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Missouri Bill On Video Franchises Pulled
by Michael Martinez
The sponsor of a Missouri bill to streamline the state's rules for obtaining video franchises withdrew the measure Monday.
State Sen. John Griesheimer, who said last week that he expected his proposal would be blocked, pulled the bill himself. The measure would have established a statewide video-franchising system so companies seeking to enter the market could bypass local regulators. The Bell telephone companies have been lobbying for similar measures in several states, while federal lawmakers are mulling a proposal to create national video franchises.
Both the phone and cable industries had been mounting aggressive advertising campaigns in Missouri to defend their interests. In an interview last week, Griesheimer said he believed the majority of his colleagues had taken sides with the cable industry, thus making the passage of his bill impossible.
A separate technology-related measure was better received by Missouri lawmakers on Tuesday. The Senate advanced on second reading a bill, S.B. 613 to allow consumers to make their cellular phone numbers unavailable to telemarketers. The bill would criminalize unsolicited calls made to such numbers. Under the state's current rules, only wire-based numbers can be placed on the no-call list.
The proposal also would cover facsimile numbers, and it would prohibit wireless phone providers from responding electronically to consumer requests for records. The legislation further would require that commodities and packages with radio-frequency identification technology be labeled conspicuously to notify consumers of such tracking tags.
A final Senate vote has been scheduled for Thursday.
Surveying State Security Challenges
State and local officials have struggled to cement their security strategies because of the development of new threats and a lack of coordination with their federal counterparts, according to a report released Wednesday by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices.
The survey of 55 state homeland security directors found that they are concerned about a growing number of threats, including a potential avian influenza pandemic, and their lack of input at the federal level. According to the NGA report, state directors are nearly unanimous that federal officials need to work with them more thoroughly before adopting nationwide policies.
The state directors who responded to the survey suggested that the Homeland Security Department make its funding policies more flexible. More than half of the officials said the department's grant system underemphasizes recovery. About 50 percent felt the same way about the grant program's focus on emergency prevention.
An overwhelming majority of state security officials are striking private-sector partnerships to build critical emergency-response infrastructure, according to the report. The survey cites partnerships to provide security in several key areas, including ports and transit systems.
State security officials also agreed that emergency responders at all levels of government still lack communications systems that function across jurisdictions. Other top security priorities identified by the survey include the development of intelligence fusion centers, the improvement of coordinated efforts between state and local agencies, and the preparation of a strategy to shield communities from an avian flu pandemic.
Illinois Lawmakers Endorse Drug Database
Illinois lawmakers on Monday sent to Gov. Rod Blagojevich a bill to create an electronic database to monitor methamphetamine manufacturers.
The House unanimously passed a measure, S.B. 2915, to create a public Internet registry of meth makers, clearing the way for its final passage. The Senate passed the measure 55-0 earlier this year.
Under the bill, the Illinois Police Department would compile information on convicted meth manufacturers provided by state courts and prosecutors. The Illinois Corrections Department would have 120 days to give police information on all people incarcerated or released on meth-related offenses. Circuit court clerks would have to provide data to police on a monthly basis.
The database would include the names, addresses, birthdates and criminal records of such residents, but it would not make their Social Security numbers available to the public.
Once signed into law, the bill would take effect immediately.
Florida Prosecutor Subpoenas E-Voting Firms
Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist last week subpoenaed three companies that supply voting machines to counties in his state.
Crist is demanding that Diebold Election Systems, Election Systems & Software, and Sequoia Voting Systems provide documents with information about the sales of voting machines to Florida counties since 2003. The requests are part of an antitrust investigation into whether the companies conspired not to sell equipment to elections officials in Leon County, he said.
"It is critical for our democratic process to work efficiently and effectively, but of most importance, fairly," Crist said in a statement. "These subpoenas are to ensure that the rights of our voters with disabilities, as well as all Florida voters, are secured."
Game-Inspired Prank Causes Ohio Bomb Scare
A group of Ohio teenagers might be facing criminal charges after an attempt last week to recreate scenes from a classic videogame.
Police in Ravenna, Ohio, have indicted five teenage girls for allegedly mounting in public places cardboard boxes designed to look like the animated bricks depicted in "Super Mario Bros," The Record Courier reported. Authorities were notified of the matter after a Ravenna resident noticed a suspicious package near a church and reported it to the bomb squad.
Ravenna Police Chief Randall McCoy said one of the girls turned herself into authorities and said the placement of the packages was meant to be a prank. According to police, the girls consulted a Web site where instructions were posted on how to build the packages and make them look like graphics in the game.
McCoy said the indictment of the girls, who are all between ages 16 and 17, has been referred to a county prosecutor. "The potential is always present when dealing with a suspicious package that it could be deadly," he said. "In today's day and age, you just cannot do this kind of stuff."
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