12/8: EPA says greenhouse gases hazardous to health

Christian Science Monitor: EPA says greenhouse gases are hazardous to human health

The Environmental Protection Agency's announcement on greenhouse gases was made on the first day of the climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Environmentalists applauded the move. "This means the US can go to Copenhagen and negotiate from a position of strength. It shows the world that the Obama administration is serious about tackling the climate problem even if legislation in the Senate falls flat,” says Frank O’Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch, an environmental watchdog group. “It’s also a reminder to the Senate that if they sit on their hands, the Obama EPA is going to do something to regulate these emissions.”

Also in the South:

ALABAMA: Governors of Georgia, Florida and Alabama to meet over water rights

ARKANSAS: Education advocate, former state senator Jodie Mahony dies

FLORIDA: State's high court may require more specific Miranda warnings

GEORGIA: Ethics reform to be a big topic of 2010 legislature

KENTUCKY: Control of state Senate to be decided in today's special election

LOUISIANA: Tax amnesty brings in $466 million, three times more than expected

MISSISSIPPI: "Green" Grand Bay Coastal Resources center dedicated

NORTH CAROLINA: Drunk driving fatality rate drops in state

SOUTH CAROLINA: State lawmakers want to outlaw texting while driving

TENNESSEE: Editorial: Local clinics could vanish along with state funding

VIRGINIA: State's charter school law gets 'fail' from education reform group

If you have a news story about public policy to suggest, send an email to info@bettersouth.org

12/3: FDIC report released on bank accounts

AP: FDIC report says South's households more likely to live without banks

Nationwide, of the 1.3 million households that stopped having bank accounts in 2008, more than 31 percent said they closed them because of overdraft fees, service charges or high minimum balance rules. A slightly larger group, 34.1 percent, said they did not have enough money to need an account, the report says.

As noted in Southern Political Report, the South has the highest percentage of households which don't have checking or saving accounts, and Mississippi has the highest percentage in the country with 16.4 percent, followed by Georgia and Alabama.

Instead of banks, those without accounts rely on pawn shops, checking services, payday loans or similar non-bank instruments to meet their financial needs.

Also in the South:

ALABAMA: Two insurers to cut property owners' Gulf Coast wind coverage

ARKANSAS: 10% of Arkansas households have no bank account

FLORIDA: Rail project is the subject of today's special legislative session

GEORGIA: Ethics complaint considered against House Speaker Richardson

KENTUCKY: State extends unemployment benefits

LOUISIANA: Reasons for farmers to support action against global warming

MISSISSIPPI: Gov. Barbour to announce more budget cuts on Thursday

NORTH CAROLINA: New fund created to invest in state businesses

SOUTH CAROLINA: Economists say state's recession will last through 2010

TENNESSEE: Another candidate drops out of governor's race

VIRGINIA: Three days left on tax amnesty

If you have a news story about public policy to suggest, send an email to info@bettersouth.org

9/30: States reeling from falling tax revenues

Wall Street Journal: States reel from falling tax revenues

Census Bureau figures show that state tax revenues are down 17% in the second quarter compared with a year ago. Rising unemployment and reduced spending are to blame for the lower sales- and income-tax collections.

bout two-thirds of state revenues are derived from sales and income taxes. The numbers aren't adjusted for inflation or changes in tax rates.

Falling revenues, combined with growing demand for social programs like Medicaid, have forced states to slash spending and scramble to raise revenue through changes including new taxes, legalized slot machines and pricier fishing licenses.

Also in the South:

ALABAMA: New laws go into effect on Thursday

ARKANSAS: More than $1.2 million in scratch-off tickets sold on first day

FLORIDA: Big outcry over Mayors Against Illegal Guns group

GEORGIA: Energy-saving products' sales tax holiday begins Thursday

KENTUCKY: Poverty rate in the state remains at 17.3%

LOUISIANA: Editorial: Louisiana should keep college graduates

MISSISSIPPI: Fee hikes possible for new state budget

NORTH CAROLINA: State budget cuts force closure of seven minimum-security prisons

SOUTH CAROLINA: State borrows $16 million a week to pay unemployment checks

TENNESSEE: State to lose $190 million in federal funds for roads

VIRGINIA: Tax amnesty to begin October 7

If you have a news story about public policy to suggest, send an email to info@bettersouth.org

9/29: Ala. officials worried about Ga.'s reservoir idea

Birmingham News: Ala. officials worried about Ga.'s reservoir plan for Coosa River

A proposed 2,000-acre reservoir in north Georgia has Alabama officials worried that too much water will be taken from the Coosa River.

The plan to pipe 100 million gallons a day into metro Atlanta still has a load of legal and political hurdles to clear in Georgia, but it could open a new front in the water wars.

"Alabama cannot accept the building of a new reservoir that would simply add to the problem by adding to what's already being taken," said Todd Stacy, a spokesman for Alabama Gov. Bob Riley, the state's lead negotiator in the water wars. He would not speculate if Alabama would go to court to stop the project. However, he did say that "Governor Riley will do what is necessary to protect Alabama's water resources."

Also in the South:

ARKANSAS: State begins lottery ticket sales

FLORIDA: Convicted felons working in some nursing homes, investigation finds

GEORGIA: Census shows nearly 26,000 metro Atlanta families now in poverty

KENTUCKY: Vulgarity continues in Mongiardo's Senate race

LOUISIANA: State's poverty rate remains high, according to census

MISSISSIPPI: Gov. Barbour makes economic trip to Asia

NORTH CAROLINA: Immigrant policy at community colleges could face challenge

SOUTH CAROLINA: Gov. Sanford sets up mass transit council

TENNESSEE: Senate Speaker wants delay of Voter Confidence Act

VIRGINIA: Gov. Kaine talks about tax amnesty program

If you have a news story about public policy to suggest, send an email to info@bettersouth.org

9/22: Climate conference opens at United Nations

New York Times: Climate conference opens at United Nations

Today, an unprecedented daylong conference on combating climate change is taking place at the United Nations and more than 100 heads of state are in attendance.

President Obama said the world “cannot allow the old divisions that have characterized the climate debate for so many years to block our progress. It is a journey that will require each of us to persevere through setback, and fight for every inch of progress, even when it comes in fits and starts." Mr. Obama said the world had been too slow to recognize the gathering danger from rising temperatures: “It is true of my own country as well; we recognize that.”

Mr. Obama said he was committed to the United States making its largest-ever investment in renewable energy, new standards for reducing pollution from vehicles and making clean energy profitable, among other initiatives.

Also in the South:

ALABAMA: Lawmakers struggle to keep college tuition program afloat

ARKANSAS: RNC chairman says his party must win over black voters

FLORIDA: Pari-mutuels, tracks seek special legislative session to boost revenue

GEORGIA: Gov. Perdue declares state of emergency in 17 counties over flooding

KENTUCKY: State gets a 'D' in financial security report

LOUISIANA: State to toughen stance on truancy

MISSISSIPPI: Gov. Haley Barbour orders state funding cut from ACORN

NORTH CAROLINA: Gov. Perdue forms panel to look at offshore energy -- oil, natural gas, wind

SOUTH CAROLINA: NAACP to boycott South Carolina for ninth year in a row

TENNESSEE: Megasite in West Tennessee plagued with political feuding

VIRGINIA: State's tax amnesty program launched with a smiley face

If you have a news story about public policy to suggest, send an email to info@bettersouth.org