News from around the nation.

Ohio's milestone moment for women in government; Price growth ticked up in November as inflation progress stalls; NE public housing legal case touches on quality of life for vulnerable renters; California expert sounds alarm on avian flu's threat to humans, livestock.

Transcript

The Public News Service Tuesday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

Ohio is seeing big gains in women's representation at the statehouse, with the General Assembly poised to welcome seven additional women lawmakers in 2025.

This marks the third highest increase nationwide, as highlighted by Rutgers Center for American Women in Politics.

Yet some leaders like Representative Michelle Grimm of Toledo cautioned that these strides, while important, are only a beginning.

We're over 50 percent of the population, so that isn't entirely representative of who lives in the state or who lives in the country.

Hopefully we can continue the trend of electing more women because our voices are important and our voices need to be heard.

The upcoming term will see women filling 34 percent of Ohio's 132 legislative seats, reflecting the national average.

However, disparities persist, especially in prominent positions such as U.S.

Senate and executive offices, where women remain underrepresented.

Advocates stress that achieving gender parity requires more than just incremental progress.

It demands systemic change and ongoing support for women candidates.

Farah Siddiqui reporting.

Next from NBC News, the pace of price growth ticked up in November, a sign that efforts to cool inflation in the U.S. may be stalling.

On an annual basis, the consumer price index climbed to 2.7 percent.

That was in line with expectations, but higher than the 2.6 percent measure seen in October.

Analysts are now saying it's highly likely the Fed will pause its rate reduction plans in January.

And the public housing agency serving Nebraska's largest city faces legal action amid claims of poor living conditions for a tenant with disabilities.

Legal Aid to Nebraska has filed a request for a temporary injunction against the Omaha Housing Authority, claiming it's falling short in accommodating Latonya Freeman, who has asthma as well as a disability.

The two sides have been locked in a dispute over the situation.

Attorney Caitlin Sedfeld says Freeman has had to endure living in an apartment with unsafe mold ridden conditions.

Her housing is detrimental to her health.

But the alternative, which is potentially being homeless, is also not healthy.

The housing authority did not respond to a request for comment.

I'm Mike Mowen.

And the rapid spread of the avian flu or H5N1 is raising alarms among scientists, with one UNC Davis expert highlighting its unprecedented scale and the risk it poses to humans and animals alike.

Maurice Pitesky is an associate professor specializing in poultry disease modeling.

We've never had an outbreak of an animal born virus this large in the last five to 10,000 years of human history since we first domesticated animals for food.

The virus has infected more than 100 million birds in the U.S. since 2022.

This story produced as a sentiment.

California News Service collaboration.

This is public news service.

Next to Rhode Island, where worker owned cannabis cooperatives are striving to help those impacted by the war on drugs.

State law mandates at least six retail cannabis licenses be awarded to these co-ops, which give members a say in business operations, as well as a share of profits.

Organizer Emma Carnes with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 328 says the greatest challenge is gaining access to capital.

The entrepreneurs in this project are, by and large, people without access to wealthy networks, and they're up against very, very deep pocketed corporate players.

So the competition is really fierce and the resources are really slim.

Carnes says her union is working with other community based groups to recruit co-op members and equip them with the resources they need.

With sales of 100 million dollars this year, Rhode Island has the nation's smallest cannabis market.

I'm Catherine Carley.

And the effects of climate change are making the fire season in Oregon and other Western states burn hotter and longer, urgently requiring additional funding and firefighters.

Oregon fire officials say the state lost one point nine million acres during the 2024 fire season, an area larger than Delaware.

Patrick Scripp, who manages the Rural Douglas Forest Protective Association, says the fires they fight today are very different from the ones they saw 20 years ago.

Our fire seasons are longer.

The weather patterns have changed to where we what used to be one in a 10 year event, we'd hit 100 degrees.

We hit 100 degrees in our district multiple times in a year.

Scripp says fighting Oregon wildfires in twenty twenty four lost over 300 million dollars.

Task Force is scheduled to deliver a new funding plan to the state legislature in February.

I'm Mark Richardson.

Fire season runs from June through October, and in twenty twenty four, the Oregon Department of Forestry recorded one thousand and three incidents, stressing both the state's manpower and resources.

This story was produced with original reporting from Julia Tilton for the Daily Yonder.

And finally, Indianapolis is expanding its innovative clinician led community response program, offering Hoosiers a new approach to handling mental health crises.

The program is a collaboration between the city's Office of Public Health and Safety and Stepping Stones Therapy Center.

It pairs licensed behavioral health professionals with 911 dispatch to address nonviolent emergencies without police involvement.

Stepping Stones Andrea Brown says it meets people where they are.

Meeting people in the community with accessible mental health services is monumental for the city of Indianapolis.

The city reports success in the downtown and east IMPD districts, where the program recently expanded to 24/7 operations.

Critics of similar programs argue law enforcement should remain involved in all emergency situations.

I'm Joe Ulari, Public News Service.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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