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It would extend a limited ban put in place in March. By RON NIXON and ERIC SCHMITT New York Times WASHINGTON The Department of Homeland Security is considering banning laptops and other large electronic devices from carry-on bags on flights from Europe to the United States, a department spokesman said. The action would extend a limited ban that was put in place in March. At that time, the United States and Britain barred passengers traveling through airports in 10 Muslim- majority countries from carrying laptop computers, tablets and other devices larger than cellphones aboard direct inbound flights. The larger items were to be stowed with checked luggage.

The ban was put in place after intelligence showed that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria was developing a bomb that could be hidden in portable electronic devices. David Lapan, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security, said Wednesday that the agency had not decided whether to extend the ban. likely expand the he said. John Kelly, the Homeland Security secretary, was to brief senators on security topics Thursday, a Senate aide said. Officials did not say when a new ban might be imposed.

A senior official with a U.S. airline said that carriers had been in talks with government officials for weeks about the possibility of an expanded ban, mainly over the logistics of car- rying it out. The problem is passengers connecting in Europe from flights originating in the Middle East and Africa. An intelligence official, who, like the airline official, was not authorized to speak publicly about the potential ban, said it was being considered because of concerns that radicalized citizens of European Union nations or people with dual citizenship could target U.S.-bound flights. U.S.

officials have tried in recent years to increase the vetting of those traveling into the country. Last year, the Obama administration revised a program that allowed citizens of about 38 countries, mostly in Europe, to visit the United States without a visa on trips of 90 days or less. The changes made it harder for travelers to enter the United States from Europe if they had dual citizenship in Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria, or had visited one of those countries in the previous five years. The rules were later extended to those who had visited Libya, Somalia and Yemen. Another government official, also speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the new ban was being considered because the U.S.

government considered immigration policies in Europe to be lax. There is also a concern that the ban adopted in March might not stop a terrorist with a bomb-rigged laptop from simply flying to Europe to catch a U.S.-bound flight. The U.S. government has had problems detecting explosives in laptops, intelligence officials said. In some tests, fake explosives hidden in laptops had gotten through security scanners almost without fail, they said.

Extremist groups have targeted transportation hubs in the past two years, including the bombing of an airliner in Egypt in 2015, and, last year, the attempted downing of a plane in Somalia and attacks on airports in Brussels and Istanbul. Officials said in March that the restrictions did not signal a credible, specific threat of an imminent attack. They repeated that Wednesday. U.S. weighs ban on laptops on all flights from Europe MARK LENNIHAN Associated Press file The Department of Homeland Security said may ban laptops and other such devices from carry-on bags on flights from Europe.

By BRADYMcCOMBS Associated Press SALT LAKE CITY The Mormon church, the biggest sponsor of Boy Scout troops in the United States, announced Thursday it is pulling as many as 185,000 older youngsters from the organization as part of an effort to start its own scouting-like program. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said the move triggered by the Boy Scouts of decision in 2015 to allow gay troop leaders, since Mormon-sponsored troops have remained free to operate according to their religious teachings. Instead, the church said it wanted a new, simplified program more closely tailored to Mormon teenagers. Boys ages 14 to 18 will no longer participate in Boy Scouts starting next year, the church said. The Boy Scouts said the decision will affect 130,000 teens; the church put the number at 185,000.

About 280,000 Mormon boys ages 8 to 13 will remain in the Scouts while the church develops its own program, the Mormons said. The Boy Scouts put the number at 330,000. The loss is only a fraction of the 2.3 million youths in the Boy Scouts of America, but the organization has been grappling with declining membership for years and has enjoyed an unusually close bond with the Mormon church for more than a century. Joining the Boy Scouts is practically automatic among Mormon boys, with the church covering the cost of troops for congregations and strongly encouraging participation. Boy Scouts of America spokeswoman Effie Deli- markos said the organization is saddened by the decision but understands the desire to customize a program.

For years, the church has been working to create a scouting-like program it could use around the world, since more than half of its nearly 16 million members are outside the United States. Scouting is available only in the U.S. and Canada. The church did not provide a timeline for the rollout of the program for younger age groups. Like other conservative religions, the Mormon church opposes gay marriage and gay relationships The church initially said it was by the Boy policy change on gays but stayed with the organization after receiving assurances it could appoint troop leaders according to its own religious and moral values.

Mormon church pulls older teens from Boy Scouts for own program RICK BOWMER Associated Press The Mormon church had been the largest sponsor of Boy Scout troops in the U.S. FAMOUS BIRTHDAYS FACES CHRIS PIZZELLO Invision via Associated Press Actor Charlie Hunnam arrived at the world premiere of Arthur: Legend of the Sword on Monday. The movie is in theaters starting today. Burt Bacharach, 89 Rocker Steve Winwood, 69 Actor Ving Rhames, 58 Actor Emilio Estevez, 55 Golfer Jim Furyk, 47 Actor Jason Biggs, 39 Charlie Hunnam says he convinced director Guy Ritchie to cast him as King Arthur after the two bonded over a discussion about marijuana. heard Guy and I thought, a brilliant said Hunnam.

presented that to Guy and he just really interested. And I said, is just unacceptable, my So Hunnam booked a trip to London on a week off from filming of and landed a meeting with Ritchie, who want to talk about the movie. actually creatively was interested in the medical marijuana business in California of which I knew a little bit about. So we ended up bizarrely talking about medical marijuana for two he said. Ritchie wanted to see we saw life in the same Lost City of in which Hunnam also stars and are coming out back-to-back.

Jennifer Hudson joins Jennifer Hudson is taking a turn in one of the spinning chairs of NBC announced that the onetime contestant will look to uncover potential singing stars when she joins fellow coaches Blake Shelton Adam Levine and Miley Cyrus for the fall season of the reality singing competition. Hudson was a coach for the British version of the series earlier this year, with her team winning her debut season with the franchise. The announcement comes just days after ABC said that it was bringing back to the air just a year after it was canceled by Fox. Hudson competed on in 2004, finishing in the top 10. JFK AUCTION: A watercolor painting by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis the former first Cartier watch, and a hand-annotated speech by John F.

Kennedy that he later incorporated into his in are being auctioned. She created the artwork in 1963 as a gift for her brother-in law, Stanislaw Radziwill The speech manuscript is among items, including Jacqueline maternity dress, up for auction through May 18 by RR Auction. TEAMING UP: Kate Hudson and Demi Lovato went from working out at the gym together to working on a fashion-line collaboration. Hudson, who co-founded activewear brand Fabletics in 2013, says she instantly hit it off with the singer when the two ran into each other at the gym. FAREWELL: Former MTV reality show star Christopher Black Boykin has died at the age of 45.

ex-wife Shannon Turley said that Boykin died at a Plano, Texas, hospital. Turley said that Boykin suffered from congenital heart failure. Boykin starred alongside former pro skater Rob Dyrdek in and from 2006 to 2008. How Hunnam won role in th wi wa th Hudson NEWS SERVICES 29 31 46 56 62 8 None; $165 million Next Saturday; $184 million HOT LOTTO Wednesday: 4 5 7 12 40 Hot Ball: 14 None; $6.3 million Next Saturday; $6.4 million GOPHER 5 4 13 26 45 46 None; $120,000 Next Tonight; $130,000 NORTHSTAR CASH Thursday: 11 13 15 16 31 Jackpot: $25,000 DAILY 3 Thursday: 4 9 3 (in order) MEGA MILLIONS Tuesday: 6 29 45 69 73 Mega Ball: 11 Megaplier: 5 Next Tonight; $30 million POWERBALL Player hotline: 651-634-1111 Agencies that receive state funds could set new limits. By LIAMSTACK New York Times The Texas House of Representatives has approved a bill that would allow foster care and adoption agencies that receive state funding to refuse to place children with families they disapprove of on religious grounds, including families headed by gay or transgender people, atheists and others.

The bill, which was approved Wednesday and will now be considered by the Texas Senate, would allow agencies to cite religious beliefs when making other decisions as well, including whether to provide teenagers in their care with access to contraception and abortion. Supporters of the measure said it would uphold the religious freedom of social service providers and allow organizations to follow policies without having to worry about potential discrimination lawsuits. The approval by the House was celebrated by the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, which explicitly said in a statement that it would allow agencies to refuse to help teenagers obtain abortions or refuse to place children in the homes of same-sex couples. look forward to a swift approval by the Senate and the signature, as this is a critical element of the foster care system said Jennifer Carr Allmon the executive director. If the bill becomes law, the state would be forbidden from penalizing an agency declining to renew a contract or license, for example that cited religious objections when denying service.

Advocacy groups said it might affect a wide range of prospective parents, including non- Christians, people in interfaith marriages or those who have divorced and remarried. A similarly far-reaching bill was signed into law in March in South Dakota. And just six days before the Texas bill was approved by the House, a similar but more narrowly focused bill that did not cover publicly funded agencies was signed into law in Alabama. Texas is grappling with a long-running crisis in its Child Protective Services division, which a federal judge ruled in 2015 had violated the constitutional rights of children under its care by exposing them to an unreasonable risk of harm. The author, Republican Rep.

James Frank said in a statement that it would help address the crisis by ensuring that faith-based adoption agencies are free to do their work without fear of litigation. a time when we need all hands on deck, we face the real risk of seeing a large number of these providers leave the field, as they are forced to make the choice between devoting a substantial amount of resources in fighting litigation and other adverse action, or using those resources on other services to fulfill the tenets of their the statement said. Frank said the bill would not keep anyone from providing a foster home for a child under state care. He said it would require the Department of Family and Protective Services ensure alternative providers are present to offer any service denied for reasons of sincerely held religious Roughly 22,000 children in Texas are awaiting placement in foster homes, according to Rebecca Robertson legal and policy director for the Texas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Texas bill may bar gays, atheists from adopting A2 STAR TRIBUNE FRIDAY, MAY 12, 2017 Getinspired.

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