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Audit: Marijuana-rich Oregon must prep for US legalization

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon should prepare for the U.S. government eventually legalizing marijuana and position the state, with its huge stockpiles of the drug, as a national leader in the industry, state auditors said Friday.Oregon, long known for its potent marijuana, would be competing with other pot-producing states — particularly California, which also has a vast oversupply — for the export market if marijuana is ever legalized nationally. “Now is the time for Oregon to prepare its system for a future when cannabis is legal nationally,” said a statement Friday from Oregon Deputy Secretary of State Cheryl Myers, whose office conducted the audit.A total of 21 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized recreational use of marijuana, but activists see little chance of the current Congress moving toward national legalization. Still, there’s hope the Biden administration will allow pot commerce among states that have legalized it. The legislatures of Oregon and California have a...

Khris Davis took the hits to become ‘Big George Foreman’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

Khris Davis did not know who he was auditioning for when he first got the lines for an untitled project about a boxer. They didn’t even tell him it was based on a true story at first. But he liked that there was a character arc – it’s more than actors often get early in auditions.Somewhere along the way he began to piece it together. And then it clicked: Oh, this is George Foreman, he thought. The film, “Big George Foreman,” is now playing in theaters nationwide. It charts his path from impoverished youth to heavyweight champion, his crushing loss to Ali in Zaire that led him to give up boxing, all the way through his miraculous comeback to the sport at age 45. “A lot of people see George as the grill guy,” said director George Tillman Jr. “Some people see him as the boxer. I wanted to tell a story of things that you don’t know.”Tillman Jr. (“The Hate U Give”) had been searching for a while for the right actor. Some had the acting chops but not the size. Some had the size but not th...

EPA allows gasoline with higher ethanol blend during summer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Fuel stations throughout the country will be able to sell gasoline blended with 15% ethanol during the summer under an emergency waiver issued Friday by the Environmental Protection Agency in a move that could reduce prices at the pump and boost demand for the Midwest-based ethanol industry.The EPA framed its decision as a way to reduce gasoline prices at a time of market supply uncertainty because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The agency said its action also encourages U.S. energy independence and supports American agriculture and manufacturing.“Allowing E15 sales during the summer driving season will not only help increase fuel supply, but support American farmers, strengthen U.S. energy security, and provide relief to drivers across the country,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement.Most gasoline sold in the U.S. is blended with 10% ethanol and the higher 15% blend hasn’t been allowed in the summer because of concerns it...

Colorado governor signs gun control bills after massacre

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Colorado’s governor signed four gun control bills Friday, following the lead of other states struggling to confront a nationwide surge in violent crime and mass shootings, despite a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that expanded Second Amendment rights. Before the ink was even dry on Gov. Jared Polis’ signature, gun rights groups sued to reverse two of the measures: raising the buying age for any gun from 18 to 21, and establishing a three-day waiting period between the purchase and receipt of a gun. The courts are already weighing lawsuits over such restrictions in other states. The new laws, which Democrats pushed through despite late-night filibusters from Republicans, are aimed at quelling rising suicides and youth violence, preventing mass shootings and opening avenues for gun violence victims to sue the long-protected firearm industry. They were enacted just months after a mass shooting at an LGBTQ club in Colorado Springs. “Coloradoans deserve to be safe i...

Accidental overdose deaths tied to meth skyrocket in Travis County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The number of people who died of an accidental overdose in Travis County that had meth in their system went up more than 50 percent from 2021 to 2022, according to the Medical Examiner's report. Meth and fentanyl accounted for a majority of the drugs detected in accidental overdose deaths last year. Drug overdoses leading cause of Travis County accidental deaths in 2022 According to the report, 123 more people died of an accidental overdose in 2022 than the year prior with meth in their system at the time of death. Though an emphasis has been put on fentanyl by public officials, meth rivaled the increase in fentanyl-related deaths year-over-year. Accidental overdose deaths in 2022, according to the Medical Examiner's report (Courtesy Travis County) There may be some overlap in the numbers, though. Accidental drug overdose death numbers "represent the number of cases in which each drug was detected. Because most deaths involve multiple drugs, the numbers do not ne...

Mechanicville summer concert lineup announced

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

MECHANICVILLE, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Mechanicville Public Library is hosting the Tuesdays in Talmadge summer concert series. The concerts will take place on Tuesdays in Talmadge Park at 200 Park Place throughout the summer. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! LineupJune 6: Sundown ExpressJune 20: TailspinJuly 18: The Zookeepers featuring Dave ClementsAugust 1: Large Farva featuring Frank MurrayAugust 15: The Brokenhearted Tom Petty/Stevie Nicks TributeThe concerts take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. They also include food and dancing.

Foreclosed properties to be auctioned off in Schenectady County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Over 25 foreclosed properties around Schenectady County are being auctioned off online between now and May 24. Properties include single-family homes, retail and commercial buildings, and vacant land. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! “Our goal is to get these auctioned properties back on the tax rolls as soon as possible so we can increase the overall tax base and lower the burden for property owners,” said Anthony Jasenski, Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature.All bidders/buyers must register for the auction by submitting Bidder Application documents and a $1,000 credit card hold, which will be returned post-auction.

NYS School Boards Association builds beds for kids

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

LATHAM, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Dozens of volunteers with the New York State School Boards Association giving back to a good cause, building bunk beds for children in need.Volunteers said there was no question about helping the organization and giving local kids what they need to be healthy and safe.  Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! “It came to us when we were looking for a charity to support," Jay Worona,  Deputy Director and General Counsel for NYSSBA, said. "If you can’t come to school, even having something as simple as a bed, that would be a sad state of affairs. Our employees decided wouldn’t it be great for us to partner with this particular not for profit to do exactly that, build beds for kids.” The beds will go to the Mechanicville Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a national non-profit that provides hand-made, fully-furnished beds to kids who have no place to sleep.“It’s wonderful especially when y...

Gun rights advocates promise legal action after Gov. Jared Polis signs 4 gun bills into law

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

Gov. Jared Polis signed into law Friday morning a bevy of new gun regulations that advocates hope will tamp down gun violence in the state and had opponents pledging to sue over as soon as his pen hit the paper.The new laws restrict gun purchases to people age 21 and older; create a three-day waiting period before a purchaser can take possession of the firearm; expand who can file so-called red flag laws to include medical care providers, mental health-care providers, educators, and district attorneys; and remove liability protections for gun manufacturers in lawsuits.All four bills passed with only Democratic support in the legislature, where the party holds a supermajority in the House and a near supermajority in the Senate. A fifth bill to ban so-called ghost guns — firearms that lack serial numbers, such as those sold in build-it-yourself-kits — is working its way through the legislature. Democratic leaders backed all five.Surrounded by advocates and survivors of gun...

Federal judge won’t block Colorado’s new abortion reversal ban since state isn’t planning to enforce it

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:13 GMT

A federal judge on Friday denied a Catholic health clinic’s efforts to block Colorado from enforcing its ban on a controversial abortion-reversal treatment since the state already has said it plans to suspend any enforcement of the new law.In an order in U.S. District Court, Judge Daniel D. Domenico rejected Englewood-based Bella Health and Wellness’s motion for a preliminary injunction. As a result, the temporary restraining order the judge granted earlier this month has been dissolved.“A preliminary injunction is not necessary, and therefore not appropriate, at this time because the defendants have represented to the court that they are treating SB23-190 as if it were not yet in effect and has not changed preexisting law,” the judge wrote in the 7-page ruling.The clinic sued the state immediately after Gov. Jared Polis signed the law this month banning so-called medication abortion reversal — a treatment that medical experts have said is not supported...