Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker takes a look at a state senator pleading guilty and two interesting pieces of legislation.

Weekly highlight

Last week three states, Arkansas, Indiana, and Montana ended their sessions. Here is a brief look at issues making headlines across the country:

• Illinois: Sen. Donne Trotter (D) was sentenced to sixty hours of community service and a year of court supervision after he plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of reckless conduct. Prosecutors agreed to drop his felony charge for attempting to board an aircraft with a weapon as part of the plea deal. If convicted of the felony, Trotter would have lost his job in the Illinois State Senate along with his pension.^[1]

• Missouri: Sen. Ryan McKenna (D) offered a hand-written amendment to a higher education funding bill that would have banned anyone over the age of eight from wearing seersucker suits in Missouri. “Any person living in this state aged 8 and under may wear seersucker suits at their leisure. Any person over the age of 8 living in this state may not wear seersucker suits because adults look ridiculous in seersucker suits,” read the amendment, which was eventually withdrawn. McKenna admitted that “[i]t probably wasn’t germane to the bill. It was all in jest anyway.”^[2]

• Tennessee: The Tennessee State Senate is set to vote on a bill this week that would give state legislators the power to select nominees for United States Senate in future elections. Under the proposal, lawmakers from both parties would select their candidates for the general election instead of allowing voters to choose in a primary. This would bring Tennessee closer to the old system where state lawmakers directly chose the state’s senators, a practice abolished in 1913 by the 17th Amendment.^[3]

Click here to read the full report.

Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker takes a look at the Louisiana State Legislature‘s agenda as it convenes this week.

[edit] Weekly highlight

As of today, all 50 states have kicked off their 2013 sessions. Here is a rundown of the issues the Louisiana State Legislature hopes to address this session:^[1]

• Taxes: Gov. Bobby Jindal‘s tax plan has received much speculation and criticism recently, and will finally be up for consideration. The proposal would completely eliminate income and corporate taxes, but compensate with a higher sales tax and expanding that tax to include goods and services that are not currently taxed. The plan is a package of eleven bills that are all tied together and unable to be passed separately.

• Education: The legislature will reconsider a package of bills passed in last year’s session but currently being challenged in the Louisiana Supreme Court. The ultimate aim of the legislation is to expand the voucher system used in New Orleans to the rest of the state. Passed last session as two bills, the legislation will be broken up into eight smaller parts this year.

• Budget: Jindal’s $24.7 billion budget is expected to be a hot topic of debate in the legislature. Roughly $1 billion smaller than last year’s budget, the plan will privatize public hospitals currently run by Louisiana State University in order to make up the difference. The budget also includes nearly half a billion dollars in non-recurring income from events, such as the future sale of state properties, for the state’s colleges and universities.

• Medicaid: Medicaid is expected to be another divisive issue in the legislature. Jindal has rejected the expansion of federal Medicaid, but five lawmakers have filed bills requiring Louisiana to comply with the Affordable Care Act by January 1, 2014. Rep. Paul Hollis (R) has filed a constitutional amendment to prevent any law from requiring participation in the health care system by providers, individuals, or employers.

Click here to read the full report.

Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker takes a look at some controversial bills and the expulsion of a state legislator.

Weekly highlight

As of today, 49 states have kicked off 2013 sessions. Here is some news making headlines across state legislatures this week:

• Maryland: The Maryland State Legislature is currently considering a bill endorsed by Gov. Martin O’Malley to allow residents to register and vote on the same day during early voting. The bill would also extend early voting from six to eight days, and create an investigative panel to find a solution for long voting wait times on election day. A point of contention in the legislation is language that would allow absentee voters to receive ballots online instead of through the mail. This pleases advocates for voters with disabilities, but technology experts are concerned the system could be exploited en masse and jeopardize the integrity of the system.^[1]

• Missouri: The House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee recently advanced two separate bills looking to change the way the sex offender registry works in the state. The first, sponsored by Don Phillips, would remove minor offenses from the registry and allow almost a third of the 14,000 currently on the list to petition for removal in the next 20 years. Dave Hinson‘s bill would allow every offender to eventually petition for removal with a time table based on individual psychological assessments. Republican leaders will decide which piece of legislation to present to the full House.^[2]

Nevada: Rep. Steven Brooks (D) became the first member expelled from the Nevada House of Representatives on March 28.^[3] The process began on March 26 with a special bipartisan subcommittee voting to recommend his expulsion 6-1. The only representative to vote no, Dina Neal, said she preferred suspension over expulsion.^[4] Following his expulsion, Brooks was arrested following a fifteen-mile high speed chase with police and charged with forcefully resisting an officer, evading arrest, throwing objects from a motor vehicle, and harming a police dog.^[5] This follows two previous arrests in January and February

Click here to read the full report.

Edited by Joel Williams
This week’s tracker takes a look at various controversial bills in state legislatures.

Weekly highlight

As of today, 49 states have kicked off 2013 sessions. Here is an overview of issues making headlines in state legislatures this week:

• Maryland: Maryland lawmakers are looking to pass marijuana-related legislation in coming weeks, with bills introduced in both chambers. The Senate is set to vote on a bill that would decriminalize possession of up to ten grams of the drug and set a maximum fine of $100, while current laws impose a maximum of ninety days in jail and $500 fine. The House hopes to legalize medicinal marijuana, but debate on other important bills may force the issue to the back burner.^[1]

• Minnesota: The Minnesota State Legislature is considering a same-sex marriage bill. The Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Civil Law Committee each passed the bill on a vote along party lines, 5-3 and 10-7, respectively. This legislation comes on the heels of the Amendment 1 defeat in November 2012, where Minnesota voters defeated a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman.^[2]

• Utah: Utah’s “Zion Curtain,” the practice of pouring alcoholic beverages out of sight of restaurant customers, came under fire in the Utah House of Representatives this week. Although Ryan Wilcox‘s (R) bill passed the House 63-12, it died in a conference committee when members from the House and Senate could not reach a compromise on the legislation’s language. With the legislature now adjourned, the “Zion Curtain” will remain in place for at least another year.^[3][4]

Click here to read the full report.

Edited by Greg Janetka
This week’s tracker features a look at the California State Legislature‘s 2013-2014 session.

Weekly highlight

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This morning the California State Legislature officially convened their 2013-2014 Regular Session with an Organizational Session. During the session newly elected and re-elected members were sworn in. The new class includes a total of 39 freshman legislators – one in the senate and 38 in the assembly – the most since 1966.^[1]

Today also marks the first time since 1883 that Democrats have held a “super-majority” (2/3rd of all seats) in both chambers, allowing them to, among other powers, pass tax increases without any Republican support.^[2] That status, however, will be shortlived as a number of vacancies and special elections will leave them without the necessary two-thirds of members in the Assembly. However, once all the special elections are over, Democrats will most likely regain their super-majority in the fall.

If events transpire as currently expected, Democrats will only have until late April to wield their newly-acquired powers. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D) initially stated, “We will exercise this new power with strength, but also with humility and reason,” but what will actually happen is anyone’s guess. Democrats are meeting in caucus today to decide just how they will move forward. While some are pushing for a dramatic use of power, others, primarily those who ran close races in swing districts, are operating more cautiously.^[3]

Here’s why the super-majority will disappear:^[4]

• Two Democratic state senators - Juan Vargas and Gloria Negrete-McLeod - won election to Congress on November 6. These vacancies will lead to special elections once they are sworn in to their new positions. Even after they leave Democrats could retain a super-majority in the Senate, but it could be shortlived if Sen. Curren Price wins election to the Los Angeles City Council.
• Two Democratic Assemblymembers have said they will run for the soon-to-be vacant senate seats. If one or both wins, which is expected, Democrats will lose their super-majority in the Assembly.

The last time Democrats held a super-majority in the Assembly was 1975-79. Paul Priolo, who served as the Republican leader at the time, offered some advice to the incoming GOP minority – “Stop stonewalling on everything — being against everything. Find out where you can work together. You’ve got to sit down and B.S. and find some common ground.”^[5]

Of course, Priolo additionally noted that while this strategy was politically effective and kept the GOP from being shut out entirely, it also led to his demise as leader. Newly elected conservative Republicans, angered that he would work with the opposition, removed him from power.^[5]

 This week 6 out of 50 state legislatures are meeting in regular session. California began their 2013 session today, while Maine will convene on Wednesday.

Forty-one states have adjourned for the year, while four states - Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, and Texas - were not scheduled to hold regular sessions in 2012.

Regular sessions

See also: Dates of 2012 state legislative sessions and Dates of 2013 state legislative sessions

Click here to see a chart of each state’s 2012 session information.

Work on 2013 legislation is underway in a number of states: drafting has begun in Montana, Nevada, andWyoming, while prefiling is going on in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, New Hampshire, Oklahoma,Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.^[6]

Special sessions

Snapshot of State Legislatures: Monday, December 3, 2012
There are 7,383 Total State Legislators
Total Democratic state legislators	3,298 (44.7%)
Total Republican state legislators	3,948 (53.5%)
There are 99 Total State Legislative Chambers
Total Democratic Party-controlled chambers	36
Total Republican Party-controlled chambers	59
Total tied or non-partisan chambers	4
2012 Session Information
Total Special Elections	39
Total Special Sessions	20

In 2011, special sessions were a widespread occurrence in state legislatures. This was largely due to states’ having to complete theredistricting process for legislative and congressional districts. Overall in 2011, there were 45 special sessions in 28 states.

During 2012, there have been 20 special sessions in 16 states. There is one special session scheduled to take place this week in Delaware.

Delaware

Gov. Jack Markell (D) called the Delaware State Senate to hold a special session on December 5 to address judicial confirmations.^[7] It will require the official swearing-in of six new Senators who were elected on November 6.^[8]

In recess

As of today, December 3, 2 state’s sessions are currently in recess:

• New York - In recess from June 22, 2012 to December 10, 2012.^[9]
• Wisconsin - In recess from March 17 to December 31, 2012.^[9]

By Jennifer Springer

PIERRE, South Dakota: Incumbent Jenna Haggar and her father Don Haggar will serve together in the next session of the South Dakota House of Representatives.^[1]

The Haggars defeated Dave Munson in the Republican primary on June 5 to advance to the general election on November 6, 2012.^[1] They then defeated Jo Hausman and Brian Parsons in the general election.^[2][3][4]

The two Haggars did all their campaigning together. “It’s like the Olympics, we’re looking for the gold and silver, we’re on the same team,” Don Haggar commented.^[1]

Jenna Haggar said, “I think Dad probably wanted me to win more than he wanted himself to win and I definitely wanted my dad to come at successful as well, and so I think the most ideal situation happened in which we were both able to get elected.”^[1]

Jenna Haggar‘s grandfather, Don Haggar, Sr., also served in the South Dakota State Legislature during the 1950′s.^[1]

The Haggars will represent District 10 in the South Dakota House of Representatives.^[1]

Edited by Greg Janetka
This week’s tracker features a look at potential “game-changer” races and which chambers could change hands in the November election.

Weekly highlight

While there are 6,015 seats to be elected in 2012, only a handful will ultimately impact which party controls a state legislative chamber. Because of a number of factors including competitiveness and redistricting, many state legislative seats are virtually decided before voters even head to the polls. Thus, in swing states, it is likely that a select few races will dictate which party has the majority after November 6, 2012.

Ballotpedia has been following these races throughout the year and has complied a detailed picture of the country as a whole as well as highlighting specific state races.

There are 86 chambers holding elections on November 6, 2012. The following table shows a summary of how each chamber falls in the “game-changer” category. For full details on individual races check out Ballotpedia:”Game-changers” in the 2012 state legislative elections.

Game-Changer Chambers
Type					TOTALS
Chambers where partisan control could swing	12	13	2	0	27
Chambers that are unlikely to change partisan control	20	38	0	1	59
TOTALS	32	51	2	1	86

Chambers that could swing

Alaska State Senate
Alaska House of Representatives
Arkansas State Senate
Arkansas House of Representatives
Colorado State Senate
Colorado House of Representatives
Iowa State Senate
Iowa House of Representatives
Kentucky House of Representatives
Maine State Senate
Maine House of Representatives
Michigan House of Representatives
Minnesota State Senate
Minnesota House of Representatives
Nevada State Assembly
Nevada State Senate
New Hampshire State Senate
New Hampshire House of Representatives
New Mexico State Senate
New Mexico House of Representatives
New York State Senate
Oregon State Senate
Oregon House of Representatives
Pennsylvania State Senate
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Washington State Senate
Wisconsin State Senate

Sessions

This week 4 out of 50 state legislatures – Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio and Pennsylvania – are meeting in regular session, while Massachusetts is meeting in informal session, which it will continue to do throughout the rest of the year. As of May 16, all states had convened their 2012 sessions.

Forty states have adjourned for the year, while four states – Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, and Texas – were not scheduled to hold regular sessions in 2012.

Regular sessions

See also: Dates of 2012 state legislative sessions

Click here to see a chart of each state’s 2012 session information.

Although most states have concluded 2012 business, some states have already begun 2013 action. Drafting for 2013 has begun in Montana, Nevada and North Dakota, while prefiling of legislation is going on in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, New Hampshire and Virginia.^[1]

Special sessions

Snapshot of State Legislatures: Monday, October 22, 2012
There are 7,383 Total State Legislators
Total Democratic state legislators	3,301 (44.7%)
Total Republican state legislators	3,945 (53.4%)
There are 99 Total State Legislative Chambers
Total Democratic Party-controlled chambers	37
Total Republican Party-controlled chambers	58
Total tied or non-partisan chambers	4
2012 Session Information
Total Special Elections	32
Total Special Sessions	20

In 2011, special sessions were a widespread occurrence in state legislatures. This was largely due to states’ having to complete the redistricting process for legislative and congressional districts. Overall in 2011, there were 45 special sessions in 28 states.

Since the beginning of 2012, there have been 20 special sessions in 16 states. There are no special sessions currently scheduled.

 California

Back in August, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) told legislators that he planned to call a special session in December to address health care reform. Last week, Brown announced he would put the special session on hold until January so that it would take place during the normal legislative working schedule, thus saving taxpayer money.^[2]

Nevada

If supporters of Question 1 have their way, Nevada will become the 35th state to allow legislators to call a special session. Currently, only the governor has that power. Voters rejected a similar measure in 2006 by a margin of 52-48 percent. Opponents of the measure are worried that it would give legislators too much power and turn the part-time legislature into a full-time governing body.^[3]

In recess

As of today, October 22, 4 state’s sessions are currently in recess:

• California – In recess from September 1, 2012 to November 29, 2012.^[4]
• Illinois – In recess from August 17, 2012 to November 27, 2012.^[5]
• New York – In recess from June 22, 2012 to January 8, 2013.^[4]
• Wisconsin – In recess from March 17 to December 31, 2012.^[4]

^{Redistricting}

State news

Redistricting Facts
Maps submitted for vote: 138 out of 142 (97.2%)**	No votes on initial maps in the following: ME (2), MT (2)
States that have completed Congressional Maps	43/43
States that have completed State Legislative Maps	48/50 (Maps unfinished: ME, MT)
**With 50 states, there are 142 possible maps. 50 State Senate, 49 State House (No House in Nebraska), and 43 Congressional (7 states have 1 seat)

Redistricting in Arizona

See also: Redistricting in Arizona

On October 16, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain dismissed parts of a lawsuit brought by Republicans against the state’s new congressional map, but said it could continue and gave plaintiffs until November 9 to file a new complaint.^[6]

Brain stated that the suit could continue on the following three original arguments:^[6]

• The commission “abandoned” the initial grid-like map once it started to make adjustments per state Constitution requirements.
• The commission did not take into consideration suggestions by the Legislature.
• Commissioners may have violated the state’s open meeting law when drawing up what eventually became Congressional District 9.

The complaints dismissed included arguments that the commission failed to advertise a proper congressional map and that it violated Open Meeting Law when discussing hiring potential mapping firms.^[6]

Redistricting in Montana

See also: Redistricting in Montana

The Montana Districting and Apportionment Commission is scheduled to meet October 25 to correct technical errors in the plan for House legislative districts that was introduced in August. Additionally, a public hearing is scheduled for November 15 in Helena to introduce amendments and discuss how House districts will be paired to make up the state’s 50 senate districts.^[7]

Montana and Maine are the only states who have yet to pass legislative maps.

Redistricting in Texas

See also: Redistricting in Texas

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (R) announced on October 19 that the state was appealing the decision of a federal court that denied preclearance to maps drawn by the Legislature. Under federal law, states which have had a history of discrimination have to seek approval for their maps through either the US Department of Justice or the federal court system. Abbott decided to go through the courts, who rejected the maps in August because they discriminated against minority voters.^[8]

The lawsuit, however, will have no effect on this year’s elections as they will proceed using maps drawn by a court earlier this year.^[9]

Redistricting in Wisconsin

See also: Redistricting in Wisconsin

Controversy over new maps in Wisconsin began long before work on them got under way and shows no sign of stopping. After a drawnout lawsuit, the court eventually approved the maps but chided Republicans for the secretiveness of the process. Additionally, after lawyers for the Legislature continually refused to release documents the court fined the firm of Michael Best & Friedrich over $17,000. That, however, was not enough to get them to release all of the records.

A new investigation shows the firm withheld 34 emails that discuss the process Republicans used to draw up the maps, including the details related to a July 2011 public hearing that was highly orchestrated to support Republicans. Attorneys for the legislature recruited people to testify, outlined witness testimony, and wrote questions for Republican committee members. There was also a concentrated effort to keep Latinos within the same Senate district so if changes were required they would be limited. ^[10]

Redistricting on the ballot

See also: Redistricting measures on the ballot

This year voters in five states will go to the polls to cast their vote on proposed changes to their state’s redistricting process. The measures are as follows:

• California Proposition 40, Referendum on the State Senate Redistricting Plan (2012)
• Maryland Redistricting Referendum, Question 5 (2012)
• Missouri Redistricting Amendment (2012)
• North Carolina Independent Redistricting Commission Amendment (2012)
• Ohio Redistricting Amendment, Issue 2 (2012)

2012 Legislative Elections

See also: State legislative elections, 2012 and State legislative elections results, 2012

A total of 86 of the 99 chambers will hold state legislative elections on November 6, 2012.

1,301 (65.97%) of the country’s 1,972 state senate seats are up for election in November 2012, and 4,714 (87.12%) of the country’s 5,411 state house seats are up for election. Altogether, 6,015 (81.47%) of the country’s 7,383 state legislative seats will be up for election during the presidential election year.

• 43 of the 50 state senates are holding elections.
• 43 of the 49 state houses are holding elections.

The 6,015 seats up for election is 110 fewer than the 6,125 that were contested in 2010.

[edit] Filing deadlines

See also: Signature requirements and deadlines for 2012 state government elections and 2012 Elections preview: Comparing state legislative filing deadlines

As of July 12, all signature filing deadlines had passed.

[edit] Primaries

See also: 2012 election dates

The 2012 state legislative primary session began on March 6 in Ohio and wrapped up for the year in New York on September 13.

A total of 198 state legislative incumbents were defeated in a primary – 124 Republicans and 74 Democrats.

Primaries took place in 44 states in 2012. For a review of what happened, click on the state below:

• Ohio – March 6
• Illinois – March 20
• Pennsylvania – April 24
• Indiana, North Carolina, West Virginia – May 8
• Idaho, Nebraska, Oregon – May 15
• Arkansas, Kentucky – May 22
• Texas – May 29
• California, Iowa, Montana, New Mexico, South Dakota – June 5
• Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina – June 12
• Colorado, Oklahoma, Utah – June 26
• Georgia – July 31
• Tennessee – August 2
• Kansas, Missouri, Michigan, Washington – August 7
• Hawaii – August 11
• Connecticut, Florida, Minnesota, Wisconsin – August 14
• Wyoming – August 21
• Alaska, Arizona, Vermont – August 28
• Massachusetts – September 6
• Delaware, New Hampshire, Rhode Island – September 11
• New York – September 13

Special elections

See also: State legislative special elections, 2012

So far in 2012 there have been 32 special elections in 13 states.

There are no special elections scheduled to take place this week.

[edit] Looking ahead

Upcoming special elections include:

• November 6: Kentucky Senate District 19
• November 6: Mississippi State Senate District 19 and House District 52
• November 6: New Jersey Assembly Districts 16, 26, 68
• December 4: Wisconsin State Senate District 33
• December 11: Alabama House of Representatives Districts 30, 34
• December 11: Iowa State Senate District 22
• December 18: Virginia House of Delegates District 89
• January 8, 2013: California State Senate District 4
• January 8, 2013: Georgia State Senate District 30

October 15, 2012

By Phil Sletten

CHARLESTON, West Virginia: The West Virginia State Legislature is revisiting the state’s pension plan with an eye on making cuts to future spending obligations. The state estimates that, across all five pension plans run by the state, the total shortfall between assets on hand and obligations would be $5.6 billion under current law.^[1]

The plan for teachers accounts for the largest portion of the deficit, totaling a $4.3 billion cost with 31,000 retirees and almost 36,000 active employees. The state plans for police officers and the judiciary have already been split into tiers with different levels of benefits. Particularly, the judicial plan is well-funded by the state, and currently has a $29 million projected surplus. West Virginia does not bargain with state worker unions, or recognize union entities representing public workers.^[1]

A joint committee of the West Virginia House of Delegates and the West Virginia State Senate is exploring options to increase public employee contributions to pension funds. Specifically, the current proposals would have employees in its main pension fund contribute 6 percent of their pay to the fund rather than the present-day 4.5 percent rate. The plans for both mainline public employees and teachers would also see a reduction in benefits resulting from unused sick days, and the retirement age would be raised from 60 to 62 years.^[1]

Nationwide, state and local pension funds lost approximately $672 billion on the stock market in 2008 and 2009.^[1]

Edited by Greg Janetka
This week’s tracker features news about a failed recall attempt in Louisiana.

Note: This is an abridged version of the Tracker. For the full report, click here.

Weekly highlight

State legislative recalls in Wisconsin made national headlines in 2011 as voters in Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin successfully used the process to remove a total of three senators and one representative from office. The trend continued in 2012 as Wisconsin once again saw recalls make the ballot, resulting in the removal of one senator.

Alongside those successes, however, most recall efforts fizzled out long before going to a vote. The latest recall to fail took place last week in Louisiana. In March of this year, recall organizers started circulating petitions to recall Republican Speaker of the House Charles “Chuck” Kleckley from office.

The efforts, led by a group of teachers, began largely as a result of public education reforms backed by Kleckley and Gov. Bobby Jindal (R). Organizers had to collect signatures equal to one-third of the registered voters of Kleckley’s district, which came out to roughly 9,000, by September 19.^[1] The recall effort failed to collect enough signatures by the deadline and the signatures that were collected were never turned in as organizers were worried about reprisals against those who had signed. The effort against Jindal also failed.^[2]

Three other recall campaigns are continuing on in the state as organizers have also targeted three other Republican legislators – Kevin Pearson, George Cromer and Ray Garofalo. It appears unlikely that any of them will succeed.

While the most recent round of Wisconsin recalls have been over for several months, the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, the agency that oversees elections, released a new report this month detailing the cost of those elections. Their findings? Local governments spent approximately $13.5 million on the recalls, most of which ultimately falls to local taxpayers. In a statement GAB director Kevin Kennedy said, “Instead of conducting two primaries and two elections this year, Wisconsin election officials will be conducting six elections, which added approximately $13.5 million in unbudgeted costs. These unplanned elections also put significant stress on Wisconsin’s clerks, who have many other duties beyond elections.”^[3]

Currently, 18 states permit the recall of state officials. Between 1913 and 2008, there were just 20 state legislative recall elections in five states. Of the 20 state legislative recall elections, 13 out of 20 resulted in the state legislator being recalled. Since 2011, there have been 15 state legislative recalls in three states, five of which resulted in the legislator being recalled.

Sessions

This week 4 out of 50 state legislatures – Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio and Pennsylvania – are meeting in regular session, while Massachusetts is meeting in informal session, which it will continue to do throughout the rest of the year. As of May 16, all states had convened their 2012 sessions.

Forty states have adjourned for the year, while four states – Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, and Texas – were not scheduled to hold regular sessions in 2012.

Regular sessions

See also: Dates of 2012 state legislative sessions

Click here to see a chart of each state’s 2012 session information.

Although most states have concluded 2012 business, some states have already begun 2013 action. Drafting for 2013 has begun in Montana and North Dakota, while prefiling of legislation is going on in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, and Virginia.^[4]

Special sessions

In 2011, special sessions were a widespread occurrence in state legislatures. This was largely due to states’ having to complete the redistricting process for legislative and congressional districts. Overall in 2011, there were 45 special sessions in 28 states.

Since the beginning of 2012, there have been 20 special sessions in 16 states. There are no special sessions currently scheduled.

In recess

As of today, September 24, 4 state’s sessions are currently in recess:

• California – In recess from September 1, 2012 to November 29, 2012.^[5]
• Illinois – In recess from August 17, 2012 to November 27, 2012.^[6]
• New York – In recess from June 22, 2012 to January 7, 2013.^[5]
• Wisconsin – In recess from March 17 to December 31, 2012.^[5]

2012 Legislative Elections

See also: State legislative elections, 2012 and State legislative elections results, 2012

A total of 86 of the 99 chambers will hold state legislative elections on November 6, 2012.

1,301 (65.97%) of the country’s 1,972 state senate seats are up for election in November 2012, and 4,714 (87.12%) of the country’s 5,411 state house seats are up for election. Altogether, 6,015 (81.47%) of the country’s 7,383 state legislative seats will be up for election during the presidential election year.

• 43 of the 50 state senates are holding elections.
• 43 of the 49 state houses are holding elections.

The 6,015 seats up for election is 110 fewer than the 6,125 that were contested in 2010.

 Filing deadlines

See also: Signature requirements and deadlines for 2012 state government elections and 2012 Elections preview: Comparing state legislative filing deadlines

As of July 12, all signature filing deadlines had passed.

Primaries

See also: 2012 election dates

The 2012 state legislative primary session began on March 6 in Ohio and wrapped up for the year in New York on September 13.

A total of 197 state legislative incumbents were defeated in a primary – 123 Republicans and 74 Democrats.

Primaries took place in 44 states in 2012. For a review of what happened, click on the state below:

Greg Janetka
This week’s tracker features a partisan count update and recap of this year’s primary season.

Note: This is an abridged version of the Tracker. For the full report, click here.

Weekly highlight

The 2012 primary season came to an end last Thursday when New York voters went to the polls to make their choices known. The first primary of the year took place in Ohio over six months ago. Between then and September 13 a total of 44 states held primaries for 6,015 of the country’s 7,383 state legislative seats.

According to Louis Jacobson of Governing Magazine, the percent of state legislative turnover from an election was between 14.4 percent and 21.5 percent from 1998 to 2008. However, during the year of redistricting in 2002, that figure jumped to 24 percent. In 2010, the turnover rate was just below 2010, as the GOP boom created a higher than normal exodus of legislators. Because 2012 was another redistricting year, the rate of turnover was expected to once again be higher than usual.^[1]

Redistricting, among other factors, led to the defeat of 197 incumbents in the 2012 legislative primaries – 123 Republicans and 74 Democrats. Four states saw their number of incumbents defeated hit the double-digit mark: New Hampshire – 22, Kansas – 20, Georgia – 12, Tennessee – 12. Six states, meanwhile, saw no incumbents defeated – California, Indiana, Maine, Nebraska, Vermont and Washington. It should be noted that two of these states – California and Washington – use a blanket primary, where all candidates for a seat compete in a single primary with the two candidates receiving the most votes advancing to the general election.

Term limits will also play a role in legislative turnover. Altogether, 248 current state legislators – 79 senators and 169 representatives – will have to leave office after the November elections because of term limits. This is 13.89% of the 1,786 state legislative seats up for election in the 14 term-limited states with 2012 elections, and about 4% of the 6,015 state legislative seats that will be up for election altogether in 2012, including the non-term-limited states.

Between incumbents defeated in primaries and term-limited lawmakers, at least 445 state legislative seats will change hands. Additionally, 947 legislators not subject to term limits chose to retire rather than seek another term. Thus, a minimum of 1,392 new officials will take office following the November 6, 2012 general election.

Partisan Breakdown

As of today, September 17, 2012, the following figures represent the cumulative partisan breakdown of the 50 state senates and 49 state houses. In the 50 states, Republicans currently control 53.5% of all seats while Democrats hold 44.7%. All told, Republicans control 58 chambers while Democrats are the majority in 37 chambers. Three chambers are tied, while one is non-partisan.

The totals represent a loss of 11 Republican and 5 Democratic legislators from the August 13 Tracker.

State Senates

The partisan composition of state senates refers to which political party holds the majority of seats in the state senate. Altogether, in the 50 state senates, there are 1,971 state senators.

As of September 17, 2012, the breakdown of chamber control by party is as follows:

• 19 chambers
• 28 chambers
• 2 chambers (Alaska), (Virginia)
• 1 chamber (Nebraska)

See also: Partisan composition of state houses

Cumulative numbers

As of September 17, 2012, 1,899 state senators are affiliated with either the Republican or Democratic parties.

State Houses

The partisan composition of state houses refers to which party holds the majority of seats in the state house or the lower level of each state legislature. Altogether, in the 49 state houses, there are 5,413 state representatives.

As of September 17, 2012, the breakdown of chamber control by party is as follows:

• 18 chambers
• 30 chambers
• 1 chamber (Oregon)

Cumulative numbers

As of September 17, 2012, 5,354 state representatives are affiliated with either the Republican or Democratic parties.

Sessions

This week 3 out of 50 state legislatures – Michigan, New Jersey and Ohio – are meeting in regular session, while Massachusetts is meeting in informal session, which it will continue to do throughout the rest of the year. As of May 16, all states had convened their 2012 sessions.

Forty states have adjourned for the year, while four states – Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, and Texas – were not scheduled to hold regular sessions in 2012.

Special sessions

In 2011, special sessions were a widespread occurrence in state legislatures. This was largely due to states’ having to complete the redistricting process for legislative and congressional districts. Overall in 2011, there were 45 special sessions in 28 states.

Since the beginning of 2012, there have been 20 special sessions in 16 states. There are no special sessions currently scheduled.