NEWSMAKERS.

• Position: Iowa Senator Jack Whitver elected Chamber Majority Leader, Colorado Senator Leroy Garcia elected Chamber Minority Leader, Arkansas House of Representatives select Matthew Shepherd as Speaker

IOWA SENATOR JACK WHITVER (R) WAS ELECTED THE CHAMBER'S NEW MAJORITY LEADER. Senator Charles Schneider (R) will replace Whitver as president.

"They eat a lot of oats, they do a lot of business with veterinarians, but they can't find a masseuse in the state of Nebraska. This is serious. It's affecting our ag economy."

Nebraska Senator Mike Groene (R) on reducing licensing requirements for a range of professions, including horse masseuses, from The Associated Press.

WITH 19 FEMALE MEMBERS, THE ALASKA LEGISLATURE HAS ACHIEVED A NEW HIGH. Women now make up roughly one-third of the Legislature's 60 members, the highest percentage since statehood. As of January, the national average for women serving in legislatures was 25 percent.

"Criminals do not pay business taxes, ensure consumers are 21 and over, obtain licenses or follow product safety regulations. We need to give legal businesses some temporary tax relief so they do not continue to be undercut by the black market."

California Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R) on legislation to cut the state excise tax and suspend a marijuana cultivation tax, in the Los Angeles Times.

UTAH SENATE PRESIDENT WAYNE NIEDERHAUSER (R) WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION this year when his term ends. In his announcement, Niederhauser expressed gratitude to his constituents, to his Senate colleagues and to his wife. "I will forever cherish the relationships, the policy, the process and being so intimately involved in shaping our great state for the future," he said. "I may even miss the politics."

COLORADO SENATOR LEROY GARCIA (D) IS HIS CHAMBER'S NEW MINORITY LEADER.

"Animal abuse is a...