News from across the USA

ALABAMA Tuscaloosa: A specialty motor vehicle license plate in Alabama has been launched to benefit the state parks system. License Commissioner Jeff Brown told the Tuscaloosa News that the “State Parks Supporter” plate costs an additional $50. ALASKA Anchorage: The flow of oil from an underwater pipeline leak discovered in Alaska’s southern Cook Inlet over the weekend has been stopped, but it’s unclear how much crude poured into the water posing a threat to wildlife. ARIZONA Page: A ceremony is planned to celebrate the opening of new displays at the Glen Canyon Dam visitor center at Lake Powell. Federal Bureau of Reclamation and National Park service. Officials say this is the first full replacement of the displays since the visitor center opened in 1968.

ARKANSAS Strickler: Work began last month to assess the level of radioactivity remaining at the heart of a shuttered nuclear reactor test site. The Arkansas

Democrat-Gazette reported that the findings will determine the waste classification for the site’s reactor vessel. But removing the vessel will take another $16 million in federal funding, said Mike Johnson of the University of Arkansas- Fayetteville, which owns the site. CALIFORNIA Santa Ana: Authorities have arrested a male Uber driver on suspicion of sexually assaulting a female passenger, and investigators say there may be additional victims. Police said Sunday that the alleged assault took place on March 30. Officers arrested Angel Sanchez, 37, the next day. COLORADO Colorado Springs: A 35-year-old man believed to be a transient is suspected of accidentally starting a fire that damaged a church while he trying to keep warm during a snowstorm.

The Gazette reported Saturday’s fire heavily damaged the roof and electrical system at Broadmoor Community Church in Colorado Springs. CONNECTICUT New London: A $30 million overhaul of the Gold Star Memorial Bridge on Interstate 95 between New London and Groton is set to begin this month. The Day newspaper reported that construction crews are scheduled to begin renovations to the southbound bridge April 17. DELAWARE Dover: Dover police say the local crime rate is up, but that officers are doing a good job solving many violent crimes. City police handled 4,561 more complaints last year than they did in 2015, an 11.6% increase in calls. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: The District of Columbia and Mayor Muriel Bowser has kicked off its annual Potholepalooza campaign to fill potholes. Over the next month the transportation department will work to repair identified potholes within 48 hours, rather than its normal 72 hour response time. FLORIDA Miami: The Miami office of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will be teaching students at South Florida high schools the basics about money, investing and finance. The SEC says it’s the first time the Miami office has done this kind of outreach. The program will take place at four public high schools in Miami-Dade County and four in Broward County. GEORGIA Brunswick: The Glynn County Public Works Department has removed trash cans from the public beaches in an effort to keep St. Simons Island’s seashore litter-free. While this tactic may sound contradictory, public works and parks and recreation officials already have seen marked improvement in the appearance of the island’s public beaches.

HAWAII Honolulu: Exterior lighting at Kokee Air Force Station, a radar facility on the island of Kauai, will be reduced to help protect endangered and threatened seabirds, according to The Honolulu Star-Advertiser. IDAHO Boise: A Boise man has been taken to a hospital after the dumpster he was sleeping in was emptied into a garbage truck, The

Idaho Statesman reported. ILLINOIS Quincy: State officials and the Quincy Park District are teaming up to improve the Lynn Deer Park on the grounds of the Illinois Veterans Home. Park district employees created a mix of red and white clover, timothy, rye and orchard grass. INDIANA Terre Haute: Indiana State Police say a trend of stealing credit card information from gas pumps and ATMs continues to pilfer money from state residents, the Tribune Star reported. IOWA Sioux City: Residents are lamenting thedelay in the opening of a new elementary school. Plans to start classes at the new Bryant Elementary School in the fall of 2019 unraveled after the low bid for the project’s final phase came in nearly $3 million higher than the district’s estimate, the Sioux City Journal reported. KANSAS Greensburg: This western Kansas community will receive a $1.08 million grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation to fund an early phase of a new airport. KENTUCKY Frankfort: Gov. Bevin has appointed Ronald “Brian” Wright, a veteran prosecutor, to serve as commonwealth’s attorney for the 29th Judicial Circuit covering Adair and Casey counties in central Kentucky. LOUISIANA New Orleans: Tulane University will honor actress Helen Mirren and jazz musician and New Orleans native Branford Marsalis with honorary degrees during commencement May 20. MAINE Augusta: Mike Thibodeau, the Republican leader of the Maine Senate is calling on his GOP colleagues in the House of Representatives to stop making personal attacks against Democrats. MARYLAND Upper Marlboro: Prince George’s County police are reviewing the department’s DNA lab after learning that Lynnette Redhead had accredited work at a Texas facility that had to be shut down. MASSACHUSETTS Cambridge: Former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at Harvard University’s Kennedy School’s annual Black Policy Conference on Friday. MICHIGAN Ann Arbor: The renovated Nuclear Engineering Laboratory building is reopening at the University of Michigan. MINNESOTA St. Cloud: The state Department of Transportation is cutting back on using ice-melting salt on the state’s highways. Minnesota Public Radio News reported the move is aimed at saving not only money, but also Minnesota lakes, rivers and streams from salt contamination. MISSISSIPPI Jackson: A state office building in downtown Jackson will be named for Patrick Nunnelee, a Republican congressman who died in 2015. MISSOURI Jefferson City: At the urging of a mother of two children who were killed in 2012 when they were electrocuted while swimming near the Lake of the Ozarks docks, state Rep. Jake Hummel, D-St. Louis, is sponsoring a bill that would require new docks to meet new standards and have safety inspections. MONTANA Billings: Montana growers intend to plant more wheat this year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual prospective plantings report said farmers nationwide planned to plant the fewest acres of wheat in a century. However The Billings

Gazette reported that Montana farmers plan to grow 200,000 more acres this year. NEBRASKA Lincoln: Endurance athletes are invited to sign up for a 191-mile race down the Cowboy Trail May 20-21, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission says. NEVADA Reno: A new commander has been chosen to lead Nevada’s 152nd Airlift Wing also known as the “High Roller.” KRNV reported that Reno native Col. Eric Wade has been named the new commander. NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: Wearing the traditional cap and gown, nearly a dozen New Hampshire inmates have received their high school diplomas. The 11 inmates of the New Hampshire State Prison for Men graduated from the state’s Corrections Special School District. NEW JERSEY Trenton: Republican state Sen. Gerald Cardinale wants the state to offer tax credits to organ donors. The National Organ Transplant Act makes it illegal to pay for organs, but 19 states provide either a tax credit or deduction for expenses related to living organ donation. NEW MEXICO Albuquerque: Federal agriculture officials say New Mexico’s corn crop is expected to be slightly bigger in 2017. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s statistics service says a survey in March of growers indicate they are planning to plant about 125,000 acres of corn this year. NEW YORK Poughkeepsie: A concert venue owned by recording star Daryl Hall is suing the town of Pawling, saying that measures taken to reduce the occupancy of the site would force the business to close. The Pough

keepsie Journal reported the dispute comes amid negotiations to build an outdoor stage at Daryl’s House, a venue owned by the Hall & Oates musician.

NORTH CAROLINA Swan Quar

ter: Residents of this low-lying coastal town say a long-term engineering project protected their homes and farmland from Hurricane Matthew last fall. The

Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk, Va., reported the town and 11,000 acres of farmland was protected by nearly 18 miles of dikes. NORTH DAKOTA Wahpeton: A 29-year-old suspect is under arrest after authorities raided a home and found methamphetamine with an estimated street value of more than $1 million. OHIO Columbus: Lawmakers have proposed a voluntary registry for Ohioans with autism and communication impairments as an informational tool to help police. Individuals would fill out a form online or at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles office. OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: Oklahoma Forestry Services officials say 2017 already is among the most active years on record for wildfires. The forestry services has responded to more than 800 wildfires so far this year OREGON Portland: Officials are investigating nine Oregon hotels who travelers claim cancelled their room reservations and inflated prices ahead of a summer solar eclipse. The Oregonian/

OregonLive reported more than a dozen people filled complaints against nine hotels to the Oregon Department of Justice. PENNSYLVANIA Grove City: Vice President Pence is to be the commencement speaker May 20 at Grove City College. Grove City is a private, Christian liberal arts college with about 2,500 students, about 50 miles north of Pittsburgh. RHODE ISLAND Providence: Four organizations received $200,000 from the state Veterans Affairs Office. SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: Owners of small liquor shops across the state hope South Carolina’s highest court will reconsider a ruling they say makes them vulnerable to chain sellers. SOUTH DAKOTA Britton: Marshall County officials are considering building a community center in Britton. The facility would be nearly 20,000 square feet and cost about $3.2 million. TENNESSEE Nashville: The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville turned 50 over the weekend and turned back the clock with $1.50 admission, the same price as the museum’s opening day in 1967, the

Tennessean reported. TEXAS Houston: A 15-year-old foster girl has been killed and another foster child hurt when they were struck by a vehicle after running away from state offices. The death is the first time a child has died while living at CPS offices because a foster home was not available. UTAH Salt Lake City: The Mormon church plans to build five more temples across the globe. Thomas S. Monson, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said one will be in Saratoga Springs, Utah. The others will be in Brasilia, near Manila, the Philippines; Nairobi, Kenya and Pocatello, Idaho. VERMONT Burlington: The Committee on Temporary Shelter is set to open a new location where homeless adults can drop in during the day, The Burlington

Free Press reported. VIRGINIA Richmond: A new study by the Solar Foundation has found Virginia’s solar job market grew 65% in 2016. There were more than 3,200 solar jobs in the state last year. WASHINGTON Kennewick: A Washington state public hospital district is laying off about 25 people as part of a plan to improve its finances. The Tri-City

Herald reported that the plan for Trios Health calls for workforce cuts and not filling some posts. WEST VIRGINIA Morgantown: Jay Drury is stepping down as the leader of West Virginia University’s marching band, effective June 1. Scott Tobias will be in charge next fall while the school searches for Drury’s successor. WISCONSIN Madison: City Council leaders have proposed legalizing and regulating sandwich board-style signs on public sidewalks and terraces, the Wis

consin State Journal reported. WYOMING Jackson: Grizzly bears continue to expand their range, federal officials said. Twenty-seven percent of grizzly range within the region is now outside a “demographic monitoring area” where bear numbers are assessed.