Washington state was one of the first states to legalize recreational marijuana, and now has quite a bit to lose if the Trump administration chooses to crack down on states with retail pot operations. With U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions hinting that federal intervention may be in the offing, his counterpart in Olympia is drawing a line in the soil, saying that any effort by the White House to interfere with the state’s marijuana regulations would be “unacceptable.” [More]
Government Policy
Which States Have Tax-Free Holidays, And When Do They Happen?
By 8.4.17
As families prepare to send their little ones back to school, they’re heading to malls, big box stores, and other retailers to fill their backpacks and closets. While many companies offer deals and programs targeting back-to-school season — we’re looking at you Target — many states are also offering their own deals in the way of sales tax-free weekends. [More]
New Drivers In Texas Have To Take Online Class About Distracted Driving
By 8.4.17
An average of nine people die every day from crashes caused by distracted drivers, a statistic that’s especially tragic when those deaths could be preventable. That’s why Texas is expanding its requirement for new drivers to learn more about what they shouldn’t be doing behind the wheel. [More]
Maine Raises Legal Smoking Age To 21
By 8.4.17
As the Food and Drug Administration considers lowering the level of nicotine in cigarettes to reduce the likelihood of addiction, some states and cities have taken it upon themselves to discourage smoking at a young age. This week, Maine joined New Jersey, California, and Hawaii to raise the minimum legal smoking age to 21. [More]
Frequent Overdrafters Spend $450 More In Fees Each Year, More Disclosures Could Help
By 8.4.17
Under federal law, depository institutions are prohibited from charging overdraft fees on ATM and one-time debit card transactions unless consumers affirmatively opted in. But a new report suggests that those who do opt-in might not know the cost of such a decision, with opted-in frequent overdrafters spending about $450 more in fees each year than non-opted-in frequent overdrafters. [More]
Health Insurance Telemarketer Faces $82 Million Fine For Illegal Robocalls
By 8.3.17
A health insurance marketing company that allegedly placed more than 21 million illegal automated phone calls, interrupting the enjoyment of Modern Family reruns for Americans everywhere, now faces fines in excess of $82 million for violations of the Truth In Caller ID Act. [More]
New York AG Says States Will Do “Whatever We Have To” To Make Sure Obamacare Subsidies Continue
By 8.2.17
A federal appeals court recently allowed a coalition of more than a dozen states to intervene in a long-running lawsuit challenging the legitimacy of billions of dollars in federal subsidy payments to insurance providers. But regardless of what happens in that case, President Trump has repeatedly dangled the threat that he could pull the plug on those payments at any time. The states coalition says it is preparing for that possibility and is ready to take the White House to court if necessary. [More]
Airlines Have To Track Damaged Bags, But Not Damaged Wheelchairs — And A Veterans Group Is Suing Over It
By 8.2.17
You can track how an airline handles missing or damaged luggage, so shouldn’t you be able to find the data about how carriers deal with wheelchairs? A new rule that would mandate airlines to report information on wheelchairs and scooters in the same way they track other luggage has now been delayed, prompting a group of veterans to sue the Department of Transportation. [More]
Critics Say New Anti-Trafficking Bill Could “Jeopardize Bedrock Principles” Of Social Media
By 8.2.17
A new Senate bill with rare bipartisan support seeks to curb online sex trafficking, but some critics of the legislation say the bill is so broadly written that it could open up legal floodgates that could expose social media networks Facebook and Twitter and popular reader-edited sites like reddit to prosecution for content published by users. [More]
There Are Six FDA Inspectors For 3,000,000 Shipments Of Imported Cosmetics Per Year
By 8.2.17
Every year, there are three million shipments of cosmetic products that pass through U.S. ports and onto our store shelves. The problem is that there are only six inspectors for all of those shipments, which means that .3% of them are ever inspected. Products like tattoo ink that goes under the skin and lipstick that could be ingested fall under “cosmetics,” and products could be dangerous. [More]
Appeals Court Will Let States Defend Obamacare Subsidies That White House Likely Won’t
By 8.1.17
A federal appeals court has granted a request from 16 attorneys general to allow them to intervene in a long-running legal challenge to billions of dollars in federal subsidies provided by the Affordable Care Act. [More]
President’s Commission On Opioid Crisis Says Death Toll Is Like 9/11 Happening Every Three Weeks
By 8.1.17
We hear a lot about the “opioid crisis” or “opioid epidemic,” to the point that people may be tuning out those words and ignoring the seriousness of the situation. That’s why the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis has an urgent recommendation. It wants the President to declare a national emergency. [More]
Amazon Reports Selling Stuff To Iranian Embassies, Person On Terrorism Watch List
By 8.1.17
Amazon — the “Everything Store” to most of the world — sells to just about anyone, anywhere. Problem is, it’s not supposed to do that. The company has revealed it’s under federal investigation for selling items to customers linked to the Iranian government (including its embassies), and also to someone on the terrorism watch list. [More]
Using Your Phone While Crossing The Street In Honolulu Could Cost You As Much As $99
By 8.1.17
Looking at one’s phone while walking might not seem like too difficult of a task, but every once in a while it proves to be a painful endeavor, take the woman looking at her phone who tripped over a door in the sidewalk and fell into a utility room. The city of Honolulu wants to prevent these types of incidents by becoming the first major city in the U.S. to make it illegal to text while crossing the street. [More]
Court Says FAA Must Explain Why It Won’t Do Anything To Stop “Incredibly Shrinking Airline Seat”
By 7.31.17
A federal appeals court has ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to reconsider a petition filed by consumer advocates seeking to halt the ever-decreasing size of airline seating arrangements. [More]
Staples And Office Depot Circling Each Other Again With Merger In Their Eyes
By 7.31.17
From 2015 to 2016, retail-watchers carefully tracked the proposed merger of Staples and Office Depot, which itself had recently acquired OfficeMax. The Federal Trade Commission ultimately didn’t bless the deal, but the two chains have come back with a new idea: What if Office Depot were to acquire just the retail portion of Staples? [More]
Here Are This Year’s 8 Most Ridiculously Calorie-Filled Chain Restaurant Meals
By 7.31.17
Fast food chains may, deservedly, get flack from public health advocates for their menus filled with salty, breaded, greasy grub, but most fast food meals have nothing on their sit-down restaurant cousins across the parking lot. A bacon cheeseburger may look like a healthy snack compared to the winners of this year’s Xtreme Eating awards. [More]
How Home-Grown Tomatoes And Misread Tea Leaves Led To Pointless Police Raid On Innocent Family’s Home
By 7.28.17
When Bob Harte took his two young kids shopping with him at an organic gardening store in Kansas City, Missouri, he had no idea that he had inadvertently set in motion a series of events that would — eight months later — lead to the Harte family watching helplessly as armed sheriff’s deputies searched every corner of their house for nonexistent evidence of a marijuana grow operation. [More]
