News from around the nation.

Oklahoma tragedy felt by LGBTQ advocates in ND ;Biden and Netanyahu trade punches; MT military veterans support veto override; Midwest community activists slam proposed CA emissions incentives.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service, Dawn Newscast, March 11, 2024.

I'm Mike Clifford.

LGBTQ advocates in North Dakota have joined a nationwide coalition demanding accountability over the death of a non-binary teen from Oklahoma.

Last month, 16-year-old Nex Benedict, who had experienced bullying, died the day after an altercation in a school bathroom.

The North Dakota Human Rights Coalition recently signed on to a letter that includes more than 350 other signees.

They want Oklahoma's state superintendent removed, claiming he helped foster a harassing environment.

Jamie Larson, board member with the North Dakota Coalition, wants people in her state to pay attention to what's happening.

I think we just need to ask ourselves who really needs protecting right now.

And I don't think it's the students that need protecting from the trans community.

I think it's the other way around.

Larson worries a similar situation could happen in North Dakota after the legislature approved a wave of laws last year viewed as hostile toward the LGBTQ community.

I'm Mike Mullen reporting.

Now from CNN, President Biden says Israel's leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, is hurting more than helping his country in failing to limit civilian casualties in Gaza.

Biden said Israel invading the southern city of Rafah would be a red line, but that he would never fully cut off the U.S. supply of weapons.

CNN notes in response that Netanyahu said Sunday that he would push ahead with a Rafah offensive and that the U.S. president was wrong in thinking he was hurting Israeli interests.

Next to Montana, where the governor there is attempting to stop the legislature from having an opportunity to override his veto of a bill that passed with bipartisan support.

Montana veterans are now asking lawmakers to back efforts to overturn the governor's veto.

Senate Bill 442 would pay for wildlife habitat restoration, environmental programs, county access, road maintenance, and veterans assistance.

Ken Kohler, a Marine who served in the first Gulf War, supports the bill and the veto override.

For veterans in the state of Montana, it goes toward exemptions for disabled veterans who are on a fixed income.

It'll make a huge difference to people like me.

SB 442 had bipartisan support and was backed by hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts.

In his veto note, Governor Gianforte argued using state funds to support local responsibilities like road maintenance was inappropriate and said the measure would create a slippery slope.

Beyond creating property tax relief, SB 442 would add money to Montana's HEART program, which provides veterans with addiction treatment and mental health care.

I'm Mark Moran.

The Montana Secretary of State will mail ballots to lawmakers to vote on the veto override.

This is Public News Service.

Next to the Midwest, where community groups are worried that a change in California carbon emissions policy could hurt quality of life in the nation's heartland.

Later this month, the California Air Resources Board will consider an amendment to the low carbon fuel standard.

Oil and gas companies would be allowed to offset their emissions by purchasing credits from producers of greener fuel around the country, specifically methane captured from cow and hog manure.

Tim Gibbons from the Missouri Rural Crisis Center says this could spur large dairy farms to expand.

If Californians knew that their policy and their state was actually creating, incentivizing, fueling more corporate factory farms in the Midwest, I would like to think that they would be opposed to that.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

The public hearing takes place on March 21st in Sacramento.

There will be live streams so people can watch it online.

Suicide rates among young Kentuckians are rising.

Proposed legislation would strengthen trauma-informed care in schools and boost youth suicide prevention resources.

According to the latest state data, one in seven high school students reports having seriously considered suicide within a 12-month period.

Licensed psychologist with the Kentucky Mental Health Coalition, Sheila Schuster, says the bill would increase suicide prevention trainings for teachers and staff and require trainings to be done when students return from winter break.

The data shows that that's a very stressful time when the kids have been off school, away from their peers, and that's a time of increased anxiety either about being away from school or having to go back to school.

The bill has received scrutiny for its proposal to allow schools to establish so-called guardians programs made up of honorably discharged military veterans and retired or former law enforcement officers to address the statewide shortage of school resource officers.

Nadia Ramligan reporting.

Finally, Eric Lattice lets us know Weld County commissioners are headed back to the drawing board after a county district court ruled that their voter district maps created after the 2020 census violated state law and could not be used in the upcoming election.

Beth Hendricks with the League of Women Voters of Colorado says fair voter district maps ensure that communities of interest, including Latinos who make up about 30 percent of Weld County's population, are able to be represented at all levels of government.

The Weld County commissioners did not look at the Latino population as a community of interest and by ignoring that, basically, the maps they drew would have deleted the Latino vote for the next decade.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.