Category: Local
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Voters decide local ballot measures in Wayne County, Michigan
Voters in Wayne County, Michigan, approved two property tax renewal propositions on Tuesday. Proposition O, the Operating Budget Property Tax Renewal, was approved with 77% of the vote. Proposition O authorizes the county to renew for 10 years a property tax levy of $95.29 per $100,000 in assessed property tax value to generate an annual…
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Minneapolis voters will not see police department removal charter amendment in November after the charter commission votes to take more time for review
Minneapolis voters will not decide on a charter amendment in November to remove the city’s police department and replace it with a Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention. On August 5, the Minneapolis Charter Commission voted 10-5 to take an additional 90 days to evaluate the proposal. This effectively blocked the measure from the…
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Voters in Platte County approved two sales tax measures, and voters in Hickman Mills C-1 School District approved a bond issue
Voters in Platte County, Missouri, approved two sales tax renewal questions on Tuesday. The final unofficial election report by the county showed Question 1 receiving 75.82% of the vote, and Question 2 receiving 60.81% of the vote. Question 1 authorizes the county to renew for 10 years a 0.25% sales tax to fund parks and…
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Florida county commissioners seek to reclaim delegated emergency response powers
The Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners on July 21 unanimously approved a draft order that would dissolve the county’s Emergency Policy Group (EPG) and return its delegated emergency response authority—including the authority to respond to the coronavirus pandemic—to the county commissioners. The EPG, which consists of three county commissioners, the sheriff, the chair of the Hillsborough…
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Recall petition filed against Washington sheriff
An effort to recall Jerry Hatcher from his position as Benton County Sheriff in Washington began in July 2020. The Benton County Sheriff’s Guild is leading the recall effort. They said Hatcher had performed his duties in an improper manner, committed illegal acts, and violated his oath of office. Over 90% of the guild members…
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Filing deadline passes to run for school boards in Louisiana
The filing deadline to run for the Orleans Parish and Caddo Parish school boards is on July 24, 2020. In Orleans Parish, all seven seats on the board are up for election. Meanwhile, Caddo Parish is holding a special election for the District 8 seat, which became vacant when Denee Locke (R) moved out of…
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Three Toledo City Council members suspended pending federal investigation
On July 22, three of the four Toledo City Council members currently under investigation on federal charges of bribery, extortion, and conspiracy voluntarily suspended their positions. Yvonne Harper, Tyrone Riley, and Larry Sykes agreed to the suspension after Attorney General of Ohio Dave Yost (R) filed a request for suspension proceedings. They did not resign…
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Mayoral recall effort underway in Seattle
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan is facing a recall effort over actions by the Seattle Police Department during protests following the death of George Floyd. Petitions were approved for circulation on July 10, 2020. Recall organizers have until January 6, 2021, to gather about 54,000 valid signatures in order to put the recall election on the…
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Garza defeats incumbent Moore in Travis County, Texas, District Attorney runoff
José Garza defeated incumbent Margaret Moore in the Democratic primary runoff for Travis County District Attorney in Texas. Garza received 68% of the vote to Moore’s 32%. The race attracted national attention after Garza received endorsements from U.S. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Moore was endorsed by the Austin American-Statesman and Austin…
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Washington Supreme Court schedules sheriff recall appeal for September 10
Two efforts to recall Adam Fortney from his position as sheriff of Snohomish County, Washington, have been approved to circulate petitions. The efforts began after Fortney announced on Facebook in April 2020 that his office would not enforce restrictions Gov. Jay Inslee (D) set in place in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The first…