SEPTA Strike Cripples Philly Transit; Chicago’s Deadly October
Market-Frankford line trains remain idle at a Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) station just outside Philadelphia on Tuesday. Jacqueline Larma / AP Photo
Connecting state and local government leaders
Also in our State and Local Daily Digest: Sacramento’s homeless toilet station costs; Milwaukee County’s proposed “wheel tax” to pay for crumbling infrastructure; and Colorado used as out-of-state ballot fodder.
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION | Subways, trolleys and buses have ground to a halt in Philadelphia after almost 5,000 Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority workers walked off the job Monday night and hit the picket lines. "We are not able to come to an agreement with SEPTA so as of 12:01 a.m. we're on strike," said Willie Brown, president of Transportation Workers Union Local 234. Brown does not have a prediction about how long the strike might last. If TWU and SEPTA still haven’t reached an agreement by Election Day, the agency would seek an injunction from U.S. District Court to force striking workers back to their jobs to get voters to the polls. [Philly.com]
CRIME | Looking at October crime statistics for Chicago, the nation’s third-largest city saw at least 78 homicides, 48 more than the same month last year. This past weekend, 17 people were killed by gunfire with the number of homicides for the year running 200 above the number at this point last year. [Chicago Tribune]
HOMELESSNESS | In Sacramento, the city has seen successes with a “Pit Stop” pilot project that has created a station of portable toilets for the downtown homeless population. Its success? The toilet station is staffed by attendants who keep it clean, has air-conditioned stalls and is ADA compliant. While the Pit Stop program has been praised by the community, it’s not cheap to operate: From June to December, the city will have spent $173,000 on its operations, according to a city report. [The Sacramento Bee]
INFRASTRUCTURE | Local lawmakers in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin are considering a $30 tax on vehicles, a “wheel tax,” after rejecting a $60 vehicle registration fee proposed by County Executive Chris Abele. Some county supervisors have acknowledged there is no other revenue source available to pay for transportation costs like bus replacements, road repairs and other infrastructure upgrades. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
MARIJUANA | Current and former Colorado politicians are appearing in campaigns in other states that are opposing marijuana-related ballot initiatives. They’re warning that pot is to blame for problems like murders, teen drug abuse and traffic deaths in the Rocky Mountain State. “Don’t repeat our terrible mistake,” says former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb in a television commercial that aired in Arizona. Critics argue the politicians are delivering inaccurate and misleading information. [The Denver Post]
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION | A man and his pit bull service dog are getting attention after video surfaced that is said to show a San Francisco Municipal Railway supervisor and a police officer trying to remove them from a cable car. Tad Tadesse says he and his dog Rosie have been forced from Muni vehicles on more than 20 occasions. [San Francisco Examiner]
TRADEMARKS | A trademark dispute is unfolding in federal court over an iconic sign that marks the scenic M-22 highway in Michigan state. "M-22, the American flag, the U.S. Capitol — it's everybody's flag, everybody's Capitol, everybody's road. Nobody can stop others from taking their picture, putting it on a T-shirt, and trying to market it," said Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette. But not everyone agrees. [Michigan Public Radio via NPR]
RELIGION | The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit is reconsidering a decision that allows the Rowan County, North Carolina commissioners to open their meetings with a prayer. “This practice is clearly out of step with the First Amendment’s protection of religious liberty,” said a statement from Chris Brook, legal director of the ACLU of North Carolina. The group is representing three county residents in a challenge to the prayer policy. [The Charlotte Observer]
VOTER ID | The nonprofit Southwest Voter Registration Education Project is suing Bexar County, Texas officials for telling 1.8 million residents they can only vote with a government-issued voter ID, when a certified birth certificate, bank statement or paycheck will work along with a signed affidavit. [Courthouse News Service]
LAND MANAGEMENT | "It was our duty to stand. We did it peacefully. We did it legally, and the jury's verdicts confirmed that,” said Ammon Bundy, acquitted leader of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge takeover in Oregon, as he heads next to Nevada to stand trial for participating in a 2014 standoff with the federal government over grazing rights. [The Oregonian]
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