Welcome to the Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, Brew.
By: Lara Bonatesta
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- The fight against mosquitos in Louisiana
- Republican-led election policy bills advance in Kansas legislative session
- A weekly roundup of election administration legislative activity
The fight against mosquitos in Louisiana
There are thousands of political subdivisions in the United States, including more than 3,200 counties. In many states, those local governments are responsible for a host of issues, such as garbage disposal etc. In some states, they’re responsible for things you might not expect. In Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, one of those things is mosquito control. On March 29, Tangipahoa Parish voters will go to the polls to decide on a local ballot measure to renew a property tax levy that funds the parish’s mosquito abatement district (MAD).
The Tangipahoa Parish Property Tax Renewal Measure would renew the MAD’s 4.98-mills tax on properties, which amounts to $498 per $100,000 of assessed value for 10 years.
Background on MADs
In Louisiana, a MAD is a political subdivision whose boundaries align with those of a parish, which is similar to a county in other states. According to the Legislature, the MAD’s purpose is to abate, control, eradicate, and study “mosquitoes and other arthropods of public health importance.”
The parish’s governing authority appoints five-member boards to oversee the MADs. To fund their operations, MADs can levy taxes, either as ad valorem millages or flat-rate assessments, with voter approval. An ad valorem tax is based on a property’s assessed value, while a flat-rate tax is a fixed amount applied uniformly to each parcel of land or a defined class of property.
In 1958, voters passed a constitutional amendment authorizing parishes to create MADs. State Rep. Alvin Dyson (D) introduced the amendment into the Louisiana Legislature as House Bill 497 in 1958. The state Senate approved the amendment 32-1, with six members absent. The state House approved it 78-1, with 21 members absent and one vacancy. The Daily Advertiser reported, “Proponents contend this measure will provide the legal framework necessary to place a full scale mosquito abatement program into effect.” John R. Thistlethwaite, editor of the Daily World, said, “This would create another government setup, to be financed by taxes – with taxpayer approval – and we aren’t convinced of the necessity.” On Nov. 4, voters approved the amendment 53.2%-46.8%.
Voters had the opportunity to repeal the amendment on Feb. 1, 1972. Based on a recommendation from a Constitutional Revision Commission, the Legislature put Amendment 5 to the ballot, which would have repealed the constitutional provision authorizing MADs, contingent on the approval of Amendment 2. Amendment 2 would have authorized the Legislature to create special districts through statutes rather than constitutional amendments. Voters rejected both amendments.
MADs were removed from the constitution when voters approved a new state constitution in 1974. The revised constitution incorporated changes similar to those proposed in 1972. Article VI, Section 19 authorized the Legislature to create special districts. MADs are now codified as Chapter 23 of Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 33 (Municipalities and Parishes).
As of 2025, there are 24 parish-wide MADs in Louisiana. According to the Association of State and Territorial Health Official’s 2018 report, 31 states have statutes that “expressly allow for the establishment of a special district, commission, or local program specifically for mosquito control.”
Voters in Louisiana will decide on four state constitutional amendments on March 29. Voters in 27 of the state’s 64 parishes will also decide on 56 local ballot measures.
Republican-led election policy bills advance in Kansas Legislature
All but two state legislatures are currently convening for their 2025 sessions, and so far this year, lawmakers have introduced more than 2,300 election administration bills.
Let’s look at an example of what lawmakers in one state are doing in this area – the state of Kansas.
As of Feb. 12, Kansas lawmakers had introduced 26 election-related bills, four of which had passed a legislative chamber. From 2022 to 2024, eight election-related bills were enacted in Kansas. Some topics align with legislation Republican-controlled state governments have adopted elsewhere in recent years.
Kansas has a divided government and is one of two states – the other being Kentucky – with a Democratic governor and a Republican veto-proof state legislative majority. There are 23 Republican trifectas, 15 Democratic trifectas, and 14 states with divided governments.
Some notable topics lawmakers are focusing on this year include:
- Banning ranked-choice voting
- Returning absentee/mail-in ballots
- Noncitizen voting and voter list maintenance
Banning ranked-choice voting (RCV)
On Feb. 6, the Kansas Senate voted 29-10 to advance SB 6, which would ban ranked-choice voting for elections at any level. All but one Republican voted for the bill, and all Democrats opposed it.
Last year, six states — Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Oklahoma — banned RCV, more than in any other year. Republicans were the primary supporters, and five of these states had Republican trifectas at the time. Kentucky had a divided government, and the Legislature overrode Gov. Andy Beshear’s (D) veto to pass the law. Eleven states have adopted laws prohibiting RCV since 2022.
This year, lawmakers have introduced 11 bills in eight states that would ban RCV. Nine bills are in states with Republican trifectas, one is in a state with a Democratic trifecta, and one is in a state with a divided government. To date, SB 6 is the only such bill to advance from a legislative chamber. In Virginia, a bill that would allow RCV for some local elections also advanced.
No state legislature expanded the use of RCV last year, although voters in two states and D.C. adopted it for some local elections. Voters in five states — Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon — rejected ballot measures that would have used RCV for certain elections.
Returning absentee/mail-in ballots
On Feb. 11, the Kansas Senate voted 29-10 to pass SB 4, which would require voters to return absentee ballots by 7 p.m. on Election Day. The bill advanced mostly along party lines, with one Republican and all Democrats opposing it.
Currently, Kansas requires voters to return their ballots in person on Election Day. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Election Day. Kansas counts postmarked ballots if they are received by the third day following an election.
Eighteen states and Washington D.C. count ballots that are returned by a deadline after Election Day if they are postmarked by Election Day. Lawmakers in eight of these states are considering bills that would eliminate grace periods. No other active bill has advanced. No state allows election officials to count ballots postmarked or submitted after Election Day.
If Kansas’ SB 4 becomes law, it would make the state grey on the map above.
Gov. Laura Kelly (D) vetoed a bill to eliminate the grace period in 2023. According to the Kansas Reflector, lawmakers adopted the grace period in 2017 after “then-Secretary of State Kris Kobach asked the Legislature to pass the law in response to slow U.S. Postal Service delivery.”
Supporters of eliminating the grace period say it provides opportunities for voter fraud, that postmark dates are unreliable, and that it would bring Kansas more in line with the 32 states that have passed similar laws. Opponents say other states without grace periods send absentee ballots to voters earlier than Kansas does and that the change would unfairly penalize voters who submit a ballot by the legally required deadline.
Noncitizen voting and voter list maintenance
The Kansas House has advanced two bills on noncitizen voting.
- HCR 5004 would put a constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot unless the Legislature calls an earlier special election. The amendment would add language to the state’s constitution to more explicitly prohibit noncitizens from voting in Kansas. Currently, noncitizens are not allowed to vote in any elections in Kansas, and the constitution says that an individual must be a U.S. citizen to vote.
- HB 2020 would require the Division of Motor Vehicles director to provide a quarterly report to the secretary of state that includes details about noncitizens issued a driver’s license.
Both bills advanced largely along party lines. Democrats unanimously opposed HB 2020, and all but three Democrats voted against HCR 5004.
In 2024, voters in eight states approved ballot measures modifying constitutional language to ban noncitizen voting. Legislators placed all eight measures on the ballot. As in Kansas, noncitizens were not permitted to vote in any of these states before the amendments were passed.
Nationally, legislators have introduced more than 60 bills on noncitizen voting this year.
A weekly roundup of election administration legislative activity
A version of this story appeared in our Feb. 14. Ballot Bulletin, our weekly email that delivers the latest updates on election policy. Click here to sign up.
As we noted above, state legislators across the country have introduced more than 2,300 election administration bills in 2025. We looked at some of the possible changes in Kansas, now let’s widen our focus and look at the changes lawmakers are considering nationwide.
We are following 2,631 election-related bills this year, including bills carried over from the previous year. At this point in 2023, we were following 1,466 bills.
Lawmakers in 34 states acted on 501 bills last week, 178 fewer than the previous week. Legislators acted on 404 bills during the same week in 2024, 289 in 2023, and 342 in 2022.
One bill – SB13 in South Dakota– was enacted this week. The bill specified that approved citizen initiatives and referred ballot measures take effect the day after election returns are officially canvassed. There were no bills enacted during the same week in 2024, none in 2023, and one in 2022. Click here to see all enacted bills.
In addition to SB13 and the bills in Kansas that we mentioned in the second story of this newsletter, here is some other notable legislation that lawmakers are considering:
- On Feb. 13, the Arizona Legislature passed a HB2703, which would move up the deadline to return early ballots to 7 p.m. on the Friday before Election Day and allow county officials to count early ballots at any time during the early voting period. Currently, voters can drop off early ballots in person until polls close on Election Day. Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) said she would veto the bill.
- On Feb. 12, the Kentucky House passed HB45, a bill prohibiting foreign donors from contributing to ballot measure campaigns. The bill received bipartisan support, with all 80 House Republicans and eight of the 20 Democrats voting in favor.
In addition to the bill in Arizona, two other bills passed both chambers of their respective state legislatures: S0002 in Florida and H0078 in Vermont.
Governors vetoed no bills. No bills were vetoed during this period in 2024, 2023, or 2022. To see all bills awaiting gubernatorial action and their full summaries, click here. To see all vetoed bills, click here.
Click here to see the 2025 bills we’re tracking, and click here to see a list of 2025 state legislative session dates.
Note: In some states, legislators are able to file hundreds of bills per day. We are actively reviewing those bills to determine their relevance to election administration. As a result, during this period of heightened legislative activity, year-to-year comparisons may not yet account for all relevant bills introduced in 2025.