STATELINE.

DANGER! POWERBALL FEVER

The Connecticut legislature passed a bill last summer that would allow towns inundated with hordes of jackpot-seekers to ask the state lottery commission to suspend sales there for 24 hours. The bill was proposed after Connecticut towns bordering New York were overrun with Powerball players from New York, New Jersey and other states that do not offer the game. Unlikely as it may seem, last year the state had to reimburse Greenwich for $93,000 in police overtime, trash removal and other costs of controlling mobs of ticket buyers flooding into town for a record $295 million jackpot. According to the Associated Press, people swooned from the heat, there were no bathroom facilities and many shops closed because the huge lines prevented customers from getting into the stores. As it happened, 13 Ohio machine-shop workers shared that jackpot with a single ticket bought in Indiana.

RAISE YOUR KIDS IN MAINE

A Washington-based child advocacy organization, the Children's Rights Council, recently announced the results of its fifth annual survey of states where it's beneficial to bring up children. Looks like New England is the place to be: Maine ranked No. 1, followed by Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire. The next five are North Dakota, Maryland, Kansas, Wisconsin and Iowa. Down at the bottom are Washington, D.C. at No. 51, then Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas and Arizona. The survey measured rates of child abuse and neglect, mothers not receiving prenatal care in the first three months of pregnancy, immunizations under age 2, high school dropouts, child poverty, infant mortality, child deaths, juvenile arrests, teen births and divorce. Rankings were based on the average of all 10 factors for each state.

MOVE OVER, STROM

Back in 1973, aging Missouri activists managed to establish the first Silver Haired Legislature to try to influence bills pertaining to medical care, consumer protection and age discrimination, among other things. They must have been pretty effective, because 26 years later, there are chapters in 27 states, plus a National Silver Haired Congress. Their advocacy is not limited to matters affecting senior citizens. During the 1999 session, for instance, the Texas group worked to lower the DUI blood alcohol level from. 10 percent to .08, opposed legislation supporting school vouchers and opposed a merger between the state departments on aging and health and human services.

HIGH LODGING TAXES

A tax survey done by the management consulting firm of Runzheimer International found five of the nation's 10 highest lodging taxes in Texas. The report names cities in Montana, Pennsylvania, Oregon and New Jersey as having some of the lowest lodging taxes - all under 6 percent. The cities found to have the highest ones (in percentages): Houston, 17 percent; Columbus, Ohio, 16; Seattle, 16; Amarillo, 15; Austin, 15; Fort Worth, 15; San Antonio, 15; Chicago, 15; Milwaukee, 15; Cleveland, 15.

NEW JERSEY TAKES BACK THE USS NEW JERSEY 

Several New Jersey state legislators, one a retired Navy captain, were on hand for a July ceremony in which the governor formally took title to the Navy's most decorated battleship, the USS New Jersey. Built during World War II, the ship also served in the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. The vessel will be towed from Puget Sound to Philadelphia, arriving early in November. At that time the Navy will decide whether its final berth will be in Camden or Bayonne, the site recommended by the state battleship commission. The governor was "relieved" that she didn't have to make that decision, which is stirring some controversy in the state.

CIVILITY - IT'S THE LAW

Doubtless you've already read that in June the Louisiana Legislature passed and the governor signed a bill that requires students to speak courteously to teachers, principals and other school workers, addressing them as "ma'am" or "sir" or Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms. plus the adult's surname. The bill adds one grade level at a time until high school seniors are covered in 2006. Penalties for not complying are left to local school boards, although students may not be suspended or expelled. Not to worry in Louisiana: Southern kids have politeness drilled into them from an early age.

HOT TOPIC: FIREARMS

Guns got a lot of attention in state legislatures this year, with more than 1,000 bills introduced around the country on all angles of the issue. The subject matter ranged from legislation to prevent cities from suing gun manufacturers to allowing concealed weapons permits to banning assault weapons to requiring background checks at gun shows to requiring safe storage and trigger locks. Of 1,070 gun-related bills introduced this year, 140 reached the governors' desks; as of late July, 119 were signed, 11 were vetoed and 10 awaited signature. States that passed the most firearm-related legislation were Illinois (20) and Louisiana (11); Arkansas and Virginia tied for third with eight apiece.

NEW UNIFORM LAW ON E-COMMERCE

The annual meeting of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws approved, among others, a new uniform act designed to support the use of electronic commerce, primarily by establishing the legal equivalence of electronic records and signatures with paper writings and manually signed signatures. The purpose of the law is to remove perceived barriers to e-commerce and "support the development of the information economy." The Uniform Electronic Transactions Act is a procedural statute. It does not mandate either electronic signatures or records, but provides a means to effectuate transactions when they are used.

FILING SUIT ON THE INTERNET

Colorado will become the first state in the nation to allow lawyers to file lawsuits through the Internet, according to the Rocky Mountain News. The state has contracted with a Texas company to phase in electronic filing in district courts statewide. The voluntary system will start in November in selected courts. Electronic filing is said to be available in some counties across the country, but not in any entire state. If all goes well, sometime early in the next century, lawyers will push a button on their computers to make filings from their offices, while judges will email orders and decisions instantaneously from their chambers. The state plans to expand the system county by county until a statewide system is in place by December 2000. (An observer asks if this will lower lawyers' fees. Well?)

DRUG TESTS FOR WELFARE

In a national first, beginning in October new welfare applicants in several Michigan areas will have to take drug tests before they can collect benefits, according to the Detroit Free Press. The plan is expected to go statewide in 2003. People who fail the tests will be asked to take a second test. Those who fail again will be required to get treatment (paid for by the state). Those who refuse treatment will be cut off welfare within four months. As could be expected, the program is controversial. Should welfare recipients be punished for drug use rates that the University of Michigan found to be not much different from that of the general public?

LAW FOR TEENS

With the help of some high-school students, the Arizona Supreme Court and the state bar association have set up a new Web site explaining the law just for youngsters. The site has a lot of interactive information. Topics include cars, kids and traffic laws, what kids are being arrested for, and juvenile justice laws. One section has personal stories by kids who got into trouble. The chief justice of the state's high court said he doesn't want youngsters "to be afraid of judges and the law," but to have a better understanding. The site (www.lawforkids.org) is funded through the Juvenile Crime Reduction Fund, which is supported by fines from lawbreakers.