New laws prod police, protect kids, slice taxes
PoliticsSome rules create new responsibilities for parents, schools
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Published: June 28, 2009
COLUMBUS, Ohio — New laws taking effect Wednesday reflect states’ concerns with holding police more accountable, expanding the use of DNA to solve crimes and offering certain tax breaks.
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AT A GLANCE
New laws taking effect in Wednesday:
California
• Bars schools from serving food containing transfats. Florida
• Relaxes schools’ zero-tolerance policies by preventing children from being arrested or expelled for insignificant misbehavior such as bringing plastic butter knives to school, drawing pictures of guns or vandalizing property. Kansas
• Allows women seeking abortions to see ultrasound images or hear their fetus’ heartbeat at least 30 minutes before the procedure. New Mexico
• Abolishes the death penalty and replaces it with life in prison without parole. Vermont
• Permits prosecutors to send teenage cell phone "sexting” cases to juvenile courts to eliminate the stigma of child pornography convictions.
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Police mandates
Some laws put extra mandates on police. SWAT teams in Maryland must report on their missions to the governor every six months and report when a team injures or kills a pet.
Minnesota is compelling police and sheriffs to start searching right away when adults disappear suspiciously. Some law enforcement agencies now wait 24 or 48 hours to look into such cases, since adults can choose to leave without telling others.
Tax breaks
Tax breaks abound. North Dakota will reduce taxes on income, champagne, and pull tab gambling tickets. Maryland will add domestic partners who co-own homes to the list of people exempted from inheritance tax.
North Carolina will provide a series of new and expanded property tax breaks or deferrals to disabled veterans, the elderly and fishery owners.
Washington is giving newspaper printers and publishers a 40 percent cut in the state’s main business tax.
Child safety, health
Oregon will strengthen its existing anti-bullying law after a study found the state’s 2001 law was failing to stop name-calling, slurs and harassment, especially insults aimed at minorities, girls and gays.
Mississippi will require anyone 17 or younger to get written permission from a parent or guardian before using an indoor tanning facility.
Related Topics:
Public Finance, Taxes
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