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Wyoming bans transgender youth from girls’ sports teams

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Wyoming has become the 19th state to ban transgender athletes from playing on girls or women’s sports teams after the Republican governor opted not to veto the legislation.Gov. Mark Gordon allowed the bill to become law without his signature Friday, saying he supports and agrees with the overall goal of fairness in competitive female sports. But he also said in a decision letter that the ban “is overly draconian, is discriminatory without attention to individual circumstances or mitigating factors, and pays little attention to fundamental principles of equality.”The law, which takes effect July 1, will prohibit “students of the male sex from competing on a team designated for students of the female sex.” It’s among dozens of Republican proposals pushing back against transgender rights in statehouses across the U.S., including measures to ban gender-affirming care for minors, restrict drag shows, and prevent transgender people from using restrooms, l...

Alberta moves to force oilpatch to pay owed taxes above ‘threshold’ amount

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

EDMONTON — The Alberta government is taking steps to force oilpatch companies to make good on their unpaid municipal taxes, including sending reminders from provincial cabinet ministers to those in arrears.“Our goal is to reduce unpaid taxes throughout the province,” Energy Minister Peter Guthrie said in a release.Earlier this month, Rural Municipalities Alberta released figures showing that energy firms owed $268 million in back taxes in 2022, a figure that is up more than six per cent from 2021. The pace of nonpayment has also increased. There was $53 million left unpaid last year, up $15 million from the previous year.In addition, the organization said its members have written off another $150 million in unpaid taxes as unrecoverable. On Monday, Guthrie said he’s issued an order that blocks companies from acquiring or transferring licences on wells or other assets if their unpaid taxes exceed a threshold amount. That threshold is yet to be determined and is to b...

Airbnb criticized after 1 killed, 6 missing in charred rubble of Montreal building

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

MONTREAL — Quebec politicians criticized short-term rental company Airbnb on Monday for failing to be a proper corporate citizen, after a building used for illegal rentals was ravaged by a fire that killed one and left at least six missing under the rubble.Firefighters have said that several apartments in the building located in Old Montreal were being used as Airbnb rentals, and police have said that they didn’t know how many of the missing were tourists.San Francisco-based Airbnb is “washing its hands” of the problem of illegal rentals in cities across the province, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante told reporters outside the historic three-storey building. She said the company, which operates an online marketplace for short-term rentals, should ensure people listing their properties on the website have proper permits.“Short-term rental platforms cannot just say that they are the ‘housing marketplace’ and then wash their hands of it afterwards,” Plante sa...

Official: Mountain lion claws man in hot tub in Colorado

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

NATHROP, Colo. (AP) — Wildlife officials said Monday they are searching for a mountain lion that clawed a man’s head while he was sitting in a hot tub with his wife at a rental home in central Colorado.The man was soaking in the in-ground hot tub in a wooded subdivision west of Nathrop on Saturday night when he felt something grab his head, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife. He screamed at the mountain lion and started splashing water while his wife shined a flashlight at the animal.Authorities said it retreated to the top of a hill and continued to watch the couple.The man and his wife were able to get back into the home, where they cleaned his wounds and called the property owner, who happened to work for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The man had four superficial scratches on top of his head and near his right ear, but he declined medical treatment.“We think it’s likely the mountain lion saw the man’s head move in the darkness at ground-level but didn’t recognize the p...

Trump indictment would be unprecedented moment in US history

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

The decision whether to indict former President Donald Trump over hush-money payments made on his behalf during his 2016 presidential campaign lies in the hands of a Manhattan grand jury that has been hearing evidence in secret for weeks.An indictment of Trump, who is seeking the White House again in 2024, would be an unprecedented moment in American history, the first criminal case against a former U.S. president. Law enforcement officials are bracing for protests and the possibility of violence after Trump called on his supporters to protest ahead of a possible indictment. An indictment could also test a Republican Party already divided over whether to support Trump next year, in part due to his efforts to undermine his 2020 election loss.Trump denies any wrongdoing and has slammed the Manhattan district attorney’s office probe as politically motivated.Here’s a look at the hush-money probe, grand jury process and possible ramifications for his presidential campaign:___...

Police: Dentist killed wife by lacing shakes with poison

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Police believe a Colorado dentist laced his wife’s pre-workout protein shakes with arsenic and cyanide, eventually killing his spouse so he could be with a woman he was having an affair with, according to court documents.James Craig, 45, was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder Sunday, shortly after his wife died after being taken off life support during her third trip to the hospital this month. According to court records, he is being represented by the public defender’s office, which does not comment on cases. Craig is scheduled to appear in court Thursday to learn whether prosecutors have decided to file charges against him. As Angela Craig languished in the hospital, with doctors unable to figure out what was wrong with her, police in the Denver suburb of Aurora allege her husband was meeting with a fellow dentist who flew in for visits with him. Police began investigating Craig after his dental practice partner and friend, Ryan Redfearn, told a nurse...

Female-owned businesses on the rise, but barriers persist: study

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

TORONTO — The number of businesses owned by women is on the rise in Canada, but female entrepreneurs still disproportionately face barriers such as lack of access to capital from financial institutions, according to a new study.The Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub’s 2023 State of Women’s Entrepreneurship in Canada report, released Monday, suggests the proportion of majority women-owned businesses is increasing. The study estimated 18 per cent of businesses are majority-owned by women, up from 16.8 per cent in 2020 and 15.6 per cent in 2017.Lead researcher Wendy Cukier, the founder of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Diversity Institute, said she is also encouraged that the gender gap related to early interest in entrepreneurship and innovation is shrinking.Women entrepreneurs showed an increase in the total early-stage entrepreneurial activity (TEA) rate compared with men from 2021 to 2022, per the report (TEA is the percentage of the adult population between 18 and...

Judge pauses Biden waterway protections in Texas, Idaho

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — A federal judge paused the Biden administration’s waterway protections in Texas and Idaho as Republicans across the country challenge the environmental regulations as vague and argue the rules would create economic burdens. The preliminary injunction by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Vincent Brown of Texas surrounds a rule finalized in December that defines which “waters of the United States” — often called “WOTUS” — qualify for protection under the Clean Water Act. The decision was signed Sunday and affects only Texas and Idaho.Roughly half of all U.S. states are taking part in lawsuits challenging the rule. Earlier this month, the U.S. House also voted to overturn the protections under a measure that Biden said he would veto if it reaches his desk. “The unlawful rule would have saddled Texans across the state with crushing new regulations, slowing our state’s economic development and limiting our job growth,” Republican Texas Attorney General Ken P...

Man seriously injured in stabbing at Allan Gardens

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

Toronto paramedics say an adult male has serious, possibly life-threatening injuries after he was stabbed at Allan Gardens in downtown Toronto on Monday.Police were called to the scene in the Jarvis Street and Gerrard Street East area at around 4:32 p.m. after reports of an altercation. The victim was located and taken to hospital in an ambulance. A suspect is in custody. There’s no word yet on specific charges. It’s not clear what sparked the confrontation. More to come

First day of Spring brings wind, rain to Chicago

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:06:43 GMT

A very spring-like pattern will set up for the first few days of Spring. Rain will be likely Tuesday night- Thursday night with thunderstorms possible during that stretch.The low-pressure system that will bring the period of precipitation, is tough to see on the surface map, as it is just forming. The moisture that it will tap into, however, is quite easy to make out in this mid-level water vapor loop from the GOES East Satellite. Look for the GREEN that's streaming from the Pacific through the Southwest. It's on the way!Full forecast details at the WGN Weather CenterMonday, March 20HIGH: 50  LOW: 36Isolated sprinkles after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 50. Breezy, with a southwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph.Monday NightIsolated sprinkles before 10pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. South southwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.Tuesday, March 21HIGH: 53  LOW: 40A 20 percent chance of rain after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a hi...