California lawmakers are expected to vote Friday on an on-time Democratic spending plan that includes a historic education funding shift to boost the fortunes of school districts with high numbers of poor and minority students while restoring some social services that fell victim to the recent recession.

Maine lawmakers gave final approval on Thursday to a plan to renegotiate the state's liquor contract to pay its hospitals' years-old debt of hundreds of millions of dollars for Medicaid services one of Gov. Paul LePage's top priorities.

Requirements that medium-sized and large employers offer insurance coverage or face fines are one of the most complicated parts of President Barack Obama's health care law.