Washington state abolishes death penalty
Washington has become the 20th US state to ban the death penalty, after its Supreme Court ruled the punishment was applied in an “arbitrary and racially biased manner”.
United States
New report finds raising the minimum wage reduces prison recidivism
Economics professors found that a minimum wage increase of $.50 an hour reduced the chance that a person would end up back in prison within a year by 2.8%.
Taylor Swift’s Instagram post has caused a massive spike in voter registration
The singer waded into politics on Sunday with a social media post encouraging her fans to register to vote before it was too late.
Minnesota now offers ‘X’ for gender option on driver’s licenses
In addition to “M” and “F,” “X” can now be checked by any applicant who does not want to identify as male or female.
Austin bans restaurants from throwing food waste into landfills
Austin’s Universal Recycling Ordinance requires all food-permitted businesses to divert discarded organic material, including food scraps and soiled paper, from landfills.
Uber will offer free rides to polling stations on Election Day
The ride-sharing company unveiled its “Get to the Polls” feature as part of a series of initiatives to encourage riders to vote in the midterm elections on Nov. 6.
California bans gun sales to people under 21
The bill will prevent people under 21 from buying rifles and other types of guns.
Pennsylvania to toughen gun laws in domestic violence cases
The bill will force people in Pennsylvania with a domestic violence ruling against them to more quickly surrender their gun.
Amazon agrees to $15 an hour for warehouse workers
Amazon will begin paying hundreds of thousands of warehouse workers a minimum wage of $15 per hour, the company said Tuesday, following criticism from lawmakers that some employees at one of the country’s wealthiest companies are dependent on public assistance.
California becomes first U.S. state to require women on corporate boards
California will be the first state to require publicly traded companies to have at least one woman on their board of directors.