DENVER, Colo. (March 3, 2017) – Yesterday, a Colorado House committee unanimously passed a bill that would help facilitate healthcare freedom in the state. A bipartisan coalition of two representatives and two senators sponsor House Bill 1115 (HB1115). The legislation specifies that direct primary care agreements (sometimes called medical retainer agreements) do not constitute insurance,…
ALBANY, N.Y. (Mar. 3, 2017) – A bill introduced in the New York Senate would legalize marijuana for recreational use. Passage would also take a big step toward nullifying federal cannabis prohibition in practice in the Empire State. Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan), along with nine co-sponsors, introduced Senate Bill 3040 (S3040) to legalize recreational cannabis…
HONOLULU, Hawaii (March 3, 2017) – Earlier this week, an important Hawaii House committee unanimously passed a bill that would limit the warrantless use of surveillance drones. The legislation would not only establish important privacy protections at the state level, it would also help thwart the federal surveillance state. Rep. Joseph Souki introduced House Bill…
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (March 3, 2017) – A Missouri bill that would ban the use of “stingrays” to track the location of phones and sweep up electronic communications without a warrant in most situations passed an important House committee this week. The proposed law would not only protect privacy in the Show Me State, but…
DES MOINES, Iowa (March 3, 2017) – On Wednesday, an Iowa Senate committee unanimously passed a bill that would set the foundation to nullify in practice some Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rules that deny access to experimental treatments by terminally ill patients. The Senate Commerce Committee introduced Senate Bill 404 (SF404) on March 1.…
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (March 2, 2017) – Today, A Missouri Senate committee passed a bill that would put limitations on the storage and sharing of information collected by law enforcement agencies using Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) in the state, and place significant roadblocks in the way of a federal program using states to help track…
BOSTON, Mass. (Mar. 2, 2017) – A Massachusetts bill would withdraw the state from Common Core standards, an important step toward nullifying the program within the state. Sen. Jason Lewis (D- Winchester) introduced Senate Bill 283 (S.283) to void Common Core standards and create a framework to establish state standards to replace them. It reads, in…
CHARLESTON, W. Va. (March 2, 2017) – A West Virginia bill that would require police to get a warrant before engaging in drone surveillance in most situations passed the Senate yesterday.Sen. Charles Trump (R-Berkeley Springs) introduced Senate Bill 9 (SB9) on Feb. 8. The legislation would require law enforcement agencies to get a warrant before…
CONCORD, N.H. (March 2, 2017) – A New Hampshire bill that would close a federal loophole allowing state and local police to circumvent stringent state asset forfeiture laws by passing cases off to the feds passed an important House committee this week. Rep, Michael Sylvia (R-Belmont) and Rep. John Burt (R-Goffstown) introduced House Bill 614…
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (March 2, 2017) – On Tuesday, the Indiana Senate passed a bill that would reform the state’s asset forfeiture laws to prohibit the state from taking property without a criminal conviction. The legislation also takes on federal forfeiture programs by banning prosecutors from circumventing state laws by passing cases off to the feds.…