Today’s News
Pilot programs intended to address changing family court dynamics
Today’s families don’t necessarily reflect the family model around which family courts throughout the United States were developed, a nonprofit organization championing the administration of justice in state courts found in a recent study. The National Center for State Courts — headquartered in Williamsburg, Va. — plans to take the findings of the Family Justice Initiative, and with the assistance of recommendations from the Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators, test [...]
Trade war’s wounded: Companies improvise to dodge cost hikes
WASHINGTON — In Rochester, N.Y., a maker of furnaces for semiconductor and solar companies is moving its research and development to China to dodge President Donald Trump’s import taxes — a move that threatens a handful of its 26 U.S. jobs. In California’s San Joaquin Valley, the CEO of a company that makes precision parts for the biomedical and chip making fields jokes bitterly that he’s running “a nonprofit” and might have to cut jobs. [...]
Report: Ohio ranked 40th for health
Grappling with challenges from the high prevalence of smoking, low immunization coverage among children and high levels of air pollution, Ohio is ranked the 40th healthiest state, according to the United Health Foundation’s American Health Rankings 2018 report, which was released last month. The state ranked 39th the previous year. The state ranked 47th in behavioral health, 32nd in environment, 28th in policy, 34th in clinical care and 40th in outcomes. The state performed poorly [...]
Surgeons fear pelvic mesh lawsuits will spook patients from treatments
SEATTLE — Doctors who specialize in female pelvic medicine say lawsuits by four states, including Washington and California, over products used to treat pelvic floor disorders and incontinence might scare patients away from the best treatment options — or maybe even push the products off the market. Sixty-three Washington surgeons signed a letter to state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, arguing his consumer-protection lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and its Ethicon Inc. subsidiary is off-base. The [...]
Detroit show has SUVs, horsepower, but electric cars hard to find
DETROIT (AP) — Automakers have promised to start selling hordes of electric cars in the next few years, but only two will be unveiled at the big Detroit auto show that kicks off this week — and those aren’t even ready for production. Meanwhile, there will be plenty of SUVs and high-horsepower sports cars on display as cheap gasoline helps SUV and truck sales continue their dramatic climb. So how credible is the industry’s pledge [...]
Developers, not farmers, get biggest hit from wetlands rule
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump often points to farmers as among the biggest winners from the administration’s proposed rollback of federal protections for wetlands and waterways across the country. But under longstanding federal law and rules, farmers and farmland already are exempt from most of the regulatory hurdles on behalf of wetlands that the Trump administration is targeting. Because of that, environmental groups long have argued that builders, oil and gas drillers and other industry [...]
2020 Democratic primary set to intensify as candidates make moves
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — After months of speculation and secrecy, the 2020 presidential primary season is about to explode. With several Democrats already in the race, a half dozen more are locking down final travel, staffing and strategy to launch White House bids in the coming weeks. While plans may change, the announcements are expected to come in waves, the first featuring a group of ambitious Senate Democrats including New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, [...]
It’s not too late for small businesses to save money on 2018 taxes
NEW YORK (AP) — Small business owners who are uneasy about their 2018 taxes might find they can save some money even though the year is over. Owners with sloppy records will not only find it harder to compile their returns, the haphazard books may be costing them money — they may overlook expenses that will lower their tax bills. Tax advisers recommend hiring a bookkeeper or an accounting student to organize everything and be [...]
Industry wary of alternatives tries to protect a word: meat
LINCOLN, Neb. — More than four months after Missouri became the first U.S. state to regulate the term “meat” on product labels, Nebraska’s powerful farm groups are pushing for similar protection from veggie burgers, tofu dogs and other items that look and taste like real meat. Nebraska lawmakers will consider a bill this year defining meat as “any edible portion of any livestock or poultry, carcass, or part thereof” and excluding “lab-grown or insect or [...]
Legal News
Kansas abortion foes brace for state Supreme Court decision
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Abortion opponents in Kansas have been bracing themselves for nearly two years for a ruling from the state’s highest court that [...]
High court won’t take case of Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court announced Monday that it is leaving in place a decision that vacated a murder conviction against Kennedy cousin Michael [...]
Social Security 2019: Plenty of changes for retirees’ consideration
A larger benefit check, later retirement age and an increased Social Security tax cap are just a few of the changes the New Year brings [...]
Business News
GM predicts stronger 2019 profits due to truck, SUV sales
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors strengthened its pretax profit estimate for 2018 and predicted even stronger performance for this year as it executives made a [...]
Ocean Resort Casino changing hands
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Atlantic City’s Ocean Resort Casino is changing hands after just six months of operation, the latest indication that the New Jersey [...]
Online job postings fall again in central Ohio
Online job postings in central Ohio fell for the fourth consecutive month according to new figures released by the Ohio Department of Job and Family [...]
Real Estate
Baltimore trying to stem decades-long disappearing act
BALTIMORE — LaShelle Rollins’ rental house in West Baltimore is wedged between a line of derelict properties valued only by street gangs, drug addicts and [...]
Outgoing Interior secretary defends legacy as he leaves
BILLINGS, Mont. — As former U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke exits Washington amid a cloud of unresolved investigations and criticism of his actions favoring industry, [...]
Number of construction jobs in central Ohio continues to shrink
For all of the building activity around the Columbus area, the number of construction jobs in the region has yet to return to pre-recession levels. [...]
Politics
Can Trump use an emergency to build his wall?
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is weighing using a national emergency declaration to circumvent Congress and the budget stalemate and force construction of the president’s [...]
Study finds Ohio among states least impacted by shutdown
While it’s unclear when the federal government’s partial shutdown will end, Ohio is among the least affected, according to a new study. Ohio ranked as [...]
Bruised GOP considers Trump’s Pennsylvania chances in 2020
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Democratic energy in the perennial battleground state of Pennsylvania is raising questions about President Donald Trump’s ability to replicate his stunning 2016 [...]
