News from across the USA

ALABAMA Birmingham: Birmingham’s school board is rejecting applications to establish two charter schools. A church group wants to open STAR Academy, and another group wants to operate a dual- language program, Al. com reports. ALASKA Fairbanks: Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race leaders are allowing a musher to compete despite missing a required veterinarian inspection for his dogs. The Fairbanks Daily News- Miner reports that Ed Stielstra of Nature’s Kennel can participate in the 1,000- mile race but must pay a fine. ARIZONA Tucson: The Arizona Geological Survey has discovered a new crack in Pinal County. The fissure, explored with drone video, is about 25 miles south of Arizona City. ARKANSAS Little Rock: Arkansas lawmakers are considering a plan to link public college and university funding to performance goals, such as the number of students who complete their degrees. The bonus: A $ 10 million increase in higher education funding if the plan passes. CALIFORNIA Fresno: The Fresno Chaffee Zoo is welcoming a baby rhino. The Fresno Bee reports that the southern white rhinoceros calf born last week and its mother, Kayla, are healthy.

COLORADO Denver: Spruce beetles have attacked another 213 square miles of Colorado forests, making it the most destructive forest insect in the state for the fifth consecutive year.

CONNECTICUT Hartford: Connecticut lawmakers are nearing approval of a plan to restructure state pension obligations. Gov. Dannel Malloy says the state could see pension payments jump to $ 6 billion in 2032 without the plan.

DELAWARE Dover: Delaware’s public high schools may have to offer at least one computer science course under a bill in the state legislature. The mandate would take effect in the 2020- 21 school year.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: The president of the company that owned a limousine set on fire during an Inauguration Day protest in Washington says insurance likely won’t cover the damage.

FLORIDA Apopka: More than 200 roosters were euthanized after being seized from a Florida farm where authorities believe they were trained for fighting. WESH- TV reports that all of the roosters were aggressive.

GEORGIA Atlanta: The Department of Homeland Security wants to see Georgia secretary of state records after the state accused the federal agency of “failed cyberattacks” on its network.

HAWAII Honolulu: Officials in Hawaii are proposing several rule changes for state harbors. The moves include limitations on alcohol consumption and a ban on feeding wildlife and feral animals, Hawaii News Now reports. IDAHO McCall: One of two stranded horses was rescued with the help of Idaho volunteers and a helicopter, KTVB- TV reports. The other horse hasn’t been seen for several days and is believed to be dead. ILLINOIS Peoria: One of Illinois’ largest pork producers has canceled plans to build a hog confinement in Fulton County. The Chicago Tribune reports that the decision came after local residents protested the project. INDIANA Indianapolis: Indiana State Police say a trooper’s department- issued fuel card apparently fell victim to a skimming device at a gas station. The agency froze about a dozen cards that other troopers recently used at the same station.

IOWA Iowa City: Iowa’s public safety agency says more than 1,700 state firefighters and emergency responders were issued improper credentials over a fouryear period because of faulty test scoring. An ex- employee is charged with misconduct and records tampering.

KANSAS Hesston: Some $ 225,000 in grant money was awarded to help victims and first responders affected by last year’s mass shooting in Hesston. The Wichita Eagle reports that domestic violence shelter SafeHope will use the funds for counseling and other services. KENTUCKY Louisville: Kentucky’s bourbon makers are toasting a new milestone in tourism. The Kentucky Distillers’ Association says more than a million guests visited distilleries last year along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour.

LOUISIANA Baton Rouge: All oyster harvests in the West Cove portion of the Calcasieu Lake Public Oyster Area in Cameron Parish are shut down. The lake’s oyster population has been in decline for several years.

MAINE Portland: Health care funding for HIV patients at a Portland- run clinic has transferred to a private nonprofit. But fewer than half of the public clinic’s patients followed the funding to the new provider, The

Portland Press Herald reports. The city clinic closed Dec. 30.

MARYLAND Baltimore: Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is promoting Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s bus plan. Flacco teamed up with state transportation officials last week to unveil “Flacco Buses” featuring the quarterback.

MASSACHUSETTS Woburn: A man charged with driving the getaway car in a 2014 bank robbery filed a $ 750,000 lawsuit against the town of Arlington, the officer who shot him and the police chief. The Boston Globe reports that James Riley claims he surrendered unarmed. MICHIGAN Hancock: You know it’s an unusual winter when a polar bear plunge is canceled in the Upper Peninsula. Police tell

The Daily Mining Gazette that the ice was too thin for the dip Saturday on Portage Lake in Hancock.

MINNESOTA St. Paul: Protesters whose demonstrations turn disruptive could be charged for law enforcement costs under a measure being considered by Minnesota lawmakers. Critics say that could be used to silence dissent.

MISSISSIPPI Jackson: A Jackson ophthalmologist and his wife are pledging $ 1 million to Millsaps College. Dr. Richard Blount and the Rev. Martha Blount say the trust will go to the 1,000- student Methodist college in 2026.

MISSOURI Kansas City: Missouri’s Jackson County will pay $ 275,000 to settle a negligence claim involving the county’s jail. The Kansas City Star reports that an Aug. 26 incident that was caught on video prompted the transfer of female prisoners out of the lockup. MONTANA Bozeman: A passenger bus carrier has suspended service to Bozeman because the city doesn’t have a depot, The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports. NEBRASKA Lincoln: A nonprofit is opening a drop- in center in downtown Lincoln for homeless and runaway youth. The Lincoln Journal Star reports that Cedars will open the Youth Opportunity Center in a former hair salon later this week. NEVADA Las Vegas: Organizers say an annual effort to count everyone living on the streets in and around Las Vegas went smoothly. Results are expected to be released in the spring. NEW HAMPSHIRE Manchester: Parents, students and faculty joined city officials at a vigil last week to speak out against racially- charged signs found near two New Hampshire schools. The signs reading “diversity is a code word for white genocide” were taken down earlier this month. NEW JERSEY Newark: Newark police say 22% of the cars stolen so far this year in the city had been left unattended with the engines running. Police say it’s best to warm up a car without leaving it. NEW MEXICO Albuquerque: New Mexico teens K’la Nieto and Devin Mares have been best friends since middle school, and each has gone through the same life- altering transition. The seniors, born female, came out as transgender early in high school, the Albuquerque Journal reports. Each recently ran for homecoming king and was voted a member of the court.

NEW YORK Avoca: An animal welfare group is caring for scores of puppies being carried in a box van that crashed and overturned on a New York highway. State police say the driver lost control of the vehicle carrying 103 puppies for delivery to pet stores.

NORTH CAROLINA Winston-Salem: A rupture at a dye plant dumped red dye into Peters Creek last week, killing some fish. The Winston- Salem Journal reports that firefighters contained some of the dye before it reached the creek. NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck: Some North Dakota hospitals are restricting visitors in response to 455 cases of influenza statewide, The Bismarck Tribune reports.

OHIO Akron: Akron officials plan to downsize one of the Ohio city’s iconic B. F. Goodrich smokestacks by 100 feet due to safety concerns. The Akron Beacon Journal reports that the twin red brick smokestacks have been part of Akron’s skyline for nearly a century. But they were decomissioned in 2015, and one of them is deteriorating.

OKLAHOMA Concho: The Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes are teaming up with the U. S. Department of Agriculture on a project to help restore grazing land. The Journal Record reports that a variety of grasses will be planted in seven 10- acre plots. OREGON Corvallis: Benton County will remain in a lawsuit over state timberland management. The Corvallis Gazette-Times reports that the Board of Commissioners voted to stay in the case seeking $ 1.4 billion from the state for failing to maximize forest trust land logging revenues. PENNSYLVANIA Uniontown: A woman accused of malnourishing her baby with a vegan diet will stand trial on a child endangerment charge. Authorities in Pennsylvania’s Fayette County say Elizabeth Hawk was feeding her 11- month- old a diet of nuts and berries.

RHODE ISLAND Providence: A federal judge says immigration officials violated a woman’s rights by unlawfully detaining her as “deportable” while reviewing whether she was in the U. S. illegally. The Providence Journal reports that the ACLU of Rhode Island says Ada Morales was detained because of her national origin and last name. SOUTH CAROLINA Charleston: The South Carolina Ports Authority has agreed to close its Port of Georgetown so local governments can include it in a redevelopment plan, The Post and Courier of Charleston reports. SOUTH DAKOTA Pierre: South Dakoka lawmakers are considering a bill that says teachers can’t be prohibited from discussing the strengths and weaknesses of scientific information on issues such as climate change and evolution. TENNESSEE Jacksboro: Officials are combating bedbugs at Tennessee’s Campbell County High School. A classroom where the bugs were found earlier this month is being professionally cleaned. TEXAS Galveston: A 371- foot former cargo ship named for a mythical sea monster has become an artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico off Texas. State Parks & Wildlife officials say the Kraken was sunk 67 miles off Galveston. UTAH Logan: Police say a woman was taken to a hospital after a drone crashed and fell on her head at a party. The Herald Journal reports that someone was using the drone indoors to take pictures of the event and apparently lost control of it. VERMONT Burlington: Vermont’s largest city will ask residents to vote this spring on raising the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour. The Burlington Free Press reports that the vote will take place in March. Supporters hope the measure will spur action on raising the state’s minimum wage. VIRGINIA Richmond: Virginia lawmakers are considering allowing high school students to substitute a computer coding credit for any foreign language requirement needed to graduate. The bill would apply the exception in cases of advanced diplomas. WASHINGTON Tacoma: The credit card information of some 2,100 people who use Pierce County’s ferry system has been made public online. The News Tribune reports that issues with a third- party vendor hired to build an online ticket site for the ferry system resulted in the leak. There is no evidence of inappropriate access. WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: A last- minute bankruptcy filing halted the sale of an Elkview shopping center that’s been closed and isolated since an access bridge was washed away by flooding last summer. The Chapter 11 filing will likely further delay construction of a new bridge to Crossings Mall. WISCONSIN Madison: A manufacturing tax credit is projected to cost Wisconsin more than $ 650 million over the next two years. The tax credit has been phased in since 2013 and became fully implemented in 2016.

WYOMING Casper: The Casper City Council has rejected a change to the smoking ban approved by voters two years ago. The Casper Star- Tribune reports that the council voted 5- 4 last week not to amend the ban to allow smoking either in bars or in all public establishments.