Four states with primaries, three certified ballot measures, two budget bills, one school board without a quorum

Use this area to offer a short teaser of your email's content. Text here will show in the preview area of some email clients. [Forward This](mailto:?subject=Four%20states%20with%20primaries%2C%20three%20certified%20ballot%20measures%2C%20two%20budget%20bills%2C%20one%20school%20board%20without%20a%20quorum&body=Get%20the%20latest%20in%20Ballotpedia's%20State%20and%20Local%20Tap%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fballotpedia.org%2FThe_State_and_Local_Tap%3A_Four_states_with_primaries%2C_three_certified_ballot_measures%2C_two_budget_bills%2C_one_school_board_without_a_quorum) [blank][Tweet This]( [blank][Send to Linkedin]( [blank][Send to Facebook]( [blank] Are you looking forward to this week's primaries as much as we are? We'll be up late recording results and [tweeting up a storm](. We would also love for you to join us Wednesday in a free webinar reviewing Tuesday's races. [Join us!]( [Link to full version →]( Four states will hold primaries on Tuesday Indiana primary election - Ballotpedia will cover a total of 138 federal and state seats up for primary [election in Indiana]( in 2018. These include 10 congressional seats and 125 state legislative seats. Ballotpedia will also cover municipal elections in Allen and Marion counties. North Carolina primary and general elections - Ballotpedia will cover a total of 183 federal and state seats up for primary [election in North Carolina]( in 2018. These include 13 U.S. House seats and 170 state legislative seats. Ballotpedia will also cover municipal elections in Durham, Forsyth, Guilford, Mecklenburg, and Wake counties and school board elections in the Durham, Winston-Salem/Forsyth, Guilford, Johnston, and Union school districts. Ohio primary election - Ballotpedia will cover a total of 224 federal, state, and local seats up for primary [election in Ohio]( in 2018. These include U.S. Congress, governor and other state executives, Ohio General Assembly, and Ohio state courts. Ballotpedia will also cover judicial and municipal elections across five counties: Cuyahoga, Fairfield, Franklin, Hamilton, and Lucas. - [Republican primaries in the Ohio state legislature]( are of particular importance, with the next speakership at stake. The two candidates for speaker — Finance Committee Chairman [Ryan Smith]() and former House Speaker [Larry Householder]( — are supporting opposing candidates in the primaries because they expect their support in the January 2019 speaker's race. Twenty-nine state House primaries and four state Senate primaries will be contested, giving both Smith and Householder opportunities to campaign for their preferred primary candidates. - Also up for vote will be [Ohio Issue 1](, a ballot measure regarding congressional redistricting in the state. Issue 1 would create the following process for congressional redistricting in Ohio: - The measure would require the [state legislature]( to adopt a 10-year congressional redistricting plan with 60 percent of members in each chamber voting in favor and 50 percent of Republicans and 50 percent of Democrats (or whichever two parties have the most members in the legislature) voting in favor. - The city council in Toledo, Ohio, will hold a [special election]( for the District 6 seat on the same day as the statewide primary. The election was called after Lindsay Webb vacated her seat after being appointed as Lucas County Treasurer. Four candidates filed for election: Chris Delaney (D), David Ball (D), James Nowak (R), and Alex Rivera (R). Delaney was appointed to the position in late January 2018 to serve until the special election. The winner of the special election will hold the seat for the remainder of Webb’s term, which expires in 2020. West Virginia primary election - Ballotpedia will cover a total of 121 federal and state seats up for primary [election in West Virginia]( in 2018. These include four congressional seats and 117 state legislative seats. Maine school board recall to be held - A [recall election]( seeking to remove three of the seven members of the [Scarborough School Department]( Board of Education in Maine will be on the ballot. Recall supporters targeted board members Donna Beeley, Cari Lyford, and Jodi Shea after David Creech, principal of Scarborough High School, resigned from his position effective June 30. Creech did not publicly say why he resigned, and school officials said his resignation could not be discussed because it was a personnel matter. Creech's wife and lawyer said he was forced to resign by Scarborough Superintendent Julie Kukenberger. When Creech tried to withdraw his resignation, Kukenberger did not accept the withdrawal and the school board did not agree to meet with him. City officials up for recall in Michigan - In Roscommon, Michigan, Village President Dan Fishel is facing a [recall vote](. Recall supporters accuse Fishel of violating a village ethics ordinance after he shared his personal opinions of the Roscommon Downtown Development Authority. - In Wayne, Michigan, a [recall election]( is being held against Mayor Susan Rowe and City Councilmen Chris Sanders, Ryan Gabriel, and Anthony Miller. The recall effort was initiated after the city council's decision to extend elected official terms to 2018. The council approved the extensions because three council seats were due for election in 2017 prior to the city's decision to move elections from odd years to even years to coincide with state elections. Another approved petition argued that Sanders recruited residents outside of Wayne County to make critical comments about City Manager Lisa Nocerini at council meetings. Organizers are also seeking to remove Sanders due to his vote to block the sale of the vacant Wayne Activities and Banquet Center. Newark elections - The city of [Newark](, [New Jersey]( is holding a general election for mayor on May 8. The race is a battle between incumbent [Ras J. Baraka]( and a former supporter, Newark City Councilwoman [Gayle Chaneyfield Jenkins](. - Chaneyfield Jenkins backed Baraka's 2014 mayoral bid, running as part of his slate of candidates. She later broke with the mayor. - The candidates differ on issues like development and education. Chaneyfield Jenkins opposed a Baraka-backed proposal mandating a number of low-income housing units in new residential developments. She was also against a state moratorium on charter school expansion that had Baraka's support. - Newark is also holding an election for the city council on the same day. Thirty-seven candidates filed for nine seats. --------------------------------------------------------------- Ballot Measures Update 2018: - [Eighty-nine (89) measures]( are certified to appear on statewide ballots in 28 states in [2018]( so far—18 [citizen-initiated]( measures, 62 [legislatively referred]( measures, eight measures [referred by a Florida commission](, and one measure [automatically referred]( to the ballot by the state constitution. Over the previous five even-year election cycles, an average of 61 citizen-initiated measures and 173 total statewide measures have appeared on ballots. Review Ballotpedia’s list of [2018 initiative and referendum signature deadlines]( to stay ahead of 2018 ballot measure news, and see if there are initiatives currently circulating in your state [here](. - [Seven new measures]( were certified for 2018 ballots over the last week. - By [this time in 2014](, 103 measures had been certified for the [2014 ballot](; ultimately, 158 statewide measures were put on the ballot in 2014. By [this time in 2016](, 102 measures had been certified for the [2016 ballot](; ultimately, 162 statewide measures were put on the ballot in 2016. - The average number of certifications by the 18th week of the year from 2010 through 2016 was 107, and the average total number of certified measures by the end of the year in the same period was 173. - Signatures for 15 additional citizen-initiated measures have been submitted and are pending verification in California, Michigan, Missouri, Idaho, and Utah. To see this list, [click here](. - In Alaska and Michigan, enough signatures were submitted and verified for three indirect initiatives to put them before the state legislatures during the 2018 session and then on the ballot if the legislatures don’t approve them. To see this list of initiatives currently pending legislative consideration, [click here.]( - The last general initiative signature deadline was May 1, 2018, for initiatives in [Idaho](. Four initiatives were circulated, and proponents of two of them—[a Medicaid expansion initiative]( and [an instant horse racing initiative](—reported submitting signatures. - The next signature deadline is May 6, 2018, for initiatives in [Missouri](, where a record-setting 373 initiatives were filed with state officials for the 2018 election cycle. As of Thursday, signatures for [a $12 per hour minimum wage initiative](, a [lobbying, campaign finance, and redistricting initiative](, and [a medical marijuana initiative]( were submitted. --------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona governor signs education bill, teacher strike ends - Arizona Educators United and the Arizona Education Association called an [end to the strike]( that began on April 26. Arizona Educators United tweeted, "The education budget has been passed and signed. AEU is herby calling an end to the Walkout." - Gov. [Doug Ducey]( (R) signed HB 2663, an education budget bill that increases teacher pay by 20 percent by 2020. A press release from the governor's office said the bill when fully implemented represents a $1 billion increase in education spending, including: - $644.1 million for a 20 percent teacher pay raise by 2020. - $304.9 million for a 10 percent raise over fiscal years 2018 and 2019. - $164.7 million for a 5 percent raise in fiscal year 2020. - $174.5 million for a 5 percent raise in fiscal year 2021. - $371 million to restore recession-era cuts over five years. The funds are flexible and districts can use them for curriculum updates, technology, or to increase support staff salaries. $100 million was allocated for fiscal year 2019. - $1.8 million for career and technical education. - $10 million ($3 million in state dollars, $7 million from federal funds) for behavioral health specialists. - $53 million for infrastructure renewal. - $86 million over two years to build five new schools. - A teacher vote between April 17 and 19 resulted in the decision to strike beginning April 26. Teachers demanded a 20 percent teacher pay raise, raises for support staff, and an increase in school funding to pre-recession levels. The strike was the first ever in the state. --------------------------------------------------------------- Oklahoma Gov. Fallin signs $7.6 billion budget bill - Gov. Mary Fallin (R) [signed a $7.6 billion budget bill]( on Monday. The budget contains the following provisions: - An increase in education funding by 19.8 percent, including $353 million for teacher pay raises, $52 million for school support staff pay raises, $24 million for health benefits, and $33 million for textbooks. - $11 million for criminal justice changes, including $5 million for the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to pay for risk/needs assessments and fund drug and mental health treatment courts and $4.8 million for the Department of Corrections to install a new tracking and monitoring system. - $23 million for the Department of Human Services to fund programs such as the Pinnacle Plan, which aids students in state custody. - In a press release, Gov. Fallin said, "For the first time in years, no agency is receiving a cut. This budget provides a long-term solution to the re-occurring budget deficits and helps reduce the reliance on one-time funds." - However, Rep. Scott Inman (D) said the budget did not replace millions of dollars of budget cuts that happened over time: "You [are] going to go home and tell your constituents that cutting higher ed by 26 percent, the health department by 27 percent, by cutting common ed when you adjust for inflation by 32 percent, by cutting career tech by 25 percent, juvenile affairs 18 percent, veterans 20 percent over the last decade that somehow they ought to be thankful for that." --------------------------------------------------------------- Two officials recalled in Oregon leaves school board without a quorum - Judy Skirvin and Monty Akin were removed from their positions on the [Clatskanie School District]( school board in Oregon following a [recall election]( Tuesday. The two members, along with board Chair Walt Lovegren, were targeted for recall after they voted to not renew the contract of Clatskanie Elementary School principal Brad Thorud on February 26. The other two members of the board at the time voted against the motion to not renew Thorud's contract. Lovegren’s name did not appear on the recall ballot as he resigned from the board before the petitions were verified. - The recall petitions against Lovegren, Skirvin, and Akin said that they did not represent their constituents when they voted to not renew Thorud's contract. The petitions said that because of their votes, the community had lost confidence and respect for them. - Clatskanie Superintendent Lloyd Hartley recommended that Thorud's contract not be renewed in February 2018 due to his inability to work other administrators. After the recall effort began, Hartley said he stood by his recommendation. Both Skirvin and Akin also said they stood by Hartley’s recommendation. Hartley resigned from his position on April 17. - The board delayed appointing new members to the two vacant positions until after the recall election. Because both recalls were approved and the board was left with one member, the Education Service District will send consultants to help appoint enough board members to have a quorum. Once a quorum is reached, those members will appoint members to the remaining vacant positions. - Ballotpedia [has tracked]( 24 recall efforts targeting a total of 53 school board members in 2018. Four recall elections have been scheduled in the first half of 2018. --------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa lawmakers pass bill prohibiting abortion if fetal heartbeat is detected - The Iowa State Legislature [approved Senate File 359]( on Tuesday, which would prohibit abortion if a doctor detected a fetal heartbeat (usually around six weeks of pregnancy). The bill would make exceptions for rape, incest, fetal abnormalities, and to save the life of the mother. - Some Republican lawmakers expressed hope that the bill would be challenged in court. Sen. [Rick Bertrand]( (R) said during the floor debate, "This bill will be the vehicle that will ultimately provide change and provide the opportunity to overturn Roe v. Wade. There's nothing hidden here about the agenda." - Becca Lee, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, said the bill would institute an "intentionally unconstitutional ban on 99 percent of safe, legal abortion, designed to challenge Roe v. Wade." In an email to Reuters, Lee wrote, "The bill weaponizes fetal heartbeat, which is by all accounts an arbitrary standard that bans abortion long before the point of fetal viability." --------------------------------------------------------------- Bump stock ban advances in Connecticut and Delaware Connecticut - On Tuesday, the Connecticut House of Representatives [voted 114-35]( on a bill that would ban ownership of bump stocks and similar devices that increase the rate of fire of a semi-automatic rifle. - Gov. Dan Malloy (D) expressed support for the bill: "I cannot see one legitimate reason why anyone needs to own a bump stock other than for the mass shooting of people." - Scott Wilson, president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, said the bill was unnecessary because the manufacturer had already stopped making bump stocks and because there was "an impending ban on the instruments at the federal level." The Connecticut Citizens Defense League described itself as a grassroots organization "advocating for the right to keep and bear arms." Delaware - The Delaware House of Representatives voted 34-4 to approve a second version of House Bill 330, which would ban bump stocks and similar devices. The original version would have prohibited buying, selling, or possessing the devices. Violations would be a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison. The second version changed the penalty for bump stock possession to a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,300 fine. Sale, transfer, or purchase of bump stocks would remain a felony. The bill also included a provision in which the state could pay bump-stock owners up to $100 for bump stocks and up to $15 for trigger cranks through June 30, 2019, or until a $15,000 allocation ran out. - Gov. John Carney (D) expressed support for the measure. - Bump stocks were banned in Massachusetts, California, Vermont, New Jersey, Washington, and Florida at the time of the bills' passage, and legislation to ban bump stocks was under consideration in other states including Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, and Vermont. --------------------------------------------------------------- Maine Legislature overrides governor veto of marijuana bill - The Maine State Legislature [voted]( to overturn Gov. Paul LePage's (R) veto of a bill that would allow marijuana sales in the state on Wednesday. LePage vetoed the bill on April 27, 2018, saying it would violate federal law. The House voted 109-39 and the Senate voted 28-6 to override the veto. - Recreational marijuana became legal in Maine in 2016 but the state did not have a way to regulate sales. The legislation requires the state Department of Administrative and Financial Services to write more regulatory rules on marijuana sales, including facility inspection, licensing, and sales tax collection. The legislation prohibits marijuana social clubs and limits the number of marijuana plants an individual can grow. --------------------------------------------------------------- Investigations against Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens: Updates - Missouri legislators called for a special session scheduled to begin May 18 to discuss impeaching Gov. Eric Greitens (R). The decision to convene was made after 138 House members and 29 Senators signed a petition calling for the governor's impeachment. - [Join our webinar]( on May 16, as we guide you through the investigation of Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens ahead of the May 18th special session Timeline: - April 30: The House Special Investigative Committee on Oversight released a report that claimed Greitens mischaracterized testimony his accuser gave in a video deposition from St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner. A statement from Greitens on April 12 said that the video testimony showed the allegations in the committee's first report, released April 11, were false and accused Gardner of attempting to hide the testimony from the public. After examining video testimony and comparing it with previous statements, the committee concluded it did not find evidence to make it change its mind regarding the accuser's credibility. A spokeswoman for Greitens maintained that the allegations against him were false. - May 2: The House special committee released a report on Greitens' use of a charity donor list during his 2016 gubernatorial campaign. The report indicated that in 2012 Greitens signed an agreement with The Mission Continues not to disclose the identity, personal information, or contact information of donors and that in January 2015, Greitens' assistant sent campaign aides a list containing this information and other details of individuals, companies, and nonprofits that had donated $1,000 or more to the charity. The report said Greitens used the list, which was created in May 2014 when Greitens was stepping down as CEO of the charity, to fundraise for his 2016 gubernatorial campaign. The report also said that campaign aide Daniel Laub testified he was tricked into being falsely listed on an ethics commission settlement as giving the donor list to the campaign. - May 2: House Minority Leader Gail Beatty (D) called on Greitens to resign or be impeached, saying the governor is "utterly lacking in the moral authority necessary to effectively govern." House Speaker Todd Richardson (R) asked the committee to provide recommendations on actions that could be taken against Greitens. Greitens' attorney Michael Adams said before the report's release that the campaign "worked in good faith with the ethics commission for months to resolve this matter to the ethics commission’s satisfaction. Any notion that the campaign — through an adviser, an attorney, or anyone else — would intentionally mislead the ethics commission is simply false." - [Click here]( to catch up on our coverage of the investigations into Gov. Greitens. --------------------------------------------------------------- Nashville voters defeat $5.4 billion transit referendum - Voters in Nashville, Tennessee, [defeated the Transit Improvement Program referendum]( with 63.99 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results. The referendum would have increased the city's sales tax, hotel tax, business tax, and rental car tax to fund a $5.4 billion transit proposal. The transit plan would have added five light rail lines, expanded bus service, and other transit improvements. - The city’s sales tax would have increased by 0.5 percent for the first five years, increasing to 1 percent in 2023. The hotel tax would have increased by 0.25 percent for the first five years, increasing to 0.375 percent in 2023. The business tax and rental car tax would have both increased by 20 percent. --------------------------------------------------------------- The Tap has thousands of loyal readers each week. Want to reach them? 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