Category: Uncategorized

As direct democracy receives more attention so do the processes that govern how measures get on the ballot, the rules for support and opposition campaigns, the requirements for approval, and other details. In 2016 and 2018, citizen-initiatives were more prominent in the political landscape than they had been for several election cycles.   Voters directly…

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D) issued a revised executive order on February 20, 2019, that restructures the state’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The Republican-majority Michigan State Legislature voted to reject Whitmer’s original version of the executive order on February 14—the first time state legislators had rejected a governor’s executive order in 42 years.  …

A new rule will use background checks to ensure that people convicted of certain crimes cannot receive benefits from Social Security on behalf of impaired beneficiaries. The final rule published on February 15, 2019, by the Social Security Administration (SSA) implements requirements outlined in a 2018 law.   Under the law, and the new rule,…

The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s regulatory activity.   During the week of February 18 to February 22, the number of pages in the Federal Register increased by 1,274 pages, bringing…

The U.S. Supreme court has not acted on three cases challenging a decision made by the Trump administration to end an Obama-era program that postponed deportation for children who entered the United States unlawfully. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) acted to wind down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in 2017 and…

On February 15, 2019, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit ruled in City of Philadelphia v. Attorney General of the United States that the Trump administration could not deny funds to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, because of its immigration policies.   Judge Marjorie Rendell, a Bill Clinton appointee, wrote in…

Sixteen state attorneys general filed a lawsuit in California’s Northern District against President Donald Trump’s emergency declaration to pay for a wall along the southern border.   The lawsuit states that the emergency declaration shows a “flagrant disregard for the separation of powers. … President Trump has veered the country toward a constitutional crisis of…

There are 206 pivot counties in the country-those that voted for Barack Obama (D) in both 2008 and 2012 and Donald Trump (R) in 2016. On November 6, 2018, 87 of the nation’s 99 state legislative chambers held regularly-scheduled elections for 6,073 seats. Of those, 453 state house districts and 138 state senate districts intersected with pivot counties. These 591 state legislative districts accounted for approximately 10…

Democratic candidates for the U.S. House carried all six reverse pivot counties in 2018. Reverse pivot counties are counties that voted for John McCain (R) in 2008, Mitt Romney (R) in 2012, and Hillary Clinton (R) in 2016.   The average margin of victory for 2018 U.S. House candidates in these counties was 11.05 percent.…

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers issued a proposed rule under the Clean Water Act (CWA) that would distinguish water subject to federal regulation from water subject to state and tribal jurisdiction. The rule, published on February 14, 2019, revises definitions of “waters of the United States” established in 1986…