Your feedback ensures we stay focused on the facts that matter to you most—take our survey

The Tap: Federal Judicial Vacancies at 13.1%

From Ballotpedia
Revision as of 15:31, 6 August 2021 by Maintenance script (contribs) (Inventory category installation for: On-site_newsletters)
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Jump to: navigation, search


March 4, 2017Issue No. 55

The Tap Graphic-750x191px.png

The week in review: February 25 - March 3
What's on Tap next week: March 4 - March 10

Navigate The Tap by clicking the tabs below:

Federal

What's on tap?

Ballotpedia’s latest judicial Federal Vacancy Count. The vacancy warning level remained at yellow this month after eight new vacancies were announced. The total vacancy percentage was 13.1 percent, and there were 129 vacancies out of 985 positions, including 115 vacancies in positions where a confirmed nominee is eligible to serve a life term.

Check out the full report here.
 

Federal

The Week in Review

Saturday, February 25

President Trump declines to attend White House Correspondents’ Association annual dinner

  • President Donald Trump announced via Twitter that he would not attend the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April. The annual event has previously been missed by three other presidents. Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter both skipped the event twice and Ronald Reagan did not attend in 1981 while recovering from an assassination attempt. In an interview on Tuesday morning, Trump explained his reasoning: “I believe a lot of the stories are pure fiction, they just pull it out of air. I just thought, in light of the fact of fake news and all of the other things we’re talking about now—I thought it would be inappropriate.”

Monday, February 27

DoJ Rescinds Intent Claim in Texas Voter ID Case

  • The Justice Department requested a federal district court dismiss its claim—brought under the Obama administration—alleging that the Texas state legislature discriminated against minority voters when it enacted a 2011 voter identification law requiring a government-issued photo identification be presented to vote. The department said in its court filing that it wanted to give the state legislature the opportunity to enact a new law.

Wilbur Ross confirmed for Secretary of Commerce

SCOTUS continued its February sitting

  • The U.S. Supreme Court continued its February sitting with arguments in two cases:
    • In Packingham v. North Carolina, the court heard arguments over whether a North Carolina statute prohibiting registered sex offenders from accessing commercial social networking websites violated the First Amendment.
    • In Esquivel-Santana v. Sessions, the court heard arguments over whether a conviction for unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor under California law constituted an aggravated felony under U.S. immigration law sufficient to remove the offender from the United States.

Trump administration releases budget blueprint

  • Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said that President Donald Trump’s first budget proposal would increase defense spending to $603 billion and decrease non-defense discretionary spending to $462 billion. The budget blueprint provides federal agencies with suggested levels of spending and possible cuts to make in their budgets. Mulvaney said that the administration will send a budget proposal to Congress by March 16 and have a final budget completed in May. The State Department and Environmental Protection Agency are facing some of the largest spending cuts of 37 percent and 24 percent, respectively.
    • While speaking to the National Governors Association, Trump said that his budget increases spending on defense and law enforcement. He added, “We’re going to do more with less and make the government lean and accountable to the people. We can do so much more with the money we spend. With $20 trillion in debt -- can you imagine that -- the government must learn to tighten its belt, something families all across the country have had to learn to do, unfortunately. But they've had to learn to do it, and they’ve done it well.”
    • Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) criticized the budget in a statement, saying, “It is clear from this budget blueprint that President Trump fully intends to break his promises to working families by taking a meat ax to programs that benefit the middle-class. A cut this steep almost certainly means cuts to agencies that protect consumers from Wall Street excess and protect clean air and water. Most Americans didn’t vote to ease up on polluters, or to give Wall Street the green light to rip them off. They certainly didn’t vote to make all these cuts so that President Trump can hand out a tax break to the wealthiest Americans. This budget proposal is a reflection of exactly who this President is and what today’s Republican Party believes in: helping the wealthy and special interests while putting further burdens on the middle class and those struggling to get there.”

Tuesday, February 28

President Trump delivers first address to joint session of Congress

  • President Donald Trump gave his first address to a joint session of Congress, broadly covering a variety of domestic policy issues, including healthcare, immigration, and trade.
    • Trump called on Congress to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. “Mandating every American to buy government-approved health insurance was never the right solution for America. The way to make health insurance available to everyone is to lower the cost of health insurance, and that is what we will do,” he said.
    • He also proposed investing $1 trillion to improve infrastructure and create jobs, saying, “To launch our national rebuilding, I will be asking the Congress to approve legislation that produces a $1 trillion investment in the infrastructure of the United States — financed through both public and private capital — creating millions of new jobs. This effort will be guided by two core principles: Buy American, and hire American.”
    • Trump named education a civil rights issue, and continued, “I am calling upon Members of both parties to pass an education bill that funds school choice for disadvantaged youth, including millions of African-American and Latino children. These families should be free to choose the public, private, charter, magnet, religious or home school that is right for them.”
    • Discussing national security, Trump also indicated that his administration would soon unveil new vetting procedures for immigrants. “It is not compassionate, but reckless, to allow uncontrolled entry from places where proper vetting cannot occur. Those given the high honor of admission to the United States should support this country and love its people and its values. We cannot allow a beachhead of terrorism to form inside America — we cannot allow our nation to become a sanctuary for extremists,” he said.
    • Read more about how Trump’s address compared to his campaign platform in Wednesday’s edition of You’re Hired.

President Trump discusses immigration policy

  • President Donald Trump discussed his vision for a new immigration bill, telling reporters at the White House that he wanted to permit some individuals residing in the U.S. illegally to remain in the country, working and paying taxes. The bill would not include a path to citizenship, although Trump indicated there could be an exception for children brought illegally into the country. "The time is right for an immigration bill as long as there is compromise on both sides," he said.

Trump signs executive order to rewrite Waters of the United States rule

  • President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reconsider and rewrite the Waters of the United States rule, which was finalized in 2015 and aimed at clarifying which bodies of water fall under federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. The rule would require private individuals, groups, or businesses whose activities could affect these waters to apply for a federal permit. In 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit temporarily blocked the rule from going into effect so it could deliberate whether the rule is permissible under federal law. The executive order argues that the rule goes beyond the agencies' statutory authority and should be rewritten to limit the government's jurisdiction to permanent, standing, or continuously flowing bodies of water. Trump campaigned in 2016 on reversing several environmental regulations, including the Waters of the United States rule.
    • Proponents of the rule argue that the rule is necessary to clarify which bodies of water fall under federal jurisdiction in order to limit potential pollutant discharges in areas affected by developmental activities.
    • Opponents of the rule argue that it is an unnecessary expansion of federal regulation that would negatively affect private individuals and businesses and would produce few to no environmental benefits.

SCOTUS heard arguments over sentencing discretion

  • The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Dean v. United States. In this case, the court considered if federal district judges in the Eighth Circuit are impermissibly limited in exercising sentencing discretion for certain federal crimes by an Eighth Circuit precedent, United States v. Hatcher. After a conviction on multiple federal charges, including two counts of violating 18 U.S.C. §924, Levon Dean, Jr., petitioned a sentencing judge to sentence him below the 84-105 months' recommended imprisonment under federal sentencing guidelines for his non-§924 charges because the §924 charges carried a mandatory 30-year sentence. At sentencing, the district court indicated that there was no room for modification based on United States v. Hatcher, which required the court to consider his other convictions separately from Dean’s §924 charges. The Eighth Circuit affirmed Dean’s sentence on appeal, rejecting Dean’s claim that the district court had discretion under federal sentencing guidelines to impose only a one-day sentence for his other felonies. Before the Supreme Court, Dean argued the Eighth Circuit’s restrictions on judicial discretion imposed by Hatcher violated both the intent of Congress in passing the guidelines and a 2011 precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court, Pepper v. United States, in which the court held that a district court may consider evidence of the defendant's rehabilitation and that evidence may, in appropriate cases, support a downward variance from the sentencing guidelines.

Three federal judges elect to take senior status

Wednesday, March 1

Ryan Zinke confirmed as Secretary of the Interior

Special election date set in Montana

  • Following Rep. Ryan Zinke’s (R) confirmation as U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Gov. Steve Bullock set the date for the special election to replace Zinke. The election will take place on May 25, 2017. Primary elections will not be held in the race. Instead party leaders will choose the nominees at conventions. The Democratic nominating convention is scheduled for Sunday March 5, 2017, and the Republican convention will occur on the following day, March 6. Montana’s At-Large Congressional District is a safe Republican district. However, this will be one of the first federal elections to take place during the Trump administration and will be used as a metric to gauge initial voter response to the administration.

SCOTUS hears arguments on insurance laws in Missouri

  • The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in Coventry Health Care of Missouri v. Nevils. In this case, the court considered whether state laws that prohibit insurance companies from claiming the proceeds of personal injury settlements pursuant to their contracts were preempted by a federal law, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act (FEHBA). The case came on appeal from a judgment of the Missouri Supreme Court.

Thursday, March 2

Attorney General Sessions recuses himself from investigations related to Trump campaign

  • The Washington Post reported on Wednesday night that Attorney General Jeff Sessions met twice with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in 2016—once in Washington, D.C., and once at the Republican National Convention—which he did not disclose during his confirmation hearing when asked what he would do if it was determined that members of the Trump campaign had communicated with Russia. He said at the hearing, "I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign, and I did not have communications with the Russians, and I'm unable to comment on it."
    • A spokesperson for Sessions said that he took the meetings as a senator and a member of the Armed Services Committee, adding, "There was absolutely nothing misleading about his answer." White House press secretary Sean Spicer said that Sessions should not recuse himself. “He was 100 percent straight with the committee and I think that people [who] are choosing to play partisan politics with this should be ashamed of themselves,” Spicer said.
    • House Oversight Committee chair Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-N.C.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) have said that Sessions should recuse himself.
    • House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) accused Sessions of lying under oath in a statement on Wednesday night. “Sessions is not fit to serve as the top law enforcement officer of our country and must resign. There must be an independent, bipartisan, outside commission to investigate the Trump political, personal and financial connections to the Russians,” she said.
    • In a press conference on Thursday morning, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on Sessions to resign. "There cannot be even the scintilla of doubt about the impartiality and fairness of the attorney general, the top law enforcement official of the land," Schumer said. He added that Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente or Congress should use their power to name an independent prosecutor to investigate Russia's actions during the 2016 presidential election.
    • On Thursday afternoon, Sessions recused himself from any investigations related to the Trump campaign following consultation with his staff. “They said that since I had involvement with the campaign, I should not be involved in any campaign investigation. I have studied the rules and considered their comments and evaluation. I believe those recommendations are right and just,” Sessions said in a press conference. He denied, however, discussing the Trump campaign with Russian operatives or intermediaries.
    • See also: Federal policy on Russia, 2017-2020

Ben Carson confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

Rick Perry confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Energy

  • Rick Perry was confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Energy by a Senate vote of 62-37. He was initially voted out of committee on January 31, 2017. All Republicans and 11 Democrats voted to confirm Perry. Perry is the former governor of Texas and was a Republican presidential candidate in 2012 and 2016. During his 2012 campaign, Perry said he wanted to abolish the Department of Energy; at his January 2017 confirmation hearing, Perry said that his 2012 statement does not reflect his current views. The U.S. Department of Energy is responsible for maintaining the nuclear weapons stockpile, naval reactor programs, energy emergency preparedness efforts, and science and technology research.

 

Congress is IN session SCOTUS is NOT in session
The U.S. Senate will be in session Monday-Friday. The U.S. House will be in session Tuesday-Friday. The Supreme Court is between argument sessions. The court will continue to issue orders throughout the session break and will next hear arguments on Monday, March 20.

What’s On Tap Next Week

Sunday, March 5

Montana Democrats to hold nominating convention

  • The Montana Democratic Party will hold a nominating convention to decide who will compete in the special election to replace Rep. Ryan Zinke (R), who was confirmed as U.S. Secretary of the Interior on March 1. Eight Democratic candidates are currently in the race, the most well-known among them including state reps. Amanda Curtis and Kelly McCarthy and musician Rob Quist. The chosen nominee will face the Republican and Libertarian nominees in the general election on May 25, 2017.

Monday, March 6

Montana Republicans to hold nominating convention

 

Where was the president last week? Federal judiciary
After giving his first speech to a Joint Session of Congress, President Donald Trump had a lunch with Senate and House leadership on Wednesday in the White House. On Thursday, Trump traveled to Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, VA.  
  • 129 total federal judicial vacancies
  • 1 pending nomination
  • 12 future vacancies

Back to top for State, Local, and fact checks updates

State and Local

Highlights

State

  • On Wednesday, March 1, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency and committing $50 million over five years to fund enforcement, prevention, and treatment services related to opioids. Hogan said his declaration underscores the need to address rising rates of heroin, opium, and fentanyl use. According to The Washington Post, heroin and fentanyl were responsible for the deaths of almost 1,500 Maryland residents in the first nine months of 2016. That number was a 62 percent increase over that same period in 2015. Maryland is currently one of 19 states under divided government.

Local

On Tuesday, March 7, elections will be held for municipal offices in two of the largest cities by population in the country:

  • In Los Angeles, California, a primary election will be held for mayor, eight city council seats, city attorney, city controller, and three community college board of trustees seats. Any race where no candidate earns a majority (50 percent plus one) of the primary votes cast will advance to a general election on May 16, 2017. Campaign finance is in the forefront of this election in light of recent efforts by the council and other groups to limit the influence property developers have in city government through political contribution restrictions. Winners in this election cycle will join the rest of the city's government in dealing with local issues, such as budget shortfalls and a potential city charter change to increase civilian roles in police disciplinary hearings. The victors will also see entanglements with national politics over the matter of immigration. Los Angeles is the largest city in California and the second-largest city in the U.S. by population.
  • In St. Louis, Missouri, a primary election will be held for mayor, comptroller, and board of aldermen. The general election will be held on April 4, 2017. Fourteen of the 29 seats on the board are up for regular election in 2017. Additionally, the Ward 16 seat held by Donna Baringer (D) is up for special election following her successful election to the state house of representatives in 2016. Since Mayor Francis Slay is not running for re-election, the seat is open to a newcomer. St. Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri and the 58th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
 

State

The Week in Review

Ballot Measures Update

2017

  • So far, five statewide measures are certified to appear on the ballot in 2017 in Maine, New York, New Jersey, and Ohio. Over the previous five odd-year election cycles, an average of about seven citizen-initiated measures and 34 total statewide measures have appeared on ballots. Moreover, voters in Puerto Rico will decide a referendum on June 11—and another in October depending on the results of the June referendum—asking whether they want statehood or independence/free association.

2018

  • Seven measures are certified to appear on statewide ballots in 2018 so far, and a signature petition for a citizen-initiated measure in Nevada designed to establish an automatic voter registration system was certified as sufficient. It will be sent to the legislature and later to voters if the legislature does not approve it within the first 40 days of its 2017 session. Over the previous five even-year election cycles, an average of 61 citizen-initiated measures and 173 total statewide measures have appeared on ballots.

Saturday, February 25

Delaware Special Election

  • Partisan control of the Delaware State Senate was decided in the most closely-watched special state legislative elections of the year thus far. Democrats will retain control of the chamber following Stephanie Hansen’s (D) victory over John Marino (R) and Libertarian Joseph Lanzendorfer. Hansen won the seat 58-40. The chamber became split 10-10 in early January 2017 after Democrat Bethany Hall-Long vacated the District 10 seat to be sworn in as lieutenant governor of Delaware. Republicans had an opportunity to control the chamber for the first time in more than 40 years and break the state’s Democratic trifecta, which has been in place since 2009. The race drew national attention as one of the first electoral contests to take place since President Donald Trump (R) took office. In the 2016 presidential election, District 10 voters backed Democrat Hillary Clinton over Trump 54 to 41 percent. Hansen’s margin of victory surpassed Clinton’s by five points. The last time the District 10 seat was up for election was in 2014. Democrats carried it by just 267 votes in that race.
    • Spending in this race was high relative to usual elections in this chamber. The News Journal reported that more than $1 million had been spent in the race as of February 21. Hansen had raised $414,000 and spent $231,000. A PAC supporting her had spent an estimated $550,000. Marino had raised close to $150,000 and spent $96,000. A PAC supporting him had spent $35,000. Comparatively, winners of elections in the past across the full chamber had spent between $50,000 and $100,000, on average.
    • Both former Vice President Joe Biden (D) and former Governor of Maryland Martin O’Malley (D) spent time campaigning on behalf of Stephanie Hansen (D) in Delaware.
    • See also: Delaware state legislative special elections, 2017

Monday, February 27

DoJ Rescinds Intent Claim in Texas Voter ID Case

  • The United States Department of Justice filed a motion in federal court seeking to dismiss the department's earlier claim that Texas' voter ID law had been enacted with racially discriminatory intent. The Justice Department did not seek to reverse its position that the law had a racially discriminatory impact. Opponents of Texas' voter ID criticized the move. Danielle Lang, an attorney for the Campaign Legal Center (one group that sued Texas over its voter ID law), said, "It's a complete 180. We can't make heads or tails of any factual reason for the change. There has been no evidence that's come to light." Lang characterized the development as an "extraordinary disappointment." Meanwhile, proponents of the state's voter ID law praised the Justice Department's decision. J. Christian Adams, president and general counsel of the Public Interest Legal Foundation, which describes itself as a "public interest law firm dedicated entirely to election integrity," said, "We are seeing early reminders of what a Justice Department looks like when it drops the ideological pet projects and follows the law." Texas' voter ID law has been the subject of ongoing litigation since its adoption in 2011. To learn more, see this article.

Arizona Passes Faithless Electors Law

  • The Arizona State Legislature approved House Bill 2302, which will make it illegal for an elector to vote for any person other than the presidential candidate who won the popular vote in the state. Under the new law, any such individual would be deemed ineligible to serve as an elector and would be replaced by another individual chosen by the state party chair. In the 2016 presidential election, seven electors across three states voted for a person who was not the candidate who won the popular vote of that state. Three electors from Washington voted for Colin Powell, while Bernie Sanders, John Kasich, Ron Paul, and a Native American tribal leader from South Dakota named Faith Spotted Eagle also received electoral college votes. Arizona is currently one of 25 states with a Republican trifecta.

Minnesota Repeals Sunday Alcohol Ban

  • The Minnesota State Senate voted 38-28 to approve legislation that would repeal the state’s ban on Sunday alcohol sales. Because it had already passed the state House the previous week, it will now head to Gov. Mark Dayton (D) for a signature. If Dayton signs the law, Minnesota would no longer be one of 12 states with a Blue Law on the books. According to the Star Tribune, 31 legislators between both chambers who previously voted against similar legislation voted in favor during this session. Minnesota is currently one of 19 states under divided government.

Abortion Legislation in Indiana

  • The Indiana House of Representatives voted 53-41 to require abortion providers to give patients information on abortion-reversing drugs prior to giving them abortion drugs. Six of the chamber’s 21 female members voted in favor of the bill. Of the chambers 70 Republicans, 52 voted for the measure. On the other side of the aisle, two of 30 Democrats voted for the bill. Similar laws have been passed recently in Arizona, South Dakota, and Arkansas. A court challenge to the Arizona law led to the legislature rescinding it and the state’s attorney general conceding the court case. Indiana is currently one of 25 states with a Republican trifecta.

Virginia Governor Vetoes Legislation

  • Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) announced a pair of vetoes, which Republicans in the Virginia State Legislature will not have the votes to override. The first bill would have lowered the required age of concealed handgun permits from 21 to 18 for active duty military and veterans. The other legislation, which McAuliffe also vetoed last year, would have allowed home schooled students to participate in public-school sports. Virginia is currently one of 19 states under divided government.

Tuesday, February 28

Virginia Anti-Gerrymandering Lawsuit Moves Forward

  • Virginia circuit court judge W. Reilly Marchant rejected a motion filed by state House leadership to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to change 11 state legislative districts. The lawsuit, brought by the group OneVirginia2021, claimed that lawmakers failed to meet standards of compactness by creating districts that cut across city and county lines. The case is expected to go to trial some time in March. Virginia is one of 37 states where the legislature is responsible for the redistricting process.

Utah LRCA Certified

  • The Utah State Legislature approved a constitutional amendment that would change the required amount of time served in the military under an order of active duty to receive a property tax exemption from 200 days in a calendar year to 200 days in a 365-day period. The measure passed unanimously in both chambers. Voters will have the final say on November 6, 2018. So far, it is the only 2018 measure to be certified in Utah.

Connecticut Special Elections

  • Partisan control of the Connecticut State Senate was up for grabs with a pair of seats up for special election. Connecticut Democrats headed into the November 2016 election with a 21 to 15 majority in the Senate but left in an even 18 to 18 split with Republicans. In early January 2017, two resignations from the Senate— Eric Coleman, a Democrat, and Robert Kane, a Republican—dropped the chamber's partisan balance from 18-18 to 17-17. The special election returned the balance back to 18-18. In December 2016, Democratic and Republican leadership in the Connecticut Senate announced a power-sharing agreement in which Sen. Martin Looney (D) and Sen. Len Fasano (R) would share the authority that comes with the position of senate president pro tempore and each committee would have Democratic and Republican co-chairs. Democrats, however, can technically claim a functional majority in the chamber because the lieutenant governor—Democrat Nancy Wyman—can cast votes in cases of ties.
    • The chances of these races actually altering the Connecticut Senate’s partisan composition were slim based on historical results in the districts. In three elections between 2012 and 2016, the District 2 seat—vacated by Eric Coleman (D)—leaned heavily Democratic. Coleman's margins-of-victory ranged from 58 percentage points to 71 percentage points. Hillary Clinton (D) won District 2 over Donald Trump (R) in the 2016 presidential election, 83 to 14 percent. In the special election, Democrat Douglass McCrory won with 74 percent of the vote. District 32, on the other hand, leaned heavily Republican in elections between 2012 and 2016. Robert Kane (R), who vacated the seat in January 2017, won three elections in this time period with margins-of-victory ranging from 27 percentage points to 35 percentage points. Donald Trump won District 32 over Clinton in 2016, 57 to 39 percent. In the special election, Republican Eric Berthel defeated Democrat Greg Cava 54 to 44 percent.
    • A seat in the Connecticut House of Representatives was also up for election. Democrat Dorinda Keenan Borer was the winner. The seat was previously held by Democrats.
    • See also: Connecticut state legislative special elections, 2017

Wednesday, March 1

Supreme Court Rules in Virginia Redistricting Case

Arizona House Passes I&R Requirements Resolution

  • The Arizona House of Representatives voted 33-23 to pass HCR 2029, which would change signature requirements for putting initiatives on the ballot. The measure passed along party lines, with two members of each party abstaining. It would impose a requirement to collect signatures from each of the state’s 30 legislative districts in proportion to the number of votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. The state Senate would have to approve the measure in order to place it on the November 2018 ballot, where voters would get the final say.

Arkansas LRCA Certified

  • The Arkansas General Assembly approved a constitutional amendment that would change rules regarding attorney’s fees and damages in lawsuits. The measure would limit the fee paid to attorneys if the claimant recovers money from a civil lawsuit, also known as a contingency fee, to one-third (33.33 percent) of the net money recovered. It would also limit the punitive damages awards for claimants in lawsuits for personal injury, property damage, or wrongful death to the greater of $500,000 or three times the amount of compensatory damages awarded. Awards for non-economic damages would be capped at $500,000. This measure is the first one certified for the November 2018 ballot in Arkansas.

Georgia House Passes Pay Raise for Next Governor

Mississippi Legislature Passes Fantasy Sports Bill

  • The Mississippi State Senate voted 46-6 to approve a bill that would allow the state Gaming Commission to regulate fantasy sports in the state and charge providers an 8 percent tax on their Mississippi-based income. The 8 percent figure is the same tax that the commission imposes on casino revenue. Because the bill had already passed the state House, it will head to Gov. Phil Bryant (R) for his signature. The bill’s sponsors say that it is estimated to generate about $5 million per year initially, but that the revenue will grow if the industry continues to grow. Mississippi is currently one of 25 Republican trifectas.

Friday, March 3

Candidate Rejected from Pennsylvania Special Election

  • Judge Anne Covey of the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled that a replacement Democratic candidate would not be allowed to run in an upcoming state legislative special election. Freddie Ramirez, the initial Democratic nominee, was removed from the ballot via a residency challenge. Emilio Vazquez, the replacement candidate, was denied ballot access because his paperwork was submitted after the filing deadline. Green Party candidate Cheri Honkala was also denied a spot on the ballot after her nomination was submitted a day after the deadline. This ruling leaves Lucinda Little (R) as the lone name on the ballot for a seat that has been held by Democrats since 2000. Republicans in the state House currently hold a 121-81 majority over the Democrats.

  • The Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill 88-51 that would require companies with 15 or more employees to offer seven paid sick leave days per year. Similar legislation has been sponsored the past three years by Del. Luke Clippinger (D). A companion bill is still under consideration by a committee in the state Senate. Gov. Larry Hogan (R) has offered his own version of the legislation, which would set the bar for companies at 50 employees in one location. Both chambers of the legislature are controlled by Democrats, but a Republican governor leaves Maryland under divided government.

Special Elections

As of this week, 10 state legislative seats have been filled through special elections in 2017. Another 23 elections (not including runoffs) have been scheduled in 15 states to fill vacancies.

Due to redistricting, additional state legislative special elections may be held in North Carolina in 2017. The special elections have been called in response to a federal court order that ruled 28 state legislative districts unconstitutional because of racial gerrymandering. The U.S. Supreme Court issued an order on January 10, 2017, that would cancel the 2017 special elections in North Carolina. The change would move elections under new maps to the regularly scheduled 2018 elections. The court is expected to decide whether to take up an appeal of this order.

  • An average of 89 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past three odd years ( 2011: 94, 2013: 84, 2015: 88).
  • An average of 44 seats were filled through special elections in each of the past four even years (2010: 26, 2012: 45, 2014: 40, 2016: 65).

Upcoming special elections include:

March 7, 2017:

March 21, 2017:

March 25, 2017:

 

What’s On Tap Next Week

Tuesday, March 7

Alabama Special Primary

  • A special primary election for the District 58 seat in the Alabama House of Representatives District 58 will be held. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the primary, a runoff will be held on May 23, and the general election will be on August 8. If no runoff is necessary, the general election will be held on May 23. The seat is vacant following Oliver Robinson's (D) resignation on November 30, 2016. He retired wishing to avoid conflicts of interest resulting from his daughter's appointment as the Governor's Liaison to the House of Representatives. Rolanda Hollis, James Howell, and Rodney Huntley will face off in the Democratic primary. No Republican qualified for the election.

Oklahoma Special Primary

  • A special primary election for the District 28 seat in the Oklahoma House of Representatives will be held. The general election will take place on May 9. The seat is vacant following Tom Newell's (R) resignation to take a position in the private sector. Five candidates will face off in the Democratic primary, while four other candidates will compete for the Republican nomination. Cody Presley is running as a Libertarian candidate and will automatically appear on the general election ballot.

Pennsylvania Filing Deadline

 

State government in session

States in session 3-4-17.png
State trifectas 2-24-17.png

State government special elections

Local

The Week in Review

Elections Update

  • In 2017, Ballotpedia is covering municipal elections across 52 of America's 100 largest cities by population and several of the largest counties by population, local judicial elections across six states holding elections for general and limited jurisdiction trial courts and one state holding elections for municipal jurisdiction trial courts, school board elections across 463 of the 1,000 largest school districts by student enrollment, all local recalls, all local ballot measures in California, and notable local ballot measures across the United States.
    • So far this year, Ballotpedia has covered three city elections, one county election, and 22 school board elections. Ballotpedia will cover approximately 100 local ballot measures in California in 2017.
    • One local ballot measure election occurred in California on February 28, when a property owner-only election was held on a measure to form a water district in parts of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura counties. The district formation was approved, with “yes” votes representing 57,295 acres of land and no votes representing 2,214 acres.
    • The next local ballot measure election in California is on March 7—when local voters will decide 19 measures. Los Angeles city voters will decide four measures, including Measure S, a development-related initiative.

Monday, February 27

Immigration Protests at Charlotte City Council Meeting

  • In North Carolina, a Charlotte City Council meeting was disrupted by an estimated 200 protesters who called on the council not to cooperate with the federal government’s immigration policies. An article from The Charlotte Observer stated that protesters chanted “No more ICE!” On February 6, 2017, City Attorney Bob Hagemann stated that the city cooperated with state and federal immigration laws and that he did not believe Charlotte could be considered a sanctuary city. 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. North Carolina state law prohibits non-compliance with ICE detainer requests.

Tuesday, February 28

Chicago Special Election

  • A special election was held for the Ward 4 seat on the Chicago City Council. Sophia King, who was appointed in April 2016 to fill the vacancy left by the resignation of William Burns, won the election and will serve the remaining two years of Burns’ term, which expires in 2019. Five candidates, including King, filed to run in the race. In January 2017, former president Barack Obama (D) endorsed King. If no candidate had won a majority of the vote, the top two vote recipients would have advanced to a runoff election on April 4, 2017. Chicago is the largest city in Illinois and the third-largest city in the U.S. by population.

Burbank School Board Primary in California

  • A primary election was held in the Burbank Unified School District for two of five school board seats. The unofficial results indicated that incumbent Charlene Tabet and challenger Steven Frintner won the seats with a majority of voters casting ballots for them. It is possible that the official vote totals will change who won the race, however, since incumbent Larry Applebaum came in a close third with 111 fewer votes than Tabet. Depending on the outcome of the official vote totals, a general election could be held on April 11, 2017. Burbank USD served 16,332 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 0.3 percent of all public school students in the state.

New York City Mayor Proposes Homelessness Plan

  • In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) announced a plan to address homelessness in the city that involves the establishment of 90 new homeless shelters. He described the plan as a “blood-and-guts war strategy.” The mayor announced a five-year target of reducing the number of homeless residents in the city’s shelter system by 2,500, which is 4 percent of the approximately 60,000 current shelter residents. He referred to the figure as an "honest goal” and argued that it would be both achievable and sustainable. The proposal may encounter city council resistance due to its proportional distribution approach for the new homeless shelters. District 39 Councilman Brad Lander (D) stated that the mayor’s system could result in “an over-concentration [of homeless shelters] in poor communities of color.” The city currently operates approximately 275 shelters.
    • New York City is holding elections for mayor and city council this year. A primary election is scheduled for September 12, 2017, and the general election will be held on November 7, 2017. New York City is the largest city in the U.S. by population.

St. Louis Minimum Wage Hike Enabled by State Supreme Court

  • A ruling from the Missouri Supreme Court will allow the city of St. Louis to set its own minimum wage separately from the state’s minimum wage. The court’s ruling was based in part on the city’s charter status. The court also wrote that HB 722, which was approved by the state legislature in September 2015 after overruling then-Governor Jay Nixon's (D) veto, could not preempt a city ordinance passed before the bill’s enactment. Associated Industries of Missouri President and CEO Ray McCarty responded to the ruling by stating it was "the liberal Supreme Court’s gross misinterpretation of state statute." Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom Executive Director and Staff Attorney Gina Chiala praised the ruling and stated, “The court rejected our opponents’ absurd argument that Missouri’s minimum wage law is there to protect businesses rather than workers.”
    • The St. Louis ordinance would raise the city’s minimum wage to $11 per hour by 2018. The state’s minimum wage is $7.70 per hour. A minimum wage measure may also appear on the Kansas City ballot on August 8, 2017, once all steps of the ordinance approval process have been completed. If approved, the ballot initiative would increase the city’s minimum wage incrementally from $10 per hour this year to $15 per hour in 2021. St. Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri and the 58th-largest city in the U.S. by population. Kansas City is the largest city in the state and the 37th-largest city in the U.S. by population.
    • Ballotpedia covers statewide and local minimum wage ballot measures.
    • HB 722 was a form of government preemption. At the state and local level, preemption is a legal concept that allows a state law to supersede a conflicting local law due to the state's power to create cities as granted by state constitutions. The federal government can preempt state law in a similar manner. Click here to learn more about preemption conflicts at the state and local level.

Vermont Judge Resigns

  • Vermont Superior Court Judge Paul Kane resigned from his position on February 28, 2017, following an ethics investigation by the Vermont Judicial Conduct Board. The board filed a complaint in June 2016 alleging that Kane violated judicial ethics rules by making claims against an estate he managed from 2010 to 2014. Hearings on the complaint are set to begin this month. Probate attorney Raymond Massucco told the Windsor Probate Court that the estate had a zero balance in 2014 after an approximately $800,000 balance in 2010. Kane's resignation letter countered that the estate's funds remained intact and that media reports on the case did not account for the full extent of facts.

Wednesday, March 1

Budget Cuts on Table for Boston Schools

  • Funding would drop for 49 public schools in Boston under the district’s current budget proposal, according to an article by The Bay State Banner. Boston Public Schools has 125 schools in total. Those schools that would receive reduced funding as part of the proposal would see between a 1 to 21 percent drop. Overall, the proposed budget would raise general fund expenditures from approximately $1.03 billion in FY 2017 to $1.06 billion in FY 2018 for an increase of about $29 million. The school district is overseen by a seven-member board appointed by the mayor of Boston. Boston Public Schools served 54,312 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 5.7 percent of all public school students in the state.

Georgia Judge Retired

  • In DeKalb County, Georgia, Probate Judge Jeryl Rosh left office less than one year after winning re-election in an unopposed race. Rosh, who had served as the county’s probate judge since 2003, announced her retirement two days into her new term, citing a family medical issue that arose in November 2016. Under Georgia law, the probate court’s associate judge assumes the position for the remainder of the four-year term if the job becomes vacant. Associate Probate Judge Bedelia Hargrove replaced Rosh effective March 1. Critics argued that Rosh’s move allowed her to hand-pick a successor and shut out other candidates by using state law to prevent an election for the open seat. The associate probate judge position was first created when Rosh appointed Hargrove in December 2016. At that time, Rosh did not mention her intention to retire when seeking approval for the appointment. Neither Rosh nor Hargrove responded to interview requests with The Atlanta City Journal. Atlanta is the largest city in Georgia and the 40th-largest city in the U.S. by population.

Nebraska Filing Deadline

  • In Omaha, the filing deadline passed to run in the election for seven city council seats. Five of seven incumbents filed for re-election; District 4 incumbent Garry Gernandt and District 6 incumbent Franklin Thompson did not seek re-election. Every seat but the District 5 seat is contested by at least two candidates. Prior to the election, the city has a 4-3 Democratic majority that could change as a result of the race. A primary election will be held on April 4, 2017, and the general election will be held on May 9, 2017. Omaha is the largest city in Nebraska and the 42nd-largest city in the U.S. by population.

Thursday, March 2

Philly Mayor Proposes Budget Hike

  • Philadelphia Mayor James Kenney (D) made his annual budget address to the city council. He proposed a 2017-2018 city budget of approximately $4.4 billion, which would be approximately $200 million more than the previous year’s budget. Prior to the mayor’s address, the city’s finance director told reporters, “These are really necessities we were funding.” The budget additions include initiatives to hire more first responders, address opioid addictions and lead poisoning problems, and subsidize public housing. Council President Darrell L. Clarke (D) responded to the address by stating his belief that the council would “quickly get around” to supporting the budget proposal with minor adjustments. The budget would go into effect on July 1, 2017. The city’s fund balance is estimated to drop from $100.7 million to $87.5 million by 2018 due to the budget’s expenditures exceeding the city’s anticipated revenue. Kenney previously served as an at-large member of the city council from 1992 to 2015. He will be up for reelection in 2019. Philadelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania and the fifth-largest city in the U.S. by population.

Friday, March 3

Nebraska Filing Deadlines

  • In Omaha, the filing deadline passed to run in the election for mayor. A primary election will be held on April 4, 2017, and the general election will be held on May 9, 2017.
  • In Lincoln, the filing deadline passed to run in the election for three seats on the city council and the airport authority. A primary election will be held on April 4, 2017, and the general election will be held on May 2, 2017. Lincoln is the second-largest city in Nebraska and the 72nd-largest city in the U.S. by population.

 

What’s On Tap Next Week

Monday, March 6

New Jersey and Texas Filing Deadlines

  • The filing deadline will pass to run in elections for seven school board seats across three of the largest school districts by enrollment in two states:
    • In New Jersey, the filing deadline will pass for three school board seats each in Newark Public Schools and Passaic Public Schools. Both districts will hold a general election on April 25, 2017. These two districts served a combined total of 49,076 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 3.6 percent of all public school students in the state.
    • In Texas, the filing deadline will pass for one school board seat up for special election in the Judson Independent School District. Steve Salyer resigned from the District 1 seat in January 2017, which required a special election. This election will be held in conjunction with the regular general election for four other school board seats on May 6, 2017. This district served 23,340 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 0.5 percent of all public school students in the state.

Tuesday, March 7

Alabama and California School Board Elections

  • Elections will be held for 15 school board seats across three of the largest school districts by enrollment in two states:
    • In Alabama, Tuscaloosa City Schools will hold a general election for eight school board seats. Six of the eight races are contested. Tuscaloosa served 10,249 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 1.4 percent of all public school students in the state.
    • In California, the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Pasadena Unified School District will both hold primary elections. These are functionally general elections; if a candidate receives a majority of the vote, he or she will win the election outright in the primary. If necessary, the general election would be held on April 18 for Pasadena and May 16 for Los Angeles.
      • In Los Angeles, three of the seven seats on the school board will be up for primary election. The board members elected in this race will be tasked with shrinking the district's $1.46 billion cumulative deficit over the next three years. The district notified the state and county of its economic troubles in December 2016. Throughout 2016, the Los Angeles Unified School District's inspector general investigated allegations of fraud and fiscal mismanagement by a charter school network that operates seven charter schools in the district in the 2016-2017 school year. The board of education denied the renewal of two of the network's charters in October 2016. In January 2017, state and federal authorities investigated the network due to similar allegations. Los Angeles served 646,683 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 10.3 percent of all public school students in the state.
      • In Pasadena, four of the seven seats on the school board will be up for primary election. Unlike the most recent past two election cycles, every incumbent whose term is up for election in 2017 is running to keep his or her seat. Pasadena served 18,586 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 0.3 percent of all public school students in the state.

Pennsylvania Filing Deadlines

  • In Pennsylvania, the filing deadline will pass to run in the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh municipal primary elections. The Philadelphia race will include the offices of district attorney, city controller, judge of election, and inspector of election. In Pittsburgh, the election will include the mayor and four seats on the city council. In both cities, a primary election will be held on May 16, 2017, and the general election will be held on November 7, 2017. Philadelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania and the fifth-largest city in the U.S. by population. Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in Pennsylvania and the 62nd-largest city in the U.S. by population.


  • The filing deadline will pass to run in elections for 71 school board seats across 17 of the largest Pennsylvania school districts by enrollment. Primary elections will be held on May 16, 2017, and the general election will be held on November 7, 2017. The districts served a combined total of 225,431 students during the 2014-2015 school year—approximately 12.8 percent of all public school students in the state.

Friday, March 10

Riverside Filing Deadline

  • In Riverside, the filing deadline will pass to run in the election for four seats on the city council. The general election will be held on June 6, 2017. Riverside is the 12th-largest city in California and the 59th-largest city in the U.S. by population.

 

Back to top for Federal and fact checks updates

Fact Check

Fact Check by Ballotpedia

  • On February 25, President Donald Trump tweeted "The media has not reported that the National Debt in my first month went down by $12 billion vs a $200 billion increase in Obama first mo. [sic]" Fact Check by Ballotpedia looked into the numbers and found total debt fell $11.988 billion over Trump's first month in office, and grew $211.811 billion over former President Obama's first month. Total debt is approaching $20 trillion, and relatively small month-to-month fluctuations are common.
  • On February 23, Sen. Ted Cruz said the 2013 Senate rule change sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that lowered the number of votes needed to confirm a presidential nominee allowed three of President Trump's cabinet nominees to be approved with fewer than 60 votes, and it might also be used to facilitate the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch. Cruz is correct that the change allowed Jeff Sessions, Scott Pruitt, Betsy DeVos, and three others to be confirmed. But Cruz is incorrect about Gorsuch's confirmation. The rule change does not apply to the confirmation of a nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.
  • In January, Kentucky became the 27th state to adopt a right-to-work law. Prior to the introduction of the right-to-work bill, Anna Baumann of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy argued there was no evidence that the law would create new manufacturing jobs in the state. “Looking at statewide manufacturing job growth in Kentucky and our RTW neighbors, all are still below December 2007 employment levels before the Great Recession hit, but Kentucky is the closest to regaining the jobs that were lost.” As of November 2016, the number of manufacturing jobs in Kentucky equaled 97.1 percent of the number there had been in December 2007. Each of the neighboring states cited by Baumann had a lower percentage. However, Baumann’s comparison does not reflect whether right-to-work laws help or hinder manufacturing job growth. Her calculations do not account for changes in the right-to-work status of the various states between December 2007 and November 2016. Nor has she accounted for the variety of other factors that affect manufacturing employment.

 

Read the latest fact checks.


Back to top for Federal, State and Local updates

About

Ballotpedia wants to keep you in the know. In this weekly newsletter, we let you know the important things that happened last week in the federal, state and local levels of government, as well as what you should look for this week. The Tap covers election news, public policy, and other noteworthy events—everything you need to stay up-to-date on American politics. A summary of the in-depth, nonpartisan content that is added to Ballotpedia every week is now available in this digestible format for free to anyone who wants to be informed.

There are two ways to read The Tap. One is here on the website. Click the tabs for information at each level of government. For previous issues, see Ballotpedia:The Tap. You can also subscribe to have The Tap delivered to your email inbox every Saturday.



Back to top

Retrieved from "https://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Tap:_Federal_Judicial_Vacancies_at_13.1%25&oldid=8441511"