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| Land Resources |
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Montana is offering incentives to landowners whose properties lie between recreation-seekers and state lands. Under the Unlocking State Lands program, landowners may qualify for annual credits of up to $2,000 to allow public access through their property. It is believed that few, if any, other states provide tax credits in exchange for recreational access.
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| Health Care |
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Massachusetts has launched the next phase of an electronic medical records system designed to make it easier for doctors to retrieve a patient's medical history with the click of a button. State officials say that the Massachusetts Health Information Highway (Mass HIway) will, for the first time, let health-care providers locate, request, and retrieve medical records from other participating health-care providers across the state within a highly secure system. With quicker access to medical records, professionals can understand and treat patients with greater speed and safety. While currently voluntary, Massachusetts will require all health-care organizations to connect to Mass HIway by 2017.
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| Social Services |
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With Senior$afe, Maine hopes to protect aging residents from financial scams and exploitation. The state—in partnership with the not-for-profit Legal Services for the Elderly and statewide financial institutions—will train employees of banks and credit unions to spot indicators of financial abuse, such as series of checks that are written to one person or unusual cash withdrawals. Depending on the situation, a teller may ask a few friendly questions to learn more or refer the situation to authorities. It is estimated that, nationwide, elder financial abuse costs victims $2.9 billion annually.
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| Criminal Justice |
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Across the nation, mounting backlogs of rape kits remain untested for a variety of reasons, including overburdened crime labs and closed cases. In response, Ohio’s Sexual Assault Kit Testing Initiative is providing free testing of backlogged rape kits to law enforcement agencies across the state. With the addition of more scientists and the advent of more accurate DNA testing, analysis of rape kits can lead to justice for both victims and the wrongfully convicted. A number of states are proposing legislation to address their own backlogs and federal legislation has also been passed to address the issue.
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| Arts & Recreation |
In Sacramento, California, librarians are leveraging the
skills and talents of their employees to keep their patrons fit. Sacramento’s
Arcade and Southgate branch libraries are using community spaces to teach classes
such as yoga, weightlifting, Zumba, and “Zombie Survival Aerobics.” This effort
is part of a nationwide trend in which libraries are being transformed into
one-stop shops for the community. Officials hope that these classes and other
offerings increase foot traffic, particularly among twenty-somethings.
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| Rhode Island's Winding Road to Serious Pension Reform |
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If all the parties approve it, a recent agreement will preserve most of the benefits of Rhode Island's sweeping pension-reform law. Rhode Island is only the latest state or local government to discover just how thorny it gets if you wait too long before moving to fix public-employee pension problems.
Newsletter produced by: Jessica Engelman, editor; Brendan St. Amant, researcher and writer.
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About the Ash Center
The Roy and Lila Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation advances excellence in governance and strengthens democratic institutions worldwide. Through its research, education, international programs, and government innovations awards, the Center fosters creative and effective problem solving and serves as a catalyst for addressing many of the most pressing needs of the world's citizens. The Ford Foundation is a founding donor of the Center. Additional information about the Ash Center is available at http://ash.harvard.edu.
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