The Western Governors' Association keeps you updated on news of the West. Here are the western stories for the week starting April 8, 2019 that you don't want to miss.
Six of the top ten best places to live in the U.S. are in western states, according to rankings by U.S. News & World Report. Using data from the Census Bureau, the Department of Labor and other sources, the annual report evaluated job markets, affordable housing, quality of life, desirability, and net migration to determine the 125 top metro areas.
Austin, Texas took the top spot, followed by Denver and Colorado Springs, Colorado. Western cities also in the top ten: San Francisco, California; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle, Washington.
“The fact that both Colorado Springs and Denver rank so highly and are within easy driving distance of each other shows that they are able to benefit from each other’s success,” said Devon Thorsby, real estate editor for U.S. News & World Report.
Workforce Development Boost: To make it easier for workers to transfer their skills across state lines, Arizona became the first to recognize out-of-state job licenses. Gov. Doug Ducey signed legislation allowing new residents to get occupational licenses when they move to the state, if they were licensed in the state from where they came.
Bomb Cyclone 2.0: It was déjà vu for Colorado, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Kansas, which all declared blizzard warnings on Wednesday. The spring storm was technically classified a bomb cyclone, although it wasn’t as intense as last month’s storm. Learn how the “massive weather system” is impacting the region.
Pardon Our Dust: Public lands in western states are getting dustier, according to the journal Ecosphere. Disturbances such as domestic livestock grazing, wildfires and off-road vehicles on drylands can increase airborne sediment and impact human health and ecosystems.
Water Management: Researchers are studying Lake Powell, which straddles the Arizona-Utah border, and Lake Mead, stretching across Nevada and Arizona, to understand how much water is lost through evaporation and inform new water management strategies for the Colorado River.
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