Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) issued one executive order from March 20-26. As of March 26, Evers has issued eight executive orders in 2023 — one fewer than he did at this point a year ago. The order is:
Executive Order #189, where the governor ordered flags flown at half-staff as a mark of respect for Army Private First Class William LaVerne Simon.
Governors use executive orders to manage executive branch operations. During the week of March 20-26, the nation’s governors issued 20 executive orders. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued the most with six. Governors in 38 states issued the fewest with zero. Democratic governors issued five of the 20 orders, while Republican governors issued 15.
Evers has served as governor since Jan. 7, 2019. He issued 31 executive orders in 2022 and 49 in 2021. Nationally, governors issued at least 1,559 executive orders in 2022. Governors have issued 369 executive orders in 2023. Republican governors issued 229, while Democratic governors issued 140. Wisconsin is a divided government, meaning neither party holds trifecta control.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued six executive orders from March 20-26. As of March 26, DeSantis has issued 64 executive orders in 2023 — 11 fewer than he did at this point a year ago. Three of the orders are below:
Executive Order Number 23-64, where the governor assigned John Durrett as state attorney for the case involving James Dillon Crews in the Eighth Judicial Circuit of Florida.
Executive Order Number 23-59, where the governor amended provisions regarding appointment and membership in Executive Order 12-23, which extended the authorization of the State Emergency Response Commission for Hazardous Material.
Governors use executive orders to manage executive branch operations. During the week of March 20-26, the nation’s governors issued 20 executive orders. DeSantis issued the most with six. Governors in 38 states issued the fewest with zero. Democratic governors issued five of the 20 orders, while Republican governors issued 15.
DeSantis has served as governor since Jan. 8, 2019. He issued 272 executive orders in 2022 and 246 in 2021. Nationally, governors issued at least 1,559 executive orders in 2022. Governors have issued 369 executive orders in 2023. Republican governors issued 229, while Democratic governors issued 140. Florida is a Republican trifecta, meaning Republicans control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) issued one executive order from March 20-26. As of March 26, Lujan Grisham has issued 39 executive orders in 2023 — 25 more than she did at this point a year ago. The order is:
Executive Order 2023-039, where the governor ordered flags flown at half-staff to commemorate former Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly.
Governors use executive orders to manage executive branch operations. During the week of March 20-26, the nation’s governors issued 20 executive orders. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued the most with six. Governors in 38 states issued the fewest with zero. Democratic governors issued five of the 20 orders, while Republican governors issued 15.
Lujan Grisham has served as governor since Jan. 1, 2019. She issued 165 executive orders in 2022 and 68 in 2021. Nationally, governors issued at least 1,559 executive orders in 2022. Governors have issued 369 executive orders in 2023. Republican governors issued 229, while Democratic governors issued 140. New Mexico is a Democratic trifecta, meaning Democrats control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) issued one executive order from March 20-26. As of March 26, Hochul has issued 10 executive orders in 2023 — five fewer than she did at this point a year ago. The order is:
Executive Order 4.19, where the governor continued the declaration of a statewide disaster emergency due to healthcare staffing shortages.
Governors use executive orders to manage executive branch operations. During the week of March 20-26, the nation’s governors issued 20 executive orders. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued the most with six. Governors in 38 states issued the fewest with zero. Democratic governors issued five of the 20 orders, while Republican governors issued 15.
Hochul has served as governor since Aug. 24, 2021. She issued 64 executive orders in 2022 and 25 in 2021. Nationally, governors issued at least 1,559 executive orders in 2022. Governors have issued 369 executive orders in 2023. Republican governors issued 229, while Democratic governors issued 140. New York is a Democratic trifecta, meaning Democrats control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 125 election-related bills in the New York State Senate since the beginning of the year. Of the 125, Ballotpedia tracked one from March 20-26. Democrats sponsored the bill. The bill is:
NY S05818: Relates to the dates to file a designating petition; provides for the repeal of such provisions, Sen. Zellnor Myrie (D).
As introduced, this bill establishes that in 2023, petitions must be filed between the 12th and 13th Monday before a primary election. It also prohibits counting signatures given earlier than 41 days before the 13th Monday.
During the week of March 20-26, Ballotpedia tracked 50 Senate election-related bills nationally. As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 770 Senate bills nationally. Ballotpedia tracked the most Senate bills this year in the New York State Senate with 125, while Ballotpedia tracked the fewest Senate bills in Louisiana and Massachusetts with zero. Republicans sponsored 367 of these bills, while Democrats sponsored 311. Minor party sponsorship and bills with no sponsors accounted for 67 bills, while bipartisan legislators sponsored 25.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 382 Senate bills in Democratic trifectas and 301 Senate bills in Republican trifectas. A trifecta is when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Ballotpedia has tracked 87 Senate bills in states where neither party holds trifecta control.
The New York Senate is scheduled to be in session from Jan. 4 to June 8 this year. In 2022, Ballotpedia tracked 190 Senate bills related to election administration. Ten of these bills passed both chambers and eight were enacted into law. New York is a Democratic trifecta.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 13 election-related bills in the Florida State Senate since the beginning of the year. Of the 13, Ballotpedia tracked one from March 20-26. Republicans sponsored the bill. The bill is:
FL S0620: Ethics Requirements for Officers and Employees of Special Tax Districts, Sens. Nick DiCeglie (R) and Clay Yarborough (R).
A summary has not been provided yet.
During the week of March 20-26, Ballotpedia tracked 50 Senate election-related bills nationally. As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 770 Senate bills nationally. Ballotpedia tracked the most Senate bills this year in the New York State Senate with 125, while Ballotpedia tracked the fewest Senate bills in Louisiana and Massachusetts with zero. Republicans sponsored 367 of these bills, while Democrats sponsored 311. Minor party sponsorship and bills with no sponsors accounted for 67 bills, while bipartisan legislators sponsored 25.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 382 Senate bills in Democratic trifectas and 301 Senate bills in Republican trifectas. A trifecta is when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Ballotpedia has tracked 87 Senate bills in states where neither party holds trifecta control.
The Florida Senate is scheduled to be in session from March 7 to May 5 this year. In 2022, Ballotpedia tracked 16 Senate bills related to election administration. Four of these bills passed both chambers and three were enacted into law. Florida is a Republican trifecta.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 55 election-related bills in the Texas State Senate since the beginning of the year. Of the 55, Ballotpedia tracked 28 from March 20-26. Republicans sponsored all 28. Five of 28 bills are highlighted below:
TX SB1485: Relating to the public inspection of election records, Sen. Bob Hall (R).
As introduced, this bill:
Specifies that election records that are public information must be made available no later than ten days after a request for public inspection is received.
Defines “election record” to include anything created by the government, in addition to anything distributed or received.
Requires that election records including original voter ballots, and images of voted ballots, be made available for public inspection by the 60th day after an election.
Requires the custodian of records to adopt procedures that remove personally identifiable information of the voter contained on a ballot that is made available for public inspection.
TX SB1994: Relating to vote harvesting; creating a civil penalty, Sen. Mayes Middleton (R).
As introduced, this bill:
Clarifies that a person committing the offense of vote harvesting is liable to any candidate or party harmed by the services for damages and penalties.
Outlines what a person needs to demonstrate to prove that they were harmed by vote harvesting services.
Outlines what must be demonstrated to establish standing in the case.
Lists what a litigant who prevails may be able to recover in compensation and penalties.
Specifies penalties when a litigant who can demonstrate that the number of voters contacted by the vote harvesting service exceeds the number of votes by which he or she lost the election.
Provides that a person found liable for damages is jointly liable with any other defendant for the entire amount of damages.
Clarifies that a case may be brought in the county where any part of the vote harvesting services occurred.
TX SB1338: Relating to the eligibility of certain persons to vote early by mail, Sen. Bob Hall (R).
As introduced, this bill removes the eligibility of persons based on age to vote early by mail.
TX SB1608: Relating to the election date for the authorization of the issuance of bonds or a tax increase, Sen. Kevin Sparks (R).
As introduced, this bill requires an election for issuance of bonds or tax increase to occur during a November election.
TX SB1661: Relating to the systems used in a central counting station, Sen. Bryan Hughes (R).
As introduced, this bill modifies requirements for the purchase or use of ballot scanning equipment, requiring the ballot scanner to only use a data storage device (rather than disc) that is incapable of being modified without rendering the device unreadable.
During the week of March 20-26, Ballotpedia tracked 50 Senate election-related bills nationally. As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 770 Senate bills nationally. Ballotpedia tracked the most Senate bills this year in the New York State Senate with 125, while Ballotpedia tracked the fewest Senate bills in Louisiana and Massachusetts with zero. Republicans sponsored 367 of these bills, while Democrats sponsored 311. Minor party sponsorship and bills with no sponsors accounted for 67 bills, while bipartisan legislators sponsored 25.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 382 Senate bills in Democratic trifectas and 301 Senate bills in Republican trifectas. A trifecta is when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Ballotpedia has tracked 87 Senate bills in states where neither party holds trifecta control.
The Texas Senate is scheduled to be in session from Jan. 10 to May 29 this year. In 2022, Ballotpedia tracked zero Senate bills related to election administration. Texas is a Republican trifecta.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 94 election-related bills in the Texas House of Representatives since the beginning of the year. Of the 94, Ballotpedia tracked 36 from March 20-26. Democrats sponsored eight, while Republicans sponsored 28. Five of 36 bills are highlighted below:
TX HB3190: Relating to the use of a public school as a polling place, Rep. Frederick Frazier (R).
As introduced, this bill prohibits a polling place from being located on a public primary or secondary school campus.
TX HB3174: Relating to requirements for counties posting election information on an Internet website, Rep. John Bucy (D).
As introduced, this bill requires a county to use the domain “.gov” or “.texas.gov” for a website used to post election information.
TX HB5180: Relating to the disclosure of anonymous voted ballots under the public information law, Rep. Terry Wilson (R).
As introduced, this bill requires the general custodian of election record to provide public access to anonymous voted ballots, cast vote records, ballot images, authentication files, ballot reports, and related records on the 61st day after an election.
TX HB3510: Relating to penalties for the intimidation and harassment of election officials; creating criminal offenses, Rep. Jessica Gonzalez (D).
As introduced, this bill creates an offense for a person who intimidates or harasses an election worker on more than one occasion.
TX HB1631: Relating to hours of service by an election watcher, Rep. Dennis Paul (R).
As introduced, this bill removes the time commitments necessary for poll watchers to choose their own hours and a provision related to using cell phones while on duty.
During the week of March 20-26, Ballotpedia tracked 56 House election-related bills nationally. As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 1,113 House bills nationally. Ballotpedia tracked the most House bills this year in the New York State Assembly with 138, while Ballotpedia tracked the fewest House bills in the MassachusettsHouse of Representatives with zero. Republicans sponsored 526 of these bills, while Democrats sponsored 446. Minor party sponsorship and bills with no sponsors accounted for 77 bills, while bipartisan legislators sponsored 64.
As of March 26, Ballotpedia has tracked 568 House bills in Democratic trifectas and 432 House bills in Republican trifectas. A trifecta is when one political party holds the governorship and majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. Ballotpedia has tracked 113 House bills in states where neither party holds trifecta control.
The Texas House is scheduled to be in session from Jan. 10 to May 29 this year. In 2022, Ballotpedia tracked zero House bills related to election administration. Texas is a Republican trifecta.
Welcome to Hall Pass, a newsletter written to keep you plugged into the conversations driving school board politics and governance.
In today’s edition, you’ll find:
On the issues: The debate over Los Angeles school union strikes
Share candidate endorsements with us!
School board filing deadlines, election results, and recall certifications
A look at Oklahoma’s April 4 general school board elections
Florida expands education savings account (ESA) program
Extracurricular: education news from around the web
Candidate Connection survey
Email us at editor@ballotpedia.org to share reactions or story ideas!
On the issues: The debate over Los Angeles school union strikes
In this section, we curate reporting, analysis, and commentary on the issues school board members deliberate when they set out to offer the best education possible in their district.
Members of Service Employees International Union Local 99 (SEIU)—a union representing about 30,000 Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) maintenance staff, bus drivers, and other support employees—went on strike between Mar. 21-24. The union said the school district treated its workers unfairly and violated California labor laws. United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA)—the primary public teachers union in the LAUSD—joined SEIU in the strike, shutting down schools on the strike days.
Glenn Sacks writes that both unions were justified in striking and that the non-teaching staff was treated unfairly under California’s labor laws. Sacks says both students and workers will be better off if LAUSD meets the SEIU’s demands. He also says that the support of the teachers union was not unusual and that the strike was necessary to avoid undermining what Sacks says are positive changes in the district.
The Washington Examiner Editorial Board writes that public sector unions in LAUSD have too much power to disrupt the lives of families and set back public education. The Editorial Board says the strikes caused hardships for the district’s low-income families, who had to arrange child care for students. The Board also blamed public school unions for long-term school closures during COVID.
“SEIU announced a three-day “Unfair Practice Charge” strike based on its well-founded accusations that LAUSD’s mistreatment of SEIU workers violates California labor law. LAUSD probably expected that with teachers coming in to work, along with personnel brought in from LAUSD headquarters on an emergency basis, they could roll right over SEIU, as school districts often do to campus workers in similar situations. Except this week, Los Angeles teachers said ‘No.’ Over half of LAUSD’s SEIU workers have children in LAUSD. Many of our students have aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins and older siblings who work at LAUSD. There is only one way UTLA educators could keep faith with our students, their families and the workers whose labor enables us to educate our students — by honoring SEIU’s picket lines. Our sympathy strike (aka “solidarity strike”) is very much in line with the traditions of American labor. American labor unions were built through labor solidarity, and in recent decades, unions have been undermined because union leaders have abjured sympathy strikes.”
“As they showed throughout the coronavirus pandemic by pressing school districts to stay closed, teachers unions have no solidarity with the children they are supposed to educate. The core mission is once again being shoved aside. Many low-income parents may have to skip work and lose pay to supervise their children while unions strike. … California’s public sector labor unions, which were at the forefront in demanding unjustifiable long-term school closures during the pandemic, have permanently set back the education and lives of children in the last few years. Now, they are back to remind Californians of the stranglehold they have over the state. In Los Angeles, they get whatever special exemptions they want from whatever laws they want. Teachers and educators who don’t want to stunt children’s development and ruin their prospects should take advantage of their rights under the Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court decision and stop paying for union representation. Unfortunately, California will not ban public sector collective bargaining, but that will have to happen before normal government services are restored to the state’s residents.”
Share candidate endorsements with us!
As part of our goal to solve the ballot information problem, Ballotpedia is gathering information about school board candidate endorsements. The ballot information gap widens the further down the ballot you go, and is worst for the more than 500,000 local offices nationwide, such as school boards or special districts. Endorsements can help voters know more about their candidates and what they stand for.
Do you know of an individual or group that has endorsed a candidate in your district?
School board update: filing deadlines, election results, and recall certifications
Ballotpedia has historically covered school board elections in about 500 of the country’s largest districts. We’re gradually expanding the number we cover with our eye on the more than 13,000 districts with elected school boards.
Upcoming school board elections
In 2023, roughly 24,100 school board seats are up for election in 35 states. Ballotpedia is covering elections for approximately 8,750 seats in 3,211 school districts across 28 states—or about 36% of all school board elections. Read more about Ballotpedia’s coverage of school board elections here.
On April 4, Oklahoma and Wisconsin will hold school board general elections. We covered Oklahoma’s (Feb. 14) and Wisconsin’s (Feb. 21) primaries in previous editions of this newsletter. We’re covering all school board elections in both Oklahoma and Wisconsin this year.
In the next section, we take a more detailed look at Oklahoma’s general elections.
We’re also covering elections in the following states/districts on April 4:
A look at Oklahoma’s April 4 general school board elections
We’re providing comprehensive school board election coverage this year in 10 states, including Oklahoma, which will hold general elections on April 4.
Voters in Oklahoma will decide 137 school board elections statewide in 127 districts. Oklahoma held primaries on Feb. 14, but those only took place for the 23 offices where more than two candidates ran.
These 137 general elections represent 24% of the 579 offices up for election this year. For the remaining 442 offices (76%), the general election was canceled:
In 405 races, only one candidate ran, meaning both the primary and general elections were canceled, and they won outright;
In 13 races, a candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the primary, eliminating the need for the general election; and,
No candidates ran in 24 races, creating vacancies that the school board must fill through an appointment or a special election.
We’re closely researching and tracking endorsements made in Oklahoma, many of which are found only in local papers and campaign materials.
To date, we have tracked 22 endorsements for 11 candidates in Oklahoma general elections:
Five endorsers affiliated with the Democratic Party or advocating for policies aligned with the Democratic Party platform have made five endorsements across four candidates.
Nine endorsers affiliated with the Republican Party or advocating for policies aligned with the Republican Party platform have made 15 endorsements across five candidates.
One neutral endorser has made one endorsement.
One endorser whose ideological lean is unclear has made one endorsement.
Here are some examples of the April 4 candidate endorsements we’ve tracked:
Norman Public Schools: Kathleen Kennedy and Annette Price are running for the open seat. Sally’s List, a progressive organization focused on electing women to office, endorsed Price.
Tulsa Public Schools: Tulsa County Moms for Liberty and the Oklahoma 2nd Amendment Association endorsed Jared Buswell, who is challenging Board President Stacey Wooley.
Western Heights Public Schools: Kelly Brown and Brayden Hunt are running for the open seat. In a Candidate Connection Survey, Hunt said he received an endorsement from the Western Heights Education Association, a local teacher’s union.
If you are aware of an individual or group that has endorsed a candidate in an April 4 Oklahoma school board race, let us know here.
On March 27, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed House Bill 1, expanding the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarship program to provide all K-12 students with around $7,500 for educational expenses outside of the public school system.
The Family Empowerment Scholarship was created in 2014 and provided eligible students—such as those with disabilities or from low-income families—with funding for defraying the costs of private school tuition or tutoring. The expanded program prioritizes students from low-income families.
Under the new law, all Florida K-12 students will be eligible to apply for the program, so long as they aren’t attending a public school. The law allows funds to be used on a variety of educational expenses, such as private school tuition to homeschooling expenses. In addition to expanding the state’s Family Empowerment Scholarship program, the law eases requirements for some types of teaching certificates.
DeSantis said, “parents are going to be able to have the ability to get money for their student for their child, and they can do tuition, they’re also going to be able to use it for things like tutoring and other things that can be very important for a child’s development and well being.”
The House passed the legislation 83-27 on March 17, with 79 Republicans and four Democrats voting in favor. No Republicans opposed the bill, while nine representatives did not vote. Republicans have an 84-35 majority in the House. The Senate passed the bill 26-12 along partisan lines (two Republicans were absent) on March 23. Republicans hold a 28-12 majority in the Senate.
Critics say the law will redirect funding from public schools and benefit wealthier households, who may already send their children to private schools. Florida Education Association President Andrew Spar said, “The universal voucher bill signed today by Gov. DeSantis will drain billions of taxpayer dollars away from the neighborhood public schools that nearly 90 percent of Florida’s parents trust to educate their children.” State Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D) tweeted, “Ron DeSantis signs massive education privatization bill into law qualifying every Florida MILLIONAIRE + BILLIONAIRE to receive taxpayer-funded private school tuition for their kids while defunding public schools! No rules or regulations. Socialism for the rich!”
State Sen. Corey Simon (R), who sponsored the bill in the Senate, said, “This legislation is a transformational opportunity to make it clear that the money follows the child, and parents have a right to guide their child’s education as they see fit.”
Florida is the fourth state in 2023 to expand its existing ESA program to cover all students, following Utah, Iowa, and Arkansas. Arizona and West Virginia expanded their ESA programs to all students in 2022. Legislators in states like Texas, South Carolina, and Oklahoma are still considering ESA or education tax credit bills as of this writing.
Many states have more limited programs that allow eligible students to attend private schools. According to Notre Dame law professor Nicole Stelle Garnett, “Thirty states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have one or more private-school-choice programs, which this year enable more than 700,000 children to attend a private school.”
Extracurricular: education news from around the web
This section contains links to recent education-related articles from around the internet. If you know of a story we should be reading, reply to this email to share it with us!
Take our Candidate Connection survey to reach voters in your district
Today, we’re looking at responses from incumbent Bob Rauner and Richard Aldag IV, who are running in the nonpartisan primary for Lincoln Public Schools school board District 6 in Nebraska on April 4. Rauner was first elected in 2019.
Here’s how Rauner answered the question, “What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?”
“Reducing LPS healthcare costs which account for 16% of the budget and using those savings to reduce property taxes and increase teacher pay.
Improving our approach to academic testing. The current method is an expensive time intensive process that mostly just tells us where the rich & poor students are, something we already know.
Improving the health of our students including their mental health.”
On March 26, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) endorsed Paul Vallas in the April 4, 2023, runoff for mayor of Chicago. The state’s other senator, Tammy Duckworth (D), endorsed Mayor Lori Lightfoot in the first round and has not endorsed in the runoff. Vallas and Brandon Johnson are running in the runoff election.
Eleven members of Congress have endorsed Johnson so far, including U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Four members of the Illinois House delegation endorsed Johnson: Jonathan Jackson (District 1), Delia Ramirez (District 3), Danny Davis (District 7), and Jan Schakowsky (District 9).
Although elections are officially nonpartisan, candidates are typically affiliated with one of the major political parties. Johnson and Vallas are both Democrats. The last Republican mayor of Chicago, William Thompson, left office in 1931.