State Legislative Roundup – March 15, 2024

Legislatures around the nation have reached a peak in activity, advancing major policy changes that impact our clients. 50 to 1 LLC continues to play a critical part in assisting businesses with state government affairs management and we are pleased to share an update of recent state activity.  

34 States in Regular Session; 16 States Out of Session

• Alabama – Big news for advocates of school choice coming out of Alabama. Legislators passed the CHOOSE Act establishing Education Savings Accounts for Alabama families. Gov. Kay Ivey signed the school choice program into law and the program is slated to begin next year. For the 2025-2026 and the 2026-2027 school years, families with incomes up to 300% of the federal poverty level are eligible to receive up to $7,000 per child enrolled at an accredited participating school. Families that home school can receive $2,000 per child with a $4,000 cap for households with 2+ homeschoolers. The program opens up to all families, regardless of income, starting with the 2027-2028 school year. Learn more here.

• Florida – On Friday, March 8th, the 60-day session of the legislature adjourned sine die. Among items passed – a ban for those younger than 16 years old from “addictive” social media platforms. A carve out was included for those who are 14 or 15 and get a parent’s permission. On the final day of the legislative session, in a rare show of bipartisanship, lawmakers passed the $117 billion budget unanimously in the Senate and 105-3 in the House. Learn more here.

• Indiana – On Friday, March 8th the General Assembly adjourned sine die. Gov. Eric Holcomb is not expected to issue many vetos as his policy priorities were reflected in much of the legislation passed by the Republican dominated General Assembly. Decisions involving policies with budget impact – education, taxes, Medicaid and infrastructure – were punted to 2025’s longer budget focused session. Learn more here.

• Iowa – Known as “second funnel” week, legislators in Des Moines must finish consideration of bills from the opposite chamber this week. Measures that are still in committee after Friday, March 15th will be dead for the year with a few exceptions: bills sponsored by legislative leadership and those before the Appropriations Committee, Ways & Means Committee and Government Oversight Committee are exempt from the deadline. A few important policy proposals related to gender, health care and school safety amongst others are still being considered. Learn more here.

• Louisiana – The legislature began the 2024 regular session on Monday, March 11th, though it’s the third time lawmakers have come to Baton Rouge this year after special sessions for redistricting and crime. With Republican Supermajorities in the House and Senate, new Governor Jeff Landry is expected to steer the policy making to the right. Learn more here.

• Maryland – Lawmakers are working to create transparency around exorbitant ticket costs and end the practice of ticket scalpers selling tickets they don’t possess (known as speculative tickets). If the legislation passes, 1) ticket “fees” would be capped at 10%, 2) sellers would be required to display all-inclusive ticket pricing, thus removing the practice of added fees at checkout and 3) selling “speculative” tickets would be banned. Learn more here. Learn more here. 

• Massachusetts – On Wednesday, March 14th Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey called for a blanket pardon of all simple marijuana misdemeanor possession charges in the state. The total impact may reach into the hundreds of thousands but won’t affect those whose charges are related to distribution or driving under the influence. Learn more here.

• Mississippi – Republican lawmakers in the nation’s poorest state, Mississippi, are considering an expansion to Medicaid which would make health insurance available to roughly 200,000 of the state’s low-income residents. Hurdles still remain as party leadership wants a work requirement attached to the bill and Governor Tate Reeves opposes any expansion efforts. All eyes are on the Senate today to see how they move forward with their own bill or if they will amend or pass legislation that has already moved thru the House. Learn more here.

• Montana – Important read in Governing today on the fight over abortion access in Montana which is likely to play out at the ballot box and in the courts. Background: In the largely conservative and rural region between Minnesota and the Pacific Northwest, Montana is the most abortion friendly state due to a 25-year-old state Supreme Court ruling that protected it under the right to privacy included in the state’s constitution. To outlaw abortion, voters would need to amend the state constitution or elect Supreme Court justices willing to reverse precedent. What’s Happening Now: A legal battle is taking place over a proposed ballot initiative that would add abortion protections to the state constitution. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen declared the initiative legally insufficient to be placed on the ballot and supporters of the measure have filed a lawsuit. The State Supreme Court will decide if the organizers of the ballot initiative campaign may proceed with signature gathering. And two open State Supreme Court seats will be decided at the November election which could determine if the previous rulings protecting abortion access are upheld. Learn more here.

• Oklahoma – Is cockfighting making a comeback or did it never truly go away? Despite being banned in 2002, an Oklahoma political action committee calling themselves the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission, are lobbying officials to loosen penalties on cockfighting. NBC News is reporting that Governor Kevin Stitt, in a now deleted YouTube video, supported the group and said he would “cheer you on from the sidelines.” The Commission is expected to replicate their efforts in Oklahoma throughout other southern states. Learn more here.

• Oregon – Despite concerns about another Republican lawmaker walkout, the legislature adjourned a short session on Thursday, March 7th that was mostly focused on drug criminalization and housing regulations. Working together in bipartisan fashion, Republicans and Democrats passed major policies including a revamp of Oregon’s controversial drug decriminalization law; lawmakers set limits on campaign contributions (including to their own); and supported a plan to address Oregon’s severe housing shortage. Learn more here.

• Virginia – With the General Assembly adjourning sine die on Saturday, March 9th, all eyes are now on Governor Glenn Youngkin to see how he responds to the two-year state budget adopted by legislators. Noticeably absent from the budget were the Governor’s arena deal to bring the Wizards and Capitals to Northern Virginia, as well as his proposed tax cuts. Also at stake – the recreational sale of marijuana, a priority of many Democrats after the state legalized cannabis possession in 2021. Lawmakers will come back to Richmond for a mid-April veto session to take action on the Governor’s vetoes. Learn more here. 

• Washington – Before adjourning sine die on Thursday, March 7th, legislators passed a supplemental operating budget that makes changes to the two-year, $69.2 billion operating budget they approved in 2023. All signs indicate that the 2024 session was mostly conducted in a bipartisan fashion with lawmakers from both parties seeming pleased at the work accomplished. Learn more here.

• West Virginia – After passing a $5 billion state budget late in the evening, lawmakers adjourned Sine Die late on Saturday, March 9. During the 60-day session lawmakers considered over 2,500 pieces of legislation and ultimately approved 280 bills – almost 11% of those introduced. Among those passed include bills to cut the state’s social security income tax, implement a 5% raise for teachers and state workers, and end the state’s marital rape exemption. Lawmakers will likely have to return for a special session in May to work thru a potential return of $465 million in pandemic aid misspent by the state. Learn more here.

• Wyoming – Wyoming State Legislature adjourned sine die on Friday, March 8th passing 126 bills and adopting a $10.6 billion biennial state budget for 2025-2026 which narrowly passed the Senate due to political infighting. Bills passed include education savings accounts for eligible families, property tax reform and repeal of gun free zones. Learn more here.