet the needs of the Iowa City district. “If we can only order two cases of a product at a time, that’s a problem,” Demory said. Instead of providing individual bags of chips, the district is purchasing bulk orders and portioning them out to students, which requires more preparation, Demory said, giving an example of how the supply chain shortages can cause more work down the line. Cedar Rapids schools have had to substitute products but are able to offer similar items to “maintain the quality and integrity of our meals,” said Jennifer Hook, Cedar Rapids schools’ food and nutrition department manager.

Kansas

Overland Park: A first-year state lawmaker, who was reprimanded by his colleagues for abusive conduct before taking office, has been arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. Democratic state Rep. Aaron Coleman of Kansas City remained in custody Sunday afternoon, according to Johnson County Jail records. The 21-year-old was arrested Saturday evening by Overland Park police on a domestic battery charge. Police didn’t immediately respond to messages Sunday, and calls to Coleman’s cellphone rang unanswered Sunday. Coleman is not married, and details of his domestic situation were not immediately available. It wasn’t immediately clear what consequences Coleman might face in the House after his arrest. He was being held without bond ahead of a court appearance scheduled for Monday. “Given what little we know about the situation, I am concerned for everyone involved,” Speaker of the House Ron Ryckman told the Kansas City Star. “I know that law enforcement will thoroughly investigate and assess the situation so that we can take appropriate action.” House Democratic Leader Tom Sawyer said Coleman should resign. “This is extremely disturbing news. We are watching closely to make sure we gather all the facts,” Sawyer said.

Kentucky

Louisville: The state’s workers are taking a cue from country crooner Johnny Paycheck, telling their employers to “take this job and shove it.” And they’re doing so at a rate higher than any other state in the country. In August, 84,000 Kentuckians quit their jobs – a 26,000-person increase from the number who quit in July, according to the State Job Openings and Labor Turnover report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With the mass exodus of workers in Kentucky, the commonwealth has the nation’s highest quit rate, the total number of workers who quit during an entire month as a percent of total employment. In Kentucky, the quit rate was 4.5% as of August – a 1.4% increase from the month prior, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The states with the next-highest quit rates were Georgia and Idaho, with rates of 4.2% and 4.1%, respectively. But there is a glimmer of hope for the commonwealth: 103,000 Kentuckians were hired in August 2021, with a hire rate of 5.5%, the fifth-highest of any state and 1.2% higher than the national average. Gov. Andy Beshear said during a recent press conference that “our challenges in the labor market are complex” but that “there’s some really good things going on right now,” and “people ought to feel more hope than concern.”

Louisiana

Baton Rouge: The state is continuing its “Shot for $100” COVID-19 vaccine incentive program through November, hoping to persuade more people to get the shots by offering them money. More than 19,000 people have received a Visa cash card through the effort so far. The program aimed at college students started in August. Gov. John Bel Edwards expanded it in October to cover anyone getting newly vaccinated. The state Department of Health said 5- to 11-year-olds will be eligible if federal officials sign off on a vaccine for the children and if their parents give consent for them to get immunized. “Thanks to many Louisianans working together, the fourth surge is behind us, but in order to help avoid another surge we need many more of our people to get vaccinated,” Edwards, a Democrat, said in a statement. “This is how we’re going to put this pandemic behind us and protect our loved ones and our communities.” To be eligible, people must use one of the community-based vaccination sites listed on ShotFor100.com. A person may only participate once in the program. After getting the shot, those participating receive the gift card and must register it online so it will be loaded with $100. More information is available on the website or by calling Louisiana’s vaccine hotline at 1-855-453-0774.

Maine

Portland: The battle over a 145-mile electricity transmission line is the most expensive ballot-question campaign in the state’s history. More than $90 million from utilities has flowed into the fight over the $1 billion project funded by ratepayers in Massachusetts that supporters say would remove carbon from the environment and provide needed electricity. The high-stakes campaign put environmental and conservation groups at odds and pitted utilities backing the project against operators of fossil fuel-powered plants that stand to lose money. Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who supports the project, made a last-minute pitch over the weekend for bold action against climate change. “We just can’t afford just to do nothing,” she said. A ballot question Tuesday will let Maine voters have their say. The project has received all the necessary permits, and construction began 10 months ago. But a court ruling called into question a state lease for a 1-mile section. More litigation is expected regardless of the outcome of the vote. Lewiston Mayor Mark Cayer said he doesn’t understand the opposition, noting that the new sections are being built in working forests that have been logged repeatedly over the years.

Maryland

Baltimore: The process of recognizing saints in Catholicism can take generations, but the church can accelerate matters when it wants, as it did in the cases of Mother Teresa of Calcutta and Pope John Paul II, waiving a five-year waiting period after their deaths to get the process started. Now a group of Baltimore Catholics says it’s time to expedite the cases of six other heroes of the faith. Parishioners of St. Ann’s Catholic Church, a predominantly African American congregation, and the two other churches in its pastorate, Historic St. Francis Xavier and St. Wenceslaus, seek to make the case that the church should immediately canonize six Black American Catholics. Those include Mother Mary Lange, a Baltimore nun who started and ran a school for Black children during the era of slavery. They supporters planned to use a special Mass at St. Ann’s on Monday night to advocate for the cause, and organizers have said they’ll also use the All Saints’ Day service to launch a national letter-writing campaign to Pope Francis. Also among the proposed candidates are a Haitian American former slave, Pierre Toussaint, who went on to became a successful business owner and philanthropist, and Mississippi-born scholar-evangelist Thea Bowman. They had to overcome so much racism inside and outside the church during their lives that their cases should be viewed as exceptional, said Ralph E. Moore Jr., a St. Ann’s member helping to lead the effort. The church has never made a Black American Catholic a saint.

Massachusetts

Orleans: The Coast Guard and other authorities were searching off the coast of Cape Cod on Monday for a small plane that failed to arrive as scheduled Sunday night, officials said. The Piper PA-28 that departed from Reading, Pennsylvania, was reported missing about 10 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. It was headed to Chatham Municipal Airport in Massachusetts. One person was on board the plane, the Coast Guard said in a tweet. The original call was made to the Air Force Regional Command Center by a concerned friend who was waiting for the aircraft in Chatham. The Air Force then contacted the Coast Guard. The aircraft’s last transmitted transponder signal was at 6:49 p.m. descending at 4,000 feet per minute. The search taking place off Nauset Beach in Orleans involved a Coast Guard fixed-wing aircraft and a helicopter and three Coast Guard vessels, as well as area harbormasters and other assets, the Coast Guard said. No information about the plane’s occupant was released.

Michigan

Mackinaw City: Business owners on Mackinac Island are celebrating a big rebound in tourism this year after fewer visitors made the journey to the island in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Many visitors discovered the iconic carless-island getaway for the first time this year, said business owners on the island, which sits in the Straits of Mackinac separating Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas. Chris Shepler, a third-generation operator of Shepler’s Ferry, which shuttles visitors to Mackinac Island, said the summer “was out of control” for the ferry service. “Absolutely crazy. We set records for our all-time busiest summer in the history of our company,” he said. Through Sept. 1, the island’s overall hotel room revenue for the 2021 season was on pace to smash the record year it saw in 2019, when revenue topped $74.56 million, said Tim Hygh, executive director of the Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau. Final data is still be crunched for 2021, he said. “It came after vaccinations, and people were so eager to travel. The market found us,” Hygh said. As everything closes up for the season on the island known for its hiking, biking and horse-drawn carriage rides, Mackinac Island Mayor Margaret Doud said she’s cautious but hopeful about what 2022 may hold. “I look forward to moving out of the pandemic, but we are still in a pandemic,” said Doud, who is often found at the front desk of the iconic Windermere Hotel.

Minnesota

St. Paul: Those who monitor voting access for people with disabilities say the state generally does a good job on the issue, but it’s not without challenges. Minnesota Council on Disability ADA Director David Fenley said while barriers still persist, the state provides good general access for voters with different disabilities. Polling stations are equipped with an accessible voting machine for people with vision impairments, with many counties using an electronic ballot marker machine called AutoMARK. “Just say, ‘Hey, where’s your AutoMARK? I need an accessible voting machine,’ ” he advised. Grace Gouker Littlefield, executive director at a new Minnesota-based organization called Able to Vote, is working to connect people with voting resources. Littlefield said she wants to see more disabled voters like herself with equal access across the country, starting in her own backyard this fall, Minnesota Public Radio News reports. A chat feature on AbleToVote.org connects staff to people who need assistance finding transportation to the polls, coming up with a voting plan or reporting an accessibility barrier. “Just understand that the lives of people with disabilities can be very complex,” Littlefield said. “And this process should not be political, even though people are voting for political offices sometimes.”

Mississippi

Jackson: The city will soon start installing larger water pipes to replace some of the lines that failed during a deep freeze that struck the Deep South in February. WLBT-TV reports 48-inch cast iron water transmission lines have been arriving in south Jackson. City engineer Charles Williams said officials gave the order last week to proceed with the final phase of the project, which involves laying 2 miles of pipes in the area. The work will connect water transmission lines from the O.B. Curtis Treatment Plant to south Jackson. They will replace 24-inch pipes that failed to provide adequate water pressure from the plant during the winter storm. Thousands of Jackson residents lost water service for weeks after the storm, and those with running water had to boil it because of the danger of contamination when pressure is low. “We’re actually placing a new water main service, and then we’ll be taking off some of the existing service lines that are in the area that are smaller and tie it into that 48,” Williams said. “So the improved capacity will help improve water pressure and also limit disruptions of service due to failed water mains.” The $8 million project is funded through federal money. Installation of the new pipes is expected to be complete by March 2023, depending on weather.

Missouri

Jefferson City: One of the leaders of a St. Louis charter school has been appointed to the State Board of Education by Gov. Mike Parson. Kerry Casey will begin serving on the state board immediately, the governor’s office said Monday. Her term will run until July 1, 2027, if she is confirmed by the state Senate. The State Board of Education oversees Missouri’s 518 public school districts, 37 charter schools, and state schools for the blind, deaf and severely disabled. Casey, of Chesterfield, was a founding board member of the KIPP Charter School and continues to serve on its board. She also is vice president for global sales at Exegy, a financial markets data company. She replaces Victor Lenz of St. Louis, whose term on the State Board of Education expired in July 2019. Missouri law allows board members to continue serving until the governor appoints a replacement. Lenz had been serving as the board’s vice president. Two other board members also are serving on expired terms: President Charlie Shields of St. Joseph, whose term expired in July 2020, and Donald Claycomb of Linn, whose term expired this past July.

Montana

Helena: The state’s redistricting commission delayed a decision on a map dividing the state into congressional districts after an all-day meeting Saturday. The commission failed to reach a consensus on the map proposals it was considering, instead kicking the decision until after receiving more public comments this week as it speeds toward a Nov. 14 deadline. The two Democrats on the commission pushed to approve a map they had proposed that would divide the state into an eastern and western district and place Kalispell, a Republican stronghold in the northwest corner of the state, in the eastern district. That map would give Democrats a fighting shot at winning in the western district despite the state’s increasingly red political hue. But the map faced opposition from Republican members of the commission, who are against placing the mountain community of Kalispell in an eastern district dominated by prairieland and agricultural communities. Commission Chair Maylinn Smith, who was appointed by the state’s Supreme Court, said she could not break the tie in favor of a proposal by Democrats or Republicans before receiving additional public comment on a new proposal submitted by the Republican members of the commission just two days before the meeting.

Nebraska

Bridgeport: One small western Nebraska county is using roughly half the federal coronavirus aid money it is set to receive for bonuses of up to $10,000 each for county employees. Morrill County officials approved the bonuses in August as hazard pay for the county’s roughly 50 employees, according to the Omaha World-Herald. The county is set to receive about $900,000 from the federal program. Most of the state’s 92 other counties are still deciding how to spend the roughly $376 million they will share from the American Rescue Plan Act, but the Morrill County attorney and officials with the Nebraska Association of County Officials say using the money for premium pay is allowed. Jon Cannon, the executive director of the counties group, said he’s telling officials not to rush to spend the money because they have until the end of 2024 to decide what to use it for. Morrill County officials said the bonuses were warranted because of the work employees did throughout the pandemic, which included keeping the courthouse in Bridgeport open the entire time. “There were a lot of things you couldn’t use it for,” said Jeff Metz, of Angora, chairman of the three-member Morrill County Board. “We ran across that one of the allowable expenses was hazard pay. We felt that fit with what we were trying to do.”

Nevada

Las Vegas: The return this week of a big automotive products trade show is expected to draw as many as 100,000 people to the Las Vegas Convention Center, tourism and event officials said. The Specialty Equipment Market Association show, commonly known as SEMA, opens Tuesday, after being canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic. It runs through Thursday, followed by a public event Friday dubbed “SEMA Ignited” in the convention center parking area. A companion event, the Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo, will be held at the Sands Expo and Convention Center – part of what the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority dubs Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week. SEMA represents a multibillion-dollar automotive aftermarket industry and has been held in Las Vegas since 1977, when it moved from the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Electric vehicles will be featured this year, and convention attendees will be able to ride Tesla vehicles in the nearly 1-mile underground people-mover built between convention center stops by Elon Musk’s The Boring Co. SEMA executive Tom Gattuso told the Las Vegas Review-Journal the show this year has 51,000 registered buyers and could host 100,000 industry professionals.

New Hampshire

Lincoln: A company that offers old-fashioned train rides along Lake Winnipesaukee and the Pemigewasset River says it won’t operate its annual Santa Express Trains this season because of rising COVID-19 cases in the state. The Hobo & Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad said in news release Monday that it hopes to offer the holiday trips, during which participants meet Santa and Mrs. Claus, next year. The Santa Express trains run from Lincoln. The railroad still plans to reopen for its regular season next year in mid-May. “The railroad had planned to make Santa Express Train tickets available in early November, but due to COVID-19 positivity rates trending upward, we felt it best to hold off on ticket sales due to the surrounding uncertainty,” railroad manager Benjamin Clark said. Last week, Dr. Benjamin Chan, the state epidemiologist, said New Hampshire continues to have a high or substantial level of community transmission, averaging 500 to 550 new infections per day with a coronavirus test positivity rate around 6%.

New Jersey

Trenton: Calls for help to a statewide children’s mental health hotline have increased compared to last year as parents seek help, especially during the morning hours, according to the commissioner of the Department for Children and Families. The overall call volume to the Children’s System of Care increased, with the most calls coming from parents as their children experience stress before school hours, Commissioner Christine Norbut Beyer said during a state COVID-19 briefing. “Getting adjusted to something as simple as taking the bus can be stressful,” she said, referring to behavioral and emotional challenges faced by K-12 students returning to in-person school after a year of hybrid or remote learning as “a pandemic of mental health.” It is typical to see a rise in mental health reporting from K-12 students during the month of October, when educators become familiar with their students and are able to assist parents in reporting complaints and concerns. But this year, the uptick in calls occurred in September, with more than 10,000 calls, peaking in the morning, and particularly on Monday mornings, said Jason Butkowski, a DCF representative. Such calls in the morning usually have to do with school-avoidant behavior.

New Mexico

Bernalillo: Town officials deny wrongdoing in the installation of a hidden surveillance camera in a police office used by a now-former police sergeant who says her expectation of privacy was violated. An attorney for Monica Torres has formally notified the town that Torres intends to file a lawsuit alleging violation of a state law requiring consent from at least one person in a recording, KRQE-TV reports. Video obtained by KRQE shows a town worker installing the video camera in an air conditioning vent under the direction of Bernalillo Police Department Chief Broderick Sharp and a police lieutenant when Torres was on vacation in November 2020. “I freaked out,” Torres recalled to KRQE about when an office visitor spotted the camera a week or two later. “I had changed (clothes) numerous times in there.” KRQE reports it obtained records of a New Mexico State Police investigation prompted by a complaint by Torres. Video from the hidden camera showed a male sergeant shutting the door to change clothes inside the office, KRQE reports. The State Police investigation ended by concluding that no crime had been found. The matter was submitted to the District Attorney’s Office of the 13th Judicial District for review. That office said a special prosecutor would decide whether to file charges.

New York

New York: A giant red heart sculpture installed last week in Central Park as a tribute to health care workers and COVID-19 victims has been taken down – an apparent casualty of confusion and red tape. Italian sculptor Sergio Furnari said he was walking by the park Thursday afternoon with friends when he noticed that his “Heroes Heart Monument” was gone. When he went to file a police report, he said, he was bounced from police station to police station until a police officer on Friday showed him video of people removing the 10-foot-tall, 3,000-pound monument and placing it on a truck. “They literally broke my heart,” he said. Furnari conceded he did not have a permit to place the heart in the park but considered a $4,000 grant he received from New York City’s government to be his permit for the temporary installation. He said he considered the removal of his memorial “an abuse of power.” A message seeking comment was left with the Central Park Conservancy, the nonprofit that manages the park on behalf of the city. Furnari said he planned to go to the organization Monday to find out what happened to his heart. Furnari said he wanted the sculpture to be a place for emotional and spiritual solace in the bustling city and not just a popular spot for selfies, though he said he was cool with that, too.

North Carolina

Greensboro: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones has urged supporters of public education to organize to fight “anti-history laws” being promoted by Republican lawmakers. Hannah-Jones said the left hasn’t gotten “mad enough” in opposing the “culture war that has been contrived by the right wing” that has led to laws banning schools from teaching things such as her 1619 Project. She said at an online forum of North Carolina educators last week that people are living in “dark and scary times” in which teachers are “afraid to even teach and talk about the experiences that their children are having.” “We’re being outgunned right now, and I think that’s because this is not an issue that’s getting enough of the people on the left angry,” Hannah-Jones said. “People on the right are very angry, and anger is often what inspires you to organize and to push for laws and to push for these changes.” Hannah-Jones was the keynote speaker Tuesday at the Color of Education Summit, a two-day virtual event drawing 1,600 people “to engage in critical conversations centered on addressing issues of racial equity and education.”

North Dakota

Bismarck: Paleontologists have given the name “Beautiful Nightmare” to a rare dinosaur fossil thought to be the only partial skull of its species found in North Dakota. “She is a beautiful example of her species, and she was a nightmare in her day to a lot of other critters,” said Fossil Excavators President Mike Kjelland, an assistant professor of biology at Mayville State University. The specimen, which includes an upper jawbone and lower teeth, is thought to be a Nanotyrannus, closely related to Tyrannosaurus rex. Only five Nano partial skulls have been found in the world, though there is debate about whether the fossils are instead of juvenile T. rex, Kjelland said. Researchers uncovered the Nano and myriad other fossils – some rare and potentially new species – on private land at a remote Badlands canyon Kjelland found two years ago near Bowman while looking for the fossil-rich Hell Creek Formation. The site comprises an ancient river channel and sandbar. The fossils, which date to 66 million to 69 million years ago, represent a diverse array of creatures from the Late Cretaceous, including two notable Triceratops skulls that drew national attention, The Bismarck Tribune reports.

Ohio

Columbus: A concealed weapons permit would become optional, and the requirement that individuals “promptly” notify police officers they are carrying a concealed weapon would be eliminated, under proposed legislation in the state House. The bill is similar to a measure pending in the state Senate and one of several GOP-backed proposals in recent years seeking to expand gun rights in Ohio. The concealed weapons bill, dubbed “Constitutional Carry” by its backers, is sponsored by Republican Reps. Tom Brinker of Cincinnati and Kris Jordan of Ostrander. Gun owners could still apply for a concealed weapons permit under the measure, allowing those who obtain it to carry a concealed weapon in states with reciprocity agreements recognizing such permits. The GOP-controlled House Government Oversight Committee approved the bill along party lines last week. The concept has the backing of the Buckeye Firearms Association, which says 21 other states allow people to carry a concealed weapon without a license. Gun control groups such as Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America oppose it, along with law enforcement groups. Rep. Paula Hicks-Hudson, D-Toledo, said the bill has been rushed with little time for discussion and would make Ohio less safe.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma City: The state’s Pardon and Parole Board on Monday recommended Gov. Kevin Stitt spare the life of death row inmate Julius Jones, whose murder conviction for the 1999 killing of an Edmond businessman has drawn national attention. The board recommended in a 3-1 vote that Stitt grant Jones clemency and commute his sentence to life in prison with the possibility of parole after hearing from Jones, 41, who testified via video link from the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Several members of the panel agreed they had doubts about the evidence that led to Jones’ conviction. One board member, Scott Williams, recused himself from the vote because of an existing friendship with an attorney who has advocated for Jones. “I continue to believe there is still doubt in this case,” said board member Kelly Doyle. The lone vote against clemency came from Richard Smothermon, a former prosecutor, who said he believed Jones was not being truthful in his testimony. “To believe in Mr. Jones’ theory of the case, you have to disbelieve every other piece of evidence in the case,” including testimony from law enforcement officers, independent witnesses and physical evidence, Smothermon said. Stitt must now decide whether to grant clemency or commute Jones’ sentence.

Oregon

Salem: An agreement has been reached between timber and environmental groups to overhaul management of 10 million acres of private forestlands in the state. Oregon Public Broadcasting reports the deal, announced Saturday by Gov. Kate Brown’s office, concludes more than a year of negotiations to develop a plan to boost protections for vulnerable fish and wildlife while shielding the timber industry’s ability to log. Friday was the deadline for both sides to either reach consensus, abandon the process or move the deadline. “Today’s historic agreement is a perfect example of the Oregon Way – coming together at the table to find common ground, to the mutual benefit of us all,” Brown said in a statement. Jim James with the Oregon Small Woodlands Association similarly praised the compromise. “We were able to put down the contentious situations that we’ve had in the past, and we had a continuous agreement to move forward,” James said. Speaking on behalf of the timber coalition, Adrian Miller with the Florida-based forest products company Rayonier said Saturday’s agreement gives timber operators a sense of security going forward. “I think we’re all really proud to be part of a new era of forestry in Oregon,” Miller said.

Pennsylvania

Harrisburg: Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration told more than 70,000 state employees Monday that it is offering five days of paid leave for getting fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of the year, quickly drawing opposition from the state treasurer over the potential cost. The administration told employees that five days of “verification leave” can be used between Dec. 20 and March 31. Employees who don’t use the days by then will be paid for them, and an employee who has verified fully vaccinated status to the administration will automatically receive the days, it said. “This leave will help incentivize the vaccinations that protect commonwealth employees and the Pennsylvanians we serve,” the administration told employees. “It’s one more way we can show our gratitude to employees who step up to help us protect our communities and bring this pandemic to an end.” The administration already offers employees a paid day off to get vaccinated. Treasurer Stacy Garrity, a Republican, called on Wolf, a Democrat, to abandon the plan. Her office said the cost to taxpayers for paying employees who do not use the days could amount to more than $100 million.

Rhode Island

Providence: A federal appeals court has upheld a settlement between Brown University and student-athletes who had challenged the Ivy League school’s decision to drop several women’s varsity sports. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the university and the athletes who originally sued in letting the settlement stand. Twelve athletes on the women’s gymnastics and ice hockey teams had asked the court to reject the settlement in the interests of current and future female athletes at Brown. The settlement, approved by a federal judge in Providence last year, restores the women’s equestrian and women’s fencing teams to varsity status and calls for an end in 2024 to a 1998 legal agreement ensuring gender equity in varsity sports at Brown. The legal challenge centered on the Providence school’s decision to reduce several women’s varsity sports teams to club status. Several men’s sports were also reduced to club status, although some were later restored. The student-athletes alleged that the cuts violated the 1998 pact. The 1998 agreement had stemmed from a legal challenge to Brown’s decision to cut women’s gymnastics and volleyball in the early 1990s. Brown has said the agreement established unique reporting requirements not faced by any other U.S. college or university.

South Carolina

Columbia: The Historic Columbia Foundation has unveiled a new look at the capital city’s LGBTQ past. Historic Columbia launched its comprehensive online oral history of the capital city’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer communities last month at the city’s Famously Hot South Carolina Pride festival. The foundation worked with the oral history department at the University of South Carolina to collect the stories of a diverse range of LGBTQ+ people in Columbia so that the often untold story of those communities in the Midlands can be honored and remembered. “We have to do this now before some of this stuff is lost forever,” said Kat Allen, director of research at Historic Columbia, who worked to put the comprehensive project together. “Every day more stuff gets thrown away. People pass away, and then someone says, ‘Nobody’s going to want this,’ but USC will absolutely take all of this stuff. … There are things we would have never known about without some of this material.” The project maps a timeline of Columbia’s LGBTQ+ history, from early 1900s drag shows and a procession of gay-friendly establishments to the first Pride March to the S.C. State House in 1990 that birthed today’s Pride festival.

South Dakota

Sioux Falls: Labor shortages in the service industry are high enough that there is now a $1,000 offer for new workers to move to the Mount Rushmore State. A new employee coming from out of state to work a job in retail, restaurants, hospitality, grocery, trades and other needed sectors can receive $1,000 payment through the South Dakota Retailers Association and its “$1,000 Workforce Incentive” push. SDRA, a partner organization for dozens of companies, is launching the $1,000 payment to supplement any hiring bonuses or other incentives straight to new employees, according to a press release Monday. The cash payout would supplement any hiring bonuses or other incentives offered by an individual business. The incentive will be paid directly to an employee hired from out of state to work in a Retailers Association member business. To be eligible, an employee must work at least 30 hours per week for 90 days at a physical location in South Dakota. Additional eligibility details are available at www.sdra.org.

Tennessee

Nashville: The Grand Ole Opry’s broadcast of its 5,000th Saturday show attracted a host of big country music stars to its historic venue. Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Darius Rucker, Vince Gill, Chris Young and a half-dozen others lined up to celebrate the nearly century-old country music program. The radio broadcast was carried by WSM radio, the same station on which it debuted as the “Barn Dance” program in 1925. Bill Anderson, a 60-year Opry veteran, kicked off the show with the Roy Acuff tune “Wabash Cannonball.” Singer Vince Gill played an acoustic guitar he said was once owned by Opry star Sam McGee. Gill said McGee first played the famed radio program in 1926, months before the barn dance program became known as the Grand Ole Opry. Brooks and Yearwood closed the show with a set of several songs before Brooks ended with his country classic “Friends in Low Places.” “Happy 5,000 to the Grand Ole Opry,” Brooks said. “Can’t tell you how lucky we feel to be a part of it.”

Texas

Austin: The city’s school district is defying a request from a Republican state lawmaker for select school districts to investigate and catalog library and classroom books related to race, gender identity or sexuality. District spokesman Jason Stanford said in an email Friday that district officials “decided that a response is not necessary, especially since anyone can search our library catalogues on this website.” Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth, chairman of the Texas House General Investigating Committee, made the request to select superintendents and Texas Education Agency deputy commissioner Lily Laux in a letter with a list of more than 800 books for districts to check against library and classroom collections. The letter appears to have been sent to large urban and suburban school districts across the state, said Joy Baskin, director of legal services for the Texas Association of School Boards. The list includes award-winning books on race and social justice, as well as health books and guides, including “The Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine” and titles on sexually transmitted diseases. The letter also called on districts to identify other books or content addressing “human sexuality” and “material that might make students feel discomfort ... or convey that a student, by virtue of their race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously,” mirroring language in a new Texas law targeting classroom discussions of such topics.

Utah

St. George: The city, the 2021 DOCUTAH International Film Festival, and Art Around the Corner are collaborating to bring a mural to life for the public. Artists featured in the films “Alice Street and Prophets” and “Teachers & Kings” will create a mural on the side of the Electric Theatre in real time during the festival, which began Monday. This year’s mural will be a mix of artistry and an ode to filmmakers in the form of Charlie Chaplin filming a Shivwits powwow dancer and a jazz band with an artist using a paintbrush to depict the scene. Artists Desi Mundo and Pancho Peskador will be the featured artists. Initially, the films were set for 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic put them on hold. The artists and films are now back for the 100-film festival and in what DOCUTAH considers an expanded edition of the festival. “This public space mural is intended to remind us that with understanding our past and looking toward our future, St. George continues to be a vibrant and welcoming place for all to enjoy,” said Rhondalon Crawford, Board Chair of the Art Around the Corner Foundation. “The partnership with DOCUTAH and the City of St. George demonstrates the commitment our community has to all of the arts and to providing our citizens and visitors with a wide variety of artistic experiences.”

Vermont

Winooski: State educational officials will ban spectators from a high school boys soccer state semifinal this week, following alleged racist behavior and overly rough gameplay between two schools’ players earlier this year. The Vermont Principals’ Association said in a statement Monday that “this decision has been made to ensure the physical and emotional safety of all student-athletes involved.” Winooski High School has said that during the first home game of the season, its players were targeted with racial slurs by Enosburg High School’s players and fans. There’s also a separate investigation into Winooski players getting violent with Enosburg players during that Sept. 18 game, which ended in a 3-2 Winooski win. In response to the alleged racial abuse during the game, Enosburg conducted an internal investigation but found no evidence of wrongdoing. However, the school said its report was incomplete without interviewing Winooski players, who declined to participate in the investigation. Winooski’s school officials said they believe what their student-athletes reported about the racial abuse from Enosburg. Winooski Athletics Director Sam Jackson has characterized the school as Vermont’s most diverse high school.

Virginia

Williamsburg: A schoolhouse where enslaved and free Black children were taught before the Revolutionary War will be moved from the William & Mary campus to Colonial Williamsburg and restored to its original state, officials announced Friday. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is buying the building that housed the Bray School, the university and foundation said in a news release. Once modern additions to the building are removed, it will be moved a few blocks to the living history museum’s campus, where it will be restored and incorporated into the foundation’s public history programming. “This nondescript building that was hidden in plain sight for decades is taking the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and William & Mary in a new and exciting direction,” Colonial Williamsburg President and CEO Cliff Fleet said. “This important work will expand our understanding of 18th-century America and add to our body of knowledge about this important time in our nation’s history.” The university says the building is likely the oldest surviving schoolhouse for African Americans. It will be the first addition to Williamsburg’s collection of historic buildings since the 1960s. The foundation expects to restore the building by 2024, the 250th anniversary of the school’s closure just before the Revolutionary War.

Washington

Spokane: The former Spokane County health officer who believes he was fired last year due to unpopular decisions he made to try to contain COVID-19 has filed a claim with the health district, which could lead to a lawsuit. The Spokesman-Review reports Dr. Bob Lutz filed the administrative claim Oct. 8. Robert Carlson, Lutz’s attorney, said the hope is that the district determines Lutz’s claim has merit and works to resolve the issue out of court. Lutz is claiming at least $1.4 million in damages for wrongful termination in addition to “defamation, emotional distress, mental anguish and injury to professional reputation” as a result of his firing in October 2020. The health district has 60 days to respond to Lutz’s claim, at which point Lutz could proceed with a lawsuit. The claim details several examples of alleged political pressure and tension between Lutz and certain Board of Health members throughout 2020, especially when the county was stuck in limited phases due to COVID-19 case rates. “I took a stand for Public Health. It cost me my job,” Lutz said in a statement released through his attorney. “As a public health physician, it has been my responsibility to protect the public’s health and safety.”

West Virginia

Huntington: Marshall University has launched its newly formed Institute for Cyber Security. Marshall President Jerome Gilbert said the institute is an academic and research cluster that will support cybersecurity-related programs across the campus. “We can do research and teaching to expand our presence in the cyber arena,” Gilbert said. The new center will work to address emerging needs in cybersecurity, the Charleston Gazette-Mail reports. David Dampier, dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, said it is designed to tap into a new mix of students and early-career professionals and connect those learners with top cybersecurity talent in the region. The institute is housed in the university’s Applied Engineering Complex.

Wisconsin

Madison: Gun dealers in the state are struggling to keep shelves stocked with ammunition. Supply chain disruptions from the coronavirus pandemic and increased demand for guns and ammunition have left shelves empty in some cases. And when a shipment does arrive at local gun stores, ammunition is quickly snapped up. Tony Blattler, of Phillips, watched as employees unloaded a shipment of .270 Winchester hunting cartridges recently at the Fleet Farm in Marshfield. Not long after, about two dozen people had filed into the store, grabbing ammunition as fast as workers could unload it, Wisconsin Public Radio reports. “Probably by within an hour or two, they were sold out of that ammunition just by word of mouth,” Blattler said. Pat Kukull, owner of Superior Shooters Supply, said the store had a shortage of shotgun ammunition for trap shooting over the summer, with vendors sending maybe 2% of the usual 500 cases it might receive. She said there’s been “absolutely nothing” for those hunting pheasant, grouse or waterfowl. “Now, we’re moving into rifle season, and we haven’t had any .30-30 shells in a year to speak of, really,” Kukull said. Across Wisconsin, background checks for handguns surged 174% last year from 2019, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Wyoming

Casper: Employee transition efforts are ramping up with just a few weeks left before the state’s last underground coal mine shutters. The long-anticipated closure of the Bridger Underground Coal Mine was originally expected to affect 94 mine workers, according to the layoff notice sent to the Rock Springs City Council a month ago. The number of affected staff has since fallen to 89 and is continuing to shrink as staff leave to start new jobs, the Casper-Star Tribune reports. Rocky Mountain Power, whose subsidiary Bridger Coal Company owns the mine, hosted a job fair last month at which the workers it’s not retaining were able to interview with other mining companies. Two of the five companies were from out of state, meaning new hires would have to leave Rock Springs for work. But Rocky Mountain Power is also collaborating with Western Wyoming Community College in an effort to help underground mine workers access vocational training programs. Many will qualify for federal retraining funds targeting displaced coal workers. Employees’ existing skills also translate well to other mining jobs, including in the trona industry, which produces a source of soda ash, said Rick Lee, CEO of the Rock Springs Chamber of Commerce. The Green River Basin trona patch is about 40 miles from Rock Springs.

From USA TODAY Network and wire reports