New Laws Coming

Stateline.org did an excellent job of rounding up a list of new laws that will take affect Jan. 1.

• California public colleges no longer will be able to censor their student journalists [...]

• [...] Ohio pet owners will be able to set up trust funds for their furry and feathered friends. [According to The Human Society, Ohio will become the 35th state where pet owners can establish trust funds for their pets in the event the owner dies or becomes incapacitated.]

• On New Year's Day, 18 states will raise their [minimum wages], with seven raising it above the $5.15 federal minimum for the first time. That brings the total number of states with wages above the federal minimum to 29.

• This year's fierce immigration debate has led to a tough new law in Colorado, where employers will have to verify new workers' identification in 2007 to ensure they aren't illegal immigrants. Employers also must retain copies of the documents they've checked.

• [Starting] New Year's Day, Missouri will have no more limits on campaign contributions, although state legislators and statewide officials cannot accept contributions while the [Missouri] General Assembly is in session.

• By Jan. 1, every house and apartment in Illinois must have a carbon monoxide detector [DOC] [...]

• [Also in Illinois,] restaurant patrons will be permitted to bring home opened bottles of wine, and doctors will be able to begin preserving the organs of corpses for transplant purposes before the patient's wishes are known or familial consent is determined.

• In the new year[,] it also will become tougher for local governments to seize land for economic development in Florida, Illinois and Iowa, as the three states' new eminent domain laws take effect.

• Beginning in 2007, gift cards in Kansas will have to be good for at least five years.

• [...] those arrested for a felony in New Mexico will have to provide a DNA sample that will be entered into a DNA identification database to help solve crimes.

• Schoolyard bullies in South Carolina will face tougher tactics. The state will require every school district to expand anti-bullying policies to protect students not just from physical harm, but also from cell-phone and e-mail harassment.

• Musical copycats in Illinois will have to sing a different tune. Bands no longer will be able to use the same name as a classic band unless at least one of the band's original members is in the ensemble.

• Illinois inmates with self-inflicted injuries will have to pay their own medical bills. The law was inspired by a Menard County criminal who killed his father and then shot himself in the face with a rifle, leaving the county with the bill.

• Smokers will see further setbacks. With the addition of Louisiana, smokers in 21 states will face a statewide smoking ban -- although Louisiana's ban excludes bars -- according to Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights. In South Dakota and Texas, the state tax on cigarettes is scheduled to increase by a dollar on Jan. 1.

• Louisiana spouses who are seeking a divorce will have to wait a year, or twice as long as the previous waiting time, before a divorce is granted if they have young children.

• Sex offenders in Michigan and Pennsylvania will be subject to additional monitoring or punishment. Michigan's citizens will be able to sign up for e-mail announcements when a sex offender moves into their zip code, while Pennsylvania sex offenders could have their property confiscated if it was used to commit the offense. For example, a sex offender could lose his house if it was used to entice victims.

• New York's autism patients no longer will be subject to discrimination by insurance companies. In the past, companies could refuse to cover their treatment.

• Pistol-packing judges in Kansas will be able to carry concealed weapons into their courtrooms.

• Pets can live the high life in 35 states, even after their owners die. And in California, owners will be prohibited from tethering their dogs to stationary objects for more than three hours.

• Long-term tenants in California will gain the right to 60 days' notice -- double the previous period -- from landlords who want to evict them.

• A few states will fall in line with their peers in the new year. Alabama, the last state without any protections for its tenants, also is increasing tenants' rights by spelling out landlords' basic obligations to provide safe, habitable housing for their tenants. The law also makes it easier for landlords to evict bad tenants.

• Massachusetts will become the 50th state to require new hunters to pass a hunter-safety course before receiving a license.

• Nebraska and Kansas have jumped on the concealed-weapons bandwagon, leaving Wisconsin and Illinois as the only two states with laws prohibiting concealed weapons. Nebraskans will be able to apply for permits on Jan. 2 (because New Year's [Day] is a holiday) and in Kansas, where the law took effect July 1, citizens will start receiving permits Jan. 1.

• Colorado and Georgia will begin honoring the families of soldiers who died in action with special license plates. Georgia's plate will say, "Gold Star Family," while Colorado's inscription will read, "Fallen." 

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The centennial of voice broadcasting Dec 29-30

The first voice broadcast ever done was Christmas Eve 1906 by Reginald Fessenden.

Amateur Radio operators (often called "Hams") are celebrating with major international event Dec 29-30[.]

Full story about the first broadcast here.

Information about the 2006 celebration here.