33rd Annual Legislative Seminar - Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.
DFL Wins 40B Special Election - The most important event impacting the State Capitol this week occurred in parts of Roseville and Shoreview, where DFLer David Gottfried defeated Republican Paul Wikstrom by almost 6,000...more
California’s Budget Proposal - On Jan. 10, 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom released his 2025-2026 budget proposal. The budget proposes a total spending of $322.2 billion in state funds – it consists of approximately $228.9...more
Legislative Day 40 is a roller coaster, full of ups, downs, and zero gravity turns (also known as conference committee reports). One goes from celebrating a bill achieving final passage to lamenting a measure being gutted...more
Show us the money! In an early morning meeting on Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee and its subcommittees unveiled the House version of the FY 2025 Budget. While there are many goodies in the $36.1 billion spending...more
Friday marked Legislative Day 5. The House and Senate convened at 9:00 a.m. and adjourned by 10:00 a.m. That’s about it. We call it “burning a day.”...more
Closing out Week 17 of the 2023 Legislative Session - All eyes are on the calendar as adjournment looms. The hopeful have pegged the date at May 12, though with large disparities in the budget between the Senate and...more
Since 2020, in the wake of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) established in the EU, there has been a growing wave of U.S. states enacting omnibus laws governing the privacy of personal information (i.e.,...more
Closing out Week 5 of the 2023 Legislative Session - The House passed the FY’23 Budget Adjustment Act on a vote of 107-33. Republicans objected to allocating an additional $50 million to the Vermont Housing and...more
Closing out Week 3 of the 2023 Legislative Session - The theme of Week 3 was “money.” The Emergency Board shared the state’s Revenue Forecast Update with legislators. Due to the influx of unpreceded federal economic...more
The General Assembly’s Appropriations Committees resumed today on their work around the Governor’s recommendations for FY 2021 Amended and FY 2022 budgets. Today’s focal points were the state’s health and human services’...more
On January 29, 2020, the Maryland State Senate’s Budget and Taxation Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 2, which would create the Digital Advertising Gross Revenues Tax. The tax would be imposed on a taxpayer’s Maryland...more
The 2020 session of the 88th General Assembly (GA) began Monday, January 13th. Legislative Branch Developments - Makeup of the 88th General Assembly - Republicans maintain their majority in both chambers, though...more
As you know, the 2020 Regular Session of the West Virginia Legislature commenced on January 8. As of this writing, the House has introduced 903 bills, while the Senate has introduced 467. We will be reporting on and tracking...more
This week, legislators again focused on floor work with action on many bills and the Senate started to work through its confirmation calendar. Department of Human Services - The Senate delayed the confirmation vote on...more
Under the Dome: Inside the Maine State House provides a high-level overview of recent activity at the Maine State House. Compressed Committee Activity - Over the next four to six weeks, the Maine legislature’s...more
Senate Money Panel Passes Budget Bill - On a vote of 7-0, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed a $5.8 billion budget on Friday that closes a $72 million projected gap between revenues and expenditures in the 2018...more
With policy committee deadlines out of the way, legislators turned their attention to omnibus finance and tax bills. Finance and tax committees in both the House and Senate spent the week compiling bills, taking public...more
Committees Transition to Processing Bills - Legislative committees completed the pivot from background briefings to processing bills this week, working on topics ranging from how best to provide paid parental leave and...more