Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., speak to reporters in Statuary Hall after meeting with U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., in the U.S. Capitol Building on May 06, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Last week, Greene threatened to move forward with a ‘motion to vacate’ over her dissatisfaction with the Speaker’s handling of the government funding legislation. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene plan to meet privately Tuesday amid her calls for him to resign or face a floor vote ..read more

A woman plays a slot machine at a casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images) This story was updated at 5:25 p.m. on May 6, 2024 to include comments from Cherokee Nation Businesses. The Arkansas Racing Commission on Monday voted to open a new 30-day application period for the state’s fourth and final casino. Commissioners decided at Monday’s meeting that both a digital and paper copy of applications for the Pope County casino license must be submitted by June 11. A statewide notice will be published in Sunday’s newspaper, and May 13 will be the first day the commission o ..read more

An attendee looks at a series of banners for National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Candlelight Vigil on the National Mall on April 24, 2024, in Washington, D.C. The Justice Department’s Office for Victims of Crime held the event to pay tribute to victims and survivors of crime and individuals who provide service and support. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — States and local organizations that aid victims of sexual assault and other crimes are raising the alarm about a multi-year plunge in funds, a major problem they say Congress must fix soon or programs will be forced to set up wait ..read more

Jelani Bayi, seen with his dog, Dior, bought this four-bedroom house in Detroit’s Rosedale Park neighborhood for $275,000 in 2021. Like many Black-majority areas, his ZIP code has seen big gains recently as the housing shortage intensifies and state and federal efforts to end bias in valuations of Black-owned homes progress. (Valaurian Waller/Bridge Detroit) Black homeowners’ property values are on the rise across the country, with some of the biggest upswings in Midwestern and Southern states. The boon to Black homeowners, after decades of lagging property values, could help them close a rac ..read more

Arkansas House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, speaks to reporters on Thursday, May 2, 2024, the final day of business in the 2024 fiscal session. The Legislature will adjourn sine die May 9. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate) Arkansas lawmakers concluded business in the 2024 fiscal session Thursday and plan to adjourn sine die May 9. The session lasted a week longer than initially projected, but House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, said he believed it went “relatively smoothly.” The fiscal year 2025 budget, also known as the Revenue Stabilization Act, heads to Gov. Sarah Huckabee ..read more

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra testifies at his 2021 confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. HHS published a final rule Friday to expand health care access to DACA recipients. (Photo by Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will publish a final rule Friday that will allow about 100,000 uninsured people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program to enroll in state-run or private health insurance plans provided under the Affordable Care Act, administration officials said. The new rule from the U.S. Department o ..read more

Rep. Bruce Cozart (L) and Sen. Terry Rice (R) listen to Arkansas Board of Election Commissioner Director Chris Madison discuss a new voter registration rule during a legislative committee meeting on May 2, 2024. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) An Arkansas legislative committee on Thursday reviewed and approved an emergency rule that permits electronic signatures on voter registration applications only when they’re completed at certain state agencies.  The Arkansas Board of Election Commissioners last week gave initial approval to the rule, which requires paper registration applica ..read more

(Getty Images) Arkansas’ Alcoholic Beverage Control Division revoked a Hot Springs medical marijuana dispensary’s license Thursday, the first revocation of its kind in the five years medical cannabis sales have been legal in the state. Dragan Vicentic, owner of Green Springs Medical Marijuana Dispensary, said in an interview that he will appeal ABC’s decision to its board. The appeal will allow the business to remain operational until the issue is resolved, according to a Department of Finance and Administration news release. “The revocation is the result of ongoing violations, most recently ..read more

Jasmine James, third from left, talks about her experiences with Medicaid during an event held on March 24, 2023 in front of DHS offices in Little Rock. A group called Make Medicaid Better gathered in front of the Department of Human services offices in downtown Little Rock to seek a response from the department about changes to Medicaid the group had suggested to DHS in an earlier meeting. (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate) About 20% of children insured in Arkansas’ Medicaid program lost access during the state’s “unwinding” period, according to a report released Thursday from the Georgetown Uni ..read more

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed an executive order on May 2, 2024 at the Arkansas Capitol directing schools to follow state law over new Title IX regulations. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) In response to new Title IX regulations that include protections for LGBTQ+ students, Arkansas’ governor signed an executive order Thursday that instructs public schools to instead follow state law and directs the education department to provide guidance on how to do so. The final rule, which the U.S. Department of Education announced last month, protects students and employees from sex-based di ..read more