STATE-BY-STATE
ALABAMA Birmingham: The man who spearheaded a local tree planting to honor Anne Frank says her story connects with the four girls killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. All of them died because of hate, bigotry and prejudice, Joel Rotenstreich of Birmingham’s Holocaust Education Center says.
ALASKA Fairbanks: A second University of Alaska faculty group is expressing no confidence in UA system president Jim Johnsen. The Fairbanks Daily
News-Miner reports that the Fairbanks faculty senate has joined the Anchorage faculty senate in criticism of Johnsen’s reorganization decisions.
ARIZONA Phoenix: The new sheriff of metro Phoenix is adamant that his agency’s days of taking the lead in immigration enforcement are over. Sheriff Paul Penzone tells the Arizona
Capitol Times that — unlike his predecessor Joe Arpaio — his office won’t conduct raids in search of immigrant workers.
ARKANSAS Little Rock: A measure before the state legislature would effectively block efforts to build a satanic monument near the Arkansas Capitol. The bill would prevent the state Capitol Arts and Grounds Commission from even considering proposals to build or remove monuments without legislative approval.
CALIFORNIA Vandenberg Air
Force Base: For the first time in 30 years, Vandenberg Air Force Base has an elephant seal rookery. The Air Force says 18 elephant seal pups have been lounging with their mothers on a remote beach.
COLORADO Aspen: The Aspen City Council is supporting a citizen-driven campaign to block chain stores from taking space in new buildings, The Aspen Daily
News reports.
CONNECTICUT Bridgeport: A personal chef who was severely injured when he tripped on a plastic runner and fell down the stairs in a Connecticut home has settled a lawsuit for $1.5 million. David Lambo sued the contractor after suffering a concussion and other injures.
DELAWARE Wilmington: Officials are touting a record-breaking year for Delaware’s tourism industry. The Delaware Tourism Office cites increases in visitation, economic impact and employment.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: One of the District of Columbia’s three bald eagle couples is waiting for an egg to hatch. The eagles, Liberty and Justice, have made the D.C. police academy their home for over a decade.
FLORIDA Jacksonville: The Coast Guard is conducting final investigative hearings in Jacksonville into the sinking of the cargo ship El Faro, which sank in October 2015 after losing propulsion in a hurricane.
GEORGIA Atlanta: The Atlanta History Center will host a series of exhibitions related to World War I and the centennial of U.S. involvement in the conflict. The first exhibit — The Great War in Broad Outlines — will open March 6.
HAWAII Honolulu: A Hawaii lawmaker wants to impose fines of up to $2,000 for people violate designated “urine-free zones.” The measure would prohibit urinating at public places such as playgrounds, bus stops and parking garages.
IDAHO Malad: Idaho wildlife officials have decided to allow a young moose to live in this small community in hopes of helping it survive winter, The Idaho State
Journal reports.
ILLINOIS Chicago: Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White is asking state lawmakers to allow advertising on vehicle regis-
tration reminders that are mailed out to millions of homes each year, The Chicago Tribune reports.
INDIANA Bloomington: Indiana University has started a mold inspection and remediation effort at McNutt Quadrangle. The work is expected to take nearly two months and cost about $350,000, The (Bloomington) Herald-Times reports.
IOWA Boone: Officials have decided not to erect warning signs near an Iowa park overlook where a man fell 60 feet to his death on New Year’s Day, The Des
Moines Register reports.
KANSAS Manhattan: Officials say construction of the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan is going well, The
Manhattan Mercury reports.
KENTUCKY Lexington: The state Department for Community Based Services says substantiated findings of child abuse and neglect in Kentucky rose 55% over a four-year period, The Lexington
Herald-Leader reports.
LOUISIANA New Orleans: Two legal rights groups have sued Louisiana’s system of defending poor people. The plaintiffs cite defendants waiting months in jail to see their lawyers, and lawyers who are woefully overworked.
MAINE Augusta: Maine’s attorney general says no further investigation is needed into the suicide of a transgender boy at Long Creek Youth Development Center. The 17-year-old who died Nov. 1 left a note saying he no longer wanted to live.
MARYLAND Baltimore: Recently retired Baltimore Ravens linebacker Zach Orr has teamed up with Maryland’s public health agency in the fight against opioid addiction with a series of TV and movie theater public service announcements.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston: Wheaton College has created a refugee scholarship. The Massachusetts liberal arts school announced the offer after President Trump issued his executive order halting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries.
MICHIGAN Kalamazoo: A permanent memorial will honor the victims and survivors of a Kalamazoo shooting spree a year ago. Six people died in attacks at three locations.
MINNESOTA Onamia: The Bassmaster Angler of the Year fishing tournament is returning to Mille Lacs Lake in September. The top 50 anglers on the Bassmaster Elite Series tour will compete for the title.
MISSISSIPPI Jackson: Several Mississippi groups are giving away trees to mark Arbor Day on Friday. Almost 70,000 people in Mississippi work in forestry.
MISSOURI St. Louis: A victims’ support group that helped force the Roman Catholic Church to confront the problem of childmolesting priests is going through upheaval of its own. The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, has seen the recent resignations of two top leaders.
MONTANA Missoula: Enrollment at the University of Montana has dropped again, while Montana State University is celebrating a record-high count of students, The Missoulian reports.
NEBRASKA Gretna: Protection of tiny pioneer cemeteries in Nebraska is proving hard to enforce because of spreading housing developments, The Omaha
World-Herald reports.
NEVADA Las Vegas: A Las Vegas mosque is increasing security after receiving threatening emails. The Las Vegas Review
Journal reports that the Islamic Society of Nevada Mosque in Las Vegas hired security guards to patrol around the clock.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: Dartmouth College will offer compensation to homeowners impacted by groundwater contamination from a site where the school once dumped animals used in science experiments. Dartmouth’s Rennie Farm was used from the 1960s until 1978 to dump carcasses from “tracer experiments” using radioactive compounds.
NEW JERSEY Oaklyn: A New Jersey man rescued from a creek had no idea how he got there, police say. NJ.com reports that a public works crew was on its way to Peters Creek on Monday when workers found the man stuck up to his waist in mud. The man was treated for cold exposure.
NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: The New Mexico Supreme Court has dismissed an attempt to open major party primary elections to independent voters. Only people registered as Republicans or Democrats can vote in their state party primaries.
NEW YORK Johnsburg: A New York historical group was reimbursed for a sign that replaced the marker stolen from a roadside spot near Civil War photographer Mathew Brady’s childhood home. The Saratogian reports that the Johnsburg Historical Society was paid $1,352 for the sign by a man who was a suspect in the 2014 theft but was never charged.
NORTH CAROLINA Asheville: The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy has helped the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission preserve land in western North Carolina for wildlife habitat, The Asheville Citizen Times reports.
NORTH DAKOTA Fargo: National Transportation Safety Board investigators say a broken axle caused a 2013 train derailment that led to a series of explosions in Casselton. The train carrying soybeans derailed and was struck by a train carrying oil. No one was hurt.
OHIO Cincinnati: Someone bid nearly $100,000 on eBay for a Cheeto that bears a resemblance to slain Cincinnati Zoo gorilla Harambe. Harambe was shot by his handlers after dragging a small boy who had gotten into his enclosure.
OKLAHOMA Tulsa: Tulsa leaders are proposing the city’s first African-American Affairs Commission. The 23member panel would serve in an advisory and advocacy role on racial issues.
OREGON Pendleton: The Oregon School Boards Association wants to recruit more candidates for school boards. The East Ore
gonian reports that nearly threequarters of school and community college board seats were uncontested during the last round of elections in 2015, and 8% of available seats drew no candidates.
PENNSYLVANIA Altoona: The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s hospital in Altoona has reached a tentative contract agreement with its nurses. The
(Altoona) Mirror reports that the last contract expired Dec. 31, but talks continued into the new year.
RHODE ISLAND Providence: The first offshore wind farm installed in the United States is now operating at full capacity off the Rhode Island coast following repairs to a damaged turbine, The
Providence Journal reports.
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: Gov. Henry McMaster is asking the federal government for $5 billion to help repair South Carolina’s crumbling roads and bridges. McMaster also indicated in a letter this week to President Trump that he disapproves of raising the gas tax.
SOUTH DAKOTA Pierre: South Dakota lawmakers are considering a bill to outlaw the sale, manufacture or possession of powdered alcohol. Lawmakers worry that age restrictions on buying alcohol would be tough to enforce with powdered alcohol, since it comes in small pouches much like Kool-Aid.
TENNESSEE Nashville: Tennessee’s state parks are offering a variety of options for dining and overnight stays for Valentine’s Day. Several are offering lodging discounts and Valentine’s-themed activities this month.
TEXAS Rowlett: Workers have toppled a Dallas-area water tower that was severely damaged during a 2015 tornado outbreak. Officials expect demolition and site restoration to take about three weeks.
UTAH Salt Lake City: A six-mile stretch of Interstate 80 near Salt Lake City closed to traffic for about 45 minutes on Monday so state wildlife officials could help a herd of elk migrate. The Salt Lake
Tribune reports that about a dozen animals, including one moose, were herded across the highway.
VERMONT Rockingham: Vermont officials have started construction on two new bridges that will span the Williams River. The Rutland Herald reports that the $44.5 million project is projected to be finished by May 2020.
VIRGINIA Richmond: Legislation that would exempt certain chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing from public disclosure is advancing in the Virginia legislature. But critics say the bill to protect trade secrets would keep landowners in the dark about pollutants that might affect their groundwater.
WASHINGTON Bremerton: The Kitsap Sun reports that the retired state ferry Hiyu has been sold to Menagerie Inc., which plans to use it as a floating entertainment venue on Lake Union. The 50-year-old ferry was sold for $150,000.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: The West Virginia Division of Personnel is trying out Saturday test dates for state government jobs. The agency says it will offer tests on the third Saturday of each month, beginning Feb. 18, in Charleston on a trial basis.
WISCONSIN Milwaukee: The Milwaukee County Board has approved an ordinance requiring creators of smartphone games like Pokemon Go to get a permit before they can use park locations for their location-based games. The Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel reports that the permit requirement is a response to damage done at Lake Park last summer.
WYOMING Cheyenne: A proposal to eliminate the annual spring and fall clock changes by keeping Wyoming on permanent daylight savings time is dead. Opponents said that staying on one time would put Wyoming out of sync with neighboring states.