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State Legislative Tracker: Washington Supreme Court imposes a daily fine on the state government

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August 17, 2015

Edited by Jackie Beran

This week’s tracker includes a look at the end of a special session in Alabama and at the decision of the Washington State Supreme Court to impose a daily fine on the Washington state government over education funding.

Weekly highlight

Alabama State Legislature
  • ALABAMA: Last week, the Alabama State Legislature ended its special session without passing a state budget.[1] Since the fiscal year starts on October 1, Gov. Robert Bentley (R) will have to call a second special election to pass a budget.[1] Special legislative sessions in Alabama are limited to 30 days, and the average cost of a special session is about $300,000.[1][2] On August 10, 2015, the Alabama House of Representatives voted down a Senate-passed spending bill by a vote of 92 to 2.[1] The spending bill would have cut almost $200 million from Medicaid, mental health services and other state agencies.[3] The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 19 to 15.[3] If the spending bill had passed both chambers, Gov. Bentley said that he would have vetoed it.[1] Gov. Bentley said after the special session adjourned that it was "... a failure, and I am disappointed. They have known about this issue, about this problem, for a number of months. The first failure occurred in the regular session. We called them back in in the special session, and they failed to pass a budget."[4] At the end of the regular session in June, Gov. Bentley vetoed a bill that would have cut the budget by 11 percent.[5] Gov. Bentley has asked legislators to approve a budget that has $302 million in tax increases, which would avoid reductions in state services.[3] It is unclear when Gov. Bentley will call the next special session. Rep. Jack J.D. Williams (R-47) hopes that the governor will wait at least a month before calling the legislature back to see if a deal can be struck before it begins.[2]
Washington State Legislature
  • WASHINGTON: Following attempts at complying with previous rulings, the Washington Supreme Court has imposed a daily fine of $100,000 until the legislature passes a satisfactory plan to fund K-12 education. The court ruled in January 2012 that the state had failed to uphold its constitutional duty to adequately fund the education system. Last September, the court found the legislature in contempt for not submitting a plan to be carried out up to the 2017-2018 school year. Earlier this year, the legislature passed $1.3 billion in K-12 funding, which touched on the court's requirements of reducing K-3 class sizes, expanding all-day kindergarten and funding school materials and operations.[6][7] In last Thursday's unanimous order, the court said that this attempt was not satisfactory and requested that Gov. Jay Inslee (D) call a special legislative session to come into compliance. Inslee said Thursday that he and legislative leaders would meet today in Seattle for preliminary discussions and that he would ask them to move quickly so that he could call a session. The money raised from the fines will go into a fund "for the benefit of basic education"; when the legislature passes "a complete plan," sanctions imposed during the session will be refunded.[6][8] Supporters of the court's decision, including state superintendent Randy Dorn, have emphasized districts' dependence on local taxes, which are used to provide competitive wages; the court cited this as not being addressed in the budget.[9] Legislative leaders remained fairly silent after the ruling, with House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan (D) saying only that there was "still work to do."[10] However, State Rep. Matt Manweller (R) heavily criticized the court's action, suggesting that it had "gone rogue" and necessitated "articles of impeachment." Should the legislature not meet until its next regular session in January, the state would owe about $15 million to the fund.[8] State Rep. Chad Magendanz (R) called the court order "restrained," suggesting that the legislature would have been compelled to act if the court had thrown out the state budget instead.[6]

Sessions

Current sessions capture for the week of August 17, 2015
See also: Dates of 2015 state legislative sessions
Click here to see a chart of each state's 2015 session information.

Regular sessions

Currently seven out of 50 state legislatures are meeting in regular session. Two states are in recess, 38 states have adjourned their 2015 legislative sessions and three states are in special session.

The following states are in regular session:[11]

In recess

As of today, August 17, there are two state legislatures currently in recess.[12]


Adjourned

The following states have adjourned their 2015 regular sessions:[13]

Special sessions

As of today, August 17, there are three state legislatures currently in special session.

  • June 19, 2015:[14] California; special session concurrent with regular session
  • August 10, 2015:[15] Florida; 1st special session was from 6/1 to 6/19; 2nd special session will be held from 8/10 to 8/21 (projected)
  • August 17, 2015:[16] Virginia; special session on redistricting

2015 Legislative Elections

See also: State legislative elections, 2015

In the 50 states, there are 99 state legislative chambers, of which seven chambers will hold state legislative elections in November 2015.[17]

There are seven chambers in four states with elections in 2015:

A total of 131 of the country's 1,972 state senate seats and 407 of the country's 5,411 state house seats will be up for a vote. This accounts for 6.6 percent of the country's state senate seats and 7.5 percent of the country's state house seats. Altogether, 538 (7.3%) of the country's 7,383 state legislative seats are up for election. Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey and Virginia hold elections in odd-numbered years. The New Jersey State Senate is the only chamber in those four states without scheduled elections in 2015.

Primary Information

The state legislative filing deadlines and primary dates are as follows:

Filing Deadlines

Primary Dates

Special Elections

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See also: State legislative special elections, 2015

There are no special elections scheduled this week.

Recent election results

August 11, 2015

☑ Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 174

See also: Pennsylvania state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 174 was called for August 11. Candidates were nominated by parties rather than chosen in primaries.[22]

The seat was vacant following John Sabatina Jr.'s (D) election to the Pennsylvania State Senate.[22]

Edward Neilson (D) defeated Tim Dailey (R) in the special election.[23][24]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 174, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngEdward Neilson 62.5% 2,301
     Republican Tim Dailey 37.5% 1,383
Total Votes 3,684

August 11 Special election candidates:

Democratic Party Ed Neilson Green check mark transparent.png
Republican Party Tim Dailey

☑ Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 191

See also: Pennsylvania state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 191 was called for August 11. Candidates were nominated by parties rather than chosen in primaries.[25]

The seat was vacant following Ronald Waters' (D) resignation on June 1, 2015, after he pleaded guilty to accepting $8,750 in cash payments in exchange for political actions.[26]

Joanna McClinton (D) defeated Charles Wilkins (R) and Tracey Gordon (Tracey Gordon Party) in the special election.[27][28]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 191, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJoanna McClinton 70.6% 1,806
     Tracey Gordon Party Tracey Gordon 22.2% 568
     Republican Charles Wilkins 7.2% 184
Total Votes 2,558

August 11 Special election candidates:

Democratic Party Joanna McClinton Green check mark transparent.png
Republican Party Charles A. Wilkins, Jr.
Grey.png Tracey Gordon (Tracey Gordon Party)

☑ Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 195

See also: Pennsylvania state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Pennsylvania House of Representatives District 195 was called for August 11. Candidates were nominated by parties rather than chosen in primaries.[29]

The seat was vacant following Michelle Brownlee's (D) resignation on June 8, 2015, after she pleaded guilty to conflict of interest.[30]

Donna Bullock (D) defeated Adam Lang (R) in the special election.[31][32]

Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 195, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngDonna Bullock 86.1% 2,587
     Republican Adam Lang 13.9% 417
Total Votes 3,004

August 11 Special election candidates:

Democratic Party Donna Bullock Green check mark transparent.png
Republican Party Adam Lang

☑RunoffArrow.jpg Georgia House of Representatives District 80

See also: Georgia state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Georgia House of Representatives District 80 was called for July 14.[33] A runoff election took place on August 11. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3.[34]

The seat was vacant following Mike Jacobs' (R) appointment to a judgeship in DeKalb County.[35]

Taylor J. Bennett (D), Loren Collins (R), J. Max Davis (R) and Catherine S. Bernard (R) faced off in a special election.[36] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Bennett and Davis, met in a runoff election, which Bennett won.[37][38]

Georgia House of Representatives, District 80, Special Election Runoff, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngTaylor J. Bennett 54.5% 2,715
     Republican J. Max Davis 45.5% 2,263
Total Votes 4,978
Georgia House of Representatives, District 80, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngTaylor J. Bennett (advanced to runoff) 36.8% 1,473
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJ. Max Davis (advanced to runoff) 31.5% 1,259
     Republican Catherine S. Bernard 30.1% 1,203
     Republican Loren Collins 1.6% 63
Total Votes 3,998
July 14 Special election candidates:
Democratic Party Taylor J. Bennett Approveda
Republican Party Catherine S. Bernard
Republican Party Loren Collins
Republican Party J. Max Davis Approveda
August 11 Special election runoff candidates:
Democratic Party Taylor J. Bennett Green check mark transparent.png
Republican Party J. Max Davis

☑RunoffArrow.jpg Georgia House of Representatives District 146

See also: Georgia state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Georgia House of Representatives District 146 was called for July 14.[33] A runoff election took place on August 11. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3.[39]

The seat was vacant following Larry O'Neal's (R) resignation to become the chief judge on the Georgia Tax Tribunal.[40]

Shaw Blackmon (R), Kelly Burke (R) and Larry Walker (R) faced off in a special election.[41] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Blackmon and Walker, met in a runoff election, which Blackmon won.[42][43]

Georgia House of Representatives, District 146, Special Election Runoff, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngShaw Blackmon 56.9% 2,520
     Republican Larry Walker 43.1% 1,905
Total Votes 4,425
Georgia House of Representatives, District 146, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngShaw Blackmon (advanced to runoff) 43.8% 1,735
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLarry Walker (advanced to runoff) 35.3% 1,397
     Republican Kelly Burke 20.9% 828
Total Votes 3,960
July 14 Special election candidates:
Republican Party Shaw Blackmon Approveda
Republican Party Kelly Burke
Republican Party Larry Walker Approveda
August 11 Special election runoff candidates:
Republican Party Shaw Blackmon Green check mark transparent.png
Republican Party Larry Walker

☑RunoffArrow.jpg Georgia House of Representatives District 155

See also: Georgia state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of Georgia House of Representatives District 155 was called for July 14.[33] A runoff election took place on August 11. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3.[44]

The seat was vacant following Jay Roberts' (R) appointment to planning director of the state Department of Transportation.[45]

Scott Lowell Downing (R), Horace Hudgins (R), Sherry Miley (R) and Clay Pirkle (R) faced off in a special election.[46] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Hudgins and Pirkle, met in a runoff election, which Pirkle won.[47][48]

Georgia House of Representatives, District 155, Special Election Runoff, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngClay Pirkle 58.9% 2,341
     Republican Horace Hudgins 41.1% 1,636
Total Votes 3,977
Georgia House of Representatives, District 155, Special Election, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngClay Pirkle (advanced to runoff) 36.5% 1,386
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngHorace Hudgins (advanced to runoff) 31.7% 1,204
     Republican Scott Lowell Downing 23.9% 910
     Republican Sherry Miley 7.9% 301
Total Votes 3,801
July 14 Special election candidates:
Republican Party Scott Lowell Downing
Republican Party Horace Hudgins Approveda
Republican Party Sherry Miley
Republican Party Clay Pirkle Approveda
August 11 Special election runoff candidates:
Republican Party Horace Hudgins
Republican Party Clay Pirkle Green check mark transparent.png

☐RunoffArrow.jpg South Carolina House of Representatives District 106

See also: South Carolina state legislative special elections, 2015

A special election for the position of South Carolina House of Representatives District 106 was called for September 15. A primary election took place on July 28. A primary runoff election took place on August 11. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 8.[49]

The seat was vacant following Nelson Hardwick's (R) resignation on May 12, 2015.[50]

Russell Fry, Sanford Cox Graves, Tyler Servant and Roy Sprinkle faced off in the Republican primary.[51] Since no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters, Fry and Servant, met in a runoff election, which Fry won.[52] Fry was unopposed in the special election.[53][54]

South Carolina House of Representatives, District 106, Special Election Runoff, 2015
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRussell Fry 59.8% 1,738
     Republican Tyler Servant 40.2% 1,167
Total Votes 2,905
South Carolina House of Representatives, District 106 Republican Primary, 2015
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngRussell Fry (advanced to runoff) 44.8% 1,152
Green check mark transparent.pngTyler Servant (advanced to runoff) 33.3% 856
Roy Sprinkle 14.5% 374
Sanford Cox Graves 7.5% 192
Total Votes 2,574
Democratic Party July 28 Democratic primary candidates:
  • No candidates filed for election.
Republican Party July 28 Republican primary candidates:
August 11 Special election runoff candidates:
Republican Party Russell Fry Approveda
Republican Party Tyler Servant
September 15 Special election candidates:
Republican Party Russell Fry

August 12, 2015

☐ Tennessee House of Representatives District 14

See also: Tennessee state legislative special elections, 2015

Jason Zachary defeated Karen Carson in the Republican primary on August 12. A special general election was not held because there was no Democratic candidate. Zachary was sworn into the seat on August 24.[55][56][57]

The seat was vacant following Ryan Haynes' (R) resignation on May 27, 2015.[58]

A special election for the position of Tennessee House of Representatives District 14 was called for September 29. Since no Democratic candidate filed for election, the Republican primary on August 12 served as the special general election. The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was July 2, 2015.[59]

Democratic Party August 12 Democratic primary candidates:
  • No candidates filed for election.
Republican Party August 12 Republican primary candidates:
September 29 special election candidates:
Republican Party Jason Zachary

Looking ahead

Upcoming special elections include:

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 al.com, "Alabama lawmakers wrapping up failed special session," accessed August 14, 2015
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 myfoxal.com, "AL lawmakers fail to pass budget during special session," accessed August 14, 2015
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Washington Times, "House rejects budget that slashes state agencies," accessed August 14, 2015
  4. ↑ montgomeryadvertiser.com, "It's 'back to square one' after special-session 'failure'," accessed August 14, 2015
  5. ↑ al.com, "Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley vetoes slashed budget," accessed August 14, 2015
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 The Seattle Times, "Supreme Court fines state $100,000 a day over school funding," August 13, 2015
  7. ↑ Bellingham Herald, "Court fining state government $100,000 per day for failure to fund education," August 13, 2015
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Associated Press, "Court Orders Sanctions of $100K a Day Against Washington," August 13, 2015
  9. ↑ KPLU, "WA Supreme Court Will Fine State $100K Daily Until Lawmakers Pass School Funding Plan," August 13, 2015
  10. ↑ The New York Times, "Washington State Faces $100,000-a-Day Fine Until Schools Plan Is Reached," August 13, 2015
  11. ↑ Stateside Associates, "Session Calendar 2015," accessed August 17, 2015
  12. ↑ StateNet, "Daily Session Summary," accessed August 17, 2015
  13. ↑ StateNet, "Daily Session Summary," accessed August 17, 2015
  14. ↑ Regular session began on December 1, 2014. Special session concurrent with regular session.
  15. ↑ Regular session adjourned on May 1
  16. ↑ Regular session adjourned on February 27
  17. ↑ Mississippi, New Jersey and Virginia will hold general elections on November 3, 2015. Louisiana's general elections will be held on November 21.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Elections," accessed January 2, 2015
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 New Jersey Department of Elections, "2015 Primary Election Timeline," accessed February 2, 2015
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Virginia State Board of Elections, "2015 November Election Calendar," accessed January 2, 2015
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 philly.com, "Want to represent Phila.? Three state House seats up for grabs," accessed June 16, 2015
  23. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Unofficial list of candidates," accessed June 23, 2015
  24. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Results for the 174th Legislative Special Election," accessed August 12, 2015
  25. ↑ philly.com, "Want to represent Phila.? Three state House seats up for grabs," accessed June 16, 2015
  26. ↑ pennlive.com/, "Pa. State Rep. Ron Waters pleads to accepting cash for official action; will resign seat today," accessed June 1, 2015
  27. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Unofficial candidate list," accessed June 23, 2015
  28. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Results for the 191st Legislative Special Election," accessed August 12, 2015
  29. ↑ philly.com, "Want to represent Phila.? Three state House seats up for grabs," accessed June 16, 2015
  30. ↑ triblive.com, "Fourth official pleads guilty in legislative sting case," accessed June 8, 2015
  31. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Unofficial candidate list," accessed June 26, 2015
  32. ↑ Pennsylvania Department of State, "Results for the 195th Legislative Special Election," accessed August 12, 2015
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 PeachPundit.com, "Dates of Special Elections To Fill Vacancies," accessed May 18, 2015
  34. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Call for Special Elections in State House of Representatives Districts 48, 80, 146, 155," accessed May 21, 2015
  35. ↑ bizjournals.com, "Mike Jacobs leaving legislature for judgeship," accessed May 18, 2015
  36. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "State Representative, District 80," accessed June 8, 2015
  37. ↑ Georgia Election Results, "Statewide results for special election," accessed August 13, 2015
  38. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Special Election Runoff results," accessed September 8, 2015
  39. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Call for Special Elections in State House of Representatives Districts 48, 80, 146, 155," accessed May 21, 2015
  40. ↑ WMAZ, "O'Neal Resignation Effective Midnight April 30," April 29, 2015
  41. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "State Representative, District 146," accessed June 8, 2015
  42. ↑ Georgia Election Results, "Statewide results for special election," accessed August 13, 2015
  43. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Special Election Runoff results," accessed September 8, 2015
  44. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Call for Special Elections in State House of Representatives Districts 48, 80, 146, 155," accessed May 21, 2015
  45. ↑ bizjournals.com, "Jay Roberts tapped for Georgia DOT planning director," accessed May 18, 2015
  46. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "State Representative, District 155," accessed June 8, 2015
  47. ↑ Georgia Election Results, "Statewide results for special election," accessed August 13, 2015
  48. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Special Election Runoff results," accessed September 8, 2015
  49. ↑ scvotes.org, "State House of Representatives District 106 Special Election," accessed June 1, 2015
  50. ↑ wmbfnews.com, "State Rep. Nelson Hardwick resigns following inappropriate conduct complaint investigation," accessed May 18, 2015
  51. ↑ carolinalive.com, "Four Republicans file for open South Carolina State House seat," accessed June 10, 2015
  52. ↑ scvotes.org, "State House of Representatives District 106 Republican Primary," accessed July 29, 2015
  53. ↑ scvotes.org, "State House of Representatives District 106 Republican Primary Runoff," accessed September 16, 2015
  54. ↑ scvotes.org, "State House of Representatives District 106 Special Election," accessed September 16, 2015
  55. ↑ wbir.com, "Two Republicans to vie for open state House seat," accessed July 2, 2015
  56. ↑ wbir.com, "Zachary prevails in race for 14th District TN House seat," accessed August 13, 2015
  57. ↑ wbir.com, "Zachary sworn in as new TN state rep," accessed August 31, 2015
  58. ↑ Dave Boucher, The Tennessean, "New GOP Chairman Haynes resigns seat in statehouse," March 27, 2015
  59. ↑ wbir.com, "Haslam issues writ, setting up election to replace Haynes," accessed June 16, 2015
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