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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Public Asks: "Let's Get Fracking on Better Rules"

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Monday, July 11, 2011   

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - State lawmakers from the House and Senate are meeting to try to bridge gaps that killed the push during last legislative session for regulating Marcellus-shale exploration. A number of citizen groups are pushing them to get it done, saying the state has to get a better handle on the exploding number of natural gas wells being created by hydraulic fracturing (called "fracking").

Frank Young, chair of the West Virginia Environmental Council Legislative Government Affairs Committee, says a Monday rally and other events this week show broad public support for updating the drilling rules.

"We want to make the legislature aware that there is a significant public desire out there to have this industry regulated before it gets so entrenched that it cannot be regulated."

Young says he feels the Senate and the House members can settle their differences fairly quickly.

"We are optimistic that we will end up with a good bill here. I think the governor won't be calling a special session unless there is a bill agreed upon by all the major parties to this. So, we're encouraged at this point."

Young says if lawmakers cannot reach a compromise, the state should stop granting new permits for natural gas fracking.

"We should suspend the issuance of further permits until such time as the legislature can promulgate effective comprehensive rules and regulations."

Young says his group is not asking to stop currently permitted wells, because that could throw thousands of people out of work.

The industry has said it can accept reasonable changes to the regulations, which have not been updated in decades. Several lawmakers have blamed the failure of the last rewrite on differences between large gas companies and their smaller competitors, as well as differences between the House and Senate.



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