February, 2012
New rules for robocalls
Updated federal regulations require that telemarketers get your written permission before sending you prerecorded messages. Political campaigns and charities are exempt.
Regulations Are in Place for Semi-Truck Drivers for a Reason
As a Missouri and Illinois truck accident attorney, I know there are many things that must be considered in a post-crash investigation. More often than not, the insurance carrier for the truck driver receives notice of the semi-truck crash right away – sometimes within the hour. This is because truck drivers are trained to to [...]
Contra Costa County stands to lose millions in tax revenue from refineries
Contra Costa County, home to the highest concentration of oil refineries in the state, is sweating after a recent court ruling that could cost local agencies millions of dollars in property tax revenues from petroleum producers. A Southern California appeals court in January tossed out a 5-year-old state regulation — dubbed Rule 474 — that [...]
State’s largest electric utilities refile merger proposal
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Green Mountain Power returns from the drawing board with a new proposal, and hopes this one will get the green light from regulators. The merger of Central Vermont Public Service and Green Mountain Power would join the states two biggest electric utilities. State regulators said no to a previous proposal. Ten years [...]
Legislators reject attempt to clarify regulation of slot machines
State gambling regulators are in a bind. They have indirectly authorized the expansion of gambling in the past six months as lawyers for parimutuels found holes in state laws and opened the door to slot machines at parimutuels across the state and table-game look-alikes at existing racinos. Now state regulators worry that Florida’s porous gambling [...]
Oil industry hopes to avoid additional federal regulations
“What were keenly concerned about is whether these different initiatives will lead to redundant, possibly even contradictory, approaches or additional delays as one agency awaits another,” said Richard Ranger, senior policy adviser for API. Ranger and Kathleen Sgamma, vice president of government and public affairs for the Western Energy Alliance, spoke to reporters Thursday in [...]
Wisconsin Senate scales back air regulations
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Senate has passed a pair of bills that would relax portions of Wisconsins air pollution regulations. One bill would prohibit the state Department of Natural Resources from requiring permits for fixed, indirect sources of pollution such as parking lots and highways that attract motor vehicles. The Senate passed the [...]
State regulators slam Southern California Edison for windstorm response
State regulatorsWednesday issued a blistering report Wednesday criticizing Southern California Edison for outages that left nearly a quarter ofa million customers without power, some for more than a week, after last Novembers historic wind storms. The report by the California Public Utilities Commission faulted the utility for equipment, including wooden poles and cables that help [...]
State regulation of newspapers ‘would open Pandora’s box’, chairman of press …
Lord Grade, Lord Hunt and Sir Christopher Meyer all said they opposed state regulation of the press.Photo: Rex Features
Letter: Federal regulations
We all recognize the fragile state of the American economy. Here in Topeka, small businesses are doing everything in their power just to survive. Unfortunately, it seems like every time our local businesses start looking for new ways to save money and lower costs for their customers, our politicians are standing in the way. Take, [...]