Search query: new mexico

Last week, both Illinois and Hawaii passed same-sex marriage making them the 15th and 16th states to do so. Overall, 2013 has been quite a year for the LGBT community. These last two states just seem to put the icing on the proverbial cake. It all comes on the heals of the 2012 election where voters in three states (Maine, Maryland, and Washington) approved same-sex marriage and rejected a ban on it in the state of Minnesota. So, what has transpired during the year? Rhode Island, Delaware, Mi

“Off-year” elections, like those in 2013, tend not to get a lot of attention, especially from voters. There are not a lot of big races around the country, and turnout is usually far lower than in presidential election years. This year’s low-turnout election shows why certain lawmakers’ recent push to make voting harder is badly misplaced. Strict photo identification requirements, an antiquated registration system, and felony disenfranchisement laws keep Americans from participating by complicati

The fact that early voting is even a contentious issue in America today tells us a great deal about how poisoned our politics has become; how untethered it often can seem  from sense and sensibility. Of course, more early voting options would offer the American people more convenient and practical ways in which to exercise their franchise. Giving voters more “time, place, and manner choices” when it comes to casting a ballot makes sense as a market-based concept. And it is self-evidently a good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGmiw_rrNxkWednesday, a coalition of hundreds of organizations, whistle blowers, and civil rights leaders unveiled a video (above) opposing "suspicionless surveillance of American citizens." The 'Stop Watching Us' campaign features many notable privacy proponents including Daniel Ellsberg, best known for the 'Pentagon Papers,' and Glen Greenwald, the Guardian reporter who 'leaked' information on the NSA's PRISM surveillance program from Edward Snowden.A rally is p

Concerns about rising tuition and how students can afford to finance their major investments in post-secondary education are widespread. Solid insights into these questions require accurate and up-to-date information about prices. reports on the prices charged by colleges and universities in 2013-14, how prices have changed over time, and how they vary within and across types of institutions, states, and regions. We also provide information on the net prices that students and families actually p

The history of voting rights in the U.S. has been a long battle of disharmony and disenfranchisement since the country’s formation and although freedom and voting are frequently associated with one another in our current culture, restrictions to true freedom in this regard still remain unsettled, contentious, and often unperceived. While democracy was forming in the colonies, the Old World ideology that it was nothing short of mob rule was held strongly by many prominent colonists, thereby limi

Mark Breck / Shutterstock.com California congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) announced the introduction of a new bill on Monday, HR 3182, which aims to improve the infrastructure at the country's international border crossings. Peters made the announcement at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce's annual trip to Washington as this legislation would directly affect San Ysidro and Otay Mesa. “Improving the infrastructure near our borders is key to both our economic growth and national securit

"To deny American exceptionalism is in essence to deny the heart and soul of this nation."—Mike Huckabee I spent most of last week in Mexico as part of a municipal delegation from Wichita to our sister city of Tlalnepantla. While there, I had the good fortune to meet several truly exceptional people. One of them was our group’s facilitator, Ji Yeon, a South Korean native who, along with speaking both English and Spanish with complete native fluency (I originally accused her of being from Califo

More states file “on time” -- on their own standard, anyway Truthful accounting includes timely accounting.   Our governments have made some progress on this score, but we believe there is still a lot of room for improvement. We track the timeliness of state government financial reporting, as part of our annual review of the states’ “Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports” (CAFRs).   From 2009 to 2011, less than half of the states met the timeliness standard set by the Government Finance Offic

The goal for a national core curriculum, like Common Core, is to ensure that all students who graduate with a U.S. education are capable of participating in the national economy. Proponents argue students should be prepared for the demands of an increasingly globalized workforce or higher education, no matter where they were educated. However, indicators show states with historically lower quality education systems are falling farther behind in spite core curriculum's implementation. In states