The Tap: Tuesday, January 31, 2017

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The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.

Review of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #51 of The Tap, which was published on February 4, 2017. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

SCOTUS Nomination Comes Down

Senior Status

Judicial Retirement

Senate Committee Approve Perry and Zinke Nominations

Executive Order on LGBTQ Rights Remains in Effect

DeVos Committee Vote

State

Iowa Special Election

  • A special election took place in Iowa, where Monica Hosch Kurth (D) defeated Mike Gonzales (R) for the District 89 seat in the Iowa House of Representatives. The seat is vacant following Jim Lykam's (D) election to the state Senate. A contested election for this seat last took place in 2012, when incumbent Lykam defeated a Republican challenger 68-32. Lykam was unopposed during re-election bids in both 2014 and 2016. Hosch Kurth will serve a two-year term and will need to run for re-election in November 2018. Her victory means Republicans will have a 59-41 majority in the 100-member chamber. Iowa is currently one of 25 Republican trifectas.

Cost Per Required Signature on Drug Price Initiative Triples from California to Ohio

  • Campaign finance data released by the state revealed that the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the organizers of the Ohio Drug Price Standards Initiative, spent $10.13 per required signature for the initiative to appear on the November 2017 ballot. The group hired PCI Consultants, Inc.—paying the company about $1.87 million to collect the 184,354 valid signatures required. This is about triple what the same group spent per signature ($3.36) for Proposition 61, a similar measure in California. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation paid the same company—PCI Consultants—$1.35 million to collect the 365,880 required to put Prop. 61 on the ballot in 2016. In 2016, the average cost per required signature for initiative and referendum petitions across the country was $5.63, and the average was $6.49 in 2015. The Ohio initiative would require state agencies and programs to purchase prescription drugs at prices no more than what the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs pays for them. Currently, the initiative is the only measure certified for the 2017 ballot in Ohio.

Delaware’s First Special Election Campaign Finance Reports Released

  • The first campaign finance reports released in the special election that will decide control of the Delaware State Senate revealed that more than $200,000 had been raised thus far. That total nearly doubles the $104,000 that the previous incumbent raised during her 2014 re-election campaign. As of January 31, Stephanie Hansen (D) led the field with $108,000 raised, while John Marino (R) had raised $95,000 and Joseph Lanzendorfer (L) had raised $300. Marino, at the time, had more cash on hand, with $68,000 to Hansen’s $64,000. After the February 25 special election, either Democrats or Republicans will walk away with an 11 to 10 majority. If Republicans win the election, they will control the chamber for the first time in 40 years and break the state’s Democratic trifecta, which has been in place since 2009. The seat became vacant following Bethany Hall-Long's (D) election as lieutenant governor of Delaware.

Both candidates have already raised significantly more than the average Delaware State Senate candidate did in 2014. In that general election, 22 candidates raised a little more than a million dollars, at an average of $49,544 per candidate. That average ranked Delaware 33rd out of 42 state senates with elections that year, when the national average was $148,144 per candidate.

Arkansas House Passes Voter ID Bill

  • The Arkansas House of Representatives passed a bill 74-21 that would require voters to present photo identification before voting. The Arkansas Supreme Court struck down a similar law in 2014, so some representatives are drafting a constitutional amendment to refer to the voters. The bill’s sponsor, Mark Lowery (R), said he focused on what he called a lack of confidence in the voting system. Opponents of the bill said it could have the opposite effect. “If people who are lawfully registered to vote . . . are turned away from the ballot, that is not going to instill more confidence in the democratic process,” said Clarke Tucker (D). The legislation would still need to pass the state Senate and be signed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) before becoming law. If signed by the governor, the law would make Arkansas the 17th state in the country to require voters to present photo identification. Arkansas is currently one of 25 Republican trifectas.

State Senate Advances Bill to Make California a Sanctuary State

  • The California Senate Public Safety Committee advanced a bill along a party-line vote that would expand sanctuary status to the entire state. A sanctuary jurisdiction refers to a city, county, or state that has enacted policies that limit the involvement of local officials in the enforcement of federal immigration law. The bill would prohibit state and local law enforcement from spending money on enforcing federal immigration laws and ban the enforcement of immigration laws in state schools, health facilities, and courthouses. On January 25, President Donald Trump (R) signed an executive order to eliminate federal funding to cities and states that operate as sanctuary jurisdictions. California is currently one of six Democratic trifectas.
    • On January 24, California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) delivered a State of the State address that the New York Times called “a fiery anti-Trump message.” The self-written speech, titled “California Is Not Turning Back, Not Now, Not Ever,” declared resistance to the climate change and immigration policies of the new administration.
    • Earlier this year, the California State Legislature announced it would retain former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to represent the state in any legal disputes with the federal government. State Sen. Kevin de León (D) said at the announcement that “the former attorney general of the United States brings us a lot of firepower in order to prepare to safeguard the values of the people of California.”

Missouri Supreme Court Rules on Amendment 2

  • The Missouri Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Amendment 2, approved by voters in 2014, could be applied to cases where the crime allegedly happened before the amendment took effect. Amendment 2 allows relevant evidence of prior criminal acts, also known as propensity evidence, to be admissible in court in prosecutions of sexual crimes involving a victim under 18 years old. The court’s ruling means that this propensity evidence can be used in cases where the alleged crime occurred before December 2014. The court’s ruling said that the amendment “applies to all trials occurring on or after the effective date of the amendment, regardless of when the crimes are alleged to have occurred.” Amendment 2 passed with nearly 72 percent of the vote in November 2014.

Alabama Special Election

Local

Sanctuary City San Francisco Sues Federal Government

  • San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera sued the federal government in response to President Donald Trump’s (R) executive order on January 25, 2017, withholding federal funding from sanctuary cities. A sanctuary city limits cooperation between its local law enforcement agencies and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in order to prevent the deportation of immigrants living in the country illegally. In these cities, government workers and police officers are barred by city policy from asking residents about their immigration status, and compliance with ICE detainer requests is limited. City Attorney Herrera estimated that San Francisco could lose more than $1.2 billion in federal funding as a result of the president’s executive order, and he stated, “The president's executive order is not only unconstitutional, it's un-American.” The city's lawsuit claims that the executive order is a violation of the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and states, "The Executive Branch may not commandeer state and local officials to enforce federal law." San Francisco is the fourth-largest city in California and the 14th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
    • Other municipalities also responded to the executive order:
      • On February 1, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) announced that Travis County would not receive $1.5 million in criminal justice grants. This was in response to Sheriff Sally Hernandez’s (D) policy of not cooperating with ICE’s request to detain immigrants living in the country illegally if the federal agency does not have a warrant unless the suspect has been charged with murder, aggravated sexual assault, or human smuggling. Hernandez was elected sheriff in November 2016, and part of her campaign platform included enacting sanctuary policies in the county. This loss of funding is a form of state-local preemption. On January 25, 2017, Gov. Abbott also stated, “We will remove [Hernandez] from office.” Travis County is the fifth-largest county in Texas. It had a population of 1,151,145 citizens in 2014, which was approximately 4.3 percent of the state’s total population.
      • On February 1, the Cincinnati City Council in Ohio approved a resolution labeling Cincinnati as a sanctuary city. Mayor John Cranley (D) also referred to Cincinnati as a sanctuary city at a press conference held on January 30, 2017. The mayor’s office and all nine seats on the city council will be up for general election on November 7, 2017. A primary election will be held for the mayoral race on May 2, 2017. Cincinnati is the third-largest city in Ohio and the 65th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
      • On February 1, the Boston City Council in Massachusetts debated whether to use the word “sanctuary” to refer to the city or its public school district. City Councilor Tito Jackson (D), who has declared that he will run for mayor against incumbent Martin Walsh (D) later this year, requested that the city hold a hearing in order to confirm that Boston Public Schools would remain a sanctuary for students. He stated, “The question is whether or not people know that we are on their side.” City Councilor Timothy McCarthy (D), who indicated he would support the holding of a hearing on that subject, stated that the city should refrain from using the word “sanctuary” and stated, “If we are utilizing that word ‘sanctuary’ and that is going to cost us millions of dollars from the federal government, it concerns me.” Another city councilor, Mark Ciommo (D), agreed with McCarthy. The mayor’s office and all 13 seats on the city council will be up for general election on November 7, 2017. A primarily election will be held for races with more than two candidates filed per seat on September 26, 2017. Boston is the largest city in Massachusetts and the 24th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
      • On February 1, a citizen petition was submitted to the Phoenix City Council in Arizona requesting that Phoenix becomes a sanctuary city. The city council is required by city charter to review the petition within 15 days of filing, and the council announced it will do so at its meeting on February 15, 2017. The petition will not necessarily come to a vote; the city council could respond to the petition in a variety of ways, including a staff report on the subject. The petition followed Mayor Greg Stanton (D)’s criticism of President Trump’s executive order as “a divisive attack on Latinos in Phoenix and around the country." Phoenix Law Enforcement Association President Ken Crane responded to the mayor with a public letter, which stated in part, “As police officers that man the front lines with the goal of equal treatment under the law, it appears easy for some liberal politicians ensconced in a 12th floor office in city hall to make statements that only serve to pander to selective and elite voting blocks.” Four of eight seats on the city council will be up for general election on August 29, 2017. Phoenix is the largest city in Arizona and the sixth-largest city in the U.S. by population.

Preview of the day

The excerpts below were compiled from issue #50 of The Tap, which was published on January 28, 2017. READ THE FULL VERSION HERE.

Federal

Chao On Deck

  • Trump’s nominee for secretary of transportation, Elaine Chao, is scheduled to receive a confirmation vote in the U.S. Senate.

Senior Status

Judicial Retirement

A Vote on Rick Perry

A Vote on Jeff Sessions

State

Iowa Special Election

  • A special election will take place in Iowa between Monica Hosch Kurth (D) and Mike Gonzales (R) for the District 89 seat in the Iowa House of Representatives. The seat is vacant following Jim Lykam's (D) election to the state Senate. A contested election for this seat last took place in 2012, when the incumbent Lykam defeated a Republican challenger 68-32. Lykam was unopposed during re-election bids in both 2014 and 2016. The winner of this race will serve a two-year term and would need to run for re-election in November 2018. Republicans currently have a 59-40 majority in the 100-member chamber, and Iowa is currently one of 25 Republican trifectas.

Alabama Special Election

  • A special primary election will take place in Alabama between four Democratic candidates for the District 67 seat in the Alabama House of Representatives. The seat is vacant following Darrio Melton's (D) election as the mayor of Selma on October 4, 2016. Although the general election is currently scheduled for April 18, if no candidate wins a majority in the primary, a primary runoff will be held on that date instead. In that instance, the general election would be moved back to June 27. No Republican candidate filed to run in the race, meaning that the Democratic nominee will face no major-party opposition in the general election. Republicans currently have a 72-31 majority in the chamber, and Alabama is currently one of 25 Republican trifectas.




The Tap covered election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events from February 2016 to February 2022.
March: 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
April: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
May: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
June: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
July: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
August: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
September: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
October: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7• 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
November: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30
December: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 31
January: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31
February: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17
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