CSG Regional Round-up: The South

AL • AR • FL • GA • KY • LA • MO • MS • NC • OK • SC • TN • TX • VA • WV

MARIJUANA BREATHALYZER

The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS) confirmed it will assess the accuracy of a marijuana breathalyzer this year as part of a recently approved pilot program, making Oklahoma one of the first states nationally to try the new technology. The announcement came after the Legislature appropriated $300,000 during the 2020 session for DPS to develop the pilot program.

The breathalyzer technology, developed by Hound Labs, a California-based company, can determine if THC, the main psychoactive component in marijuana, has been consumed by a person in the past few hours. The goal of the program is to identify drivers who have smoked marijuana within a two- to three-hour timeframe, or those who have consumed edible marijuana within the past four to five hours, considered the peak impairment windows. Presently, according to law enforcement officials, there are few accurate roadside tests that can determine marijuana impairment.

Under the terms of the pilot program, participation is voluntary and test results cannot be used punitively. Positive tests would not be admissible in court. An official with DPS said it may take up to a year to begin the pilot program. If successful, plans proposed following the conclusion of the program would need to be approved by the legislature, as alcohol is the only substance allowed to be tested by breath under current state law. Additionally, standards for marijuana impairment would have to be established by the state, as no law currently exists detailing at what point a person is considered impaired following consumption of the drug.

TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT

The Arkansas Department of Transportation completed $1.3 billion in interstate repairs and expansions as part of the Interstate Rehabilitation Program. A total of 54 projects were awarded contacts, covering 358 miles, or nearly half of the state’s interstate system, the result of a voter-approved initiative in 2011 allowing the Highway Commission to issue $575 million in bonds to improve the state’s interstates. A similar voter-approved initiative, the Connecting Arkansas Program, also is nearing completion after the state distributed close to $2 billion in contracts to “regionally significant projects.”

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bipartisan bill that will create a statewide electric vehicle charging infrastructure, as well as establish “staging areas” in rural areas to help electric vehicle drivers quickly evacuate during hurricanes and other emergencies. The Essential State Infrastructure Bill requires state officials to develop plans to build charging stations along the state’s highways, with a status report of the project sent to the governor and lawmakers on Dec. 1. In addition to the charging stations, the law requires the state to estimate how electric vehicles will impact gas tax revenue, which currently accounts for about a quarter of the state’s highway funding.

ENERGY CORRIDOR EXPANSION

Louisiana received a $135 million federal grant to build eight miles of elevated highway on Louisiana Highway 1 (LA 1), a critical energy corridor located in a flood-prone area. LA 1 is the only access route to Port Fourchon, which services more than 90% of the nation’s offshore energy exploration and production, as well the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, the unloading and distribution point for oil supertankers entering the Gulf of Mexico. The highway also functions as an emergency evacuation route for 35,000 residents. The grant is the largest portion of $900 million that was allocated federally to support national energy security.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Virginia is positioned to become the first Southern state to transition to clean energy after Gov. Ralph Northam signed the Virginia Clean Economy Act. The bill commits the state to providing 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050 through the removal of carbon emissions and obtaining energy from renewable sources. According to the bill, coal-fired plants must close by 2024, while Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power, the state’s two largest energy providers, will be carbon-free by 2045 and 2050, respectively. Companies not meeting the objectives will be assessed penalties, which will fund job training and related programs in disadvantaged communities.

STUDENT WELL-BEING

The West Virginia Department of Education announced the creation of a new office dedicated to the well-being of the state’s school children. Multiple student-centered initiatives and programs now will fall under the purview of the Department of Education Office of Student Support and Well-Being, which will provide resources, best practices and expertise to give children a reliable, comprehensive network for development, as well as post-secondary career and educational opportunities. While the COVID-19 pandemic created new challenges for families and the education community, many of the problems precede the arrival of the virus. Particularly, the opioid epidemic has strained many students’ families, placing greater responsibilities on educators to address needs that go beyond academics.

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