News from across the USA

ALABAMA Montgomery: Alabama lawmakers may require high school seniors to pass a U. S. citizenship test before graduating. A bill is expected at this year’s legislative session to require a grade of at least 60% to get a diploma.

ALASKA Juneau: Juneau officials have begun removing boats from city harbors after identifying dozens that haven’t moved in years. The Juneau Empire reports that city code requires boats to leave the harbor three times a year.

ARIZONA Phoenix: A member of the Gila River Indian Community was sentenced to 15 months in prison for stealing about $ 200,000 from the reservation’s scholarship fund. Authorities say Betty Anderson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit theft from an Indian tribal organization.

ARKANSAS Little Rock: Arkansas lawmakers are moving toward exempting military veterans’ retirement benefits from the state income tax.

CALIFORNIA Fresno: California officials accuse the Panoche Water District of misspending. Allegations include giving employees free housing, interest- free loans and concert tickets. State Controller Betty Yee calls the lack of oversight shocking.

COLORADO Cortez: A 7- yearold girl is recovering after falling from a chairlift at a Colorado ski resort last weekend. The Cortez Journal reports that the girl, who fell about 26 feet at Purgatory Resort, is in stable condition.

CONNECTICUT Westport: A student essay contest on white privilege is stirring controversy in Westport. Contest organizers are surprised by critics who say the topic wrongly suggests that race plays into the Connecticut town’s good life.

DELAWARE Wilmington: DuPont will sell the historic Hotel du Pont in Wilmington to the Buccini/ Pollin Group. The 217room downtown hotel that opened in 1913 will continue to operate under the Hotel du Pont name.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: A woman whose daughter died in a crash linked to a faulty auto ignition switch was honored by a highway safety group Tuesday for her advocacy work. The inaugural Clarence M. Ditlow III Safety Champion Award was presented to Laura Christian of Maryland.

FLORIDA Daytona Beach: A Volusia County sheriff’s deputy resigned after body camera video appeared to show him taking money from a man being arrested on suspicion of DUI. Sheriff Mike Chitwood described the ex- deputy as a “thieving idiot,” the Daytona Beach News- Journal reports.

GEORGIA Roswell: Roswell plans to apply for a $ 15,000 state grant aimed at helping communities identify and preserve historic buildings. The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that the grant will require an equal match from the city.

HAWAII Honolulu: The Honolulu Star- Advertiser reports a proposal would cut emergency room costs for treating homeless people. It would cost Hawaii $ 1.4 million each year to operate two mobile medical clinics that would operate primarily on Oahu with a driver, doctor, nurse and psychiatrist aboard.

IDAHO Ketchum: A moose is safe after falling through an unlatched window into an Idaho home’s basement. The Idaho Mountain Express reports that the moose was tranquilized and then carried by eight officers up the steps of the house and outside, where it ran off.

ILLINOIS Chicago: Illinois lawmakers are seeking to strengthen licensing requirements and oversight for thousands of group homes for adults with disabilities. The proposed legislation follows an investigation by the Chicago Tribune that exposed substandard living conditions.

INDIANA West Lafayette: Federal agriculture officials say Indiana’s popcorn harvest set a record last year with yields up nearly 30% compared to 2015. Total production was 500 million pounds worth $ 71.4 million.

IOWA Des Moines: February 2018 trial date is set for a breach of contract lawsuit filed by the owner of the former Argosy Sioux City riverboat casino against its local partner, The Sioux City Journal reports. The Argosy closed in July 2014 after Iowa regulators denied its license renewal.

KANSAS Topeka: A man was sentenced to four years and four months in federal prison in a scheme to export firearms using a hidden online marketplace. Officials say Michael Andrew Ryan, also known as GunRunner, pleaded guilty to six counts of exporting and attempting to export firearms.

KENTUCKY Owensboro: The International Bluegrass Music Museum’s spring benefit concert series begins Feb. 17 and runs through April 28. Among featured artists are The Wooks, High Fidelity and Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass.

LOUISIANA Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University officials are considering a plan to demolish the crumbling and architecturally mismatched Middleton Library under a 10- year campus redesign. The project would return the iconic Quadrangle to its original state.

MAINE Bath: The daughters of the late President Lyndon Johnson have joined in celebrating a milestone for a Navy destroyer bearing his name. Lynda Johnson Robb and Luci Baines Johnson took part Monday in the ship’s keel- laying ceremony at Maine’s Bath Iron Works.

MARYLAND Bel Air: A deer that had a plastic pretzel container stuck on its head for about 10 days is finally free. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources says the deer, nicknamed “Jughead” by Bel Air residents tracking the animal, was released into the wild after the packaging was removed.

MASSACHUSETTS Northampton: A former fraternity treasurer at the University of Massachusetts Amherst will serve a year behind bars for embezzling more than $ 130,000 from the organization, The Daily Hampshire Gazette reports.

MICHIGAN Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Museum of Art is offering free membership. The Ann Arbor museum says membership previously required a minimum $ 50 donation, or $ 15 for University of Michigan students.

MINNESOTA St. Paul: Minnesota lawmakers appear ready to let A football fans drink a bit later when the Super Bowl comes to Minneapolis in 2018. A measure in the legislature would let liquor license holders in Hennepin and Ramsey counties apply to stay open until 4 a. m. during Super Bowl weekend.

MISSISSIPPI Ocean Springs: The 75 sprawling oak trees that mark the landscape of Ocean Springs are getting a checkup, The Sun Herald reports. The exams that began this week will list the condition of each tree along Washington Avenue.

MISSOURI Kansas City: A man who used his cane to beat a man attacking a Kansas City bus driver is being recognized for his actions. The driver was able to escape, The Kansas City Star reports.

MONTANA Billings: Montana wildlife officials are looking to acquire 425 acres of land along the Bighorn River, The Billings

Gazette reports. The proposed $ 1.6 million purchase would help maintain stable populations of deer, pheasant, wild turkey and other wildlife.

NEBRASKA Columbus: The Nebraska Public Power District will let people watch its monthly board meetings live via computer, smartphone or other electronic devices. The first meeting to go live on the internet is Feb. 9.

NEVADA Reno: Pyramid Lake in northern Nevada will likely remain closed until April due to flooding. KRNV- TV reports that beach access roads suffered damage in the early January flooding.

NEW HAMPSHIRE Durham: University of New Hampshire researchers have determined that the White Mountain National Forest is home to nearly 140 species of native bees. Among them, scientists found many yellow- banded bumble bees.

NEW JERSEY Wayne: A second case of measles is reported in New Jersey. Officials say a 7month- old Passaic County baby contracted the disease while traveling abroad, NJ. com reports.

NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: A New Mexico nonprofit is working with an anthropology professor from New Mexico Highlands University to create a new Latino studies program.

NEW YORK New York: New York’s attorney general says DeVry University will pay $ 2.25 million following allegations that it exaggerated graduates’ job and salary prospects. The settlement also requires the school to pay $ 500,000 in penalties and fees.

NORTH CAROLINA Greensboro: Police say more than 50 guns were stolen from the Greensboro Gun and Knife Show last weekend just after it ended.

NORTH DAKOTA Fargo: The National Transportation Safety Board will soon release the cause of a 2013 oil train derailment in North Dakota, KFGO radio reports. No one was injured.

OHIO Cincinnati: A baby hippo born prematurely at the Cincinnati Zoo has a name — it’s Fiona. A team at the zoo has been giving 24- hours- a- day care to Fiona since the animal’s birth Jan. 24.

OKLAHOMA Sallisaw: A judge has rejected outpatient visits to a mental health clinic for Daniel Hawke Fears, who killed two women and wounded eight others in a 2002 shooting rampage.

The Tulsa World reports that the judge ruled that Fears is a danger to society.

OREGON Portland: Portland City Council may face a lawsuit if it passes an ordinance that would require landlords to help pay moving costs for tenants evicted without cause or compelled to move by a steep rent hike, a lawyer for the opponents says.

PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia: Prince Albert of Monaco says the childhood home of his late mother, Princess Grace Kelly, will reopen to the public next year or earlier. Albert purchased the home last year for $ 754,000.

RHODE ISLAND Providence: Elderly or disabled people on low incomes who’ve been allowed to ride Rhode Island’s public bus system for free had to begin paying 50 cents per ride this week. The full fare is $ 2.

SOUTH CAROLINA Easley: A Pickens County sixth grader at R. H. Gettys Middle School died after being hospitalized with bacterial meningitis. School and health officials are working to clean areas that the child may have touched.

SOUTH DAKOTA Rapid City: The Rapid City schools superintendent wants to incorporate art and medical curriculum into all grade levels. Lori Simon says it’s crucial to give students a diverse educational background so they’re better prepared for college and beyond.

TENNESSEE Brownsville: Federal authorities in Detroit arrested a man accused of shooting 10 people at a National Guard Armory in Tennessee. Kyanedre Benson is awaiting extradition to face 10 counts of attempted murder in last week’s shooting.

TEXAS Fort Worth: Two horses died in separate incidents at the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, The Fort Worth Star- Telegram reports. The deaths, which were similar, occurred Jan. 16 and last Sunday.

UTAH Salt Lake City: Utah transit authorities fired an employee after an investigation determined that human error was the reason railroad crossing arms were up when a passenger train crushed a FedEx semitrailer. Officials said the employee raised the arms without proper authorization.

VERMONT Westmore: Vermont game wardens are warning people to beware of thin ice caused by warm winter weather. Last week a man drowned after falling through the ice on Lake Willoughby. Game Warden Jason Batchelder tells the Caledonian Record that no fish is worth someone’s life.

VIRGINIA Onley: A new Accomack County hospital is getting ready to open next month. After nearly three years, the $ 90 million Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital campus on Virginia’s Eastern Shore is nearing completion.

WASHINGTON Lake Stevens: The Snohomish County Auditor’s Office is trying to fix a voter pamphlet mix- up. The Daily Herald reports that voter guides sent last weekend to Lake Stevens were supposed to be about a $ 17 million library bond. Instead, about 27,000 voters received pamphlets about a Granite Falls school bond.

WEST VIRGINIA South Charleston: West Virginia’s first coyote hunt drew about 500 hunters to South Charleston last weekend. WSAZ- TV reports that about 40 coyotes were killed, and nearly $ 11,000 was awarded in prizes. The Humane Society of West Virginia condemned the contest and released a statement saying the event sends a message to youth that “killing is fun.”

WISCONSIN Neenah: Fox Cities public schools are having a hard time finding substitute teachers. The Post- Crescent reports that the district has about 20 spots to fill daily. Officials say recent retirements meant hiring young educators who are more likely to take time off for maternity or paternity leave.

WYOMING Cheyenne: Wyoming will soon have its first national veterans cemetery. The U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs says it bought about five acres near Cheyenne for about $ 64,000 for the burial grounds. The cemetery also will include aboveground columbarium niches, a memorial wall and other infrastructure.