Around the Nation

The Naperville (Illinois) Sun, March 13, 2007
"Bill would alert libraries of sex offenders"
Law enforcement may soon be required to notify local libraries of registered sex offenders, according to legislation that was approved unanimously last week by the Illinois Senate Criminal Judiciary Committee.
Sponsored by state Sen. Randy Hultgren, R-Wheaton, the legislation would require law enforcement to notify local libraries of identifying information of sex offenders, including name, address, date of birth, place of employment, school attended and offense.
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The Louisville Courier-Journal, March 13, 2007
"Bayh hopes to ease college costs for the middle class"
Middle-class families would get expanded tax breaks to help them offset the rising costs of higher education under federal legislation Sen. Evan Bayh is supporting.
"If you want a good-paying job you've got to get a good education and that increasingly means getting a college education or a post-college education, yet too many middle-class families struggle to achieve that," Bayh, D-Ind., said at a news conference yesterday.
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myABC5.com (Iowa), March 13, 2007
"Legislation uses tax breaks to keep young Iowans in state"
A group of Iowa lawmakers hope a combination of tax breaks for businesses and reduced debts for new college graduates can help keep young professionals in Iowa.
The Iowa Advantage Fund would give tax incentives to businesses that agreed to pay off the college debt of new employees who graduated from Iowa colleges and universities.
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The Iowa Globe-Gazette, March 13, 2007
"Legislature considers additional changes to openness laws"
According to the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, changes made by the Legislature in 2006 to the state’s open records law included these measures:
* An exception allowing law enforcement agencies to withhold portions of electronic mail and telephone billing records “if that information is part of an ongoing investigation.”
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THe Clarion Ledger (Mississippi), March 10, 2007
"Law extends professional certification for military"
A bill signed into law by Gov. Haley Barbour will prevent the professional licenses held by members of the National Guard and Reserves from expiring while the soldiers are deployed on active duty.
The licenses will be extended for three months after the soldiers return from the deployment, under the bill Barbour signed Thursday. The law takes effect July 1.
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Stateline.org, March 13, 2007
"States tackle texting behind the wheel"
Legislators in three states are targeting text messaging to keep drivers’ thumbs on the wheel and off the tiny keypads of their cell phones or wireless devices in the latest crackdown on distracted driving.
Text-messaging bills in Arizona, Connecticut and Washington state are the newest attempts by state legislatures to block the increasing distractions of electronic technology in vehicles, from the ubiquitous cell phone to DVD players, BlackBerries and GPS systems.
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The Oregonian, March 13, 2007
"For Oregon students, keyboards are out, pencils in for tests"
Sharpen those pencils, students -- no more state tests on computers this school year.
State education officials canceled computer testing Monday and announced schools will have to administer paper-and-pencil, fill-in-the-bubble tests in reading and math. About 280,000 public schools students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10 take the annual tests to show their proficiency in meeting statewide academic standards.
The Oregon Department of Education abandoned the online assessment system because it has given fits to students and their teachers in the past two weeks.
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